My apologies. Won’t happen again.
It’s the one thing I look forward too that does not involve my significant other and sincerely hope it goes on.
G
Sadly, my group's plans all involved non-refundable cash that is now temporarily refundable until April 30. That means if I don't hear in April, and we don't bow out, then my group will potentially lose a lot of money (primarily on empty pre-paid hotel rooms). So that's our deadline, thanks to Marriott's cancellation policy. I assume it 99.9% likely we will have to cancel as a result, even if the Con goes on. More hotel space for the rest of you!
CANCELLATION POLICY All room assignments are subject to cancellation fees. Assignments cancelled before 11:59 pm (Eastern), June 8, 2020 are subject to a $50 USD cancellation fee per room. Room assignments canceled after June 8, 2020 are subject to a cancellation fee equal to one night room charge per room. Cancellation fees will be automatically charged to the credit card on file, and Q-rooms LLC will be listed as the charge originator on the credit card statements. No exceptions or refunds will be granted.
I suspect cancellation/refund policies may be changed by many companies. I was contacted by Delta about a different flight I had to cancel. They had originally given me 1 year to redeem the credit towards another flight--they emailed to say I now have until May 2022 to redeem the credit. And a travel agent friend of mine is saying that the airlines are catching a lot of heat and are being pressured to offer full refunds rather than credit.
I'd think a company would catch a lot of heat for not changing refund policies in this environment.
Still, a given person/group might decide they have to cancel before they hear about changed policies. But if I were a betting man, I'd bet on those policies changing to reflect the global pandemic.
(On the plus side, the wedding I was supposed to be flying to this last weekend still happened--and I was able to attend on my couch, as they hosted the small (<10 people) ceremony via Zoom :) I dressed to the nines and ate some mini cupcakes to celebrate. A lot of the families were able to 'be there' as well. Kinda cool.)
https://www.gencon.com/attend/housing_travel#Cancellation%20Policy
I promise I'm not trying to be deliberately dense here - I've been thinking about hedging my bets as to whether I'll be attending Evo or Gen Con this year depending on which one actually goes off, and I've been considering getting a badge and hotel room to claim a spot. But if I can't get my money back for the hotel...yeah.
There's no refund since you don't get charged the full room fee until after you actually stay. Until June 8, if you cancel, they will then charge you $50. After June 8, they will charge you one night. Around mid-July, when the housing block closes, some hotels will charge you for a single night, and if you cancel after that, then that's the cancellation fee.
If Gen Con does get cancelled, it's likely they'll change the room & badge refund policies, so what's posted above is only meaningful if you cancel your room before the Con gets cancelled (if it does at all).
Mike Boozer Customer Service & Event Team Manager Gen Con LLC
In case you guys forgot....
I have a new statement from your friends at Gen Con:
Question: If Gen Con 2020 is canceled, will I be able to get a refund?
Answer: In the event that a cancellation or postponement of Gen Con 2020 is announced, we will offer multiple options for attendees to roll their badges forward to Gen Con 2021, or to request a refund.
No details on this at this right now (I know I'll be asked ;))
Hmm...
So if Gen Con is cancelled we still get hit with a $50 cancellation fee for the hotels?
Apologies for my iPhone use.
Marriott International just announced that anyone who has advanced purchase or non-refundable rooms through the pandemic can cancel with no charge or a full refund up to 24 hours prior to the stay.
For guests with existing reservations for any future arrival date, including reservations with pre-paid rates that are typically more restrictive, we will allow full changes or cancellation without a charge up to 24 hours prior to arrival, as long as the change or cancellation is made by June 30, 2020. Please note that any changes to existing reservations will be subject to availability and any rate differences. For guests making new reservations for any future arrival date, including reservations with pre-paid rates, between March 13 and June 30, 2020, we will allow the reservation to be changed or cancelled at no charge up to 24 hours before your scheduled arrival date.
For guests making new reservations for any future arrival date, including reservations with pre-paid rates, between March 13 and June 30, 2020, we will allow the reservation to be changed or cancelled at no charge up to 24 hours before your scheduled arrival date.
Yeah Hilton has something very similar to that going currently; I imagine the non-refundable deadline will eventually be moved to cover Gen-Con's dates if that becomes a necessity.
Though I really am serious that I am considering going and staying in Indianapolis even if the convention is cancelled, haha. I could still eat at Sugarfire Smokehouse and read gaming books in my hotel room!
(ha)
Anyway, I would suspect that Q-Rooms, who is really who in-block room contracts are with at this point, would follow suit.