If you are unable to find your preferred hotel or room type, you can join the waitlist. The waitlist relies entirely on cancellations and does not guarantee a reservation. Most requests are fulfilled from mid-to-late February when attendees with existing reservations finalize travel plans and release nights. If you need to secure a reservation before February, the waitlist may not be the best option for you.
Waitlist Tips & Facts:
- Attendees may not confirm a reservation and wait-list the same dates for another hotel. We do not recommend canceling an existing reservation in order to get on a specific hotel’s waitlist.
- Each hotel’s waitlist has limited availability based on the number of attendees we have been able to accommodate in the past.
- Joining our waitlist doesn’t guarantee a room, but we do have a high success rate of fulfilling waitlist requests.
- SXSW Housing & Travel will work with you up until your check-in date to help you find accommodations, even if it’s not your first choice. We won’t leave you homeless!
How to join the waitlist:
- Once you’ve registered, follow the same steps to book a hotel through our online reservation system.
- Select your check-in/check-out dates to populate available hotels. Hotels with a waitlist will be detailed at the bottom of this list.
- Choose Join Wait-List and select your desired room.
- Follow the steps to complete as you would for a regular reservation.
- A credit card is required to complete your transaction, to provide to the hotel should a room become available. You will not be charged until you have a confirmed reservation. Read here for our payment policy.
Include any additional hotel preferences in the Special Requests field (i.e. specific room type, location, price range, if your request is flexible). This helps us look for only what you need and also lets us know if it’s ok to look for other options.
Should a room become available for you, SXSW Housing & Travel will immediately book your reservation and send a confirmation email. If you no longer need a room, cancel your request as soon as possible to avoid penalty fees.
If we accommodate your waitlist request within 28 days of arrival, there is a 24 hour grace period to cancel without incurring our $50 SXSW cancellation penalty. If we accommodate your waitlist request within the hotel’s cancellation period (usually 7-14 days before arrival) you may be responsible for any hotel cancellation fees. To cancel your waitlist request, use the Request For Change link located at the bottom of your waitlist confirmation email.
Still have questions? Email us at housing@sxsw.com!
Helpful Resources