All-Star D2 Summit Questions

[SunnyinCO]

We got our rooms this morning and we are 20 miles from the venue and an estimated 60.00 taxi transfer from the airport. We are a small team with only 17 rooms to our block including coaches. I cannot imagine larger teams or gyms sending more than one team. Good luck y'all. At this point I feel lucky that we booked airfare with points.


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I thought the Miami thing was hyperbole, but maybe not. If I might ask, in which town are you staying? I'm sure we'll end up in a similar situation. I've decided I'm okay with staying somewhat far away as long as they put us on the beach. :) I've already told our coach she needs to lobby for this outcome. (I'm sure she's not paying attention to me. ha ha.)

 

[amy1k]

Our gym was given a block at a hotel 23 minkes and 40 minutes away (I mapped it, I'm not familiar with the area).

The least expensive car I can find (anywhere) is $300 (after tax) for five days.

 

[Cheerfun2]

Our gym was given a block at a hotel 23 minkes and 40 minutes away (I mapped it, I'm not familiar with the area).

The least expensive car I can find (anywhere) is $300 (after tax) for five days.

Could you share it with someone from your team who is on your flight? $150 still stinks, but a bit better and you'd have more flexibility for getting around.

 

[amy1k]

Could you share it with someone from your team who is on your flight? $150 still stinks, but a bit better and you'd have more flexibility for getting around.

Sure...and I probably will. It's just shocking to me how expensive this trip is going to be. I'm really disappointed that our gym chose to attend this competition. And that Varsity chose to hold the competition in such a costly area. At least in Orlando things are set up in a way that works for family travel.

 

[Cheerfun2]

Sure...and I probably will. It's just shocking to me how expensive this trip is going to be. I'm really disappointed that our gym chose to attend this competition. And that Varsity chose to hold the competition in such a costly area. At least in Orlando things are set up in a way that works for family travel.

Yes, I agree. It seems like making the D2 STP has REALLY made it expensive. Since the D1 Summit isn't STP...the world is your oyster as far as where to stay. You can totally customize your trip to fit your budget. There are only about a billion rooms super close to WWoS, plus if you are flying & want to not have to worry about ground transport at all...you can just stay on site. I honestly felt like Summit was one of our easiest travel comps last year. They need to find a way to make the D2 Summit just as easy....and removing the STP would be a start.

 

[amy1k]

Even without STP, rooms are expensive. Our STP rooms are cheaper than what is offered at the hotel. BUT there's a $100 cancellation fee after today. I don't want to reserve a room until after our last bid competition Saturday...because I need to find a roommate.

And, I agree, Summit is easy and reasonably affordable (if you avoid Disney). My only issue there is the trip to Florida is time-consuming from here. It's cheaper than our competition in Las Vegas, otherwise.

 

[SL&AM]

Sure...and I probably will. It's just shocking to me how expensive this trip is going to be. I'm really disappointed that our gym chose to attend this competition. And that Varsity chose to hold the competition in such a costly area. At least in Orlando things are set up in a way that works for family travel.

The biggest issue you're going to find is that the Tampa Convention Center is not only water front property, but there isn't a whole lot of options within walking distance of the convention center. There is one bar & grill that is right outside the convention center, but you can sit an entire hour without even having someone show up to your table and everything else is driving distance. There IS a Starbucks in the lobby of the Embassy (connects to the convention center) but I can't think of anything else that is close or easy to get to. Parking each day at the convention center is going to run you around $10 (in the parking garage) so take that into account. You're also going to need to activate the SunPass that the rental car has installed (we just did a month with Budget and each car had one, so I'm assuming this is standard) because Tampa doesn't have any cash tolls and unless you know your way around or you set your GPS up specifically to avoid toll roads (not even sure this is possible to get the CC tbh) it's SunPass or Pay-Per-License-Plate so you're getting charged either way.

Tampa is an amazing city, one we almost decided to move to, but why on Earth they put the D2 Summit there is a mystery to me. It's not build for this type of competition, imo (and something I said when it first got brought up) and will likely cost as much as the Summit in Disney. They should have done it a weekend apart. Disney and Orlando are expensive places to compete at, but at least they're prepared for the transportation and lodging issues, Tampa? Not so much.

 

[amy1k]

I'm going to send you a Facebook message, @SL&AM (just telling you in case you don't get notifications there) [emoji23]

 

[THEJOEL]

We are in St Pete a good 30-45 minutes from the convention center.
My biggest worry is the traffic I know Tampa can have issues there.

 

[SmileCat]

The biggest issue you're going to find is that the Tampa Convention Center is not only water front property, but there isn't a whole lot of options within walking distance of the convention center. There is one bar & grill that is right outside the convention center, but you can sit an entire hour without even having someone show up to your table and everything else is driving distance. There IS a Starbucks in the lobby of the Embassy (connects to the convention center) but I can't think of anything else that is close or easy to get to. Parking each day at the convention center is going to run you around $10 (in the parking garage) so take that into account. You're also going to need to activate the SunPass that the rental car has installed (we just did a month with Budget and each car had one, so I'm assuming this is standard) because Tampa doesn't have any cash tolls and unless you know your way around or you set your GPS up specifically to avoid toll roads (not even sure this is possible to get the CC tbh) it's SunPass or Pay-Per-License-Plate so you're getting charged either way.

Tampa is an amazing city, one we almost decided to move to, but why on Earth they put the D2 Summit there is a mystery to me. It's not build for this type of competition, imo (and something I said when it first got brought up) and will likely cost as much as the Summit in Disney. They should have done it a weekend apart. Disney and Orlando are expensive places to compete at, but at least they're prepared for the transportation and lodging issues, Tampa? Not so much.

Theres no need for the Sunpass, unless for some reason you chose to take the veterans or the brandon expressway. which are completely avoidable and no need to take them if you're getting to the convention center.
But yes, I have NO idea why this is being held here, especially at the convention center. I hate even small local comps there. I feel so bad for everyone coming from out of town and this stupid STP :confused:

 

[SmileCat]

We are in St Pete a good 30-45 minutes from the convention center.
My biggest worry is the traffic I know Tampa can have issues there.

Yes, the bridge from St. Pete to tampa is a nightmare during rush hour. If you need to be at the convention center at say 9am, you'll have to leave right after 7am to be safe. I-275 is a nightmare 24/7.

 

[SL&AM]

Theres no need for the Sunpass, unless for some reason you chose to take the veterans or the brandon expressway. which are completely avoidable and no need to take them if you're getting to the convention center.
But yes, I have NO idea why this is being held here, especially at the convention center. I hate even small local comps there. I feel so bad for everyone coming from out of town and this stupid STP :confused:

We tried avoiding the SunPass from the airport to the convention center and it added 20 minutes to the trip (we switched vehicles and forgot ours) and eventually said screw it and paid the license plate stuff in the mail.

We've had 2 comps there this weekend and I was just thankful they were 1 day.

 

[THEJOEL]

Theres no need for the Sunpass, unless for some reason you chose to take the veterans or the brandon expressway. which are completely avoidable and no need to take them if you're getting to the convention center.
But yes, I have NO idea why this is being held here, especially at the convention center. I hate even small local comps there. I feel so bad for everyone coming from out of town and this stupid STP :confused:

Geez this doesn't give me the warm and fuzzies about D2.

 

[SmileCat]

We tried avoiding the SunPass from the airport to the convention center and it added 20 minutes to the trip (we switched vehicles and forgot ours) and eventually said screw it and paid the license plate stuff in the mail.

We've had 2 comps there this weekend and I was just thankful they were 1 day.

I can't think of what way you'd be taking from TIA to TCC that involves tolls. That's really weird... As soon as you exit TIA (no matter which way you go) the closest toll road is the Veterans which heads north and is still avoidable if you're going north. To get to the convention center, you'll head towards 275, which is not a toll. I just googled it and it's a 16 minutes drive without traffic.

Geez this doesn't give me the warm and fuzzies about D2.

Tampa is a nice city, but really not for a huge cheer competition. IMO, it's not very 'family friendly' either. The only plus side is probably for those who want to stay longer and go to Clearwater beach.

 

[SL&AM]

Geez this doesn't give me the warm and fuzzies about D2.

The Summit D2 may or may not have been a good idea, but the convention center is just not a convenient place for that amount of people. I feel bad for anyone who doesn't pack a cooler and expects to eat while they're there.