Jump to content

Crochet Camp cost questions


Amy

Recommended Posts

I just came across a website with information about a knitting retreat, and I couldn't believe how expensive this retreat was. The focus of this was more as a retreat, and not as a conference full of lots of classes.

 

I'd love to get our members' opinions on what you would be willing to pay for something similar.

 

Retreat with show and tell sessions, mini workshops, lots of group discussion

Yarn marketplace

 

Held at a hotel Conference Center with a very large meeting room for the sessions/workshops/marketplace all together

 

Arrive Thursday afternoon, depart Monday afternoon

 

Meals included:

Supper buffet on arrival night

Continental breakfast each morning

catered lunches

snack break

 

Costs for the knitting retreat:

 

$495 if you don't want a hotel room

$610 for double occupancy

$710 for single occupancy

 

What would YOU be willing to pay for a similar crochet camp type of event?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 77
  • Created
  • Last Reply

I'm on a small budget, but I think that is ridiculous!! Of course it would depend on where it was...but I think $400 MAX including hotel should be good, since we would still have to pay for transportation to get there!!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Amy, I personally think that fee is WAY out of what I would be willing to pay. Honestly, I LOVE to crochet, and I would LOVE to meet everyone but I'm sure my budget and schedule just wouldn't allow for my hobby...you never know though.

 

That being said. I do local medical meeting planning for a living....and I may be telling you a bunch of stuff you already know...but maybe not.

Now I get much of my expenses underwritten in the form of "Grants" but...thats not likely an option for a hobby. I also get a large portion of my expenses underwritten by purchasing an extra room for vendors. Pharmaceutical sales, Device Manufacturers, IT people, anyone that serves to benefit if the physicians/healthcare professionals use their product. They buy a 6 foot table for anywhere from $200 on up...I've never charged more than $700 for an exhibit, but I understand that national events get much higher rates. For me this really helps offset expenses. Another thing is, I find that Physicians are looking to add a family vacation on to this type of thing, so they prefer the more "popular" tourist areas...so they bring their wives and a few kids...they get ONE hotel room, they spend the day in conference and the evenings with their family at tourist attractions. I have to say for a crochet "retreat"...I'd be inclined to want to go to a less touristy type location so that i would be less inclined to want to visit the sites I've never seen (because there are NONE) and more likely to spend the day or evening with my crochet pals....well...crocheting. That will save a fortune on expenses for the retreat, because its all relative. Then again...the less touristy locations can certainly be more costly to travel to...between flights and car rentals. I have alot of periodicals on locations etc...I'd be happy to poke through them if you'd like. I think if memory serves,,,Jimbo once made a similar inquiring (Goodness I hope my memory serves right to make such a statement).

 

hope this helps.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think it would depend on where the retreat was (amenities in the hotel and surrounding areas, etc...). But it still seems a bit high for my miserly ways...

 

~k

Link to comment
Share on other sites

a bit off topic but......where do knitters get all the money? The yarn is so much more expensive, and a retreat? for knitting? wow I guesss I could understand a nice get away with the girls, but I dont think most people could afford to do it on thier own, not as a family thing

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have never been on a vacation, but I would love to go to Crochet Camp. I really wouldn't know how much to pay for it tho. I know I couldn't pay $495. Would that price include the materials used in the sessions?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Pricing is so Tricky! I personally wouldn't be able to afford this much but understand it's probably a fair price for a high-end hotel all inclusive.

 

I would love a two or three day event in an inexpensive location, because the fun would be in the other guests, the learning, and the dedicated crafting time. A really fun event would have raffle items donated from local shops and field trips to visit the local crochet-friendly yarn stores.

 

In fact, I'm considering going on a local Shop Hop sponsored by a Knitting Guilde (no crochet chapters here), and their promo materials state there are over 20 yarn shops in the Portland/OR Metro area, so you all should come HERE! Besides, several fiber artists live nearby .... Bonnie Pierce - amazing freeform crochet queen - is just over the river in Washington state, and Kim Werker of CrochetMe and Interweave Crochet is from Washington, too.

 

Come on, I'd even be on the planning committee!! :yes

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I would love to do something like this, too. There is a Knitting Connection in Columbus, OH in June. About $132. per nite for hotel, about $75 per 3 hr. class, a vendor area, Author Nite, etc. 3-4 day event. Just for comparison purposes...:yarn

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I would love to attend something like this. It would be fun. I, too, am on a budget and I would have to save my pennies. I think it would be worth it though.

 

P.S. My best friend works for a hotel reservation company. I can contact her to see what kind of deal she can offer. She planned an Orlando Bloom convention last summer when the last Pirate movie came out. She got a great deal then. .... Again, just a thought I would pass along.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I just came across a website with information about a knitting retreat, and I couldn't believe how expensive this retreat was. The focus of this was more as a retreat, and not as a conference full of lots of classes.

 

I'd love to get our members' opinions on what you would be willing to pay for something similar.

 

Retreat with show and tell sessions, mini workshops, lots of group discussion

Yarn marketplace

 

Held at a hotel Conference Center with a very large meeting room for the sessions/workshops/marketplace all together

 

Arrive Thursday afternoon, depart Monday afternoon

 

Meals included:

Supper buffet on arrival night

Continental breakfast each morning

catered lunches

snack break

 

Costs for the knitting retreat:

 

$495 if you don't want a hotel room

$610 for double occupancy

$710 for single occupancy

 

What would YOU be willing to pay for a similar crochet camp type of event?

 

 

Without knowing exactly what classes, etc were being offered.. it's hard to evaluate if these prices are overboard or not.

 

I spend a moderate amt of time on the road taking and fetching dd from college..so I know that even HI express/Hampton Inns and the like run anywhere from 80 to 100/night.. depending on the time of the year, location, special events, etc. (for example.. the Days Inn where my dd goes to college is charging 150.00 for graduation weekend.. because they can get it!!.. other hotels are booked solid..and I have NO IDEA what they are charging..lol..fortunately she doesn't graduate for another couple of years..note to self.. make reservations early)

 

back from digression:

 

I would think that .. IF classes were included in the prices.. that 500 to 600 for the 4 night weekend wouldn't be out of line (steep.. but not out of line).

 

More reasonable would be to drop the rates and let folks pay for classes "a la carte".

 

I'm curious.. I'm guessing that the 495 rate wasn't just for one day.. but for the whole weekend for people who lived close enough to commute? Still a bit too rich for my liking.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just to clarify, I was only asking because the prices seemed pretty outrageous to my mind, and I wanted to see if everyone else agreed with me. I'm not planning anything similar for Crochetville, at least not anytime in the near future. :)

 

The site didn't have any information beyond "mini-workshops," which to my mind, is maybe a brief discussion on a particular technique or something. Nothing really intensive.

 

They don't seem to be making an outrageous profit on the hotel room(s) themselves, but look at the $495 fee if you DON'T want to stay in the hotel. I'm assuming this fee would include you Thursday night dinner, two or three catered lunches, and snacks. (I think the complimentary breakfast may have just been a perk of staying in the hotel, but they were setting up a special area for this group in their meeting room.)

 

Even at inflated prices for hotel meals (say, $30 for dinner and $20 for each luncheon), you could subtract out a little over $100 for meals. Which means the fee for just hanging out with your friends and maybe a couple of mini-workshop sessions (no mention of materials included, so it's probably a matter of try the technique with your own materials) is close to $400. Quite a tidy little profit!!!

 

I personally couldn't justify spending that much to go on a retreat. I don't begrudge the organizer any profit, but I wouldn't go to a camp like this unless several real, intensive classes were included in that fee!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

last year, dh and I attended a CHEO (Christian Home Educators of Ohio) convention. for us, since we live here in Columbus, it was $80 for 3 days, and that included the classes. I think the $495 is a bit pricey, but then again, here in Cols., things are a little less expensive. We have Veteran's Memorial and the Convention Center, both of with are huge and close to everything in downtown Columbus. I know Vet's Memorial is cheaper, and it has lots and lots of classrooms as well as a large auditorium (most of the universities around here rent it out for their graduations--except Ohio State, who has theirs at the Horseshoe). There are also lots of restaurants, like the Spaghetti Warehouse (across the street from Vet's), any number of Cameron Mitchell's, as well as several fast food joints. There are a few LYSes here, only one of which is not crochet-friendly. Now, I can see paying $500 if hotel and meals were included, but that's locally. Since I live here, I can see paying maybe $150-200 without the hotel.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I agree that the price for no-hotel rooms seems high, especially since the participants are expected to contribute lots of actions (show and tell, group discussion), not to mention spending more money at the yarn marketplace, for which I'm sure vendors have to pay a fee. If it included a few classes, it wouldn't be so bad.

 

I don't know how expensive it is to reserve a hotel conference room, but depending on the number of participants, they could be making quite a profit.

 

On the other hand, if you get hotel rooms, it doesn't seem so bad, especially if it's a decent hotel in a nice coutryside or something. But then again, I'm from the NY area, so I expect hotel rooms to cost a lot.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I don't know how expensive it is to reserve a hotel conference room, but depending on the number of participants, they could be making quite a profit.

 

On the other hand, if you get hotel rooms, it doesn't seem so bad, especially if it's a decent hotel in a nice coutryside or something. But then again, I'm from the NY area, so I expect hotel rooms to cost a lot.

 

The best internet rate available for those rooms was around $80-85 a night, I can't remember right now.

 

And, depending on the number of hotel rooms you rent out for your event and the number of meals you purchase, you might not have to pay for the meeting room at all!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

go amy, you did your homework...the down side of blocking is if you don't book all the blocked rooms...your stuck with THAT expense too.

 

You have to be REALLY crafty and know what your doing to get a good rate. While the quotes we have seen are costly...if you really broke down the expenses down to meals and photocopies, and in some cases snail mail, postage...dear god postage..."Hello my name is badges"...countless hours printing...thats what it would cost the planner....just too much to hang out with online friends...we would be best off renting a ski location off season in say...VT NY or NH where they wouldn't otherwise have any business...pop a squat on their couches...no forma agenda...and hook away!

:hook

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm going to MD Sheep & Wool, and it will cost us a fair amount, by the time we're done possibly as much as that retreat. However, most of the cost though is the hotel though. The reason why we are spending so much on the hotel is b/c DH isn't up to watching the baby for 2 days without me, so we turned it into a family vacation. If I were going alone I wouldn't have to stay in a place with amenities like an indoor pool.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I would not be able to afford such a "camp". I think that for some people it is reasonable, but not me. I know that guest speakers, classes, space and the rest isn't free. However, I honestly believe it could be done without costing an arm and two legs. So I would have to say yes, it is an outrageous price.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...

I've thought about this before because I would absolutely love to meet my pals here at the Ville, but I wouldn't be able to pay $400-500 for a camp...living on fixed income.

 

My thoughts have been along the lines of having the membership divided into small regions/areas and have regional camps. Maybe a national camp could grow from that.

 

But a regional camp would reduce the cost of travel. No way I could travel far away from home. Camps could be held during off-tourist seasons when rates are cheaper.

 

And instead of having different sessions to choose from, it could just be a getting together time to share our love of crochet...what we're working on, etc., and crochet together. Maybe even make squares for a ghan for a charity!

 

Around where I live there are retreat facilities in the area that our church groups use and they have lots of beds, a common room and a kitchen where you can prepare your own meals...takes a lot of work and planning! And I have no experience with that but I think a spaghetti meal always works! This one place I attended out in the woods was absolutely beautiful! We even had indoor facilities :lol but no lakes with boys camps across the way! :lol

 

I would give anything (don't really like to use this expression), but I would give anything (maybe some :yarn:lol) to be able to get together with my C'ville pals. that would just be sooooo cool! :2rock

 

I'm almost up to 1300 posts!:cheer:clap

 

:manyheart:hug

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.


×
×
  • Create New...