Entrants will be chosen at random through an automated process. Each entrant will be able to rank their range of preferred to acceptable dates (ie. You would prefer to arrive on Thursday, but if it means not getting a room, you will accept a Friday arrival), acceptable room type, and hotel. For example: If somebody selects dates as being more important than hotel and all of their preferred dates can be accommodated at their third property choice, then they will be placed there, rather than have a shorter stay at their first choice of property. Alternatively, if they select room type as being more important than hotel and a Double Bedroom is only available at their 5th choice of hotel, then they will be placed there.

The room lottery is part of our registration system which is linked at the top of this page. Additionally, registered attendees will receive an email with instructions to enter the lottery. As there is no benefit to entering right away, do not feel you must rush and be one of the first people to enter.

We anticipate that, at least initially, all rooms will be booked as a result of the lottery. However, at the conclusion of the lottery all room blocks will revert to traditional "open booking" through the central booking site published on our website. Any cancellations or changes which result in rooms becoming available will immediately be available for booking through the central booking site. Please note partner hotels are unable to accept MFF reservations through hotel-specific booking sites or reservation phone numbers while our room block is open.

The attendee room lottery opening will be announced on social media and at the top of this page. It will remain open until 11:59 pm CST on October 5th. There is absolutely no benefit to entering immediately, though don’t wait until the last second! Get your room group together and enter at your convenience.

All entrants will be notified of their entry status by email within two weeks of the lottery closing, with reservation details and booking links to follow shortly thereafter. Successful group leaders will receive additional information regarding their room assignment and booking confirmation; additional guests part of a successful group will simply be notified that a room was awarded—speak to your group leader for details. Group leaders must update payment information in their booking according to instructions provided with notification, otherwise the reservation is subject to cancellation.

Yes, convention registration is required to enter the room lottery, and you will need to provide your convention registration confirmation number as part of your lottery entry. Lottery participation is open only to members of the convention, in the spirit of "one person, one entry."

Only one lottery in a single round is run, including Hyatt Regency O'Hare suites. Any inventory remaining or that becomes available after the lottery will be made available through the central booking site as published on our webpage.

The lottery will auto-fill your name from your convention registration. If this does not match your legal ID, use the first and last name as shown on your ID.

Our prior experience with lotteries that traditionally used individual entries with no groups has shown a remarkably high occurrence of multiple awards to a group of people that intended to room together in the first place. This results in people immediately canceling or passing on their room award. Providing a means for people to enter as a group significantly reduces the short term churn in rooms, and provides rooms to more attendees overall.

Room groups of three or four are given a small increase in probability to encourage forming groups, with the added advantage that more attendees are able to stay in partner hotels. Some have expressed dismay that couples seeking a king are apparently at a disadvantage. Based on historical room booking patterns and projections, full doubles are greatly preferred over kings. We expect couples seeking kings should have an equitable chance "competing" with larger groups looking for doubles, as king room inventory noticeably outlasts doubles.

One person (the "group leader") in the group completes their lottery entry and will receive a confirmation code when their entry is completed. When the remaining members of the room group enter the lottery, they will choose the "I am in a room group" on the General Information page. A room group may consist of up to four people, including the group leader.

Yes, you are just a group of one. You may provide your confirmation number and email address to others to form a group of two to four after entering should you change your mind (additional roommates must enter the lottery while it is open for them to be considered in weighting your entry).

Yes. Instructions for doing so are included in the lottery confirmation email sent after entering.

Prior to the lottery closing, attendees may edit their entry and indicate they wish to withdraw. No charge will be made. If a group leader withdraws, be certain everyone in the room group is aware, as the convention does not manage room groups, and will not notify group members that their group leader withdrew. If a group leader withdraws, group members may edit their entry to associate with a different group or form their own group. Any individual entry without a valid group leader confirmation will be disregarded.

Once the lottery closes and a reservation booking link is provided to group leaders, standard room reservations may be canceled. Given the uncertainties in the current health and safety climate, no room deposits are required this year, however booking fees are non-refundable. Hotel specific cancellation policies also apply, which may incur a one night charge if canceled too close to the convention. Refer to reservation and hotel information regarding hotel cancellation policies. Suite cancellation policies are more restrictive; please refer to the suite rules for additional information. Chargebacks will result in loss of the room and disqualification for future year lotteries.

Room groups are tied together by the lottery confirmation number and email address of the group leader. If the group leader withdraws and no other changes are made, the remaining individual entries will be voided. However, reforming your group under a new leader is straight forward. Select one person in your group to assume group leadership, update their lottery entry to "group leader" status and select dates, hotels, and room types. Also, the new group leader will also need to validate their entry with a credit card at that time. Finally, the remainder of the group should update their entries with the confirmation number and email address of the new group leader.

There is no option for "just give me whatever I can get" (though one can choose all options to achieve the same effect). Also, no person will be assigned a hotel, room, date or roommate they did not explicitly ask for.

Form a room group with the people you intend to stay with, as doing so moderately increases the "weight" of your entry. Beyond forming a room group, there is no effective guidance as to which hotels, room types or dates as the likelihood of a successful entry depends on the total number of entrants for the various hotels and room types.

Yes, all standard room entries must include at least a two night stay. Suites require a three night stay. Both types of rooms also require either a Friday or Saturday night stay.

No payment is required to enter the lottery.

All successful entries will be provided a booking link to their reservation. A form of payment (credit card) must be added to the reservation within seven days of notification, otherwise the reservation is subject to cancellation.

Hotel room rates on the lottery site are inclusive of a nominal $4/night booking fee. The booking fee is assessed after providing payment guarantee information in a reservation, and is non-refundable in case of cancellation.

Hotels will confirm you wish to use the payment guarantee card at check-in, or you may provide an alternate payment card at that time. You will be charged commensurate with each hotel's policies, which is typically a hold at check-in, and final charge at check-out. You may arrange to split the remainder of your hotel stay with roommates directly with the hotel. Debit cards are not recommended for check-in or the remainder of your stay due to hold policies.

If you would like to request an ADA-compliant room, enter the room lottery and select “ADA/Accessibility Accommodation”.

• Please note, choosing “ADA/Accessibility Accommodation” does not add weight to or prioritize your lottery entry.

• If awarded a room, our team will reach out to discuss available configurations (see above). Please be aware that we receive more requests for ADA-compliant rooms than are available, though we will work to accommodate you to the best of our ability. If an ADA compliant room request is made but the available inventory cannot accommodate your needs, the reservation may be canceled without penalty.

If you do not require an ADA-compliant room, but would like to request an accommodation, enter the room lottery and select “Standard Room”.

• Common accommodations include quiet floor placement, low floor placement, and proximity to elevators/stairways/convention center.

• If awarded a room, please reach out to our accessibility team at Accessibility@furfest.org to discuss available options. If we are unable to accommodate your request, the reservation may be canceled without penalty.

• Please put in your accommodation request prior to October 31, 2024. If you need to make an accommodation request after October 31, contact hotel@furfest.org to get further information.

In previous years, the lottery included a section for “Mobility Rooms.” These were king rooms reserved for those with mobility concerns, but did not need ADA compliant rooms. Though they are not a separate part of the lottery this year, the rooms are still available. If you are awarded a room at the Hyatt Regency O’Hare and are interested in a king room closest to the event spaces, please reach out to our accessibility team at accessibility@furfest.org to discuss available options.

When entering the lottery, you can choose the Hyatt Regency O’Hare as your only choice for hotel, but this will decrease your odds of getting a hotel room for Midwest FurFest by limiting the choices available.

We understand that the hotel lottery may not provide everyone with their desired room. We also recognize that large cons pose inherent challenges, especially for disabled attendees. Although the Hyatt Regency has historically been the preferred lodging choice, placement at this hotel in and of itself is not a reasonable accommodation. Convention programming now spans across two very large venues over a sizable distance, which can be mentally and physically taxing. Our Accessibility team has a broad array of services available to help make the weekend more comfortable. Please visit their page (furfest.org/accessibility) for additional information.

The Hyatt Regency has both king and double rooms that are wheelchair accessible. They have a wider entryway, accessible-level room controls, and lower bed heights. All rooms are equipped with hearing-accessible features. Bathrooms have modified fixtures, safety bars, and contain either a roll-in shower, stall shower, or tub with handrails. We recommend calling the hotel directly at 1 (847) 696-1234 if you require additional information regarding characteristics of accessible guest rooms.

The Crowne Plaza only has single king rooms that are wheelchair accessible. They have a wider entryway with lowered door locks. All rooms are equipped with hearing-accessible features. Bathrooms have modified fixtures, safety bars, and contain either a roll-shower or tub with handrails. We recommend calling the hotel directly at 1 (847) 671-6350 if you require additional information regarding characteristics of accessible guest rooms.

The Comfort Inn only has single king rooms that are wheelchair accessible. Some rooms are equipped with hearing-accessible features. Bathrooms have modified fixtures, safety bars, and accessible tubs with handrails. We recommend calling the hotel directly at 1 (847) 635-1300 if you require additional information regarding characteristics of accessible guest rooms.

The Aloft has both single king and double queen rooms that are wheelchair accessible. Some rooms are also equipped with hearing-accessible features. Bathrooms have modified fixtures, safety bars, and roll-in showers. We recommend calling the hotel directly at 1 (847) 671-4444 if you require additional information regarding characteristics of accessible guest rooms.

All partner hotels are 100% non-smoking. This includes the Hyatt Regency O'Hare, which changed to 100% non-smoking in 2019.

Unfortunately, due to the size of the event, room location or amenity requests cannot be accommodated through the convention. Attendees are welcome to add requests in their reservation, though do be aware such requests are not guaranteed and accommodated by the hotels on a "best effort" basis.

You certainly may, and we will be happy to help, though do consider the numerous housing choices beyond the room lottery before deciding you are unable to attend; there are many other hotels within walking distance of the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center besides those represented in the lottery. Refund dates are listed on the registration page.

Several options are available:

• Though most partner hotels initially book near or at capacity, room blocks are continually reevaluated and expanded if possible. Do keep checking the booking site.

• Several excellent Rosemont area hotels, some of which are directly connected via pedway to the convention center and Hyatt, are available in addition to our partner hotels. We suggest that you check out your favorite travel sites or the hotel websites directly, to book these rooms.

• Finally, rooms at partner hotels do become available as people’s plans change. Typically, a small spike in cancellations occurs right before the hotel blocks close in November, and those rooms become available. If an appreciable number of rooms open up an announcement will be made in social media.

All reservations resulting from the lottery are as if the primary guest had made the reservation through traditional means. Please refer to the general MFF hotel FAQ for questions on hotel and reservation topics not directly related to the room lottery itself, including hotel cancellation policies. Be aware the nominal booking fee is non-refundable.

Suites at the Hyatt Regency O'Hare are a selectable room type when entering the lottery. Entries for a suite may also include a preference for one or more standard room types. If a suite can not be awarded, any standard room preferences will be considered. Attendees which would like a standard room if unable to obtain a suite should add their fallback choices to the same lottery entry. This likely applies to all attendees entering the room lottery. If you ask for a suite, also ask for a standard room. It is highly unlikely any standard rooms will be available after the lottery concludes. As a reminder, there is a three-night minimum stay requirement for booking a suite.

All suites managed by the convention are at the Hyatt Regency O'Hare. Some partner hotels have limited suites available. Feel free to contact those hotels directly and inquire. Such suites are not under contract and thus not part of the convention room blocks, so all rates and terms are set by the hotel.

Yes. There are special rules, policies and considerations related to suites which all entrants must agree to. Most are related to ensuring safe occupancy, liquor law compliance, noise management and reservation management. The complete set of policies can be found here.

Yes, there is one significant difference: Convention staff directly manage all suite reservations, so any reference in this FAQ or other standard room information relating to managing your own largely do not apply. Contact the FurFest Hotel Help Desk after your award for assistance with any changes (dates, roommates, etc). Your initial booking confirmation will also be from the convention, not the hotel.

If you are interested in a VIP suite and have five to seven roommates in mind, pick two people to be group leaders and make two group entries, plus the additional individual entries for roommates. Both group leaders should select the same suite type(s) and fallback standard rooms. If both room groups are awarded rooms (suites or standard), we will cancel one reservation at the group's request and refund that deposit, then merge all guests into one reservation. Ensure there are no more than seven people total between both entries. Fire code prevents assigning more than seven to a VIP suite, and any guests over seven will be dropped. Both groups will still get the group entry bonus even though one group will have three people (this is also the case for two groups of three).

Yes.

A waiting list is maintained for suite requests in case a suite cancels and is generated from the next in line in the lottery results. Names are not added to the waiting list after the room lottery concludes. Should a cancellation occur, the next person on the waiting list for that suite type will be contacted and provided an opportunity to change their room type from a standard room to a suite. As cancellations are quite rare, only the top five entries on the waiting list for a suite are notified of their waiting list status.

Entries for VIP suites are randomly chosen, followed by the Pritzker suite, Deluxe suites, Panorama suites, Plaza suites, and finally Regency suites. If someone chose multiple suite types, they will initially be entered into the pool of names for all types they selected. Once someone’s name is selected, their name will be removed from subsequent pools. For example, if someone chooses VIP, Panorama and Plaza, is not drawn for VIP, but is drawn for a Panorama, they will be assigned a Panorama and removed from further consideration (Sorry, one suite per person!).

As with standard rooms, a credit card to guarantee the suite must be added to the reservation, otherwise the reservation will be canceled. Instructions for adding the payment guarantee will be included with award notifications.