New venue for TAM5?

[DanishDynamite]

Greetings,

But the room prices as a "serious concern" have not been eliminated. You simply admitted that your price was too high due to the fact that you were a late arrival. Simply put, there is no place with a wider range of room rates than Las Vegas, especially when you add in all of the other benefits that exist there.

It's possible that you are correct, and that no other place in the US has as cheap rates for hotel rooms as Las Vegas. Well, at least any place with a large convention room. But I doubt it. Hutch has already posted a few suggestions for a new venue. I think it would be worthwhile to investigate these suggestions further.

As for other concerns, why haven't you addressed any of the things that I said in my earlier posts?

Sorry. I'll get right on it.

To refresh your memory, I said:

In order for some other US city to match the price that is possible in Vegas (including airfare, hotel, meals, etc...), the attendees would have to give up a large number of the things that Vegas offers (including tremendous variety in regard to food, entertainment, activities, etc). And do not forget that Vegas also offers connections to some very influential people that assist in many ways with the event.

Firstly, the tremendous variety in regard to food, entertainment, activities, etc, have already been enjoyed by those who attended an earlier TAM. So nothing enticing there.

Secondly, is the purported connections to very influential people essential for a TAM? If so, how? And if these influential people support TAM, is there some reason they can't support it somewhere else?

(Please read that last sentence again. In fact, read it twice if necessary since it was ignored the first time it was posted. And if you do not believe that this is a big deal, who will step up to the plate and replace those "connections"--especially on the financial side of the equation?)

I've re-read it. I've also questioned it's significance in regard to Las Vegas being the venue.

TAM is about what is best for the event, and what is best for JREF. After all, it is the once-a-year fund raising event for the organization. With that said, let those that work so hard to make everything happen decide what is best.

Agreed.

Sure, it is fine to discuss other options, but I believe that the vacation-club attitude is rather self-centered.

I disagree. I want TAM to be a success. Some people have already attended one or more TAMs. Such people are already on Randi's side and most have intimate knowledge of what the speakers will say. They are already part of the "choir", so to speak.

I for one, enjoyed the speakers, but I didn't learn anything really new. I would appreciate if there was some additional reason for "prior-attendees" to attend again. And I don't think I'm the only one.

Please realize that I understand what you are saying--and I sympathize. However, when it comes to organizing an important event such as TAM, the personal vacation desires of certain individuals are simply not as high on the priority list as other things--such as overall cost, solid business connections, convenience for the organizers, after-hours activities, etc...

And if it turns out that no other venue is possible, so be it. I'm just not sure I'd attend. And I want as many people to attend as possible.

To be honest, the most encouraging thing about this poll is that as of the date for this post, there are only a few dozen people that have voted. Considering the size of the crowd at TAM3, I can only assume that most of the attendees simply care more about the event than their own vacation plans.

I'm saddended that you think this way. You seem to imply that I don´t care about the TAM, when the reverse is true.

 

[DanishDynamite]

Let us not forget for one moment, that forumites only make up 10% of the attendees at TAM.

And let us not forget that it is not only the forumites who would like to attend more than once.

 

[Rick Maue]

Firstly, the tremendous variety in regard to food, entertainment, activities, etc, have already been enjoyed by those who attended an earlier TAM. So nothing enticing there.

Secondly, is the purported connections to very influential people essential for a TAM? If so, how? And if these influential people support TAM, is there some reason they can't support it somewhere else?

Your first statement from above indicates once again that you do not understand the concept that Las Vegas simply offers much more variety in regard to food, entertainment, late-night options, etc... It has nothing to do with there being "nothing enticing there." It has to do with the reality that no other place offers so much for such an affordable cost. You can try to spin it any way that you wish, but that is a fact. If you say it is not, I challenge you to name another location that has more variety (in all the ways listed above) for the same price.

In closing, I will simply say that your second statement shows how completely unaware you are in regard to how (and why) JREF and TAM benefit from the connections in Las Vegas. For example, the money earned from the Slammer tours is merely the tip of the iceberg. If you cannot see (and obviously, do not know) how important certain connections are to the event (and to JREF) then there is no need to continue this discussion. I wish you well with your personal crusade.



Keep the change
Rick

 

[kittynh]

well, I think input is very important. If you have strong feelings or reasons, an email to Linda would be important.

Yeah, they're thinking TAM4 and 5 even now!

 

[pyewhackett]

San Antonio/Dallas/Houston--Any would work, but TAM for Texas? If so, I vote for San Antinio, with the Alamo and Riverwalk.

Any other suggestions?

I'd be happy with that. I like it there and have somewhere to stay for free!


Karen.

 

[kittynh]

hey, you have the same name as the Pendraggons cat that they use in their act!

And no, it's not Karen....

 

[CFLarsen]

Unless someone can come up with a plan for another venue, complete with detailed research on hotels, airports, transportation, etc, this discussion is futile.

Karl and Linda spent a lot of time in Vegas, visiting different hotels before they found Stardust. It takes a lot of footwork, people.

 

[pyewhackett]

hey, you have the same name as the Pendraggons cat that they use in their act!

And no, it's not Karen....

Pendraggons?

I took it from a poster about Matthew Hopkins - Witchfinder General. I've used it for years...and plan to adopt the poster as my avatar when I am granted the honour.


Karen.

 

[skepticality]

I vote we do it in Atlanta...

At the same time as Dragon*Con...

I think that would just be funny to watch...

 

[JohnC]

Canadian cities

Those who suggested Toronto in January are NUTS. However, as a Canadian, I suppose it's my duty to suggest my home town, Vancouver.
That is, if you like rain, which is what you'll get in January.
There are of course several ski-able mountains within a half-hour drive, unless it's raining and too-warm for skiing.
Connections are good from here - 9 hours to London, 3 hours to LA, 2.5 hours to Vegas.
My preference is Hawaii or Florida.

 

[Minkster]

Copenhagen is a great city but waaay too expensive

I'd like to think I will get to a TAM soon, although January isn't always compatible with me for other reasons!

But the obvious place if you are talking europe is....Amsterdam.

Its a main airport hub so easy to get to, a great- fun city with fantastic nightlife, cheap accomodation and lots and lots of great venues for conferences. Plus English is pretty much the main language over there.

And whilst you may not be able to tempt all the contributors to the US one, there are plenty of UK and European speakers (including some celebs I would think) who would jump at the chance. And wouldn't it be a great way to spread the word....

 

[Hutch]

But the obvious place if you are talking europe is....Amsterdam.

Its a main airport hub so easy to get to, a great- fun city with fantastic nightlife, cheap accomodation and lots and lots of great venues for conferences. Plus English is pretty much the main language over there.

And whilst you may not be able to tempt all the contributors to the US one, there are plenty of UK and European speakers (including some celebs I would think) who would jump at the chance. And wouldn't it be a great way to spread the word....

I would second this, Amsterdam is the only place in Europe that would really tempt me. Schipol is the only airport in Europe I really like and the Rail Station is right in the terminal so you can get most anywhere in the country right from the plane. Heck, might even get pillory to come! And the thought of Randi, Hal, Scott, Mecurtio, Danish, and CFL walking through the red-light district (for educational purposes only, mind you)....

but as Claus has said, somebody in Europe will have to do the footwork and writing/e-mailing to various locales, I doubt Randi or his folks are likely to spend weeks in europe looking for potential sites.

 

[citytom]

Orlando
Ft. Lauderdale
Miami
Tampa
Atlantic City
NYC

Please, no Vegas next year. Skip a year at least.

 

[Soapy Sam]

... at least 60% of the posters here are Americans and I suspect the ratio is even higher for TAM attendees.

I suspect you are correct.

But it would be, if it's always in the 'States, wouldn't it?

Glasgow. Sceptic capital of the Universe.

 

[TJ]

Viva Las Vegas!

I'm all for having it in Vegas in perpetuity. Vegas is a city with so many options, and it's the magic/entertainment capital of the world. As one other person said, Randi can call in favors here and provide, in my opinion, a higher level of entertainment.

Most other places in the U.S. or Europe are going to be terribly cost prohibitive in comparison. On the other hand, there are any number of casinos/hotels/resorts in a very small area where conventions are the norm.

Keep in mind also that this is a fundraising activity for JREF. Even though some of you would love to have this in a different town, the cost of setting it up, flying Randi, Linda, and Kramer out there would be considerably more expensive. Couple that with the (again, my opinion) dramatically reduced attendance due to the high cost, and the JREF could actually go into the red having The Amaz!ing Meeting. Not good.

Besides, so many interesting things can happen on a flight to Vegas.

All that being said, I wouldn't mind a meeting in Cancun. Not during hurricane season, of course.

 

[citytom]

Oooops, I already posted this.
Well, I'm here, I'll post again.

Miami
Ft. Lauderdale,
Orlando
Atlantic City
NYC
Tampa/St. Pete