Hotel rates zoom for Democratic National Convention (RATS in Charlotte - 99%ers forgotten)

Charlotte Observer ^ | 12/27/11 | Celeste Smith

[Libloather]

Hotel rates zoom for Democratic National Convention
By Celeste Smith
Posted: Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2011

Room rates are going up in a big way at some area hotels during the Democratic National Convention.

The markups - quadruple or more in some cases - don't affect the convention's official attendees. DNC organizers already reserved rooms and locked in rates for 6,000-plus delegates, VIPs and others during the Sept. 3-6 convention.

**SNIP**

Among the most expensive spaces: Holiday Inn Express Suites East Matthews, charging $849.15 to $1,014 per night during the stretch of Aug. 31 to Sept. 7 and Aug. 24 to Aug. 31, according to the hotel's reservations website. That compares to $126.65 to $184 the week earlier, Aug. 17 to Aug. 24.

At the Quality Inn at Carowinds Fort Mill, rates start at $699 per night during the week before and the week of the convention, compared to $63.86 in the middle of August.

[Libloather]

Free market folks going after Big RAT loot?

[festusbanjo]

Here's the way these things work. In order to have a convention agree to come to your city, the local Convention and Visitors Bureau gets commitments from local hotels for about 110% of the rooms needed. The hotels anticipate filling with attendees at a negotiated discount rate. About 30 days prior to the event the Bureau notifies many of the hotels that they won't need their rooms after all and a large influx of unused rooms flood back in to the market and the rates drop significantly. Anyone reserving now (especially an uncancellable reservation) at such a high rate is a sucker.

[upchuck]

Same thing will happen for the GOP Convention, the Super Bowl, the Kentucky Derby, etc.. It’s called capitalism.

[Caipirabob]

Same thing will happen for the GOP Convention, the Super Bowl, the Kentucky Derby, etc.. It’s called capitalism.

Not quite, when it's the democrats, it's called "prostitution"...

[Venturer]

Gee : This is starting to sound like a Motorcycle Rally.

Daytona, Sturgis, Myrtle Beach, they all double their rates during a rally, Even the hot dog suppliers raise their rates, and in Daytona the gas stations raise their prices during Bike week.

Is it a rip off? Sure, Supply and Demand allows it.

[jmacusa]

No room? No problem. Sleep in a tent. Libs seem to just have a thing for camping out in the middle of a big city.

[jakerobins]

Maybe they are just trying to keep the scummy Dems from staying in Charlotte so they won’t wreck the place......The bad part is the toilet is going to overflow and the rats will cross down into SC. I pity the nice border towns like Rock Hill SC such nice little towns....Although they could probably use the revenue.

[FlingWingFlyer]

I don’t blame them for running up the rates. We all saw Princess Nancy paying $10,000 per night in Hawaii. Hell, Charlotte might as well see what they can squeeze out of the ‘RATS too.

[Darteaus94025]

JACK THOSE FOOLS BIGTIME!!

[trailboss800]

This is because Democrats back charge their credit cards and are also known for suing for no reason. Merchants need to bump the rates to pay for it.

[iopscusa]

Cedar Posts is an interesting local Charlotte blog for on the ground info about this dysfunctional metro, http://cedarposts.blogspot.com/

[ronnie raygun]

Rat loot is American tax payer hard earned money. Isn’t capitalism grand

[hinckley buzzard]

I was out at Sturgis last August, the cabins and such were all gone and the regular motels were about double what I'd guess were normal rates.

I didn't blame them. That's life.

[Steve Van Doorn]

Sooner or later they will call it price gouging and put a cap on hotel rates for themselves