Housing & Dining
ITF attendees have two housing options: residence halls or hotels.
Residence Halls
All-Access Passes include housing and meals at a designated residence hall on campus. Residence halls at IU accommodate all genders, with individual floors divided according to a gender binary (female/male). Primary Contacts and adult chaperones who have All-Access Passes will be housed in residence halls and are responsible for their students while on campus.
Residence halls will be assigned to attendees on a first-come, first-served basis. We are unable to accommodate specific dorm building requests.
Chaperones
ITF requires at least one (1) adult chaperone for every eight (8) students registered per troupe. Chaperones must be 21 years of age or older at the time of the event, and there must be a chaperone present in all dorms each group occupies. View our Chaperone Guide for complete information on chaperones.
Housing Assignments
After registering, the Primary Contact for the group will be able to submit housing requests online, including roommate assignments and any special requests (e.g., privacy concerns or ADA accessibility needs). All students must be paired with a roommate unless a specific request is made, which may incur an additional fee. If a troupe is bringing an odd number of students, the unpaired student will be assigned a roommate from another troupe with an unpaired student. A troupe director or chaperone must be housed in each dorm your group occupies.
Because ITF involves minors, the festival must follow IU's Program Involving Children (PIC) policy. Per IU's PIC policy, attendees must be separated by floor based on gender binary. Students housed in dorms will only have keycard access to their assigned floor in their building. Students are not permitted on any other floors in their building.
Meals
Attendees housed in dorms will be issued a meal card to use at designated eateries. Meals will be available beginning with breakfast on Monday, June 24 and ending with dinner on Friday, June 28.
All-You-Care-To-Eat menus include a variety of healthy options featuring plant-based, vegetarian, and vegan fare. The food is flavorful and showcases the best of local, regional, and international cuisine.
Attendees with dietary restrictions should indicate this during registration so that IU's dietitian can ensure allergen-free foods are offered in the dining halls.
Parking
Adults with valid driver's licenses who are staying in the dorms will be issued a Community Housing (CH) parking permit and will have access to any of the CH lots on campus during the week of ITF. CH parking permits will be distributed at the time of housing check-in. Each dorm has a dedicated CH lot. Each group should indicate how many CH parking permits they need on their On-Campus Housing Form.
Hotels
For many reasons, it is important for attendees to book reservations at one of our host hotels.
In an effort to secure special reservation rates for our attendees, EdTA negotiates contracts with each of our host hotels. If our contracted housing obligations are not met, EdTA will pay significant penalty fees. Such fees may result in increased registration costs over time.
We are able to monitor attendance through our hotel room blocks. This enables us to be better prepared in any given circumstance and helps with cost containment.
Each of our host hotels is selected with our attendees in mind. In addition to curbing costs, some key factors include:
- Proximity to campus (each hotel is less than one mile from the Indiana Memorial Union)
- Hotel amenities (may include complimentary breakfast, pool, fitness center, etc.)
- Parking (which is often cheaper and less challenging than on campus.
We understand that some attendees may live locally and wish to commute in each day for ITF. All other ITF attendees are required to book housing at one of the host hotels if staying off-campus.
Attendees who register for the Activities-Only Pass or exhibitor booth staff must make hotel reservations either during registration or via the Attendee Service Center after registration. Please do not contact the hotels directly to make reservations. Note: Residence hall meal plans are not available for attendees staying at hotels. Attendees staying off-campus will receive confirmation numbers within 72 hours of check-in date.
Troupes participating in the Main Stage, Chapter Select Showcase, or Thespys programs who choose to stay off-campus are required to book hotel rooms at an ITF host hotel.
Biddle Hotel & Conference Center
The Biddle Hotel is located in the heart of campus at the Indiana Memorial Union.
Hilton Garden Inn
The Hilton Garden Inn is located six blocks from campus in downtown Bloomington.
Hyatt Place
The Hyatt Place is located six blocks from campus in downtown Bloomington.
Restaurants
Attendees staying off campus or who are looking for a change of scenery can explore downtown Bloomington and find a plethora of restaurants, diners, and eateries. Check out this list of restaurants within a 5-minute walk from every edge of the IU campus!
All-Gender Restrooms
Inclusivity is important to IU and to ITF. All-gender restrooms are available in most IU buildings. View a map of locations across campus.