DSC -19 hotel bookings opens in about 8 minutes and counting

Booked the Omni Jan 16-19. Wonder how long it will take to book up this year.

quote:

Originally posted by d.unger:
Booked the Omni Jan 16-19. Wonder how long it will take to book up this year.

Omni it is

Any particular phone number?

Both the Omni and Aloft sold out within 15 minutes. The Omni apparently in 1 minute because we were online and hit "confirm" at 9:01 and it said it was sold out.

Aloft it is.

Greg

quote:

Originally posted by Greg Brownlee:
Both the Omni and Aloft sold out within 15 minutes. The Omni apparently in 1 minute because we were online and hit "confirm" at 9:01 and it said it was sold out.

Aloft it is.

Greg

Us as well..........there is something odd going on there.


.

Confirmed my room at the Omni but it comes with 2 Queens. I'm taking my wife and I don't think she'll appreciate the 2 Queens especially since I didn't get their names. Hmm...

I tried at 9:05AM, and it already told me the Omni was sold out. Very aggravating.

I might not even go this year. I'm definitely not renewing my membership.

My wife and I are in at the Crowne Plaza. Half mile walk is all, so no worries there.

First time to this convention, should be fun.

Jeremy

I wonder if DSC pre books the entire hotel?

I couldn't get through on either phone so I logged on the web link. A friend was logging on at the same time as I was(about 9:02) and didn't get confirmed.

Sounds like a call to the manager there may be in order...
Either ..
1) the room block was pre booked by DSC and rooms were not released or
2) the room block was not properly allocated for "some reason" (hopefully not political)
3) the room block allocation was extremely small (which Karl could clearly find out and tell us)

No way possible it magically sold out the minute it opened...

quote:

No way possible it magically sold out the minute it opened...

I agree 100%, there is something fishy going on..........

.

https://www.weatherbyfoundatio...therby-award-dinner/



Just a heads up, for those who want to stay at the Omni, you might want to think about attending the Weatherby dinner.

See information below on who to contact.



Weatherby Foundation International

Hunting and Conservation Award Dinner

Wednesday, 16 January 2019
Omni Dallas Hotel ~ Dallas, Texas
Cocktails/Silent Auction begin at 5:30 pm

Dinner/Live Auction begin at 6:30 pm

Click Here for Dinner Reservations!
Our 2019 Weatherby Award Gala will once again be held at the beautiful Omni Dallas Hotel in DALLAS, TEXAS. We are honored to be part of the Dallas Safari Club Annual Convention in 2019.

Dinner Reservations: To register for our 62nd annual gala and purchase dinner tickets, please click on the link above or call 866.934.3976 or 480.209.1561. Our cocktail party and silent auction will begin at 5.30 pm and our dinner and live auction will begin at 6.30pm on the third floor of the Omni resort.

Gala Seating: For the BEST seats in the house you may choose to purchase a Premiere table or a Grande table for $10,000 or $5,000, respectively. Both are tables of 10. One additional seat may be added to each table for an additional $250. With the purchase of a Premiere table you receive front row seating, recognition in the program and from the podium, and on-screen and table recognition. With a Grande table the purchaser is entitled to preferred seating and recognition in the evening’s program. The number of Premiere and Grande tables are limited and are reserved on a first-come, first-served basis, so be sure to contact us as soon as possible!

You may also purchase a standard table of ten for $2,500 which will have preferred seating over individual dinner tickets ($250 each). Individual dinner tickets will be seated in the Open Seating area of the ballroom and you may choose any open seat available when you arrive that evening.

Hotel Reservations: Hotel rooms are available at several properties near the convention center. Our host hotel is the Omni Dallas. Room reservations for all hotels will open later this year. It is Weatherby Foundation’s policy that our block of rooms are only reserved for those guests who are attending the Weatherby dinner on Wednesday evening; therefore, you must purchase your dinner tickets prior to reserving a hotel room at any of our hotel properties. Once you book your dinner tickets you will be given a link and a code which will allow you to book your hotel room(s). Only one hotel room reservation for every two dinner tickets is allowed. If more hotel rooms are reserved than is allowed by policy, we will contact you and let you know you must purchase additional dinner tickets or we will have to release your additional hotel rooms you have reserved.

Because the dinner tickets and the hotel rooms are connected through the reservations system, if you find it necessary to cancel your Weatherby dinner tickets for the Gala, your hotel room will be cancelled also.

Questions: If you have any questions or need additional assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us by email at info@weatherbyfoundation.com or by phone at 866.934.3976 or 480.209.1561.

Thank you to everyone for your support of Weatherby Foundation International and we look forward to seeing you in January!

Yeah, I was pretty pissed. Luckily, we had an entire "network" of folks and one of them was able to book the Omnifor us. I personally tried for eleven minutes and when I got through, it was sold out. I just can't believe THAT many rooms were sold out and that fast. Either they are not booking the whole joint, or DSC has a pre-ordained block of rooms. And BTW, the Anatole was not even on their list once I got through, so I went with Hilton direct and booked three rooms. At least its within walking distance.

Not going this year so don't have a dog in the hunt, but hasn't there been a cheerleader convention every year at the same time?
I'm quite sure that a lot of rooms are booked for that & some may have even been booked back in Jan. for the next one.
I know the last time we went I overheard a man saying that he had already booked his room for the following year.
Something to consider.

Just out of curiosity, I called the Dallas Omni and asked if I could book for the 2020 convention, January 9 - 12. They said no, they had no rooms available. I guess the company DSC is using books all the rooms in advance.

Hell, don’t tell them you want a covention reservation. Just see if you can book a room for the appropriate dates. If you can’t, then apparently DSC books the whole hotel

quote:

Originally posted by jorge:
Yeah, I was pretty pissed. Luckily, we had an entire "network" of folks and one of them was able to book the Omnifor us. I personally tried for eleven minutes and when I got through, it was sold out. I just can't believe THAT many rooms were sold out and that fast. Either they are not booking the whole joint, or DSC has a pre-ordained block of rooms. And BTW, the Anatole was not even on their list once I got through, so I went with Hilton direct and booked three rooms. At least its within walking distance.

I stayed at the Hilton Anatole several years ago for the convention and I can absolutely guarantee you it is not within walking distance of the convention center. It is a $20 plus cab ride and at least 20 minutes of time, each way. Check the hotel website map. It’s a good distance west of Kay Bailey down the I35 freeway. It would be essentially impossible to walk because of all the freeway interchanges and number of miles involved.

quote:

Originally posted by jdollar:
Hell, don’t tell them you want a covention reservation. Just see if you can book a room for the appropriate dates. If you can’t, then apparently DSC books the whole hotel

That's what I did, just called reservations and asked for a room January 9th thru 12th, 2020. All three days were sold out according to the person I talked to.

quote:

Originally posted by jdollar:

quote:

Originally posted by jorge:
Yeah, I was pretty pissed. Luckily, we had an entire "network" of folks and one of them was able to book the Omnifor us. I personally tried for eleven minutes and when I got through, it was sold out. I just can't believe THAT many rooms were sold out and that fast. Either they are not booking the whole joint, or DSC has a pre-ordained block of rooms. And BTW, the Anatole was not even on their list once I got through, so I went with Hilton direct and booked three rooms. At least its within walking distance.

I stayed at the Hilton Anatole several years ago for the convention and I can absolutely guarantee you it is not within walking distance of the convention center. It is a $20 plus cab ride and at least 20 minutes of time, each way. Check the hotel website map. It’s a good distance west of Kay Bailey down the I35 freeway. It would be essentially impossible to walk because of all the freeway interchanges and number of miles involved.

The Anatole was walking distance back when it was at Market Hall, but no way now. There are plenty of hotels in downtown. However, walkability depends on the unpredictable Dallas during DSC.

quote:

Originally posted by jdollar:

quote:

Originally posted by jorge:
Yeah, I was pretty pissed. Luckily, we had an entire "network" of folks and one of them was able to book the Omnifor us. I personally tried for eleven minutes and when I got through, it was sold out. I just can't believe THAT many rooms were sold out and that fast. Either they are not booking the whole joint, or DSC has a pre-ordained block of rooms. And BTW, the Anatole was not even on their list once I got through, so I went with Hilton direct and booked three rooms. At least its within walking distance.

I stayed at the Hilton Anatole several years ago for the convention and I can absolutely guarantee you it is not within walking distance of the convention center. It is a $20 plus cab ride and at least 20 minutes of time, each way. Check the hotel website map. It’s a good distance west of Kay Bailey down the I35 freeway. It would be essentially impossible to walk because of all the freeway interchanges and number of miles involved.

You are correct.

quote:

Originally posted by Poyntman:
Sounds like a call to the manager there may be in order...
Either ..
1) the room block was pre booked by DSC and rooms were not released or
2) the room block was not properly allocated for "some reason" (hopefully not political)
3) the room block allocation was extremely small (which Karl could clearly find out and tell us)

No way possible it magically sold out the minute it opened...

I'm currently in Harare, headed home from Dande North. I will be home this weekend and will contact our housing provider and will provide no BS answers to these questions. Staff tells me the Omni sold out in 19 minutes.

quote:

Originally posted by K Evans:

quote:

Originally posted by Poyntman:
Sounds like a call to the manager there may be in order...
Either ..
1) the room block was pre booked by DSC and rooms were not released or
2) the room block was not properly allocated for "some reason" (hopefully not political)
3) the room block allocation was extremely small (which Karl could clearly find out and tell us)

No way possible it magically sold out the minute it opened...

I'm currently in Harare, headed home from Dande North. I will be home this weekend and will contact our housing provider and will provide no BS answers to these questions. Staff tells me the Omni sold out in 19 minutes.

'Hope you had a great hunt. But yeah, this is outa control. Some of us have a few, although minor, other interests at times.
Thanks for your help.

BTT

Here is my theory while we wait for Karl to get to the bottom of this.

The Omni has about 1000 rooms.

DSC does have to reserve some rooms for dignitaries, speakers, and some staff/volunteers that have to be onsite 24/7 during convention.

A couple of hundred Weatherby attendees, upwards of 4000 DSC members and over 900 exhibitors are all waiting with their finger hovering over the mouse button when the clock hits 9:00. There has to be a limit to the number of simultaneous connections/phone calls that the system can handle. Every person that does not get through immediately makes another attempt as fast as they can. Each person that does get through can book up to 3 rooms. Once a person is connected the system has to hold 3 rooms until they finish the booking process. If they took less than 3 rooms the surplus rooms go back into the pool. I think the volume overwhelms the system.

No matter what happens there will be a lot of people that can't stay at the Omni.

Never been but I will be here:

Antique Arms Show
25-27 Jan 19, Las Vegas, NV

Met up with some good folks, Engravers show was there too. Nothing like the old Riviera days but still a nice show.

quote:

Originally posted by DrScott:
Here is my theory while we wait for Karl to get to the bottom of this.

The Omni has about 1000 rooms.

DSC does have to reserve some rooms for dignitaries, speakers, and some staff/volunteers that have to be onsite 24/7 during convention.

A couple of hundred Weatherby attendees, upwards of 4000 DSC members and over 900 exhibitors are all waiting with their finger hovering over the mouse button when the clock hits 9:00. There has to be a limit to the number of simultaneous connections/phone calls that the system can handle. Every person that does not get through immediately makes another attempt as fast as they can. Each person that does get through can book up to 3 rooms. Once a person is connected the system has to hold 3 rooms until they finish the booking process. If they took less than 3 rooms the surplus rooms go back into the pool. I think the volume overwhelms the system.

No matter what happens there will be a lot of people that can't stay at the Omni.

Dr, all very true sir, but I've had no issues booking in previous years with the same factors in place. jorge

I was not expecting to get a room this year at the omni ,I am on a wireless internet out hear in the sticks at a speed of 3 mbps , now that's slow! but must have pushed the button at just the right time and got the room, glad I did , I work the coffee carts in the mornings help out where I can so it helps staying at the omni .

From what I am seeing here, not much chance for ever getting a room at the Omni now or in the future. I guess I will limit my attendance to day trips.

We never try the Omni. Always the A-Loft. We never have an issue.

quote:

Originally posted by Cazador humilde:

quote:

Originally posted by K Evans:

quote:

Originally posted by Poyntman:
Sounds like a call to the manager there may be in order...
Either ..
1) the room block was pre booked by DSC and rooms were not released or
2) the room block was not properly allocated for "some reason" (hopefully not political)
3) the room block allocation was extremely small (which Karl could clearly find out and tell us)

No way possible it magically sold out the minute it opened...

I'm currently in Harare, headed home from Dande North. I will be home this weekend and will contact our housing provider and will provide no BS answers to these questions. Staff tells me the Omni sold out in 19 minutes.

'Hope you had a great hunt. But yeah, this is outa control. Some of us have a few, although minor, other interests at times.
Thanks for your help.

OK, here is the story regarding rooms and associated problems no BS...

The Omni hotel has about 1000 rooms, of which DSC gets 950 (more on this later), DSC holds back enough rooms for staff, foreign dignitaries, service providers that must be immediately available (video, IT,etc) and "surprise" VIP's (USFWS, congressmen, etc.), usually this amounts to 30-35 rooms.
Except for Tuesday night...our previous executive director signed an agreement with the OMNI that allows them to keep 300 rooms that they may sell on Tuesday night at whatever rate they set. We learned of this only a few months ago and the Omni refused to void the agreement. I'm not sure if this was a one year deal but I can't see us allowing it to happen again. This could be a major part of the reason the DSC block filled so fast.

The company handling the booking process admits they were overwhelmed by the number of calls (this wasn't their first rodeo, done it 5 or 6 years) they had only 10 phone operators locally and 10 in another location (Las Vegas, I believe)and those 20 operators apparently put more than a few callers on hold and either didn't return or lost the call.

There was a problem with the software used for booking (Passkey) whereby once a person started the booking process, the software didn't "hold" a room or rooms while credit card and other info was being entered (which takes anywhere from 1 to 3 minutes, depending on how fast a person can type and did not auto populate multiple bookings maximum 3), allowing the room being booked to be sold to someone else. Another software problem would not allow a person to book multiple nights, say Thurs, Fri, Sat, if one of the nights was filled...didn't give the option to book the other nights.

All rooms with the exception of the rooms mentioned above were released and were available for bookings. We have a staff member working full time trying to get things straightened out and I'm certain that either the lack of operator and software issues will be worked out or another provider will be handling our bookings. I'm sorry for the frustration and aggravation this issue has caused.

Thank you very much for the follow up and update Karl

Thanks very much for the no-nonsense post, Karl. See you then! Jorge & Dawna

quote:

Originally posted by jorge:
Thanks very much for the no-nonsense post, Karl. See you then! Jorge & Dawna

See you in January, looking forward to it.