Musiker Orange Bowl Plan is Up

The Musiker Orange Bowl Family plan is now also up on the roslynband.com website.  Please, if you plan on going to see the band at the Orange Bowl, do your car rental, hotel, and flight as soon as possible!  The prices go up with every day that passes by.  See my previous post for some ideas for setting up the trip on your own and the two plans which are available.

Orange Bowl Information for Roslyn Families

I recently went to Miami to attend the band director’s Orange Bowl meeting. I also drove to all venues, stayed at the hotel the band will be at, and have personally been working on the package details associated with the band members and families. I coordinated my trip with driving my son Joey to start College at Full Sail University in Winter Park last week.

All the Orange Bowl bands and many of their family members are staying at the Hyatt Regency Bonaventure Conference Center in Weston, Florida approximately 20 miles from the Sun Life Stadium. It is a beautiful facility on 23 acres with four restaurants/cafes, four outdoor pools, and golf courses and tennis courts nearby. The hotel is spectacular, it also has a Red Door Spa, incredible facilities, and is a clear 4 or 5 star hotel, to notch in every way.

(see link: http://bonaventure.hyatt.com/hyatt/hotels/index.jsp ).

The Bowl Event planners are offering a "Family Package" which includes a 3 night stay at the Hyatt, (check-in Dec 31st, check-out Jan 3rd) Bowl game tickets, and the band banquet dinner dance at the hotel. The cost of this package ranges from $1,162 for a single to $2,620 for a family of four. Download this package if interested from the roslynband.com website. The due date for this package is November 1st, so if you need to wait, this may be your only option.

In doing my own research, I found that if you book the hotel yourself you will save.

Both the Bowl game tickets and banquet dinner dance can be purchased separately through the Bowl Event planners. Bowl game tickets are $139/pp for upper deck seating with the band, and the optional dinner dance on Jan 2nd is $40/pp. I am currently working on the pricing of adding families to the "New Year's Eve" portion with the band. The band will be in the ballroom having dinner on the night of the 31st.

As of the beginning of August, rooms at the Hyatt for the same period (check-in Dec 31st, check-out Jan 3rd) will cost $837 for a king and $867 for two double beds for your entire stay! (Taxes and fees are approximately 11% more.) That means a family of four will pay approximately $1,583 ($867 for the room plus tax, $556 for game tickets, and $160 for the optional banquet dinner dance.) You might even be able to find lower rates using AAA, your "miles/rewards," other discounts or advance bookings (be aware that advance bookings may require full prepayment and are non-refundable).

Room rates will only go up as the college football season begins and the Orange Bowl date approaches. The sooner you book your reservation the better your rates and terms will be. (The current cancellation policy is 48 hours but that is subject to change as the check-in date gets closer.) If you have any questions contact Hyatt reservations at 1-800-492-8804.

Keep in mind that you can stay anywhere and still purchase game and/or dinner tickets separately by filling out the appropriate sections of the Family Package.

But I recommend that you begin to think about making arrangements NOW in order to get the best rates. By the time September comes around people are planning for the December holidays and both hotels and airfares tend to go up!

If you decide to stay at the Hyatt Bonaventure in Weston with the band, consider flying into Fort Lauderdale - that airport is 15 miles from the hotel. The Miami airport is 32 miles from the hotel.

As I mentioned previously, if you stay at the Hyatt you will need a car to get you to the parade and game venues. I would do any car rental reservations as soon as possible as well. Also realize the Orange Bowl is a Monday night game which means that you will need to make arrangements to stay over the night of January 3rd. The band will leave immediately after the game on the buses and begin heading north (expected arrival Tuesday night.)

Of course if you cannot commit to the trip this early, the Bowl Event planner's "Parent Package" is available up until the beginning of November for those "last minute" travelers.

I will continue to post items about the Orange Bowl, band camp and our upcoming season so be sure to check my blog several times a week.

New Orange Bowl and Camp Posts Coming

I am back from vacation and will be posting almost daily with all kinds of information about our Band Camp and the Orange Bowl Trip!  Keep checking this site daily!