ZorkFest conference: Last day for early bird ticket price

ZorkFest is an annual conference put together by TravelZork that covers things like history, mixology, miles & points, casino loyalty, and maximizing sportsbook and online gambling apps that will take place from October 13-15, 2023 in Lake Tahoe. This year’s event features a couple of prominent miles-and-points speakers with a “bonus day” of FTU content. The dates unfortunately conflict with when some will be attending the Chicago Seminars this year, but for those interested specifically in mixing casino loyalty hacks into their bag of tricks along with miles and points content, this conference certainly may be of interest.

The Event

• ZorkFest is taking place this year in Lake Tahoe, Nevada from October 13-15, 2023 with a day of dedicated FTU content. Early bird tickets cost $350 through 7/15/23 and go up to $450 from 7/16/23 onward. Note that Frequent Miler will not be in attendance, but this event may be of interest to some readers nonetheless.
• Direct link to buy tickets (not an affiliate link).

Quick Thoughts

Today (7/15/23) is the final day for “Early Bird” pricing of $350, with tickets scheduled to go up to $450 tomorrow (7/16/23). That makes this event quite a bit pricier than many other miles-and-points conferences. However, highlights include some of the following notes shared by TravelZork:

• To satisfy “hunger” for more miles&points, we included a “bonus day” of @ftu Classes Sunday, 10am-4pm
• Companion (“P2”) Program (*extra cost, also includes Cocktail Reception and VIP Dinner)
• ZorkFest Ticket includes Cocktail Reception – VIP Dinner – Mixology Program (space limited) 
• ZorkFest Ticket includes all sessions including the BONUS DAY of @ftu at ZorkFest on Sunday, 10am-4pm
• Room Block is only the newest/renovated non-smoking rooms at Harveys Lake Tahoe (connected to Harrah’s Lake Tahoe)
• We have a Caesars Host Contact for those that might want to try to get a comp or heavily reduced priced casino room, info on ticket page

Speakers this year include some names that will be familiar to many readers:

• Gary Leff, View From the Wing
• Gilbert Ott, God Save The Points
• David G. Schwartz, Ph.D. aka “Dr. Dave” of UNLV and author of At the Sands: The Casino That Shaped Classic Las Vegas, Brought the Rat Pack Together, and Went Out With a Bang, Grandissimo: The First Emperor of Las Vegas, Roll the Bones: The History of Gambling, and Boardwalk Playground: The Making, Unmaking, & Remaking of Atlantic City will lead us on understanding Nevada gaming and gaming history. 
• Carissa Rawson (Upgraded Points), Ben Komenkul of Ben’s Big Deal, and Justin Vacula (Hurdy Gurdy Travel)
• And many more!

Those looking to learn more about how to “game” casino status and MS opportunities will likely find topics of interest at this event. A VIP Dinner is included along with what has been described as a “posh cocktail reception”, both with sweeping view of Lake Tahoe.

Note that if you are a paid FTU Premium member, I believe you should have received a code via email for a discount (I’m not immediately sure how much that discount is). My understanding is that there are no other discount code options, so the best bet is registering today if you want to attend and lock in the cheaper early bird pricing.

I’ve long been interested in ZorkFest but haven’t had had a chance to attend (and won’t be able to this year). Many of the topics covered are of interest to me and having dipped my toes in the associated pools I could certainly see it being worthwhile.

I find it kind of fun that they offer an add-on “Player 2” option with a tour of Lake Tahoe along with lunch and the reception & dinner for those whose companion isn’t particularly interested in the sessions. At $295, it isn’t a cheap option, but it gets them in the door for the social stuff without committing the extra money to sessions that they may not be interested in attending.

In the interest of full disclosure and clarity, I want to be clear that the link above is not an affiliate link. While Frequent Miler has an affiliate arrangement with TravelZork for preferred partner booking programs (like Marriott STARS, Hilton Impresario, etc — see this post for more detail), there is no such arrangement for this event. I’m just sharing info about this event because it’s one I’ve long been interested in attending and I expect it may be of interest to some readers.

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