Hotel & Travel

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Thank you, everyone, for a fabulous Wi10! See you in Denver in 2016.

 
 
Winter Institute 2015

The ABA Block at the Grove Park Inn is filled and the wait list closed. The official overflow hotel is:
The Renaissance Asheville Hotel
31 Woodfin Street
Asheville, North Carolina 28801 

To reserve a room at the Renaissance please use this link:
http://cwp.marriott.com/avlbr/booksellers.
The rate is $129 plus tax per night, and is good until January 16 or the block fills, whichever occurs first. Daily shuttle bus service from the Renaissance to the Grove Park Inn will be provided by ABA.

A Grove Park Inn room sharing forum for ABA members is now available.

Until January 30, please let ABA know if you no longer need your Grove Park Inn hotel room so that we can arrange for the room to go to a colleague on the wait list. ABA will change the name and arrange to refund the deposit. After January 30, please cancel directly with GPI. Reservations with the Renaissance can be changed directly with the hotel.

The Grove Park Inn (An Omni Resort)

The Grove Park Inn, located in Asheville, is one of the country's most celebrated resorts. Noted for its understated elegance and Southern charm, this historic hotel has hosted 10 U.S. presidents and countless luminaries from the worlds of art, entertainment, sports, and politics. With sweeping views of the Blue Ridge Mountains, a Donald Ross designed golf course, an expansive tennis and fitness center, innovative and locally sourced restaurants, an award winning spa and spacious convention facilities, this AAA Four Diamond Property is listed on Fodor's "Top 10 Luxury Spa Resorts" and Travel + Leisure’s rankings of “Top Spa Resorts” in the world.

Hotel Policies:

Grove Park Hotel Cancelation–If you are unable to honor your lodging reservations, please cancel by 4 pm, seven (7) days prior to your 4 pm check-in time to avoid forfeiting your room deposit. If you reduce your length of stay within seven (7) days of arrival, you will be responsible for the full night’s room and tax. If you are booked over a minimum night requirement or holiday package and elect to depart prior to your scheduled departure date, you will be charged the full length of your reservation. Spa reservations and golf tee times must be canceled 24 hours in advance to avoid penalty.

Grove Park Hotel Early Departure–There will be an early departure charge of one night's room rate and tax should you check out prior to the scheduled departure date.

Grove Park Inn Specials for 2015 Winter Institute Hotel Guests

  • Resort fee: Waived
  • Room fee includes toll-free and local calling, in-room high-speed Internet access, fitness center, in-room coffee and tea, and newspapers upon request
  • Golf: $65 per guest
  • Spa: 10% discount on published pricing—excluding day passes, manicures, and pedicures—Sunday through Wednesday. NOTE: Be sure to book spa appointments far in advance. Visit the Spa web pages for details.
  • Sports Complex: Complimentary
  • Parking: Complimentary outdoor self-parking for hotel guests and visitors. Garage parking is $15 per day; valet is $22 per day for hotel guests and $15 for day guests

Grove Park Inn History Tour
All booksellers will receive a printed self-guided hotel tour itinerary in their welcome bag; extra copies will be at the Ask ABA desk. The hotel also offers a guided history tour that covers the history of E.W. Grove, the construction and early years of the resort, the Arts & Crafts style furniture, and some of the Inn's most notable guests. The guided tour lasts for approximately 45 minutes and consists of periods of walking and long periods of standing. If you are interested in the guided tour, please see a representative at the Concierge Desk to sign up. There is a $10 per person fee.

Southern Hospitality Overnight Program (SHOP)

Getting there is half the fun: As with many mountain towns, direct flights into Asheville are limited, so to help out booksellers from across the country, Southern indies will be hosting travelers through the Southern Hospitality Overnight Program (SHOP), developed by the Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance. Come to the region and bunk with a SHOP host, and carpool to and from Asheville. See the SIBA website for details. The SIBA Hospitality Suite at the Grove Park Inn is Dogwood Suite SW-10.

Flying & Ground Transportation

When planning your travel: Keep in mind that customized tours—the Biltmore Estate and the Asheville Historic Trolley Tour—are scheduled for Sunday, February 8, and Thursday, February 12. Complimentary tours of the Thomas Wolfe Memorial are scheduled for Sunday, February 8.

Asheville is served by Asheville Regional Airport (AVL) and the following airlines:

  • Delta Air Lines
  • Allegiant Air LLC
  • United Airlines
  • US Airways   
  • American Airlines

More About Travel to Asheville

The Asheville Regional Airport (AVL) has about 10 daily flights from Atlanta, Charlotte, or Chicago. However, Charlotte's Douglas International Airport (CLT), one of the nation's largest hub airports, has hundreds of flights from virtually every city in the U.S. While it is a two-hour drive from CLT to the Grove Park Inn, flying into CLT will cost much less, and ultimately the trip won't end up taking all that much more time than the layovers and plane changes involved in flying directly to AVL.

The Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport (GSP) is another good alternative. There are non-stops into GSP from Philadelphia, Newark, LGA, Atlanta, Houston, DFW, Detroit, Dulles (Washington, DC), and Chicago (both Midway & O'Hare). GSP is an hour-and-fifteen minute drive to the Grove Park Inn.

To help members make viable ground arrangements to and from these alternate cities, ABA has created a Wi10 Carpool Forum on BookWeb for attendees to coordinate carpooling. To participate, sign into BookWeb.org and post or reply letting your fellow booksellers know your arrival and departure times. One shared car rental for the duration of your stay may be the most cost-effective option; in other cases, two rentals (one for each leg of the trip) might increase savings. We encourage you to take advantage of outdoor self-parking at the Grove Park Inn, which is complimentary.

Ground transportation from AVL

(Omni Grove Park Inn and Renaissance do not run airport shuttles.)

Uber Asheville: Ride sharing service, prices vary. Download the app to connect with an Uber driver.
Accents on Asheville Airport Transportation: $59 per-person one-way or $118 round-trip, and $79 per-couple one-way or $158 round trip; prices includes driver gratuity. Airport transfer reservation form may be downloaded here.
Taxi: $2.50/mile, plus $2.50 starting on the meter
Bus: Asheville – South 3 Route – Asheville Downtown, $1.00/person

Other area airports

76 miles: Tri-Cities Regional Airport, Blountville, TN (TRI)
78 miles: Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport, Greenville, SC (GSP)
128 miles: Charlotte Douglas International Airport, Charlotte, NC (CLT)
217 miles: Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, Atlanta, GA (ATL)
237 miles: Raleigh-Durham International Airport, Raleigh, NC (RDU)

Delta Airlines is offering Winter Institute attendees a discount:

  • Domestic travelers: Reservations and ticketing are available via www.delta.com. When booking online, select "Book A Trip," click on "More Search Options" and enter the meeting code NMJU4 in the box provided on the "Search Flight" page. Reservations may also be made by calling Delta Meeting reservations at 800-328-1111, Mon-Fri, 7 am-7 pm CDT. A direct booking fee may apply.
  • International travelers: Reservations and ticketing are available via www.delta.com. When booking online, select "Book A Trip," click on "More Search Options" and enter the meeting code NMJU5 in the box provided on the "Search Flight" page. Reservations may also be made by calling Delta Meeting reservations at 800-328-1111, Mon-Fri, 7 am-7 pm CDT. A direct booking fee may apply.

Explore Asheville

Visit Asheville's official tourism website for tips on food, drink, accommodations, activities, and seasonal events. To arrange for a car service or other transportation, contact Michael Rouse, Accents on Asheville, [email protected], 828-251-4222, and mention ABA.

Uber Asheville, the ride sharing service, is also an alternative for getting around the area. Download the app to connect with an Uber driver.

About ABA

American Booksellers Association is a national trade association that supports and advocates for the success of independent bookstores. We provide members with education, networking opportunities, advocacy, resources, and technology. In turn our members support local schools through book fairs, donations and author visits; promote literacy; provide inclusive community centers; connect readers and books; add character to neighborhoods; champion and center diverse and new voices; and contribute to the local economy. We feel honored to support them in their work.

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