Breakfast with the animals? Or in my room? 😊

Sounds like a fun, unique experience. I say go for it! Join the Furry Animal People for breakfast...why not???

Bwa ha ha ha, they're describing a furry convention as LARPers.

Oh wow, this should be interesting 🤣

This might be the best two sentence I've read this year "You are our only other guest on Sunday. The guests from the convention are all dressed in furry animal suits."

This might be my favorite post ever:)

Ok, this is hilarious 😂. Of course join them 😊

I would be there in that breakfast room! Who would miss this?

Breakfast with people in furry animal costumes? Priceless!! 😂

This might be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Go for it!

Well, at least they gave you a heads up. You'll probably see the animals prowling around the hotel and then you can make the decision if you want to dine with them. The hotel website says they offer allergy-free rooms, you may want to opt for one if you have a problem with fur... Please report back!

i'm thinking the breakfast buffet might only have fruit and nuts, so perhaps you do want to stay in your room. 🙂

It sounds completely wonderful. I would eat with the role playing animals and find out more about this convention. Lucky you.

I’ve seen quite a few furries in my day since they’ve have a lot of conventions in Pittsburgh. They are unconventional to say the least.

When will you have an opportunity like this again?

i'm thinking the breakfast buffet might only have fruit and nuts, so perhaps you do want to stay in your room.

I'll bet there will be some raw meat for the carnivores! 🤣

I can’t stop laughing. Please take photos of the breakfast room, even if you don’t choose to eat there.

i'm thinking the breakfast buffet might only have fruit and nuts, so perhaps you do want to stay in your room.
I'll bet there will be some raw meat for the carnivores! 🤣

Uh oh - you could be the prey!

Well, at least they gave you a heads up.

They sure did. Right after the time when I could have requested a full refund.

Found the website for the convention:

https://www.alfurnative.nl/

I’m sure it will be fine. Just a bit of a surprise. And at least it takes my mind off the flight.

You HAVE to check it out. You’ll be disappointed if you don’t. Not to mention how disappointed we all will be if we don’t hear about it in a trip report.
Happy Furry Travels 😂

Better that, than a "naturists" convention in the breakfast room . . .

Better offer than we received when informed that we were booked for a Gay Pride Weekend. They did offer to find us another hotel at some distance away but we wanted our very centralized room. And it was fine for us.

Better that, than a "naturists" convention in the breakfast room . . .

🤣🤣🤣

Well , I think it depends on the species of animal . For people who are dyed in the wool New Yorkers or at least familiar with elements of New York culture , The Central Park squirrels are iconic , and have notable tastes when it comes to nuts - https://www.newyorker.com/culture/cover-story/cover-story-2021-11-22

Carrie omg that is hilarious, thank you so much for sharing this with us.

It is a bit wild, as you pointed out, that the hotel only sent you this after you could no longer cancel penalty-free !!!!

I really can not wait to hear about this, am happy to contribute to any fund that exists to incentivize you to eat in the breakfast room.

And then another question comes to mind: if you were traveling with family, what would your brother-in-law say/do in response to this situation???!!

Oh gosh....this is so funny! You get the prize for the best thread for the year!

I wonder if the breakfast buffet for the "naturists convention" is also all fruit and nuts too???

And...

"Uh oh - you could be the prey!"

I go to Yellowstone a couple of times a year and recommend carrying bear spray on your belt at all times...although you can't take it on the plane and I doubt it is readily available in Netherlands.

Yes to pictures and a report!!

Hilarious!
Of course, if you don’t go then report back…..you will be in the naughty corner on this forum! 😂

Do it!

Whatever y'all do, do not Google pony play, puppy play or animal play...

Don't!

Many breakfast buffets have sneeze guards. Will your hotel have a shedding guard?

Or is breakfast served by the hotel? In that case, with there be plates and glasses, or just bowls? And will the bowls be on a table, or put down on the floor?

Hope the foxes don’t eat with the chickens; cats aren’t with the mice, and wolverines aren’t with the deer.

Kim, this is one trip that I wish my sister and brother-in-law were coming along. Safety in numbers!

I was trying to save this little tidbit for my trip report. But you just can’t keep something like this to yourself.

I don’t even usually eat the hotel breakfast because I bring my own oatmeal. But I will try to at least go grab a banana or something.

I’m having visions of being checked into the hotel by a racoon. 😊

And then another question comes to mind: if you were traveling with family, what would your brother-in-law say/do in response to this situation???!!

Kim, that thought popped into my head, too! Carrie, make sure you send him photos of the event! 🤣

I’m having visions of being checked into the hotel by a racoon.

🤣🤣🤣 Better that than a skunk!

I don’t know if I would stay there. It could be scary….

Oh man, a furry convention. Please report back, I'm sure the rumors aren't true but still...

I would want to know what convention in the hotel means. Is the hotel party-central? Incorporating a focus on parties is one of the stated objectives at Alfurnative. I was once swarmed by a group of furries on a London street - being swarmed by any group is something I think I would find intimidating. It was certainly unusual. Yes, please report back.

To top off your inevitably excellent trip report, perhaps you can get a group photo with the gang in the breakfast room and find a way to post it for us. Too good to pass up!

Lucky you! A “once in a lifetime experience.”
I hope you join them….and post pictures of some of the people in your trip report.
Let the adventure begin!

Why is this even a thing? Are these adults?

ABSOLUTELY hilarious! Reminds me of an old CSI episode called, "Fur & Loathing in LV", about an animal role-playing convention. I laughed so hard my downstairs neighbors came up to find out what was so funny... Maybe you should watch it while you're staying in Delft??

treemoss2, you've not heard of furries before? It's a thing. Yes, adults who like to dress up in animal costumes and pretend. I have a friend who works with a guy who comes to work often dressed as a chipmunk, and gets away with it. I've heard of hotels in the US hosting these events.

Sandancisco, I do remember that episode of CSI. That one was hard to forget. 😊

Thanks for the laughs everyone. I’m off to the airport in a few hours. I’ll report back when I can.

How could you turn down the opportunity to have a story like that to tell? I would definitely go to breakfast.

Laughed so hard I nearly needed a change of knickers!
PLEASE report back!!!!

Edited:Photos now posted:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/4GYFTDDHdZGpv4XA6

I have a friend who works with a guy who comes to work often dressed as a chipmunk, and gets away with it.

Alvin, Simon, Theodore?

There isn’t anything funny about this. This is a fetish convention and if I was you I’d move to another hotel.

That sounds like a plot for an old school sitcom!

After experiencing multiple long weekends in Embassy Suites overflowing with middle school kids in town for soccer tournaments, I would rather take my chances with the furries.

Safe travels! Maybe you should paint a black spot on the end of your nose and say you're a dog but you've blown your coat.

This is hilarious, and if I was in your position, I'd certainly enjoy the front row seats. Honestly, without seeking it out, when will you ever have this opportunity again? I do think that it's highly unlikely that anyone participating will give you any problem. They'd probably be super kind realizing that you're tolerant (neither approving or disapproving) enough of their alternative lifestyle to not avoid them.

I’m disappointed that the hotel didn’t advise Carrie of this sooner. According to the furry conference website they have been booking rooms at the hotel since April. They probably reserved the space a year ago. They should have told her when she booked, not waited until it was too late for her to make other arrangements.

I am starting to think Helen and Donna are on yo something. This may not be so funny, and indeed why did the hotel only inform Carrie after she couldn't find another alternative ?

I'm with Helen, Donna, and Kim. People who want to feel comfortable among their own without outsiders is the least of it.

Unethical hotel that should at least walk her elsewhere.

And let’s call a spade a spade here: it’s not ‘people’ it’s men. I do not want to participate in the sexual fetish of any man and by this fetish being displayed in public that is exactly what you are being asked to do.

It could also be that the hotel have only just discovered that the OP is not a participant in the convention. I do think that it would have been better, both for the OP and for the convention members, if they would give the OP the option to stay elsewhere.

Btw, when you’re inside a hotel, you’re not in public. A hotel is private property, it’s not a public space like a park, the street etc.

It’s private property but it has areas open to the public. The op is there not an invited guest or an employee. She is a member of the public who is able to enter the premises and remain there unless asked to leave. If the fetish is being performed purely within the private space of the hotel’s bedrooms then I would not have an issue. However, that’s clearly not the case here.

I would be inclined to ask the hotel to help you find another suitable place to stay. If you are curious, maybe just "drop by" the hotel for coffee and photos. I would worry about "animal" sounds outside the the hotel room door all hours of the night.

There is a reason the hotel sent you an email...........just unfortunate it was not earlier.

In earlier years, when I worked in another city than my hometown, I remember stuffing towels in the crack under my room's door, just to "TRY" to reduce noise from a loud convention. The (very high-end) hotel had warned me ahead of time that a loud convention would be there (I was a regular M-Th guest for 3+ years), and even offered to pay for a room several blocks away...but the convenience of being able to walk across the street (I flew/no car) to my "work place" seemed to have greater appeal. MY MISTAKE! Oh, and there was also a wee hours of the morning bomb threat one day.............ugh...flashbacks to the "not-so-good ole days."

Take the warning..........thank them for the warning.... ask for their help with another place to stay.
If they resist, ask "when" the convention booked, kindly adding you would have made other arrangements.

In the Netherlands, a hotel breakfast room or any other part of a hotel is considered to be private property, not a public space. Hotel management can decide to allow non-guests of the hotel to enter certain areas of the hotel, but that still doesn’t make the hotel a public area like the street or a city park. The owner of the hotel can set rules on what he/she allows in their hotel, because it’s their private property.

I must say I find it sad to see such intolerance towards those who think/feel different displayed on this forum. I do think the hotel should have handled this better, but that doesn’t justify some of the comments made here.

Carrie was scheduled to arrive today, and it's 4:30 PM there as I'm typing this. I'm guessing she either elected to stay or has opted to move elsewhere at this point. If she's chosen to stay, the convention is over tomorrow so only lasts for 1 more evening. I'm also not sure it is much of anything to worry about for such a short time unless from a noise perspective.

Carrie, how ya doing?

Carrie, we eagerly await your report! Or a report on where you stayed instead…..

I feel like I should point out, nowhere in Carrie's posts does she state that she's freaked out by the thought of furries running around the hotel. She just commented on it, because, let's be honest, how often do you find yourself dropped into the middle of this kind of thing? As for me, I would find it very amusing to see adult sized people in animal costumes, just as much as I do on Halloween. I'm certain that those guests will be as respectful to Carrie as I'm sure that she will be to them.

I find that one of the reasons I love to travel is because as I learn about different places and cultures, I become more tolerant of things that I previously didn't understand. I'm not sure why this situation would prove any differently.

This is hilarious and if it were me, I wouldn’t hesitate for a minute to join them for breakfast! Please do a trip report if only for that one breakfast and hotel stay. I would love to be in your shoes for just that short time. Have fun with it!

I think Freud would have a field day with the comments section on this forum post.

For me the joy of traveling is meeting different people and places from what I'm accustomed to.

I’m here. I’m ok. 😀 At the convention hotel. I appreciate the concern. I really do. I wasn’t sure what to expect but it seems to be not bad.

Some are dressed in full costume. Some just heads. Some just tails. Some no costumes at all. Mostly young males and females from what Ive seen. To me they seem like the kids in high school that didn’t fit in. There’s a bunch in the hotel lobby playing some sort of card/board game.

The dj and dance party are at another location. Not at the hotel.

I’m used to them now having gone in and out of the hotel several times today. Even rode up in the elevator with a couple of animals. 😀

I always try to be nice to people. And while I might not understand and be comfortable with everyone, I try not to let that impact how I treat others.

All that being said, the furries sure made for a memorable first day in the Netherlands. 😀 And I did have to go way out of my comfort zone to approach some and ask if they’d mind if I took a few photos. They were all very nice and agreeable. Give me a few minutes and I’ll add a few pics to the link I posted somewhere up in the replies. Sorry I can’t repost the link here. I need my computer for things like that.

I’ll do a quick report in the am to let you know how the night goes. But I’m not expecting any issues. And I’m still pondering how to handle the hotel’s late notice. I really, really hate to post negative reviews online. I’ll talk to them when I check out and go from there.

Carrie, the photos are great! They look so cute and furry!! 😊 Very well constructed costumes, too. Thanks for sharing them!

Here's a link to Carrie's photos (she posted it above, but for ease in finding it, I'm adding it here): https://photos.app.goo.gl/4GYFTDDHdZGpv4XA6

And I did have to go way out of my comfort zone to approach some and ask if they’d mind if I took a few photos.

I was at AMS on a layover in May and saw a guy dressed up like a bride. Evidently it's a thing there, but I went and asked if could take a photo. I was a bit embarrassed but not only did he say yes, he posed outrageously for it. It was fun and the photos made a great souvenir!

I also think that's a good idea to talk to the hotel first and find out their thinking on this. There could very well have been some reason for the delay in letting you know. Have a great rest of the trip!

“ I was at AMS on a layover in May and saw a guy dressed up like a bride. Evidently it's a thing there,”

Eeh no, it’s not a thing here. Unfortunately it is a thing amongst stag parties from the UK. They start partying and drinking at the airport already and don’t stop until they fly back home a few days later.

@Carrie; thanks for reporting back and thanks for approaching this with an open mind.
I hope you enjoy the rest of your stay in our country. You sure are very lucky with the weather! Today was nice and sunny and the next few days will be very nice as well. Enjoy your time here!

Eeh no, it’s not a thing here. Unfortunately it is a thing amongst stag parties from the UK.

Oh, I get it. Someone told me it was a "thing" but I guess I shouldn't have assumed it was a Dutch thing. 😊

I must say I find it sad to see such intolerance towards those who
think/feel different displayed on this forum.

Two thumbs up for this comment. I wonder some would think of a Manga or Comicon Convention...what's a "fetish" and who defines that? Apparently, someone who objects to the idea of such concepts. Adults (posters) on this forum do not need to be protected from every eccentricity or new experience ahead of time; they can observe things firsthand and make up their mind, and potentially even discover something new or about themselves.

Also, I would not read too much nefarious intent into the hotel's "late" warning. It may have been totally innocent. I would not make any assumptions prior to posing the question to the staff, if really concerned.

“Oh, I get it. Someone told me it was a "thing" but I guess I shouldn't have assumed it was a Dutch thing. ”

No problem! And just to be clear, the dressing up as a bride part is not what’s unfortunate about these stag parties. It’s the drunken behavior and all the appalling things that come with that what’s the issue. The unruly behavior of these, mainly British, stag parties has gotten so out of hand that the city of Amsterdam has even launched a publicity campaign to discourage British stag parties from visiting Amsterdam.

Interesting photos, I think I'll take the Dutch animal convention over a British stag party in my hotel any day of the week haha

I don’t agree at all that’s intolerant to object to being involved in a fetish. We must all draw our own line with sexual behaviour at a place that feels comfortable for us. It’s not really for anyone else to police what somebody else should be willing to tolerate.

Personally, I wouldn’t wish to stay at this hotel. If the OP or anyone else is happy to do so, then that’s their choice.

Carrie, thanks for adding the pictures! The ones you've photographed are quite cute and really fun to have them on the canal bridge!

@Carrie, thank you for sharing your email and subsequent experience!

I think that anyone who is condemning it might want to read up on it a little bit before passing judgment. Everything I’ve read suggests that it is not a sexual fetish, and that sex has very little to do with it for most of the people who participate. And while the majority are men, there are women who participate. 😏

I think I'll take the Dutch animal convention over a British stag party in my hotel any day of the week haha

Carlos, definitely! 🤣

Bless you, Carrie. You're handling this situation with such grace!

"I always try to be nice to people. And while I might not understand and be comfortable with everyone, I try not to let that impact how I treat others."

While it may have been late in game, at least the hotel did give you a heads up about what you were getting into. But It doesn't sound as if, so far, the situation has impacted the quality of your stay negatively much at all? You may come home with a great story to tell, and we'd love to hear how it goes at brekkie tomorrow!!

Our world is an interesting place populated by interesting people; not all of them we might understand or agree with but who still have a place in the club we call the Human Race, eh? :O)

Mardee, I've read the same as you have. 👍

Everything I’ve read suggests that it is not a sexual fetish

And even if it was, they're not likely to be interested in Carrie and her boring human outfit!

Hahahahaha!!!! Very true, Mary!

Quick update: Last night was nice and quiet. Just a few at breakfast this am but no costumes.

Dutch traveler is right about the weather. I keep thinking my streak of near perfect trip weather will end. But I don’t think it will this trip.

I probably won’t post again until I get home. I have to save some things for the trip report. 😀

Carrie, thx for an interesting read. If your trip starts in this mode, how does it end, one wonders??? Safe travels!

Carrie and Mardee, thanks for pointing us to the pictures. I must have been a kid who didn't fit in in high school because I thought some of the costumes were cute. At Disney World, people pay lots of money to attend character breakfasts!

Thanks for the photos Carrie. A picture is worth a 1000 words!!

Those were great photos! Thank you for sharing them. They all look quite cute.

UPDATE: I did email the hotel manager upon my return. Just a simple, I enjoyed the hotel and the staff was great, but I should have been given more notice about the convention so I could have had the option to cancel my reservation and find another hotel. No response yet.

My trip report should be posted in the next day or two. I have the first draft done, but as an English major, I have to go back and make it better. And I’m still probably going to have spelling errors. 😊

Carrie, can't wait to read your trip report. I hope overall that you had a wonderful experience.

Did the hotel reply?

Here is the response from the hotel:

Dear mrs X,

Due to a fault in our system your reservation didn’t show up earlier
while looking at the forecast. I do understand that things had to be
handled earlier in the next time.

We hope that, despite your different arrival day you enjoyed your
stay with us.

If you ever need to be in the Netherlands please let us know, we
have 17 hotels in the country and I am willing to show us our
hospitality mindset.

Dear mrs X, once again sorry for providing late information from our
side.

Met vriendelijke groet,

Hotel Arsenaal Delft

Maarten van Amerongen | General Manager

Carrie, I'm wondering if they might have ignored the cancellation dates if you had contacted them about cancelling, given their lateness in replying. Just a thought. 😊 Regardless, I'm glad your stay worked out okay - and I'm really enjoying your trip report!

Mardee, it’s quite possible they would have let me cancel with no penalty. The problem is, they notified me Friday night after 7pm their time. I was getting picked up for the airport the next day at 11am. So, not much time to contact them and find something comparable at the last minute. I did look briefly on Booking.com after I got their email and didn’t see anything I liked. So, I chose being stressed about the animals over being stressed about finding a new hotel. 😊 Like you said, it all worked out in the end. And if you can believe it, that turned out to be my quietest hotel of the trip.

I want to stay at a hotel where there's a furry convention going on. Lucky!

I'd like to know if the conventioneers showed up in costume for breakfast.

It's an interesting dilemma for the hotel: to have to judge when a large group staying there might be offensive or make other guests uncomfortable. I've stayed in hotels with drunken college basketball teams partying in the halls, loud noisy pre-teen softball teams, aggressive political and religious groups, etc., and thought a warning from the hotel would have been nice. But on the other hand, I would have been offended if I was part of that group that was so identified.

And how about those loud wedding parties going on all weekend in a lovely countryside hotel you chose for the relaxing atmosphere, pool, spa.