Lottery Process
Why can’t I get on a tour when it is my first or only choice?
AARCH has a membership of nearly 2000 people and tours often only have 30 openings. In the random lottery drawing, it is very possible that a tour request at the end of the process will be chosen after the available are filled.
Tour Registration
I’m a member of AARCH. Who can I invite on tours or events with me?
Unless the tour or event is “sponsor only” or otherwise noted, you are welcome to invite members and non-members to AARCH events. Pricing differs for non-members, as noted in the tour schedule and your invoice. Note that most outings are limited to four reservations per member.
If a tour is consistently sold out, why don’t you just offer it more often?
All of the places we visit require a great deal of planning and orchestration. Many of these places are special camps, homes, and businesses, opened to us on a very limited and exclusive basis. We are occasionally able to offer an outing more than one time each year (Valcour, Santanoni, and others) but, generally speaking, to honor the wishes of our hosts, we are limited to one outing.
What is the waiting list?
Our waiting list is a list of people who have expressed interest in attending a certain tour, after the tour has been filled. People are placed on the waiting list in the order their requests were drawn through the lottery process or in the order they made their requests after the initial lottery process was over. If space open up on a tour, people are contacted sequentially from the waiting list to try to fill the open positions.
Why is a tour marked “Sponsors Only”?
As a way of thanking our larger donors (Sponsors give $125 to AARCH annually), we typically offer one special event each year that is only available to them. What then usually happens is that we offer this event again a year or two later to our full membership. If someone wants to register for a “Sponsor’s only” tour but is not a Sponsor they can increase their membership giving in order to qualify.
Tours
How do you choose where to go?
AARCH has been offering tours and workshops since 1991, our first full year as an organization and we take great pride in the number and variety of places that we’ve brought people to throughout the region – over 225 distinct outings and counting. Each year we try to offer an assortment of events that explore a variety of subjects and themes, are spread throughout the region, and will appeal to different audiences. We repeat many of our most popular tours each year but we are constantly looking for new places to explore and aspire to offering at least six new outings each year.
Membership
What is the benefit of a Family Membership versus an Individual Membership?
A Family Membership extends all of the benefits of an AARCH membership to up to 2 adults and their children under the age of 18 (all living in the same household). This means a family of four would receive the discounted member rate for our tours ($10 off per person). All membership levels above the $65 level receive this benefit.