Frequently Asked Questions

Submit a request on our Start Planning page and we’ll reply within 24 hours to set up a discovery call. Within 3 to 5 business days of that call, we send a custom proposal and walk you through it. Once your chapter decides, the contract is ready in 24 to 48 hours, so most chapters go from first inquiry to signed contract in about two to three weeks.

1. Send a request. Fill out the Start Planning form with your school, chapter, rough group size and the dates or cities you have in mind. We reply within 24 hours.
2. Discovery call. A short call to understand what your chapter wants from the formal: dates, budget, group size, the kind of city and the kind of night you’re after.
3. Custom proposal. Our team builds a proposal for your chapter in 3 to 5 business days, covering the hotel, transportation, the formal venue and the weekend itinerary.
4. Proposal review call. We schedule a second call to go through the proposal with you, answer questions and adjust anything that doesn’t fit.
5. Chapter decision. Your chapter has one week to discuss the proposal and decide where it wants to go.
6. Contract. Once you decide, we have the contract ready in 24 to 48 hours. Your dates are locked when the contract is signed and the deposit is paid.

The busiest weekends fill first: MLK weekend in New Orleans and April weekends in most cities. Chapters that want those dates usually start the process the semester before. Fall formals and less popular weekends can often be booked with less notice.

Usually about two to three weeks from first inquiry to signed contract: a reply within 24 hours, a proposal 3 to 5 business days after the discovery call, one week for your chapter to decide, and 24 to 48 hours to prepare the contract.

When the contract is signed and the deposit is paid. Until then, dates in a proposal aren’t held.

Whoever is planning the formal, usually the social chair, plus the chapter president or treasurer if they’ll sign the contract or manage payments.

No. For ART private U.S. formals, our standard is 18+ to attend and 21+ to drink. Your planner will confirm any venue-specific entry rules for your event. If your chapter plans a separate stop at a bar, club or public show, check that venue’s entry policy for the time you plan to go.

All Roads Travel plans and runs the whole weekend: the hotel room block, charter buses, the private venue for the formal, the itinerary and ART staff on-site when we’re hosting multiple groups in a destination. We ask your chapter for three things: help getting the rooming list in order, paying on schedule, and showing up to enjoy the trip.

What ART handles

• Hotel room block. We negotiate and contract the room block, including large groups split across neighboring hotels.
• Charter buses. We book the buses, the departure and return times, and the drivers’ rooms.
• The formal. We book the private venue and set up the event: the time slot, food and entertainment such as a DJ, based on what your chapter chooses.
• Extras. Group activities where the city calls for them, such as a lake day on cabana boats in Lake Havasu or a yacht cruise in Chicago or Vancouver.
• The itinerary. A full weekend schedule, from departure to the ride home.
• Rooming list. We collect your chapter’s room assignments and manage them with the hotel.
• Payments. A clear payment schedule and invoices, with payment by wire or online payment link.
• On-site staff. ART staff are on-site during the weekend.
• One team throughout. A planner handles your chapter from the first call through the proposal and contract, and an operations coordinator manages the details from contract to trip.

What we ask of your chapter

• The rooming list. Help us get your room assignments complete and accurate by the due date.
• Payments on time. Make each payment by its due date on the contract.
• Show up. Get on the bus and enjoy the weekend.

No. The hotel, buses, venue and itinerary are all booked by ART. Your chapter’s job is the rooming list and payments.

Yes. ART staff are on-site during the weekend when we’re hosting multiple groups in a destination. Otherwise, travelers have concierge-level remote support a phone call away, with arrangements confirmed before the trip.

Yes. Every proposal is built for your chapter, so you choose the city, the kind of venue, the food and the entertainment.

A deposit at contract signing locks your dates, with two payments before the trip. Every due date is set out in your contract.

The standard payment schedule

After the deposit, your chapter makes two payments before the trip: a progress payment and then the final balance. Both are due well before check-in, so everything is settled before you travel.

Booking closer to the trip

If your chapter signs closer to check-in, the same payments are moved closer together, and the due dates are set out in your contract.

How to pay

Payments are made by wire or online payment link. Each due date is listed in your contract, so your treasurer can plan member dues and collections around it.

At contract signing. The deposit is what locks your dates.

45 days before check-in.

The schedule is compressed to fit the time before your trip, and your contract lists each due date.

The cost of a formal weekend depends on six things: the city and hotel, your dates, the bus distance, your group size and room setup, the number of nights, and what you choose for the formal itself. Because those change for every chapter, All Roads Travel prices each formal individually, and you get a custom proposal within 3 to 5 business days of your discovery call.

What drives the price

• City and hotel. Hotel rates vary by city and by neighborhood. A hotel within walking distance of the venues costs more than one farther out, but it saves on transportation during the weekend.
• Dates. Peak weekends cost more, including MLK weekend in New Orleans and April weekends in most cities. Fall dates and less popular weekends usually cost less.
• Bus distance. Charter buses are priced per bus, so a longer drive costs more. A full bus also costs less per person than a half-empty one.
• Group size and room setup. Rooms with four members cost less per person than rooms with two. Larger groups spread fixed costs, such as the venue and buses, across more people.
• Number of nights. Most formals are two nights. A third night, common in beach cities like Myrtle Beach, adds to the cost.
• The formal itself. The venue, the food (appetizers, a buffet or a plated dinner), entertainment and any extra group activities all affect the total.

Ways to keep the cost down

• Be flexible on dates and avoid the busiest weekends.
• Pick a city closer to campus.
• Fill rooms with four members.
• Keep the trip to two nights.
• Book early, before the best-priced dates and hotels are gone.

A brother bringing a date should ask for one number covering both guests. Start with the chapter’s total for the hotel, formal and any group transportation. Subtract what the chapter treasury will cover, then divide the remaining shared costs among the paying brothers.

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Because the price depends on your city, dates, group size, room setup and choices for the formal. We build a custom proposal for each chapter instead, within 3 to 5 business days of your discovery call.

Choose a city closer to campus, avoid peak weekends, fill rooms with four members, keep it to two nights, and book early.

Often, yes. Costs like the venue and buses are spread across more travelers.

New Orleans handles the largest groups: All Roads Travel has hosted more than 540 travelers there in one weekend. Nashville, Dallas, Vancouver, Chicago and Austin have each hosted groups of 350 or more, and several other cities have hosted groups of more than 300.

• Hotels. Large groups often split across two neighboring hotels within walking distance of each other. In some cities, such as Dallas and Las Vegas, one large hotel can take the whole chapter.
• The venue. A big group needs a venue sized for it. In New Orleans and Nashville, private venues hold groups of 500 or more.
• Buses. Each charter bus seats about 50 to 56, so a chapter of 300 needs around six buses. ART schedules them to arrive together.
• Booking early. Fewer hotels and venues can take a large group on the same weekend, so big chapters should start the process the semester before.

New Orleans has hosted the largest groups, more than 540 in one weekend. Nashville, Dallas, Vancouver, Chicago and Austin have each hosted groups of 350 or more.

Sometimes. In some cities one hotel can take the whole group; in others we split the chapter between neighboring hotels a short walk apart.

About one charter bus for every 50 to 56 travelers, so six buses for a chapter of 300.

Most chapters travel by charter bus, booked by All Roads Travel, from campus to the hotel and back. Buses usually leave campus Friday morning or midday and return Sunday, and most formal cities are about 5 to 8 hours from campus.

• How many buses. Each bus seats about 50 to 56, so plan on one bus for every 50 to 56 travelers. A chapter of 200 usually needs four buses.
• Departure and return. Buses usually leave campus Friday morning or midday, arrive by mid-afternoon for check-in, and leave for home Sunday after checkout.
• Drivers. ART books the drivers’ hotel rooms, so the same drivers bring your group home on Sunday.
• Why 5 to 8 hours. At that distance the drive fits within a single driver’s legal driving hours, and the trip fits in a Friday-to-Sunday weekend.

About one bus for every 50 to 56 travelers. A chapter of 200 usually needs four.

Usually Friday morning or midday, arriving in time for afternoon check-in. Your itinerary lists the exact times.

That’s far enough to feel like a real trip and close enough to drive there Friday, enjoy the weekend, and be home Sunday.