[5]In June, building on the success of the Hotel California at BookExpo America (BEA) 2003 and of this year's Hotel ABA - Chicago, ABA announced the creation of the Hotel ABA - New York City for BEA 2005. The trade show and ABA Convention will be held from Thursday, June 2 - Sunday, June 5, at the Jacob Javits Convention Center. ABA, working with BEA staff, has secured the Park Central Times Square Hotel as the hotel for ABA bookstore members, at a special room rate of $125 per night, and began taking advance reservations in June. Plans are currently underway to make this the best Hotel ABA yet.

Booksellers who have already pre-registered for Hotel ABA - NYC can expect a call from ABA in December to gather credit card information and arrival and departure dates. For ABA member booksellers who have not yet taken advantage of the opportunity to reserve a room before general registration opens, there is still time to do so. A pre-registration form can be downloaded (in PDF format) by clicking here [5].

The Park Central is situated in the heart of midtown Manhattan, just blocks from Rockefeller Center, Times Square, Fifth Avenue shops, Carnegie Hall, and Central Park. It is a 10-minute ride to the convention center and 30 minutes from LaGuardia Airport.

Hotel ABA - NYC, for ABA bookstore members only, will feature many of the same amenities provided at the Hotel ABA - Chicago, and more. Among the benefits provided this year were complimentary coffee and pastries each morning; a series of publisher-sponsored receptions each evening; an exclusive ABA member hospitality suite, providing a convenient meeting place for booksellers; a special ABA/BEA concierge table in the hotel lobby, where booksellers can pick up BEA badge-holders, copies of the BEA exhibitors' guide, updated information about convention events, and a welcome package with special surprises from ABA and publishers; special dedicated shuttle bus service between the hotel and convention center; and ARCs placed on pillows each night.

Questions about the Hotel ABA - NYC should be addressed to Kristen Gilligan, associate director of programming and constituent groups liaison, at (800) 637-0037, ext. 1286 or at [email protected] [6]. Pre-registration forms should be faxed to Gilligan's attention at (914) 591-2724 or mailed to ABA, 828 S. Broadway, Tarrytown, NY 10591.