A leading researcher at ETH Zürich is calling out the ACL 2026 organizers over registration pricing that assigns roughly $50 to each of a dozen coffee breaks while providing no meals beyond a single welcome reception and one social event, even as total food and beverage costs are said to top $800 per attendee.
I have no experience organizing events of this magnitude but surely something is off here?
The program mentions no breakfast / lunch / dinner provided. There's a welcome reception and 12 coffee breaks. So $50 per person for a bad drip coffee and stale donut?
@aclmeeting
Official notices cite inflation in food, AV equipment, telecom, and union labor as reasons for the fee hike, yet offer no itemized breakdown of the $800 figure or direct comparisons to prior events.
Subsidized student and academic rates exist, but the lack of included meals and the constrained San Diego venue capacity leave unclear how many attendees will view the package as worthwhile.
Some users sarcastically dismissed ACL 2026 pricing concerns by blaming high catering costs on vegans and options like stale fruit.
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@florian_tramer @aclmeeting Maybe it's because of all the vegans pumping up the catering costs? For example at last EACL we were provided with the ultimate catering experience: a plastic bowl of stale fruits (for coffee break snacks and lunch).
@florian_tramer @aclmeeting I was quizzing Gemini (who said it's believable), and it pointed me towards this catering menu (dated 2020, significant inflation since then).
One gallon of coffee: $165! 🤯
A dozen donuts: $120, or $10 per donut. https://www.hyatt.com/content/dam/hotel/propertysites/assets/grand/sanrs/documents/en_US/special-events/SANRS-Catering-Menu-2020.pdf?hl=en-US
@florian_tramer @aclmeeting I haven't organized something like this either, but I wouldn't be surprised. I have heard the numbers are absurd.
@florian_tramer @aclmeeting I was quizzing Gemini (who said it's believable), and it pointed me towards this catering menu (dated 2020, significant inflation since then).
One gallon of coffee: $165! 🤯
A dozen donuts: $120, or $10 per donut. https://hyatt.com/content/dam/hotel/propertysites/assets/grand/sanrs/documents/en_US/special-events/SANRS-Catering-Menu-2020.pdf?hl=en-US
I have no experience organizing events of this magnitude but surely something is off here?
The program mentions no breakfast / lunch / dinner provided. There's a welcome reception and 12 coffee breaks. So $50 per person for a bad drip coffee and stale donut?
@aclmeeting
@florian_tramer @aclmeeting I haven't organized something like this either, but I wouldn't be surprised. I have heard the numbers are absurd.
I have no experience organizing events of this magnitude but surely something is off here?
The program mentions no breakfast / lunch / dinner provided. There's a welcome reception and 12 coffee breaks. So $50 per person for a bad drip coffee and stale donut?
@aclmeeting