At the high end, a national event for 400–800 players would almost always be held in a hotel ballroom or convention center and be organized by NASPA staff. Such an event would usually be planned at least a year in advance, and typically booked through a site selection service, though unsolicited bids are welcome.
Here is what our ideal national event site would include the following. See also further down on this page for a more detailed discussion of general requirements for tournament sites.
* main playing room of ** about 20,000 square feet: a little larger or smaller is fine, 10,000 square feet is not.** quiet: our group likes to concentrate quietly, will not disturb others, accessible and does not want to the disabled, share space with groups that make loud noises** bright indirect lighting: must be bright enough for people with moderate vision impairment to read comfortably, but not cause glare on equipment** good climate control: must be sufficient to maintain a comfortable atmosphere for 400–800 players to sit in and not have to change clothes over the course of the day** no mirrors: player tiles must not be visible to opponents, like cards in a bridge or poker tournament** accessible to the disabled: must include accessible restroom facilities near the playing room** 100-200 30"x6'~8' rectangular banquet tables: 3'-wide tables are not acceptable, and pairs of 18"-wide tables less so. Availability of color-coded linens is a plus.** 400~800 chairs: players play one-on-one, two games to a table, so four chairs to a table** one centrally located riser for our command center, ** one riser for a stage, with podium, mike and P/A system** one wired Internet line, unlimited WiFi: we upload content to build our live event website, which may include one video feed and photos and data that add up to less than the bandwidth of a second video feed; players access the event website to download small graphics and text giving them their current standings and next opponents** one telephone land line, (may be phased out in future)** unlimited electrical drops.: typically six on the command center and about ten throughout the room for word adjudication laptops* one nearby lockable site office
* three nearby lockable breakout rooms of about 1,000 square feet each
* free parking, WiFi Internet and access to fitness room and pool for on-site guests