1. Room parties
Room parties are very much a part of the culture of Polaris.  As a rule, the Sheraton Parkway Toronto North Hotel does not allow room parties; however, a limited number of room parties will be allowed at Polaris. Please note that they are subject to certain rules, set up by the hotel. Those of you planning to hold room parties, please click here.

All guests to the Sheraton Parkway Toronto North, holding room parties or not, must provide a valid credit card to the hotel upon registration as deposit to cover any extra expenses that might be incurred for the room, such as mini-bar, in-room movies, room service etc. If a guest is unable to provide the hotel with a credit card, a deposit of $50 CAD in cash per day of stay will be required instead. This policy is non-negotiable and any unused amount will be refunded at the end of the guest's stay. All guests paying in cash must have this deposit ready upon check-in at the front desk; any unused amount will be refunded at the end of the guest's stay.

2.  Signage
If you are having a room party and wish to post signs alerting people to your party, you may do so.  However, please note, all signs must be printed on a computer, and approved by TCON/Polaris prior to posting.  Organizers of approved/registered parties must take their signage to the Info Desk and get all signs stamped BEFORE putting their signs anywhere; any signs anywhere in the hotel without Info Desk approval will be removed.  ONLY computer-generated signs will be allowed on hotel walls - hand-written signs will be taken down.  On the first offense of this policy, the signs will be removed and the Registrant gets officially warned. On the second offense, the signs will be removed and the membership of the party holder will be revoked.

Only certain types of adhesives can be used to affix signs to any hotel surface; it is the responsibility of the room party organizer to find out through the Info Desk what these are and use what is appropriate. Any organizer not using an approved adhesive will be responsible for paying damages to the hotel for removal of their signs.

All signs posted on the message board MUST be neatly printed. All signs should include the room name or number, the start time and an approximate end time.

3.  Bringing your stuff into the hotel
Please note that absolutely no carts (other than bellman's carts, which must be operated only by hotel bellmen) are allowed through the front lobby of the hotel or through the main doors of the Convention Centre. If you are bringing large, heavy or bulky items, and have in the past used your own cart, we suggest that you contact us in advance at hotel@tcon.ca in order to obtain the rules for bringing such items into the hotel.

4.  Code of Conduct
All persons with a room in their name at the Sheraton Parkway Toronto North will be required to sign a code of conduct as they pick up their room keys, whether they are holding a room party or not. It's nothing to worry about - it's all common sense. It's the same policies that were in force at the Doubletree, and indeed, all hotels (for example, if you break something, you will be billed for the cost, or if you steal something, you will be billed for the cost). We are requiring all of our members to sign this as a show of good faith and responsibility to the hotel. So please, don't worry about it (we certainly aren't - we know you are all great people!).

If you have any questions about what's written here, or the hotel, please email us at info@tcon.ca.

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For our purposes, a party is defined as "any activity not sponsored by the convention occurring in the convention area and/or advertised in convention space." It doesn't matter if it is two people or two hundred, whether your door is opened or closed, or whether you are serving alcohol or not. All parties must be registered with the convention. There are step-by-step instructions for registering your party below.

We hope that your party at Polaris will be a success, and we will do everything possible to help you along the way. To make things easier for everyone, here is exactly what you need to do in order to throw your party at Polaris.
 
Step One: Make Your Hotel Reservation
The rooms of those holding parties will be assigned by Polaris to the designated party area in the hotel. However, you must still make your own hotel reservation so the hotel has your billing information, contact information, and room preferences (see below for information regarding room types for parties). Be certain you have the reservation number written down somewhere safe.

There are two types of rooms available to us for parties: 1 King bed and two-room Jacuzzi suites with a King bed and pull-out couch.  There are no smoking rooms available in the hotel at all.  We have an extremely limited numbers of each and they will be assigned first-come, first-served, no exceptions.  When filling out the party registration form, be sure to take care when choosing which type of room you want.

This process is designed to keep parties away from hotel guests that may be disturbed by the noise, and is not unusual for science fiction conventions. If you are not holding a party, but don't mind rooming near the party rooms, you can ask to be placed in the party area. Contact the Hotel Liaisons at hotel@tcon.ca for more details.

 
Step Two: Register for the Convention
The Registrant of a party needs to be an attending member of Polaris. So make certain you are registered with the convention.

Step Three: Register Your Party
Register your party with this form. If information changes between the time you register and the day of the convention, just email changes to hotel@tcon.ca.
 
Step Four: Advertise and Throw Your Party!
After you check-in to your room, take your signage to the Info Desk for approval and with that you may post your signs throughout the hotel; your confirmation email for your party will contain information on what kinds of adhesives may be used to do this but if you lose it, double-check with the Info Desk as to what you can use.. MAKE SURE YOU ONLY USE SOMETHING ON THAT LIST; if anything else is used, you will be responsible for the damages incurred from its usage.  A handout will also be available at the Info Desk to convention attendees listing all room parties based on the information obtained from the online party application.

Then, throw your party! We are certain you will be able to handle this part. As always, if you have any questions or comments, send email to hotel@tcon.ca.

If you are not holding a party, but don't mind rooming near the party rooms, you can ask to be placed in the party area. Contact the Hotel Liaisons at hotel@tcon.ca for more details.