Europe meet-up. Would you be interested?

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How much would the train cost from Holland to Austria, oblio?

I have already said that we are european members of Wrong Planet, ( "the online resoucrce and community for Autism and Aspergers" ), looking for accommodation/a venue for an informal gathering involving perhaps one or two presentations/discussion groups, aswell as picnics and walks.

Do you mean the "en-suite room" price?

I don't think that you will find anything below £26 for a room, ( with bathroom in corridor, as in the Formule 1 hotel chain I already mentioned ), anywhere in the UK. Rooms with bathrooms start at £31/£32 in chain hotels, breakfast not included, and at around £35-£40 in most B&Bs, ( which also tend to be small so there wouldn't be room for many of us ), and you probably wouldn't get the same facilities for pleasant/peaceful cheap/free hanging out together as on a campus.

Those prices are "conference"/"big group" prices, that is to say they are already based around large bookings. I suspect that you'd have to have a very very large number of people to get that reduced. I am hoping that other universities will be less expensive than Sussex which may be pricy because of being on the south coast, in a site of "outstanding natural beauty"!

It will probably have to be mainly at the weekend because of people's jobs/studies etc, and it looks as if the largest, ( for 10 or more people ), and "cheapest", weekend house rentals may already be booked up for this summer. Does anyone know of any large houses, ( +10 bedrooms! ), for rent for a week or less, that are still available?

Otherwise you're talking camping. Which in the UK is a less than sure-fire glorious prospect because the weather, even in the summer, even in Cornwall, can make camping a deeply miserable experience. And tents don't insulate from noise so somebody snoring nearby can make it impossible to sleep, ( and going to the toilet in the night is even worse than in a corridor ).

So not only do we need to know just where people are prepared to travel to, but also how much they are prepared to pay, and for how many nights, before we can organise/book/commit to anything.

I would pay the £32/night with bathroom in corridor and english breakfast, ( eggs, bacon, sausages, mushrooms, etc ), but would not be willing to pay much more than £35/night, especially as I would have transport from France to pay. And then only if it is a sizeable gathering too.

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When I get the information from Keele and Nottingham, which won't be before Monday anyway, I suppose that I could try negotiating a price reduction on the basis that many of us are on low or non-existent incomes because of our "disorder/syndrome"!

I have already said that we are european members of Wrong Planet, ( "the online resoucrce and community for Autism and Aspergers" ), looking for accommodation/a venue for an informal gathering involving perhaps one or two presentations/discussion groups, aswell as picnics and walks.

But until we have a clearer idea of how many people are interested, at what budget, for how many nights, and exactly when in the summer, it may be difficult to arrive at any better price with any of them.

Also I am really bad at negotiation.

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I'm not sure it's a good idea to disclose that much information...

It's probably a lot cheaper to find [somewhere] not in the UK, and get people to use Ryanair or something to get over there. Though personally I would prefer a day meet ... in the UK.

It might be worth phoning up the NAS and finding out what offers they can get on things. Also if you are looking at doing it through universities, do it through a society. You may even be able to get accommodation for nowt.

When I get the information from Keele and Nottingham, which won't be before Monday anyway, I suppose that I could try negotiating a price reduction on the basis that many of us are on low or non-existent incomes because of our "disorder/syndrome"!

Perhaps someone who lives in the UK could do that. Would be GREAT if there was such an option.

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I had to state my name, my address, etc, name of the organisation, my role, ( I said volunteer co-organiser ), and the nature of the event, in order to submit a request for prices.

I imagine it's because otherwise they would get a lot of time wasters.

I wouldn't want to be labeled though. We might just be a group of paleontology enthusiasts or bird watchers, how about that?

Persuading him might be difficult. We would need a legitimate excuse to do it.

How difficult? And what kind of "excuse" would count as legitimate?

Which university are you at?

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If three people got accomodation for free out of the 19 who have so far said "maybe/probably/yes" to the idea, that would be a saving of about ( £105 : 19 ) £6 each per night. Not bad.

But Durham is so far north that we'd all have spent that much, or more, on the extra train fare. And if 40 people go eventually that would only be a saving of about £3 each per night.

I think that either we need to look at central England, ( like Keele/Manchester, Nottingham, etc ), or as you say, ( if UK people could be motivated to do it ), somewhere abroad. I can definitely recommend France or Holland.

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