It may be too late for families still looking for a place to stay for December’s graduation weekend — many of Gainesville’s hotels are booked solid, and the same is almost true for Spring.
The Reitz Union Hotel’s rooms are reserved for Spring and have been reserved for Dec. 19 and 20 since May — a week after this year’s rooms were available.
“Parents and families book our rooms even if they don’t know their kid’s graduation date yet,” said Lorna Bouret, the hotel’s guest services coordinator.
Even larger hotels have been slated for weeks, like the Hilton UF Conference Center Gainesville on 34th Street, which has 248 rooms.
Richard Secord, the UF Hilton’s director of sales, said the 100,000-square-foot hotel sold out for Fall graduation about two or three weeks ago and is also sold out for Spring. Secord said many parents began booking three to six months in advance.
“This town does so well when it comes to graduation and football games,” he said. “Families want to stay at the Hilton because it’s a premier place next to campus.”
The Holiday Inn on West University Avenue sold out within the last week with reservations swarming in throughout November, director of sales and marketing Tony Saccaro said. He said 65 of the 167 rooms the hotel has are already booked for UF’s Spring graduation.
“Now in today’s age, a lot of people wait for deals and special rates before booking,” he said. “We’re fortunate to have such a premium spot near UF.”
Bouret said hotels get booked before almost every graduation. She said that families still searching for a room can also stay outside of Gainesville and find available hotels in Ocala.
“Call as many hotels as possible,” she said. “You’ll find some with availabilities.”
[A version of this story ran on page 4 on 12/3/2014]
