by Max Marbut
Staff Writer
From the favorable weather forecast to the almost perfect lack of empty hotel rooms, all indications are the 2010 Gator Bowl weekend will be a winner for Downtown.
Most of the fans following the University of Michigan Wolverines and the Mississippi State Bulldogs will arrive today. That wasn’t the case for all of the Wolverines.
Sunday afternoon players, coaches, athletic department staff and family members checked in at the Omni.
It was quite a day for Downtown’s only four-diamond hotel. The Omni was the headquarters for the Washington Redskins when they were in town to play the Jaguars Sunday and the hotel staff had to use its own version of the two-minute drill to clean the guest rooms and transition from the NFL to a full house for the Gator Bowl.
“The Redskins checked out at 10 a.m. to go to the stadium and we knew everyone from Michigan was going to start checking in that afternoon. It was all hands on deck,” said Omni Convention Services Manager Bryan Ayer.
The hotel set up the second floor meeting rooms to accommodate UM’s coaching and training staffs. There’s also a game room for players and a special area devoted to Michigan’s video department, including a T1 Internet access which allows the team to send video clips to television stations back home in minutes rather than hours.
One of the first arrivals was a truck with 600 pieces of luggage, followed by eight charter buses carrying the team and its fans. There were also boxes of Michigan clothing and caps for the Omni’s staff to wear this week.
Ayer said the hotel works with all types of business and leisure travelers, but hosting a Gator Bowl team is different.
“They found out only 10 days ago where they were going. There are a lot of parts to put together, so everything has to be very detailed and organized,” said Ayer.
Across the river at the Crowne Plaza, this year was unlike other years, said Janice Dailey, director of sales and marketing.
“Neither one of the conferences wanted to have an official alumni hotel, so we didn’t do a group sale this year. We booked individual fans who are coming for the game and we’re sold out. It’s very exciting,” she said.
Downtown’s largest hotel, the 966-room Hyatt, will also be hanging out the “no vacancy” sign this weekend. As of Wednesday morning, fewer than 40 accommodations were unreserved, said General Manager Dan King.
“We have plenty of bookings from both colleges,” he said.
The Hyatt is hosting the sold-out Coaches Luncheon and Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony Friday. This year, the Hometown Gator Bowl Parade will circle the hotel on East Bay, Newnan and Water streets.
There’s also a New Year’s Eve celebration open to the public on the hotel’s Riverview Terrace, with a live band and an unobstructed view of the fireworks at midnight.
King said the Gator Bowl attracts fans who are mostly alumni and come to the game to have a good time and support their team and the local economy. There’s also the weather forecast for sun and temperatures in the 70s.
“I’m sure we’ll see a lot of people wearing shorts,” said King.
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