Visit Athens Housing Services FAQ

The Visit Athens online housing services portal provides easy management, real-time tracking, and optimal user experience for meeting planners and attendees. Here are some answers to questions that planners and attendees may have about using the online housing portal.

Booking

1. How do I book a room?

   • Once your housing portal opens, use the link provided by your event planner to book your room(s). Enter your check-in and check-out dates and click the "Search" button to be shown a list of hotels matching your search criteria. From there, select your hotel of choice and you will be taken through the booking process.  Please see video below:
   • Once the housing portal has closed, we are no longer able to accept reservations. Please reach out to the hotels directly to inquire about availability.  It is at the hotel's discretion whether they will offer the room at the special group rate. Hotel contact information can be found here.

2. How do I edit my reservation?

   • If the housing portal is open, select "Manage Existing Reservation" at the top right of the screen on the housing portal. You will need the acknowledgment number and the email associated with the reservations you wish to modify.
   • If the housing portal has closed, we are unable to make cancellations or modifications to reservations. Once you receive your final hotel confirmation number, please contact the hotel directly to cancel or modify your reservation. Hotel contact information can be found here.

3. There are no rooms showing as available, what do I do?

   • Please continue to monitor the housing portal for room availability or book outside the room blocks with a hotel directly. The housing portal consistently updates to reflect the most current inventory availability for rooms at the group’s contracted rate.
      

4. Why does the hotel say there is availability when I call, but your website shows no availability?

   • The hotels have a block of rooms set aside for your event, but will not receive final booking information until the housing portal has closed, approximately 30 days before your check-in. Rest assured, the availability at the group rate is accurately displayed on the Housing Services booking portal.

5. Is there a waitlist?

   • Unfortunately, the system does not allow for a waitlist. We recommend you continue to monitor the housing portal for room availability or book outside the room blocks with a hotel directly.

Billing & Payment

6. If you need an invoice or would like to pay by check:

   • Your hotel invoice information will not be available until after the housing portal has closed, typically 30 days prior to your check in date. Once you've received a final hotel confirmation email, contact the hotel directly to request an invoice and, if necessary, arrange payment via check. Please note that all hotels require a credit card on file for reservations, and many hotels require checks to be delivered two weeks prior to check in.
      

7. Will the hotel charge a deposit/hold amount on my credit card when I make the reservation through the housing portal?

   • No, a credit card is necessary to confirm your reservation, but will not be charged until your arrival. All hotels require a credit card to remain on file for any reservations for potential incidental charges. This is the policy set in place by the hotels and is not something that Visit Athens has implemented.
      

8. Tax Exempt Form info

   • If you wish to submit tax exempt forms for your upcoming stay, you must contact the hotel directly before your check-in date. The hotels will be able to advise you on their individual hotel policies and provide further directions.
      

Acknowledgements & Confirmations

9. What is the difference between an acknowledgment number and a confirmation number?

   • An acknowledgment number is a number that guarantees your reservation has been received in the housing portal. This acts as the reference number for your reservation while the housing portal is open. Once the housing portal has closed you will receive a final hotel confirmation number. Please do not be concerned if your hotel cannot reference your acknowledgement number - they will not be able to access full booking information for your event until closer to 30 days prior to your check in date. Please contact Visit Athens Housing Services support for any questions or concerns.
      

10. Why doesn’t the hotel have a record of my reservation?

    • The hotels have a block of rooms set aside for your event, but will not receive final booking information (including your name) until your housing portal has closed, approximately 30 days before your check-in. If you have received an acknowledgment email from booking through the Housing Services reservation portal, rest assured that your reservation has been received.

Housing Portal Overview

11. Why is there a 15-minute time limit to book my reservation?

    • This time limit exists in accordance with security standards set in place by the PCI Security Standards Council for collecting payment information. This helps us to keep your payment information safe and secure.

12. Why can’t I copy and paste the same name into multiple reservations?

    • For safety and security purposes the hotel requires a unique name should be listed for each guest staying in the room. When the same or similar information is provided to book multiple reservations these would be considered duplicate reservations. Duplicate reservations are flagged by our booking system, and any hotel system, to minimize any accidental double bookings and prevent any loss to the guest and the hotel.

General

13. What is Visit Athens Housing Services? Why are we using it?

    • The event planner for your conference/event works with Visit Athens to set aside a designated number of rooms at various hotels in the area. This is called a room block and locks in a set number of rooms at a lower price for event attendees. Visit Athens Housing Services creates a customized portal with all participating hotels’ details and real-time availability - all in one easy location for your upcoming event.

14. Will there be shuttles to take me between my hotel and The Classic Center?

    • Transportation options vary based on your event. Please contact your event/conference planner for your organization to see what options they may have arranged. If your event does not provide transportation, please see a list of transportation options here.
       

15. How far is my hotel from The Classic Center?

The table below lists all hotels inside Athens-Clarke County by distance from The Classic Center. Scroll down for an interactive map for location of and directions to each hotel.

Map of Athens Hotels