Accommodation for a wedding or simcha
Simchas move families in blocks. A wedding, bar mitzvah or sheva brachos brings grandparents, siblings and small children to one town for a weekend, and a set of hotel rooms scattered across a city solves none of the actual problems: nowhere to put a cot, nowhere for everyone to eat together, nowhere for the baby to sleep while the rest of you are still up.
A whole house or a large flat usually costs less than the equivalent rooms and works considerably better. What matters is where it sits relative to the hall and to shul, because most of the weekend is spent walking between them.
What to check before you book
- Give the host the address of the hall and the shul and ask for walking times to both.
- Count beds honestly, including who is willing to share and who is not.
- Ask about cots, high chairs and step stools rather than assuming — many hosts have them.
- For a multi-family booking, ask whether the host has adjacent listings available.