Bringing outside AV into a Waikīkī hotel: read this before you sign

Here’s a conversation I have a few times a year. A planner calls, excited. They found a production company they love, the budget works, and the show is going to look great. Then they forward me the hotel contract they signed four months ago, and on page eleven there’s a paragraph about outside audiovisual vendors.

Nothing in that paragraph is evil. Hotels have real reasons for it. Their in-house AV partner has staff on property, owns the house system, and is responsible for what happens in those rooms. But that paragraph can add thousands of dollars to your show, and the cheapest time to deal with it is before you sign.

What usually lives in that paragraph

• A patch fee. A charge for connecting outside gear to the house sound system, or sometimes just for an outside company working in the room. It may be flat, per room or per day.
• Power. Big shows need more power than the wall outlets. Hotels often charge for a tie-in to a power distribution panel, and sometimes require their own electrician.
• Rigging. Anything hanging from the ceiling usually goes through the house rigging team, on their points, at their rates.
• Supervision. Some contracts require a house technician in the room whenever an outside vendor is working.
• Insurance. A certificate naming the hotel and its management company, with specific limits, before load-in.

Questions I’d ask before signing

1. Can outside AV work here, and what does it cost per room, per day?
2. Will you waive or reduce the patch fee if we’re using no house audio at all?
3. What power is available in each room, and what does a tie-in cost?
4. Which rigging points can we use, and do we have to use house riggers?
5. What insurance limits do you need on a vendor’s certificate?
6. What are the load-in and load-out windows, and who else is in the room the night before?

Most of those are negotiable when you’re booking a big room block and a food and beverage minimum. Almost none of them are negotiable after the ink dries.

Working with the house team, not against them

I spent years on the in-house side, so I’m not interested in a turf war. On a lot of shows the smart move is a mix: the house team handles breakouts with their existing gear, and I bring the main room production in. Sometimes I mix on the house system and we skip the outside gear entirely.

The point is to decide that on purpose, with the numbers in front of you, instead of finding out on page eleven.

If you’re about to sign a hotel contract, send it to me and I’ll read the AV section with you. If you already have an AV quote, a quote review will show you where the room is.