My first GenCon. Husband has went before. I can understand the frustration..but its simply a situation of supply and demand.

I like the minimum 3 day stay rule (with saturday included) as it makes sure people who want the longer stay have a better chance of getting it (as opposed to selling out all fri and sat nights as 2 night stays). In fact, I wish the restriction was even longer such as requiring wed-sun minimum and then opening to shorter stays later.

Anyways, if any rooms are left over from the block, the hotel will surely try and sell those at a later time (although I doubt many will be left except maybe wed).

No, I think the complaint is that even though you can't book a 3-night stay any longer because Saturday is sold out, you also can't book Wed/Th through the housing portal, even though there are downtown rooms available for both those nights.

So the 3-night minimum rule is preventing someone from booking an available downtown room for at least part of the con, even though they can't book the 3 nights because one of them is completely sold out.

I get the frustration there, it's a poor limitation - I like the 3-night minimum, but I think once it's impossible to book the 3 nights they should open the rooms that are available without the 3-night requirement.

The Westin Indianapolis is not available for 08/03/2016 - 08/07/2016. To find availability for The Westin Indianapolis, change dates and search again. See other available hotels below.

There was a similar response from the Hyatt.

But that's missing the point, which AGAIN, is that GenCon's rules are preventing us booking Available rooms in their block, despite having IMMEDIATELY filled the Saturday (and likely Friday) nights.

It is more likely that they are trying to push us to fill Rooms OUTSIDE of the Downtown area for longer terms. 

Whatever the case--GenCon is making us do what's best for them, rather than serving the needs of the customer as best as it can.

Given the number of people scrambling for alternate/contingency rooms, the hotel websites will have availability that goes up and down as people make and cancel reservations.  As of 7:20 PM CST on 24 January 2016, the JW Marriott has rooms for Wed and Thu night, at heartstopping rates, but not for Sat night.  By the time that you check the stituation may have changed.

The Le Meridien's rates are better for Wed-Thu availability but are still quite high.

Have hope: last year, I was at the Hilton Garden Inn by the airport.  In June or July, I was bouncing between the several hotels downtown as other people canceled and made rooms or days available.  I eventually ended up at the Westin.

Double Post--Apologies.

Also just rechecked the checked the JW Marriot, Crowne Plaza, Hyatt, Westin.  None have any available rooms out of block for the GenCon days.

So even at a much higher cost, there aren't rooms available outside of block in many places.  There are a few, as someone stated--about $450 a night.

But again--not addressing my actual concern.  I simply wanted rooms that others didn't immediately want (to actually FILL OUT their blocks), in hopes of picking up the other rooms, as things shifted.

GenCon has chosen to BLOCK my ability to do that, and make it impossible to get on a wait list (as in years past).

I'm NOT trying to cherry pick rooms.  I wanted Wednesday through Sunday--EXACTLY what they claim to want me to do.  ALL my efforts have been circling around working towards that, but GenCon has hampered me in doing that.

If you think that making it difficult for your customer to do exactly what you want them to do (or so they claim), then you're doing a very poor job.   I WANT to fill up those room blocks, and GenCon's system is preventing that.

But I didn't think about the fact that they want to fill those other rooms in their blocks away from downtown.  THAT'S probably the issue, which would explain the otherwise nonsensical "explanations."
 

Now GenCon is preventing me from even getting into that initial step.  That's horrible customer care.

I could wait to resolve it, but what GenCon apparently wants me to do is sit at a computer and refresh it constantly until I can MAYBE find an open Saturday, and then NOT have someone snag it while I'm entering my information (that already happened today).

Again--horrible customer care.

Greengirl22, Gen Con's CAPRICIUS and REPREHENSIBLE hotel policy is a direct ATTACK on you and an obvious AFFRONT to all that is holy in this world. Let's burn these bastards at the stake!
 

Hilton, Alexander and Candlewood have rooms: $693, $485, $384

Hey look, she's upset because she can't get a room, and we've all been there, please don't make it any worse by attacking her, ok?

Austickle:  I said nothing of the sort.

Marimaccadmin:  No--I'm not upset because I can't get a room.  I totally understand there is high demand and I have  no more right to those rooms than anyone else.

I'm upset, because of the policy--as I've explained many times now.  That is that there ARE (or were) rooms available in low demand (Wednesday and Thursday), and GenCon's policies preventied me from booking those Low-demand rooms, so I can enjoy SOME of GenCon.

I'm "upset" because I'm explaining to you as the customer the ACTUAL PROBLEM that your policies are causing--preventing me from patronizing your Con, and you're answer is "well, we're doing what's best for us." 

If your job is customer service, you should understand that is a really bad response.

If I wasn't able to get the Friday and Saturday--so be it.  That is NOT EVER what I claimed was the problem. 

All I wanted to do was take the REMAINING rooms that WERE available in the block.  But for some reason, DESPITE having quickly booked all of those Fridays and Saturdays GenCon wants to keep me from booking the other days.

I am completely opposed to forgoing the current housing restrictions just because there are currently wed and thurs nights available, at least until much later once it is clear that these rooms will not be booked. I remember looking at downtown rooms closer to the convention last year and not finding many thursdays downtown available so its possible that they will end up being added to current reservations.

My preference would be to expand the restriction to only allow wed-sun reservations first for downtown and then open it up at a later date for shorter reservations. I think it'd be a good idea for them to open up the housing restrictions at a later date to allow additional in block bookings, but I don't know if this is even a possibility with their agreement with the hotels.