In previous conferences we’ve been notified that several exhibitors and conference attendees have received calls and/or emails from companies claiming to be an agent of, or associated with, ONA and offering discounted room rates.
We have no relationship with any third party company to assist with booking hotel rooms on our behalf and do not provide personal contact details such as emails or phone number of our attendees to anyone. If you need to book a room for ONA19, you can do so directly through our hotel and can find out more information at this link. If we negotiate any further hotel blocks based on demand, we will always list them on our website and provide contact information for our specially negotiated rates. We always strive for the best rates for our attendees, and balance that with hotels conveniently located near the conference venue. We will update the information provided on our website if the hotel block starts to sell out as quickly as possible.
Unfortunately, this practice is commonplace for many large conferences and events. We’ve been warned by peer organizations that these companies may reach out to speakers, exhibitors, sponsors or even attendees. At a minimum, these companies may put you in a hotel that is far from the conference venue. In a worst-case scenario, you may arrive at your booked hotel to learn the hotel does not have reservation information for you, or that hotel may impose a severe cancellation penalty if their facility is not up to your standards.
Please alert our team if you are contacted by anyone outside of the contacts we provide to you on our site, or if you ever have questions about whether someone who has reached out to you has a legitimate relationship with the our team. You can reach us at ona19@journalists.org.