Many people have written to us asking what's up with hotel reservations. These are the facts as of this moment:

A special rate of $145 per night exists at the Hotel Pennsylvania for the duration of the conference. This rate is not only a special rate for HOPE attendees but it guarantees you a room in the refurbished part of the hotel which also has wired ethernet in the rooms.

But here's where it gets a little crazy. The hotel is in the process of "upgrading" its computer system so they're not able to process reservations in the normal manner. It's really nothing to worry about as they will take down your information and guarantee you a room. The only thing they won't be able to do on the spot is issue a confirmation number because it would somehow conflict with their new computer system. (Yes, we know that almost anyone attending our conference could probably do a better job of installing a new computer system. We're choosing to look at this as an example of "old world charm.")

What does this mean to you? Nothing, unless you're paranoid about not having those magic numbers in front of you. The hotel will contact everyone who makes a reservation sometime around the middle of May and give them the new confirmation numbers at that point. So be sure to give them contact info that will be valid at that time.

Thinking about booking online? That's also beyond the Hotel Pennsylvania's capability (remember, "old world charm") insofar as getting the special rate. If you do book online, you'll likely wind up in some other part of the hotel, perhaps in a non-refurbished room and certainly without wired ethernet. We recommend calling them at +1 212 736 5000, requesting a room at the HOPE Number Six rate and following the procedure above.

In addition to the Hotel Pennsylvania, a couple of other neighborhood hotels have come forward with special deals for the conference. Both of these hotels are only a couple of blocks from the Hotel Pennsylvania (Seventh Avenue and 33rd Street) and they can both be booked online.

The Hotel Wolcott is offering a rate of $150 during the weekend and $130 during the week. To reserve, go to their website and click on Corporate Reservations. Enter the password 2600. You can call them at +1 212 268 2900. This hotel is located at 4 West 31st Street, between Fifth Avenue and Broadway.

The New Yorker Hotel is offering a rate of $142 per night. To reserve, visit their special HOPE Number Six reservations page. You can also call them at +1 212 971 0101. They're located at 481 Eighth Avenue right off of 34th Street.

Of course, if none of these options is to your liking, there are lots of other places to stay in New York City. We're collecting information about many of these locations (including some very inexpensive youth hostel options) in the Where to Stay section of the HOPE wiki and in the Travel section of the HOPE website.