The Key Details to Hotel Room Blocks

Booking room blocks for weddings can be daunting, stressful, and take more time than necessary, which is exactly why we offer room block assistance in our Full Service Wedding Planning package! However, if you need room block assistance but haven’t booked our package, we’re still here to help you! Coming from a planner who used to work in hotels, I’ve crafted a blog post that walks through everything you need to know when booking hotel room blocks.

Photo By: Laurel Murphy

What is a hotel Room Block?

“A hotel room block is a reserved block of rooms at a specific hotel, often at a discounted rate, held for guests attending a particular event or wedding, allowing them to easily find and book accommodations.” - Google 

Do You Need a Room Block?

While you don’t need a room block, it is common courtesy to your guests to have a few designated places they can book a hotel. Room blocks are nice because the hotels you book at typically offer your guests a discounted rate, and you can do 2-3 different hotels with different price ranges so your guests don’t have to do hotel research on their own.

However, as mentioned above you do not need a room block. Booking room blocks can cause a major headache, so instead, you can let your guests know ahead of time (via your wedding website or invitations) what hotels are close by, and your guests can handle booking their own rooms without a room block. This has become a much more preferred method for couples, since most guests will choose to stay wherever they feel most comfortable anyway, regardless of your room blocks. Some guests choose to rent an Airbnb, stay with friends, or book a hotel you didn’t get a room block with because they’re a member there or get points for staying at specific hotels.

How to Book a Hotel Room Block

Research what hotels are closest to your venue, and call them to let the sales team know you’re interested in booking hotel room blocks. It’s important to book a Courtesy Room Block, instead of a Contracted Room Block. This means that whatever amount of rooms the hotel sets aside, if they’re not booked, you as the couple won’t have to pay for them. If you book a contracted room block, that means the venue will set aside about 10 rooms or more, and have you sign a contract that states if the rooms are not booked by your guests before the wedding date, you as the couple will be responsible for paying for these rooms.

When you book a courtesy block, the hotel typically sets aside about 5 -10 rooms for your guests to book. If all 10 of those rooms get filled, then the hotel will call you to let you know, and you would then decide if you’d like to add more rooms to the courtesy block, or if you’d like to cap the room blocks there. The number of rooms you will need vary, but my best reccommendation is to start small, then add more rooms as needed. If you go in from the beginning telling hotels you need 20 room blocks, they will most likely have you sign a contract. If you instead ask for a courtesy block of 10 rooms, then add more as those rooms get filled, you can get away with not having to pay for any rooms that aren’t filled.

I have had couples not listen to my advice, where they get into contract for 20 room blocks because they have a lot of out of town guests, thinking the guests will all book rooms at the hotel where the couple recommended. Then by the time the wedding rolled around, the couple found out only 3 rooms were booked in their block, because the majority of their guests ended up getting Airbnbs. The couple then had to pay for 17 unfilled hotel rooms ($250 a night) because they signed a contract thinking all rooms would be full. Please don’t make this mistake, I want to save you from financial burden!

Courtesy vs Contracted

Contract: A contracted hotel room block is a group of rooms a hotel reserves for a specific event or group, typically at a discounted rate, with a contract outlining obligations like minimum bookings and potential penalties for unbooked rooms. A contracted block guarantees a certain number of rooms will be available for your group, and the hotel won't release them to the general public until after a specified cut-off date. Hotels often require a minimum number of rooms to be booked, and if you don't meet that minimum, you may be charged for the unbooked rooms. 

Courtesy: A courtesy hotel room block is a block of rooms reserved for a group event (like a wedding) where the hotel holds the rooms for a specific period, but there's no financial obligation to fill them, meaning you won't be charged for unbooked rooms after a certain cut-off date. Unlike a guaranteed or contracted block, with a courtesy block, you don't have to pay for rooms that guests don't book, and there are no penalties for not filling the block. Courtesy Block Rooms are not guaranteed: The hotel can sell out the rooms to other guests if they are not booked by your guests before the cut-off date, so keep this in mind.

How Many Rooms Should You Block?

The number of rooms you will need vary, but my best reccommendation is to start small (5 -10), then add more rooms as needed. If you go in from the beginning telling hotels you need 20 room blocks, they will most likely have you sign a contract. If you instead ask for a courtesy block of 10 rooms, then add more as those rooms get filled, you can get away with not having to pay for any rooms that aren’t filled.

When you book a courtesy block, the hotel typically sets aside about 5 -10 rooms anyways for your guests to book. If all 10 of those rooms get filled, then the hotel will call you to let you know, and you would then decide if you’d like to add more rooms to the courtesy block, or if you’d like to cap the room blocks there.

When to Book Hotel Blocks

I recommend booking your hotel blocks anywhere from 6 - 12 months out from your wedding date. The month you get married in will play a drastic role in when to book your blocks. For example, late spring and summer wedding months are typically filled with a lot of sports tournaments traveling, which can impact courtesy block requests, so you and your guests will need to book your rooms months in advance. You’ll need to keep an eye on any events going on the month of and week of your wedding, because any major event like a conference, concert, or tournament can impact the number of room availability hotels have.

If you do have an event coming up in the city you’re getting married in, make sure to let your guests know to book their hotel rooms in advance before the hotels are sold out. I reccommend doing this by putting up a tab on your wedding website and invitations to let guests know early on not to wait until the last minute to book their rooms.

How do Guests Book Under Your Block?

Guests can book rooms under your room block either by using a special link the hotel gives you, or by a reservation code. Once you book the room block, the hotel will then send over guest booking information, and you can put all the details on your wedding website, save the dates, and invitations. I reccommend you put the hotel room block info in as many places as you can so it’s easy for guests to find. Make sure your guests are also aware of the cutoff date, so they can book before the discounted rate goes offline.

Do You Need More Than One Hotel?

It will all depend on how many out of town guests you have coming to your wedding, but I always reccommend my couples have at least two hotel blocks with different price points so your guests can pick which hotel is right for them. Before booking your room blocks, I reccommend researching what hotels are close to your venue, and what their average pricing is so you can make the best decision.