Reunions Survey & Housing Update

Jul 9, 2024 at 5:19 PM

Class Survey

We have a quick survey for you to help with logistics and orders around Reunions next year. We want to get a sense of the who, where, when, and how (we’re pretty clear on the what and why). If you have plans, let us know them. If you don’t have plans, let’s start the conversation!TAKE THE SURVEY

HOUSING UPDATE

Hey gang, wanted to get to you all with an update on housing, mostly because Nassau Inn kicks off the frenzy by opening up their reservation window tomorrow (Weds) at 10am ET.

With the demands of Reunions, housing is a mix of on-campus housing, local hotels, and room available through friendly institutions (e.g. Rider University), not to mention Airbnbs and short-term rentals like that. Here’s a quick overview.

On-Campus Housing

The University administers on-campus housing, which you can sign up for when you register for Reunions. It’s not 100% guaranteed – it depends on how many undergrads stay on campus through Reunions – but it is pretty reliably available for major reunions like ours. It is definitely the cheapest option, typically about $150 for a bed for the weekend, but 1) it can be anywhere on campus (potentially without AC), 2) you’ll have a shared bathroom, and 3) you’ll need to provide your own linens (This may be less of an issue as the ‘99s found a rental service to take care of this. We’ll probably use it, but we still need to set that up). Also, the University tries to keep all members of a party together, but can’t promise it.

Local Hotels

We have currently reserved about 210 rooms across 11 hotels in the area. Most of them were on this year’s Reunions shuttle bus route to and from campus, and most are along Route 1. We’re still gathering booking links to make those reservations, but rates are coming in between $290 and $550 a night, and we have a good mix of bed/occupancy types. We have a list of local hotels here. We note where we have a group rate, and list the mix of what’s available. Most of the hotels in the area are opening reservations over the next month or so, so this is a living document. The two hotels right downtown, open booking tomorrow. Expect the Nassau Inn to sell out in a couple of hours. The Graduate Hotel is new to the area, and just opened on Nassau Street across from the Rocky dining hall. We’ve been talking to them for 14 months off and on about room blocks, and, well…we wish them and their proposed room rates all the success in the world.

Friendlies

We’re still reaching out to the local institutions - Rider College, Westminster Choir College, and Princeton Theological Seminary. They tend to open up later on in the process. Based on the ’99s experience this year, the pricing is a little more than on campus, but they have AC, linens are included, and are on the shuttle route, so a decent value overall.

Airbnb, Vrbo etc.

A lot of locals are willing to rent their homes out during Reunions, even some otherwise loyal alumni during an off-year (We missed you this year, Ann!). That inventory can certainly vary and outside of the committee’s domain, but it’s worth checking out as well.