2016 Hamvention Trip!

Who's going?

List of Invitees
CALLSIGN	NAME	STATUS	FLY/DRIVE	ROOM
AD8BC	Bill	Going	Drive?
KG5LAT	Mike	Going	Drive?
KE5GDB	Andrew	Going	Driving	2
N5AET	Landon	Going	Driving	2
K5ICR	Morris	Going	Driving	2
N5KH	Will	Maybe	Fly
KA9MDP	Bob	Stay Tuned	Fly
K5FPP	Dhirin	Maybe	Fly
N2VIP	Ken	Maybe	?
N5KRG	Kevin	Maybe	?
KG5HNZ	Joe	Maybe	?
KA5TXL	Larry	Maybe	Driving
N5BSA	Max	noRSVP	?
N5BKL	James	noRSVP	?

Itinerary

Wednesday - Arrive in Dayton
Thursday - Visit the National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright-Patterson AFB, brief stop at Mendelson's Liquidation Outlet
Friday-Sunday - HAMVENTION!
Sunday - Return home

Transportation

To/From Dayton

Generally each participant needs to come up with their own travel arrangements to the Dayton area. Last year, Will and I flew together, Ken flew into Cleveland on a dirt cheap ticket and rented a car and drove, Max and Bob flew on their own, and James drove there as part of a family vacation. And it all worked out quite nicely. Just about perfectly.

I'll make my own fly/drive decision come late February or March, as their is usually someone else interested in renting a trailer and driving up and maybe getting a flea market spot, and most of the time we decide not to. If I decide to drive, you're welcome to ride/drive along and just share the gas. If I decide to fly, I'm willing to make the air reservations, you'll save on checked bag fees if you fly with me.

If you fly on my reservation, please note that the tickets will be non-refundable. If for some reason you need to cancel, I will do whatever possible to get you the remaining value from your ticket, but I cannot guarantee this.

Of course, flying directly to Dayton is the most convenient, but Cincinnati and Columbus are close enough to drive. The last few years, flying into Columbus was the cheapest (from Dallas). If you are not flying with someone that will be renting a car, it's probably best to fly to Dayton so you can be picked up from the airport.

AS OF TODAY, JANUARY 9, these are sample airfares (from DFW) arriving Wednesday evening and departing Sunday afternoon:

DFW => DAYTON (DAY) $389

DFW => Columbus (CMH) $321

DFW => Cincinnati (CVG) $413

Rental Car

Usually rental car and gas split among those who share a car. I usually rent a car and donate a few free days, if we have more than a few people we will need someone to volunteer to rent another vehicle.

Hotel Arrangements

I have four rooms booked at Holiday Inn Express-Dayton North - Tipp City, 1100 West Main Street, Tipp City, Ohio. Each room has two queen beds. I'm assuming two people sharing a room, unless your really friendly, which I'm not.

Each room, including taxes, is $600 for the weekend, $300/each for double occupancy.

Due to early interest I have booked a fifth "overflow" room at the same hotel, it is $620 for the four nights but it is unknown if it is a single king or a double queen, and we won't know until checkin.

I continuously look for better deals, or similar pricing at extended-stay locations for Holiday Inn and Marriott properties. A few years ago I was able to get two bedroom suites at a Marriott Residence Inn near Wright-Patterson Air Force Base for about the same price, but those rates are hovering around $230/night now.

I will keep all of these rooms booked until the Friday prior to Hamvention (I can cancel them up until the day before).

Hamvention Parking

Don't bother buying the bus pass! Nearby parking is $20/vehicle in a private yard that I have used for the past 11 years. It's nice and close!

Legal Disclaimer

I only have one hard and fast rule: If you stay in one of the hotel rooms I book, you're responsible for your share of all four nights, whether you come later than Wednesday or leave earlier than Sunday. One year I went with a group from Michigan, and some guys left a day earlier and it got into a mathematical mess figuring out exact shares.

My only other rule is I'm not stickler for exactness when I calculate who owes what for sharing gas and rental car with me. I'll let you know what I paid and you can pitch in what you feel is fair. Life is too short to do math!