Organizing group travel can seem like a daunting task. However, the advent of cell phone, email, and the world wide web has made this a considerably easier task. This article will focus on organizing the lodging arrangements for a group but the means and methods can be also applied to other aspects of group travel.
1. Determine your destination. If you’re traveling as a group, chances are you’ve reached a group consensus on where you’d like to go. However, this is an important first step because it narrows your market for lodging choices.
2. How many people will be staying and for how long? A simple email poll of the travelers will yield replies that you can compile to figure out the lodging requirements. Of course, the long pole in the tent will be the people staying the longest.
3. Find a place to stay. There are many options depending on the size of your party and how amenable they are to staying in the same place. If a hotel is most suitable, call around and get group rates for 5 hotels in the area, then present to results to your group for another vote. If your group plays well together, consider renting a house or condo. There are many places on the web that rent houses. Pick 5 houses or condos that meet your sleeping requirements and compose an email with hyperlinks to each and let your party help you decide.
4. Make the reservations. As the organizer, you’ll make reservations for the entire group. If it is a hotel, you may be required to reserve rooms for everyone or the hotel may simply provide a code for people in your party to use when they reserve their rooms. For a house or condo, you’ll probably pay a deposit. Be sure to ask the property management folks what additional fees apply if any so you can determine the total cost for the residence. In both cases, be sure to find out the details for cancellation in case someone in your party finds out at the last minute that they can’t come.
5. Get the word out. Once the reservations are made, send another email with the details about the lodging choice you’ve made. Be sure to include the phone number, address, check-in time, cost, and reservation/cancellation instructions. With email, it is very easy to include hyperlinks to the lodging place itself as well as driving directions.
6. Figuring fair shares. If you’ve chosen a house or condo, you may have to do some higher math to figure out how much each person or family will owe, especially if folks are coming and going on different days. One equitable way to do this is to divide the total cost by the number of nights to get the nightly cost. Then, you can divide the nightly cost by the number of adults staying each night. This will yield the per person cost for each night. Finally, add up the nightly costs for each person to get that person’s total.
7. Arrival. Cell phones make great tools for connecting with people. As the organizer, be sure you have everyone’s number before you depart. You’ll be able to monitor arrivals and help with any questions or unforeseen circumstances that arise.
8. Enjoy your stay and collecting payment. If you chose a house or condo, you’ll need to collect payment. One way to do this is provide each guest with an envelope with their total printed on the outside. A friendly reminder on the night prior to their departure may also help ensure you’re not stuck with the bill.
Arrangement lodging for a group takes some planning, good communication, and consideration for the people you’re traveling with. Armed with a good plan, you can handle this important job with ease.
