The Virginia Office of EMS (OEMS) has some exciting new updates to share regarding the new Virginia EMS Symposium hotel reservation system. Beginning this summer, when symposium registration opens, there will be a new process for booking a hotel room. This new reservation system will only apply to our three host hotels: the Norfolk Waterside Marriott, Sheraton Norfolk Waterside and the Hilton Norfolk The Main.
In order to explain the new hotel reservation system and process, we have put together some general information and frequently asked questions.
General Information:
Hotel rooms at the three host hotels MUST be obtained through the symposium registration process. You will not be able to call the hotels or reserve a room online as part of the symposium room block and rate.
Additionally, you will not be able to book a hotel room on behalf of anyone else. You will be required to go through the Symposium registration process to obtain your personal hotel room confirmation. The hotel confirmation you receive will be unique to your registration information.
How do I reserve a hotel room for symposium at one of the three host hotels?
Once you have completed your symposium registration, you will be prompted to identify which hotel you would like to make a reservation at, your dates of stay, any special accommodations required (handicap accessibility, refrigerator, room type, etc.), and estimated room cost. Hotel requests, room types and accommodations are all based on a first-come, first-served basis. You will also identify your first, second and third hotel choices in the event what you are requesting is not available.
After you have confirmed your selection(s), the portal will provide you with an estimate of your room selection cost. This is only an ESTIMATE, as your final costs will come from the hotel. The information provided at registration will be sent to the hotel for your reservation request. The hotel will email you individually with a link to pay one night’s rate of room and tax. You will have five (5) business days to respond to the link and provide a payment for the one night’s room and tax; failure to due so will result in your room reservation being cancelled. Once you have paid your first night’s room and tax, the hotel will provide you and OEMS your confirmation number. This number will be uploaded into your symposium registration.
When will my hotel confirmation be sent to me?
On Thursday of each week, the Office will send a rooming request list to each of the hotels. Starting on Friday of that week, the hotel will begin contacting those who have submitted their registration that week to secure your first night’s deposit. Once the first night’s deposit has been received, the hotels will generate a confirmation number and transmit this back to the office. Only after this confirmation number has been verified by OEMS will you receive your official confirmation number from the Virginia EMS Portal. This process could take up to two weeks to complete from the date you registered for symposium
What if my agency pays for my hotel room at one of the three host hotels?
There are two options if your agency pays for your hotel room:
- You can provide your agency the payment link sent by the hotel. But remember, the first night’s room and tax must be paid within five (5) business days to prevent cancellation of your request.
- You can pay the first night’s room and tax personally and then your agency can contact the hotel to have the payment switched to the agency’s payment method. This is sometimes referred to as “direct billing”. This method is generally preferred by governmental agencies, especially if there are multiple attendees whose rooms are being covered by the agency. This also ensures registrants are responsible for making their payment within the five business days.
What if I need to change my initial reservation requests?
There is a modify/change button for your rooming reservation in your symposium reservation system. This will allow you to modify your dates of stay.
What is the process for canceling my room reservation, if I decide I want to cancel my symposium registration?
If you cancel your symposium registration, your hotel room reservation is automatically cancelled. As a reminder, hotel cancellations are subject to each individual hotel’s cancellation policy. Refunds for the first night’s room and tax are handled with the individual hotels. The OEMS cannot refund any payments for hotel reservations. Cancelled rooms will be returned to the hotel room blocks and made available to others registering for the symposium.
What if the specific hotel I want to stay at is not available when I register for the symposium?
We recommend you make a reservation at another hotel, as reservations fill up fast and there is no guarantee the hotel you prefer will become available.
The symposium registration system will update daily and will show a real time, daily view of when rooms become available. We will also be sending out routine emails concerning room availability. Should your hotel become available, you can make change requests in your symposium registration.
I am an instructor or faculty teaching at symposium this year, how does this affect me?
Symposium faculty and instructors are provided lodging only for the night(s) required based upon their teaching schedule. Historically, many of our faculty prefer to stay additional days and attend symposium events/classes. Those nights will be self-pay for the instructor and will follow this same process.
Why is the Virginia Office of EMS changing to this hotel reservation method?
The Virginia EMS Symposium is a large-scale event. The three host hotels are under contract with the state to provide food/beverage, rooms for the classes, and sleeping rooms for both the attendees and faculty/staff. The overall costs for the event are tied directly to the number of rooms in the overnight room block that are occupied. With the previous room reservation method, the room blocks would sell out within a matter of minutes on the day we opened them up for reservations. But, over the days and weeks following that, room reservations were cancelled. By the time we got to the symposium, on average, 30 percent of the rooms in the block had been returned and not used. There is a substantial cost associated with these unused rooms.
With this new model, only those individuals who have registered for the symposium will be able to make a room reservation. This method will also allow for a real time, daily view of what rooms are available at which hotels. Changes like this are necessary to help keep costs down while still providing the educational offerings, as well as other amenities associated with the symposium.