Forum

Ann Arbor the Original

Posted by R. Michael Wommack on February 18, 2011 at 8:25pm in Art Show Information and Discussions

I have never done any of the shows in Ann Arbor before, and thought I would give it a try. After too many wait list notifications, I was happy to get into this one.

I know a lot of you veterans have done this show, as well as the others that weekend, and was hoping to get advice on two things specifically, and any other advice in general. I have looked for past blogs or reviews and have found little. 

What about booth placement? Are there better locations to ask for? Are there any bad locations?

What is the lodging scene in Ann Arbor? I am working Priceline and it looks like it is not going to be cheap. Also, what parts of town are better to stay in?

You need to be a member of Art Fair Insiders to add comments!

Join Art Fair Insiders

★
★
★
★
★
Votes: 0
Email me when people reply –
Follow

Replies

  • Connie Mettler February 22, 2011 at 7:40am
    Well, that was an error! Sorry. I meant to say North University, sorry for the confusion. Why I like this area is it is in the heart of the whole show and gets traffic from people visiting the State Street Show and the set up and take down is great.
  • R. Michael Wommack February 21, 2011 at 10:38pm
    Thanks Connie and Larry, they are helpful tips. I think I will look into the Extended Stay. I looked at the website for the Bell Tower, and their room start at $200, way over my budget, although it is real convenient. I will try and find out what the artist rate is at the Fairfield. They get a better rating from the reviews.
  • Connie Mettler February 18, 2011 at 10:11pm

    Just off the top of my head, Michael, get a room. Do it today. This is a university town and there are lots of places to stay. We usually stay out on State Street near I-94 in an area that has a Hampton Inn, the various Marriotts.  The Fairfield Inn in that area has "artist rates" -- not cheap, but get a room today. You can always change later.

    As best I know there are no Priceline deals for this area. Every room fills just about every night. It is a not a large town. You really can't go wrong. If you are willing to pay the price there are two hotels downtown, adjacent to the Original, so you can park and walk to and from the show. This is really nice as the hours are long. One is the Bell Tower and the other one is on Washington, it keeps changing its name, but you can find it through a search. Many artists have their 6a00e54fba8a7388330133f5103bec970b-pifavorite places to stay and make a reservation for the following year when they check out so many places have a lot of rooms already reserved.

    Booth location - I think the best area for your show is on South University. This street sees anyone who comes through the show as it is a conduit from one show to another. Others though do like the spaces around the central plaza where the show erects nice tents and you can feel secure throughout the event.

    • Larry Berman > Connie Mettler February 20, 2011 at 8:24pm
      Where Connie is suggesting to stay is at the motels on Boardwalk across the street (State Street) from Briarwood Mall. We used to stay at the Courtyard and once my wife stopped going with me, I got a room at the Extended Stay where the weekly rate breaks down to about $35 a night. And I shared that with a friend so it was even cheaper.

      As for booth locations, I don't think the original show is on South University. There is now a South University show that threw out the original show years ago and they moved to North University.

      Here's a map of last years shows I found online:
      http://www.artfair.org/UserFiles/File/Maps/2010%20Art%20Fair%204%20...

      Really lame web design. All the %20's indicate spaces in the file name that the browser fills in. Files on a web site can't have spaces or the browser changes them and some browsers don't see the files at all. So if the link doesn't work, just do a search for Ann Arbor art fair map.

      Larry Berman
      http://BermanGraphics.com
      412-401-8100
This reply was deleted.