darthbimmer

When I helped organize a convention years ago similar to the size of the OP's conference, we chose Vegas for exactly that reason. Most of our attendees were on tight budgets. Not only were we able to negotiate a rate at a four-star hotel below what we'd pay for a Days Inn pretty much anywhere else in the country, but the flights to LAS from various points around the US were cheaper than those to other cities such as Chicago and New York.

drvannostren

I was just gonna assume Vegas, it's not as central as other places, but seems to be regardless of what part of the continent you're in, Vegas is easily accessible and fairly cheap, not to mention with plenty of facilities readily available. Hotel costs are ok too except for those damn resort fees. I just had a room last week that was like $36, but the resort fee was another $22, why not just charge me $58 up front!?

Eastbay1K

LAS probably wins for a midweek conference. Most people can get there nonstop. You also can't beat RNO for midweek rates with hotels large enough to accommodate a group. They have a decent airport, but not nearly the nonstop access and fares will be generally higher.

Often1

Consider total cost door-to-door.
1. Ground transportation
2. Hotel rooms
3. Meeting space
4. Food & beverage
5. Taxes

Also consider time. If it takes three connections and two days to get there, it's a bit harder to peddle to anybody who values their time.

LAS is likely to be it, although you should tinker with the specific dates.

Kagehitokiri

if possible to do summer, i would think phoenix (mentioned above by chgoeditor and brentley) would have good potential

GUWonder

If it's on a weekend where there are no big events in or around the city, I would look at Chicago. The ORD area hotels dump rooms like crazy and ORD airfares can be pretty reasonable.

Cloudship

It's during the workweek.

One issue with Las Vegas - many attendees have to really fight to get approval to attend. Having something in Las Vegas does not help their case any. But I will mention the idea.

Smiley90

I second New Orleans (aside from the obvious choice of Vegas), and it's a beautiful city to spend the spare time in too.

Emma1420

It's usually more complicated than just the room rate. I know for the organization I work for, we have to weigh the food & beverage minimum, room rental, counter service in the immediate area, accessibility from the airport to the hotel, and then room rates and flight costs.

We would love to be in major cities like NYC, Chicago, San Francisco, etc., but we can't typically afford it without doubling our registration rate to make up for the costs we incur that attendees aren't aware of. We don't do city wide conventions, so we have far less negotiating power than many professional associations.

For the OP, I would try Rosemont by O'Hare. A lot of those hotels will give a good rate for a small group, and you get good transport links. Other cities that will probably give you a good deal are Omaha, Little Rock, Oklahoma City, and Louisville. I would stay away from Albuquerque and Memphis.

neuron

Does it have to be US based? If not, given the Cdn $, you may consider Quebec city or Ottawa
Even Montreal would be economical.....as long as it is not Jan or early Feb

rasheed

A few other Midwest cities to consider, DEN, STL and BNA.

Cities with a strong Spirit or other LCC are good options from an airfare perspective.

Cities I would not consider due to cost include DAL, ORD, ATL, etc.

Rasheed

writerguyfl

I can't comment on air prices, but if your definition of "late winter/early spring" includes January or February you might look at Orlando. Hotels are relatively empty because kids are in school.

A location like International Drive in Orlando is also good because there clusters of multiple hotels within walking distance of each other. That allows attendees to choose between multiple hotel categories (economy, limited-service, full-service) and multiple hotel families (Marriott, Hilton, etc).

kettle1

Is this a Church based event? Why not consider LAS or RNO?

If the Fed's or other groups are still "excluding" Nevada because of stupid statements made by our Commander in Chief, that is a problem. 2+ million people live in Clark County, Nevada. Our economy is based on events like this. Like I posted up-thread. Low cost air from almost every major city in the USA, low cost meeting space, low cost transportation, the airport is 3 miles from the "Strip", great food options, etc.

I also agree MSY or MCO could work as well.

Homer15

If it's late winter/early Spring, maybe Chicago?

TravelerMSY

New Orleans in the summer works, Bigger budget conventions avoid it due to the heat. If you're willing to sweat it out you'll get a deal, and an interesting city vs, having it at the cheapest airline hub hotel like the dumpier hotels at O'hare.