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Families scramble for hotels a year before graduation

<p>The cancellation of graduation has caused Oxford hotels to take a big financial hit. </p>

The cancellation of graduation has caused Oxford hotels to take a big financial hit.

By Abby Kelly, For The Miami Student

For family and friends of the thousands of Miami seniors who are graduating May 16, finding a hotel for the event began months before graduates put on caps and gowns.

Oxford has only six hotels, each with about 60 rooms. With the number of people coming to town for the commencement, most people are left searching for a place to stay at Hueston Woods State Park or in nearby Hamilton.

However, because those rooms are in high demand, they fill up quickly, prompting parents to start exploring their options as early as May of the year prior in hopes of staying close to campus.

Senior Elizabeth Mitlak's parents called Hueston Woods last summer on the first day they started taking reservations for this year's graduation weekend. But, when they called, all the rooms were blocked out, and they did not get one.

"They called three more places, and they were all booked, too," Mitlak said. "Now they are just going to driving home [to Indianapolis] after the ceremony."

Other hotels organize their process more efficiently than receiving a chaotic rush of phone calls trying to book a room on a specific day.

But priority is first given to returning guests.

Assistant Manager of the Elms Hotel, Jodie Anspaugh, said they have set up a loyalty system called the Preferred Parents Program in order to book rooms at the Uptown hotel for graduation.

"We add up all your stays throughout the years and we start at the top and work our way down until all rooms are sold," said Anspaugh.

For guests who have stayed in the Marcum Hotel on campus, Manager Alex Bufler said parents can enter a lottery ticket for each night they have stayed at the hotel.

"We feel that this method of booking rooms is the most fair, rather that assigning rooms to top occupants. Even if you stay with us for one night, you still have a chance," Bufler said.

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It may be hard to find a hotel in Oxford for the weekend, but Anspaugh said hotel rooms sometimes open back up if someone does not claim all their rooms. She believes persistence can be key for those who are looking for a hotel for future graduations

"Bug us with phone calls and check online," Anspaugh said. "Sometimes it pays off."

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