Facility Usage Fee FAQ

Facility Usage Fee

The $100 per person per day facility fee will be charged to anyone not staying in the contracted North American Irish Dancing Championships room block at the  host hotels.  Booking at the host hotel, but outside of the contracted block will not meet  this criteria.  In order to avoid the facility fee, one must book within the  contracted North American Irish Dancing Championships group block.  

This fee is necessary to ensure the event meets the hotel room numbers to cover  the costs to host the Irish Dancing Championships.  This policy was put into place many years ago but, since many of your families may still have questions,  please find some answers below that you might find helpful.  

Why don’t attendees who stay in the contracted block at the host hotels have to incur the Facility Usage Fee?

The success of the 2025 North American Irish Dancing Championships depends on the attendees using the contracted hotel blocks at the host hotels to offset the sizeable costs of producing this prestigious event.  IDTANA can’t meet contracted room obligations if attendees reserve rooms in non-contracted hotels and outside the contracted room blocks.  The risk of incurring monumental  inancial penalties (attrition fees) increases with each attendee who stays outside of the host hotel.  We hope that by completely waiving the Facility Usage Fee for onsite guests, attendees will choose to stay at the host hotel.

How did you decide to charge a Facility Usage Fee?

Substantial research, benchmarking, and investigation were done by other Organizations that started this policy for their events.  We closely followed the latest information on this subject and used the solutions and recommendations of many professional organizations and their leadership in the convention industry experiencing the same challenges.  

What is the reason the IDTANA is charged an attrition fee?

Attrition fees are not new.  Conferences and hotels have charged them for many years.  Attrition fees are applied when a conference group cannot fill 80% of the contracted number of rooms.  Good conference sites are in high demand and groups contract with their hotels 3 – 4 years in advance to ensure that a large enough venue can be secured. Attrition fees are compensation to the hotel for the rooms that might have been sold by the hotel had they not been held in reserve for our event.

How does IDTANA decide how many hotels rooms to book?

Future sleeping room estimates are based upon past registration figures, expected popularity of the site, and our best projections for attendance.  This is not an exact science.  Contractual flexibility is built into the contract so some adjustments to inventory can be made as the championship approaches. 

Why is attrition an issue since it never surfaced in prior years?

Attrition has been an issue for many years.  Several of the regions have incurred major attrition penalties in the past.  The only way to ensure that attrition risks are minimized is to explain the situation to the attendees so that they can understand their role in the success of this event.  By avoiding a financial crisis for the organization, we can ensure the viability of future Championships.

Will this pricing plan apply at future championships?

Yes. In these tough economic times this course of action is preferable to the alternative of increasing entry fee and door fees or reducing services such as prizes awarded.  

What if I find a less expensive hotel?

If you find a less expensive hotel rate, take care to compare it to the contracted hotel rates to ensure that your expectations are met.  Remember to add the Facility Usage Fee for every member in your party to the rate of the hotel and daily parking charges to determine if it is truly economical to stay off site.  In addition, attendees who do not stay on site will not have access to a variety of social functions for host hotel guests.