ABA Changes Winter Institute 10 Refund Policy

Responding to the speed at which the February 2015 Winter Institute reached full registration, the American Booksellers Association has changed the event’s conference fee refund policy, which previously stated that no refunds were allowed.

Under the policy announced this week, ABA will refund all Wi10 registration cancellations received by December 8, including all previously received cancellation requests. Booksellers wishing to cancel their registrations should e-mail their requests to [email protected]. Those with reservations at the Grove Park Inn, or whose names are on the hotel waitlist, should also indicate if their hotel reservations are no longer needed. They should not contact the hotel directly, but should let ABA know so waiting booksellers can fill their places.

Booksellers’ $89 conference fee refund will be issued in December to the credit card used to register for Wi10.

The Wi10 registration and hotel waitlists will close on December 8; booksellers on the lists will be contacted on a first-come, first-served basis as cancellations are received. By December 8, all registrants on the hotel waitlist will be contacted by ABA with information about accommodations at either the Grove Park Inn or an overflow hotel.

Registered booksellers who have not booked their travel plans are encouraged to do so as soon as possible.

Those looking for a less-expensive alternative to flying into the Asheville Regional Airport (AVL) should consider flying to Charlotte’s Douglas International Airport (CLT), one of the nation’s largest hub airports. It is an approximately two-hour drive from CLT to the Grove Park Inn. Flying into CLT will cost much less than flying into AVL, and, factoring in layover times, door-to-door travel will not be significantly longer.

The Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport (GSP) is also an alternative for some. There are non-stops into GSP from Philadelphia, Newark, New York’s LaGuardia, Atlanta, Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth, Detroit, Dulles (Washington, D.C.), and Chicago’s Midway and O’Hare. The drive from GSP to the Grove Park Inn takes about an hour and 15 minutes.

To help members make ground arrangements to and from these alternate cities, ABA has created a Wi10 Carpool Forum on BookWeb. Booksellers looking to share a ride can post or reply to let their fellow booksellers know their arrival and departure times. One shared car rental for the duration of the booksellers’ stay may be the most cost-effective option; in other cases, two rentals (one for each leg of the trip) might increase savings. Complimentary non-valet parking is available at the Grove Park Inn.

In addition, booksellers who are willing to share their rooms at the Grove Park Inn can contact their fellow booksellers through BookWeb’s Room-Sharing Forum. Booksellers with reservations at the Grove Park Inn from February 8 – 12 who are willing to share their room are invited to post first, so that wait-listed booksellers can reply. (Learn more.)

Questions about Wi10 registration refunds and travel plans should be addressed to [email protected].