"The new Lancaster Host" Topic

I attended a small games day at the Host this weekend and have to say I almost fainted. Seems like Stalingrad is about 90% rebuilt. I'm going to be honest for the last 10 years I have bashed the Host as being a total dump. Only using her for gaming and purchases. The new Host or Wyndham has transformed into a great option for future HMGS cons or should I say con. The gaming rooms are all renovated. The lampeter room looks fantastic. There is a new parking lot in the dealer hall area. The rest of the parking areas are redone. Elevators are all new and can accommodate gm carts. I can go on and on. For all of us who are aging in the hobby would have no problem negotiating the new Host. The Hotel was clean! Imagine that….I even had something from the Starbucks in the lobby. My first food purchase at the Host in years. Bars yes plural Bars were open. We gamed in the Hawks room that was totally redone and comfortable. We even were able to open the large doors exiting out to the deck. Made the room very cool. Was even able to flush a toilet and it worked. I know the cost has gone up but in this point in my life it would be worth paying more to attend cons there. This really needs to be explored. Was even able to go to Gettysburg for a day as a bonus. For all you ACW lovers on a side note significant renovations to Devils den have been made and the view from little round top is so cool. I know we are a ways away from another con but the Host really needs to be looked at again. We have plenty of money. Just my two cents. This coming from a guy who bashed the Host. Anyone who happens to have an opportunity to see what my eyes have seen should check it out. In hindsight I should have created a video. Stay tuned.

I agree.

The USA needs to start taking the pandemic seriously before I travel South again.

The Host tried to jack up the rates on HMGS, including the hotel rooms
The Host/Wyndham needs to find its place/price point in that market before HMGS can talk to them again. The pandemic has delayed them finding out that price level.

And yes, the place is great now, though I'm not sure about the recent changes around the dealer hall and how that impacts access and parking.

sounds great…Loved the Host.

You can drive down the hill to a large parking lot. There is also a lot for the dealers vehicles being completed next to the building. If you didn't want to walk you could easily take your car to the hall, do your shopping and leave. I was really impressed with the work done.

The Board insists it was all about money, and certainly they shouldn't commit to money-losing conventions. But yes, up to a point, I'd pay money to return to the Host, and Ocean City isn't on for me at any price.

Ocean City is a non-starter based on location alone, pandemic or no.

Rusty beat me to this review. The Gamesday was called "The Hunt for Lead October," and it was hosted by Pat Devine of W.A.M.P. It was a fun filled day of gaming in one of my favorite convention venues. Thanks Pat!
Regarding the "Host" or the Wyndam. I cannot agree more with Rusty. The rooms are great and clean. The entire hotel is beautiful. I think the parking tripled outside of Lampeter and certainly doubled outside of the Dealer Hall. The absolute biggest plus for me was that they fixed the elevator situation by Door G so that every floor is accessible for GM carts. I did not try the food or drink there. That was my choice and a Covid thing for me. The courtyard is beautiful. Pool, hot tub, outside seating for eating, fire pits lit for sitting around in evening. I would have to agree that they are 90% done.
I too was a big opponent of staying at the host when it turned into the scene of a Mad Max movie! But those days are way done. HMGS needs to seriously reconsider this location for a convention.

The Host is a sentimental favorite and shows promise once again, but I'm still holding out for the Jacob Javits Center in New York so we can grow the hobby.

I hope HMGS does return tothe Wyndham/Host, but it will have to find its price point in the market first. I believe what they were asking before we left was unreasonable. Oh, and the hotel now owns all those tables HMGS bought them, so we have to rent them back now. Seems weird, but it is what it is.

I have so many fond memories of the Host, but as a midwesterner who has been coming to Cold Wars and Historicon for over 20 years, I just cannot do cons all the way on the East coast anymore. I did do those at Valley Forge, but they are just farther than I want to go. As long as Hcon stays in Lancaster, I will come. It is HMGS East though, and I am a fringe audience for what they are looking for (East coast attendees).

Dueling pistols at 10 paces, for two appointed representatives from the opposing sides, in order to settle this like gentlemen, and/or gentlewomen?

If more really want to get in on this, perhaps a general melee with medieval pole arms at an appointed time and location to be determined (though I suspect the latter may be just as complex to settle).

Good to hear the new, improved venue, appears to be finally REALLY improved.

This post was not meant to stir the pot. Just wanted to let everyone know how much work has been done. So if we do have an opportunity to return, people know beforehand the state of the Wyndham. Walking around this weekend just brought back so many great memories. I think it would be great if we could get one of the cons back there.

I know. I was joking.

Though, I have seen how this plays out in the past.

Hopefully, now that things are "new" and "improved" there will be less drama.

Oh, all the hard core types who made it to Cold Wars know about the improvements--though truthfully the carpet and wall paper keep it several grades below "beautiful." More proof that money is no guarantee of taste. But all the core systems seem to be in good working order and the restaurant has been restored.

Mind you, Ocean City may be every bit as good, but I will never know from personal experience.

When Historicon was at the host I did find it easier to get a room and park my motor car.
The new venue seems booked up very quickly and makes it less possible for me.

martin

I'm jealous that you had a gamesday, I miss the HMGS conventions quite a bit. How big of an event was it? Last time I was there was for Cold Wars 2019.

Just as a comparison, I was looking at HCon 2021 lodging options.

The Marriott's website lists their rate at $179 USD/per.
The Lancaster Holiday Inn lists their rate as $147 USD-177.
The Lancaster Wyndham lists their rate as $206 USD-229.

Somebody needs a reality check.

(None of the listed #'s reflect any group rates)

I had heard a rumor about a game event upcoming at the "Host." I confirmed the date by prising info out of the Host staff. But, given the no announcement nature, I figured it was an invite only sort of deal and let be.

I know it's still 6 months, but OC is starting to look pretty iffy.

If it does become an option in the future, it would be best to put one of the smaller shows there. There is hardly enough room for vendors for those shows, and I cannot imagine it holding all of a normal Historicon's vendor crowd. Then again we can start prioritizing vendors like in the past when space was an issue. I have not seen the final layout of the parking and building access, but we were really starting to have issues with load in and load out with one door/access point for larger vehicles.

And that's my point. The Wyndham (formerly knows as the Host) has not found its price point in the market yet, and the Covid shut-down is only prolonging that situation. It will likely be a year or two before you could sit down and have a reasonable conversation with facility managers to engage in negotiations.

In the mean time I hope that they drop this fixation with convention centers and look to other facilities. I suspect there will be a lasting impact from this virus on overall attendance.

A few quick points…

historygamer – HMGS never bought any tables. We considered buying tables at one point, but decided against it. The Host bought their own tables during the process of converting to the Wyndham franchise.

BTC Terrainman – The Wyndham is a possible option for one of the smaller shows in 2022. It is not feasible for Historicon.

This situation has been very trying to say the least. While gathering restrictions and may be with us for some time, let's hope 2021 brings some progress and we can get back to having some conventions.

Brian:

Thanks for the correction on the tables. I believe it made sense at the time it was being considered, and a past BoD member told me that deal had gone through. Good to know. It's a shame that with the management change at the Wyndham/Host, they really don't owe us anything, and of course want to try to recoup their investment – which must be considerable. Unfortunately, the pandemic will likely prevent them from knowing their business till at least the end of summer 2022. Perhaps they might become more reasonable on price for CW/FI. Even the previous management kind of resented us being there in July at the height of their summer tourist season. But again, that pattern might change too. Who knows?

Is there any thought to trying to shift Hcon to a safer (???) time of year next summer? All the reports seem to indicate mass vaccines, at best, make it out in the spring/early summer – which seriously puts Hcon at risk again. And until the state of PA moves out of the green phase into all clear, HMGS/LCC could not host such an event anyway. The problem is with a wait and see attitude is that we lose the initiative (good tie into military jargon there). Just some thoughts from someone who wants to see the cons succeed. :-)

I want to thank the Gentlemen for their kind words. One of the things I was selling was nostalgia. I needed a weekend away and some gaming to boot. I will do it again if HMGS has to cancel again. There is a way to do this. So I did it. We did not have many due to a multitude of reasons. Most namely me. I will promote better next time. Hotel was $133. USD a night and the conference rooms were Paradise. 1050.00 Cornwall, 300.00. Insurance was $175.00 USD. Point is, it is doable if you can just game. Dealers and flea markets would be tough. I will give a shout here if you all would like, but due to restrictions. I can only accept so many. Meaning, you have to commit. If not you are robbing some one of a spot.Should the unfortuitous happen, you need to contact and cancel so I can open a spot.

Kudos to you for organizing such a thing. Well done.

…and I drove by there twice taking the wife shopping at the outlet malls on Saturday! Driving by it looked awesome! BIG change. Wife tired of my reminising and said "wish they were open so you would just go…get out for a while again."

My wish too.

@Rotundo – What you accomplished is what Otto Schmitt was doing with The Weekend. A fairly small convention that had the feel of gaming with a group of friends. For the sake of simplicity there were no vendors or dealers – unless they came to play.

I would have loved to attend but work and a death in the family prevented me from going. I applaud your effort!!!

Dye, would have loved to have you. King, should I do this again, I will implement his invitation system. You email me, I in turn formally invite you. This will help me track attendance better. HG, thank you. might tie in with you Maryland types for the next one!!!!

I think smaller get togethers may be the way the next year. Just read an article on Fauci who says things likely won't return to anywhere near normal till late 2021 or perhaps into 2022. :-(

link

I miss seeing everyone. The Host was a perfect spot with a central meeting location for gathering with friends, that in my opinion hasn't been replicated in any of the other venues.

Agreed. The convention centers don't seem to have the same feel as the Host, old or new.

HG, I am moving on. I do not want to devolve this into politics/medicine. I am not a lawyer or doctor. Truthfully, I do not care what any one said. I am just doing. Same way I recognize the actions of another can hurt me in a car. I assess that everyday, and every day I load myself into my car and turn it on. To me, it was worth it…. to some it will not. I trust everyone to make decent decisions. I will tell all of you straight. Most of us did not wear masks, so plan accordingly. Use your head for your set of problems. I am not going to enforce, plain and simple. Please plan accordingly.

Not intended to steal the thread. Only meant to say that what you did may be the model for the immediate future, and the new Host works well for that. :-)

"HMGS never bought any tables. We considered buying tables at one point, but decided against it. The Host bought their own tables during the process of converting to the Wyndham franchise"

Actually about 15 years ago the BPA/WBC bought tables and left them at the Host – was cheaper than renting them every year. 

I visited the "new Host" last summer when it was under construction. One thing that struck me was that they lost a good 40-50 parking space in front of the hotel when they leveled them to put in that elaborate archway/entrance. So I don't know if the net total of parking spaces on the overall property is the same, or lower than what it used to be once you consider the spaces added by the Expo hall. 

Not sure how they count the overflow lot up above the old Lampeter room. Also, people used to park on the grass as well, lots of them.

We've gone full circle. The Host is now too nice/expensive for us. To think many thought the day would never come.

After many years of Cold Wars in Lancaster, I was on the fence this year, but went anyway. Very happy I did. Ocean City is not an option for me in the future.

There been a lot of hotels being built or refurbished out there, but is there that mush demand for all that? I think those guys would know there business but sometimes people make mistakes. I wouldn't be surprised if price stay the same for a while or even go down.

If the redoes on the Host/Wyndham and the Continental/ Cartoon Central are any indication, attendance at Dutch Wonderland must be off the shizznet.

FYI, the new and improved Wyndham may not need HMGS after all. According to media reports (social and otherwise), they're busy hosting Trump rallies. Ivanka was there on Sunday. You can see the videos on various web sites, including Breitbart. Not to get political, but it looks like the Vendor Hall was packed.

IIRC, VP Pence stopped by the Host for the 2016 election. The Distlefink was (and still is) one of the largest venues in the county.

Too bad HMGS didn't set up a table out front. They might have signed up some new gamers for Cold Wars 2021.

"They might have signed up some new gamers for Cold Wars 2021."

So are you taking bets that that convention happens? If so, I want a piece of that action.

My bet is that the next HMGS con is Fall In 2021 – theme – Biological Warfare and the People that Participated. :-)

I was taught long ago not to trade on "inside information."

Like Ike, Monty, et al. before D-Day, a "Go/No Go" meeting should take place within HMGS soon. (If you've watched "The Longest Day" (or enjoyed the book), you know what I'm talking about. Stay tuned.

Hope to see everyone at Cold Wars.

Until then, enjoy CYBER WARS.

Ronin I heard were going back to the Host for Cold Wars.

Let's hope.

That would be sweet.