Ground rules for a weekend away

[2beesornot2beesthatisthehoney]

Not regarding what we do when we get there but regarding how we divide up the cost of the let. MNetters I am sure will be able to tell me if this would be fair.
It's a largish self catering house which has a variety of bedrooms: larger doubles, smaller doubles , some singles, some twins. Deposit to pay on booking. I propose that we pay differing amounts according to size of room and whether we share or not . So not just split the bill equally. Alternatively should we all pay the same for a bedroom and draw lots ? ( except for the twin rooms as some people don't mind sharing others hate it)
We have to pay for the whole house regardless of how many come so what would be fair as regards deposits ? Is it reasonable to say deposit is x % but if you find you can't come then you must find a replacement or pay the full amount? Or is there a better way? Wouldn't want to be out of pocket if people backed out.

No one has been asked to commit yet but just want to sound out whether this is a reasonable approach?

No , no no Draylon you are not going to derail this thread with another Brexit discussion .

Besides this is not a weekend abroad it's in the uk . Remind me not to invite you as I would want to be paid in the currency I paid the booking in.

If I were going away for a weekend though, I would only expect to sleep in my room. Nobody is going to be living there, you are presumably all going to either spend time with each other (so will be in the communal spaces for most of the time) or to do something specific to do with the hobby (so won't even be in the building for most of the time). It really doesn't matter how big the bedroom is when you will be getting undressed and going to sleep only, for 2 nights.

If people were getting pernickety about the square footage of the bedroom and wanting to pay less, then I'd seriously think twice about how tense the whole weekend is going to be - should you pay less for food if you take your coffee without milk and sugar, and more if you have milky coffee with two sugars ???

Just state - 'this is the cost, take it or leave it'.

Draylon i couldn't go on holiday with brexiters. It's my only social filter these days...!

OP I am old and grumpy now so I never mind being bossy about such things. However as one who is always the control freak organiser, I am usually always out of pocket afterwards. I don't usually mind if it's really good Remain voting friends, but in my yoof it would always surprise me that people were fine to let me carry the cost of others pulling out.

I say price up the whole trip and then divide by the number of people going, minus one ... so if 10 people are going split it 9 ways and then ask all 10 people for that amount. That way you have a buffer for if someone drops out but if nobody does then you have a bit of money for a house kitty to put towards groceries/take out one night or even a bit of a bonus refund at the end of the trip.

Some people would be willing to pay more for a bigger room to share, some people would happily pay more to have a small room to themselves, it all depends on your preference so doing "price per room type" can be unfair if there isn't agreement of everyone on that pricing plan, and if there are lots of different room types involved. If everyone pays equally then you can decide on the rooming specifics amongst yourselves and if needs be resort to drawing lots without some people arguing that they had paid more so should get first dibs/specific rooms etc.

Also, if it is an activity weekend I would imagine that the bedrooms will be pretty much only used for sleeping/changing and most of the socialising will be in common areas ... so providing that all the rooms have the same basics - one bed space (so at least a single bed in a room for one person and either twin/double beds in a room for two) per person/an ensuite (or shared facilities for every room)/somewhere to hang clothes/lock on the door etc - then regardless of the size of the room everyone is getting the same amenities, it's just the size of the room they are housed in that is different.

I don't cause much fuss at things like shared rental for a week, but once this did happen, we all paid in for a family thing, and due to someone screaming and shouting they paid the least and got a room with a spare bed, they were on their own, but I had to split my family up, to accommodate them, the room had space for a cot. and a single bed, I got a back room which meant I had no room for a cot, and my child had to sleep in my bed.
Price per beds per room and let them pick what they pay.

You could always say rooms are
Double bed - 100 for the room (so 50 if you are happy to share 100 if you arent)
Twin bedded rooms - 120 for the room (60 if happy to share 120 if not)
Single room - 70 for the room alone

Per bed space (double bed pays twice single). You don't want a single in a double room paying the same as a single room. Payment up front, no deposits. More incentive to commit or find a replacement.

I've been away on a lot of these kind of trips and the accommodation never breaks down neatly - such as the right number of single rooms for people who prefer that - that the right number of double beds for people who would prefer etc.

We always split the costs evenly and then pull out of a hat to see who goes where. Then whoever got a double to themselves one year, gets the sofa the next etc

Anyone sleeping on a sofa should be paying a small token amount! Cheeky to ask someone to pay full whack and them not get ether a bed or a room (even to share) to have to use privately.

I've been on many girls' weekends away and I always think it's best to be as upfront about these things as possible before going away so that you can just enjoy it when you're actually there.

Definitely get final (written) confirmation from everyone before booking and make everyone pay upfront. Deposits are a faff and people could still leave you in the lurch, cutting their losses before the balance is due.

When we went away for my birthday, people paid less who were sharing or on pull-out beds in the living room. It's totally unfair to make people pay the same. The people who have less money will probably appreciate having a cheaper option which still allows them to go. I personally wouldn't mind paying more for a lovely room all to myself.

If all of this is discussed before booking, you can then look forward to a great weekend away without it hanging over you.