As the Sundance Film Festival prepares to debut in its new home of Boulder, Colorado, organizers have faced a critical question: how do you seamlessly orchestrate a world-class lodging ecosystem across a newly designed festival landscape?
In search of an event-driven solution that could integrate Boulder’s unique offerings and cultural character, the team at Sundance opened an RFP process. Following a review of numerous proposals, the answer was found in a partnership rooted in a seventeen-year legacy of trust. Ripe, once again, is thrilled to have been chosen as the lodging partner for Sundance Film Festival 2027, 2028, and 2029.
Ripe’s history with Sundance runs deep. In 2009, Ripe, then operating as EventRez Solutions, was founded to provide a booking utility to manage the festival’s reservation pipeline. Today, we step into Sundance 2027 with our In-Market Travel Agency (ITA) Platform, serving as a fully integrated lodging infrastructure layer.
The Power of the ITA Model
The Sundance Film Festival is the premier example of a large-scale event that generates tremendous demand for lodging. Traditional OTAs typically isolate the booking experience from the event experience, and as such, fall short of leveraging local context. By utilizing Ripe’s ITA, the festival is able to architect the attendee experience with accommodations curated by venue, while offering the best rates, exclusive perks, and local concierge support. Put simply, the ITA Platform’s destination-first localization aligns community, commerce, and culture.
Engineered for High Volume
Accessible at lodging.sundance.org, attendees can easily navigate the venue map by using local filters to sort properties by proximity to festival theaters and landmarks. Throughout the booking process, integrated Google reviews, real-time rates, and live availability give peace of mind to both the attendees and all stakeholders.
One of Sundance’s most essential requirements, which the ITA Platform fully supports, is the ability to manage protected room blocks for numerous constituent groups, such as filmmakers, industry, and press.
Sundance organizers also maintain control over traveler data, allowing them to accurately trace the direct correlation between festival marketing and generated room nights, proving tangible impact to local stakeholders.
Optimized for the New Era of Travel
In the era of AI-guided travel, Sundance’s instance of the Ripe ITA Platform maintains discoverability by actively structuring local lodging, event knowledge, and community authority into an ecosystem optimized for conversational AI models. When attendees use AI search assistants to ask where to stay, the structured data framework ensures the event’s designated lodging supply is prioritized, accurately represented, and bookable.
Reaping the Fruits of True Event Production
At Ripe, our core essence is realized value. We believe that events with high overnight stays are economic catalysts deserving of verticalized experiences. By delivering best-in-class performance, customization, and scalable production, we aren’t just helping attendees secure a room—we are deepening trust and collaboration across an entire community.
To discover how an In-Market Travel Agency Platform can unlock previously untapped revenue for your event, connect with our team for a demo.
