KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The World Cup is less than one year away, and hotels located two and a half hours from Kansas City are expecting to be busy.
Some hotels in the heart of Kansas City expect to be sold out for more than half of the 60 days that the teams will be in the area.
"It's like having Taylor Swift concerts, the Super Bowl, and all kinds of championships all within 60 days,” said Nathan Wood, director of sales and marketing at the InterContinental Hotel.
Wood knows it will be a busy summer.
"I'm playing the biggest game of Tetris I've ever played in my life,” Wood said. "I'm going to do everything that I can to try to sell this hotel."
Even though they are not yet booking for general guests, they already have groups on their reservation books.
But the 375 rooms at the InterContinental are part of a bigger equation. Visit KC estimates that hotels in the area will have room occupancy of 80% or more.
"The energy is here, and it's exciting to be in Kansas City right now,” said Visit KC Communications Manager Makenzie Wolters. "With one year left, it really feels like we're finally getting close."
Aida KC, a small, locally owned hotel is near the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.
Owner David Tran says he can’t wait to host guests from all over.
"Google Translate is a really nifty tool. I try to use as much technology as I can,” said Tran.
Aida KC owners only have four rooms at the hotel, but are opening a new hotel in just a couple of days, well ahead of the World Cup.
They plan to support other KC businesses during the event.
"Maybe that's like working with the local bakery for unique pastries that we can offer our guests during their stay,” said Tran.
Their eight rooms aren’t open for booking yet, but the anticipation for sold-out days is there.
"A lot of excitement is going to happen when a more specific schedule and specific teams are released. I think that's really going to be exciting when that comes out,” Tran said.
