75 replies to this topic

[ajnicholls]

News from the elBulli website:

Reservations information - 2010

You can send your request to bulli@elbulli.com from the beginning of January.

All the requests that we receive until the middle of January will be considered to be received at the same time. We will start reviewing reservations at that moment.

We are obligated to forewarn you that, due our limited room capacity for one season, it will be impossible to fulfill most of the requests even those received at the beginning of January.

We will give you an answer as soon as possible but the revision of reservation requests is a very complicated and slow moving process

elbullireservations: bulli@elbulli.com

Adam

[Tim6]

My email went today...

[mothersruin]

When can we expect to find out for 2010? Can anyone please tell me when notifications came in last year perhaps? That might give us an indication.

It's so tricky trying to plan a trip from Australia when you don't know whether to make the extra leg to Roses or not! ;)

[JoshEKG]

I can't provide feedback on last years reservation process. But when I made a (successful) reservation for the 2008 season, I sent my request on 10/15/07 and received my reservation on 11/20/07. I've put in a request for the 2010 season and am keeping my fingers crossed.

[Jontysc]

When can we expect to find out for 2010? Can anyone please tell me when notifications came in last year perhaps? That might give us an indication.

It's so tricky trying to plan a trip from Australia when you don't know whether to make the extra leg to Roses or not! ;)

Hi mothersruin, im from Oz and was lucky enough to go in September just gone it was amazing.
Roses is worth the visit even if you dont go to elBulli its a beautiful town by the sea!

Im also trying for 2010 so good luck!

[PhilD]

My wife applied on the 16th Oct '09 and got the confirmation on the 4th December, I received my rejection on the 30th October after I applied on the same day. Luckily for me my wife invited me to join her...!So best to hop you don't hear too quickly.

Roses is worth the visit even if you dont go to elBulli its a beautiful town by the sea!

Jontysc: you are kidding aren't you? I thought Roses was a bit run down, there are lots better in Spain.

If you don't get El Bulli you can still plan a trip to the area and head to El Celler de can Can Roca and/or Can Fabes. We booked our accommodation in Roses a few weeks before we went, it is a big Spanish tourist resort (i.e. it is where the Spanish go on holiday) so lots of cheap hotels, but tricky to find really high quality, especially as many sell rooms by the week during high season.

[ajnicholls]

Roses is pretty bloody awful in terms of where you can go in Spain; packed full of British tourists! There are some decent places to stay, and if you move away from the coast, there are some decent independent hotels.

[lesliec]

Applied 15 Oct 2008 (for 2009, of course); favourable reply received 26 November. If reservations for this year were being taken at the beginning of January, I suspect the replies will appear about the middle of February.

I agree that Roses looks a bit dodgy. We stayed in Cadaqués, on the other side of the hill. It makes for an expensive taxi ride but Cadaqués is a wonderful, picturesque, relaxing place. Highly recommended, even if you don't get to El Bulli.

[ajnicholls]

The news from Madrid fusion is that el Bulli will be closed for 2012 an 2013, making this year and next the last chance for a while.

Edited by ajnicholls, 26 January 2010 - 08:22 AM.

[Rogelio]

Indeed! I have just came back from the press conference at Madrid Fusión where Ferrán has announced the closing for 2012 and 2013 and will be back in 2014. The format is jet to be developed but El Bulli will probably be opened the whole year from 2014 onwards, at least until 2020.

Only time will tell how will it be after these two years dedicated to creativity and reflexion.

[maher]

one of my friends just received the dreaded 'due to overwhelming demand' email. he applied on the 3rd of jan, and got his reply today.

"The demand has again surpassed our limited possibilities of reservations for one season and we regret not to be able to fulfill more requests.



You can revise the situation during the season, near your available dates, to see if it is possible to find some solutions more when we confirm all the reservations 10 days in advance.



Tel. +34 972 15 04 57

E-mail bulli@elbulli.com

See calendar at www.elbulli.com (reservations)"

[JeffKoontz]

Now I'm at 2 years in a row with the dreaded -aforementioned email.

Both times requesting any date on their calendar. I'm flexible - I'll build my vacation around it, buy alas, not in 2010 apparently.

[kathryn]

Do they process requests in order received or is it truly a randomized lottery? Sometimes the press will refer to getting in as a "lottery" which leads me to believe it's a random drawing.

[Betamax]

Damn! Forgot to apply this year due to buying a house and all the hassle that comes with it. Oh well, there's 2011 to look forward to... Or being very, very lucky coming May when I'm in the area...

Just wondering, what will happen with their Michelin stars when they close for two years? Taken away? Frozen till they reopen? Anyone?

[JudyB]

Damn! Forgot to apply this year due to buying a house and all the hassle that comes with it. Oh well, there's 2011 to look forward to... Or being very, very lucky coming May when I'm in the area...

Unfortunately, unless you re-plan your trip to later in the year, I think you will have wait until 2011 - El Bulli doesn't open until mid-June this year.

[lesliec]

Do they process requests in order received or is it truly a randomized lottery?

Kathryn, according to A Day at El Bulli they have a complex(ish) formula for selecting who they accept. I don't have it to hand, but it's along the lines of a certain percentage from Spain vs. elsewhere, a certain percentage of first-timers vs. returners, and possibly one or two other criteria. My personal Rule #2 applies to bookings: if you don't ask, you don't get.

[daemon]

Lesliec, you are right, It definitly seems they have a very mathematical way to proceed :
About percentage, you can read here and there 50% locals vs 50% foreigners, that you have to add up with 50% first comers vs 50% returners.
From my experience, this is not a first sent email - first served basis work: twice, friends of mine got a reservation despite the fact that they had sent their request several days after mine, where I was rejected.

Or maybe do they just throw 2 millions slips of paper in a giant jar and pick randomly 6.000 out of it

JeffKontz, I might be wrong, but requesting any date of the calendar does not seem the best way to get in, as Mr Garcia and his team seem to try and please people with more precise plans first.

[JMillar]

another year another rejection ...

But getting the mail on my birthday ...

Ferran, cruel I tell you just cruel!!!

[kathryn]

How do they know if you're a local versus a foreigner? You write your request in Spanish vs. English?

Pleasing people with more precise plans seems backwards to me. I'll make a trip JUST to go to El Bulli, I'll plan my vacation around the reservation, because that's how much I'd like to go!

[daemon]

Kathryn

I agree, each single time I went to EB, I did plan my trip around it.
I do not say this is actually how they do proceed, but from what I know ( personal experience & about 10 friends'ones), those who finally got tables were the ones who asked for a special day/week and/or for a special event ( birthday,…), yet some of them got rejected anyway.

[pkeibel]

Well I did email them as soon as it was open, did plan my trip around El Bulli and mentioned that it was our 20th anniversary. Unfortunately it was not meant to be. So on to Barcelona instead.

[millions]

Kathryn

I agree, each single time I went to EB, I did plan my trip around it.
I do not say this is actually how they do proceed, but from what I know ( personal experience & about 10 friends'ones), those who finally got tables were the ones who asked for a special day/week and/or for a special event ( birthday,…), yet some of them got rejected anyway.

Well, just another data point -- I asked for any day available on last year's schedule, and received a reservation.

[maher]

had practically everyone i know send in an email... we tried as many different emails as possible, didnt work in the slightest. im assuming its purely luck of the draw. we tried asking for tables of 2,4,6, any. no timing, preferred month, day, date, time. mention how many previous attempts, love of food, ownership of ElBulli books, even a student who used the book for his senior research

oh, i also tried spanish and english, and sent from different countries including spain.

if anyone here gets in and ends up with an extra seat... care to take along a fellow eGer? !! have reservation will travel?

seriously good luck those of you who havent gotten the dreaded email yet...

[vytoh]

Sadly I too have just received a rejection letter from Luis. I tried both approaches in my request - being completely flexible while also providing 2 celebration dates to target. Once again, no joy.

*sigh* ... perhaps one day we'll get there.

best of luck to other eG folks!

[jeroen_kb]

Is there any correlation between the date the email was send and the rejection email date? (as in: do they start with the Jan first emails and work their way through untill the January 15th emails)

I send three emails on January first, two rejections on January 25th
I send another email on January 8th, rejection on January 29th

Could this mean that my last email from January first got lucky?!? I don't dare to get my hopes up, but....

Edited by jeroen_kb, 02 February 2010 - 08:52 AM.

[mothersruin]

@jeroen_kb I'm in the same boat as you. I have rejections for some requests and none more for others.

What I have noticed though is that rejections go out before acceptances, so Tthat might give us the best indication for where they are in the process. Has anyone succeeded in scoring a reservation for 2010 yet??

[jeroen_kb]

@mothersruin Could you tell me the dates that you send your requests and the dates you received the rejections?

[mothersruin]

One lot was sent out on 1 Jan, rejections last week.

Another lot on or about 13 Jan, 2 of 4 lots rejected, so a couple more in play.

I don't know what's worse - the rejections or the hope that some are still viable!

[Gav]

Another rejection here - sent in around the 10th and recieved yesterday... time to get the spherification kit in...

[mothersruin]

Alas, all of mine have come in now. Rejected. Just to be safe I have made an entry in my calendar 10 days out from arriving in Spain. Maybe they'll take pity on me!!!