Book through the bureau or forfeit the entry
Music for All requires every competing and exhibition band, and every booster group, that uses hotel accommodations at the Bands of America Grand National Championships to book through the Bands of America Housing Bureau. The 2026 Fall Housing Bureau policy carries the penalty in one sentence: "Bands that violate this policy will not be permitted to perform and forfeit all enrollment fees."
The policy defines a booster group as "a group of parent/boosters who consolidate and make collective hotel sleeping room arrangements." A collective parent booking falls under the same rule.
The championships run November 12 to 14, 2026 at Lucas Oil Stadium. The participating list names 96 bands from 22 states.
Rooms contracted as early as 2020
The organiser's process document describes the commitment behind the bureau. Music for All signs "firm contracts with monetary guarantees for use of and payment for contracted venue space and sleeping rooms (called attrition clauses)." Its sentence on this season reads: "In essence, our 2026 Fall participants are filling guest rooms contracted as early as 2020."
A footnote in the same document lists the multi-year commitments. Grand Nationals and a Super Regional in Indianapolis run through 2030, Super Regionals in St. Louis through 2030, and San Antonio through 2028.
The organiser states the scale in the policy document: "Bands of America Grand Nationals is a large scale, 'city wide' event that occupies almost half the inventory of suitable Indianapolis hotel accommodations, including more than half of downtown Indianapolis' 'premium' properties." The Indiana Convention Center publishes 7,100-plus hotel rooms downtown and 4,700 connected by skywalk.
Who runs it
The administrator is cmcglobal. The policy names Nolan Cummings at housing@musicforall.org and 317-635-4755.
Every participating band files a Housing Preference Form, whether or not it needs a hotel. Groups that submit by May 15 at 11:59 p.m. EST receive priority placement. The administrator aims to contact a group within seven business days of receiving the form.
The calendar then runs in fixed steps. Bands without housing options receive a status update by June 15. Music for All sets August 1 as its goal for completed assignments. After September 1 the administrator releases remaining unused or unneeded contracted rooms for individual booking, at its own discretion.
The commission, and the guide that is not there
The policy answers the money question in one word: "Does Music for All benefit financially from operating a housing bureau? Yes." Music for All is a 501(c)(3), and the document notes that all revenues must support its mission.
Its disclosure on the rates reads: "MFA's negotiated hotel rates include modest financial support and commissions from participating hotels intended to support the overall operations, administrative investment, and assumed contractual risks." No percentage and no per-room amount accompany it.
The bureau's own landing page carries zero occurrences of the words "commission" and "modest" in its rendered text. Four entries in its Quick Links block resolve to live PDFs: the policy and process document, the Super Regional timeline, the Grand Nationals timeline, and the Ballad Health East Tennessee Regional partner sheet. Three further entries carry no link at all, among them the 2026 Grand Nationals Housing Reference Guide. The timeline defines what a band is missing: "Housing Guide: Document presented for use and information that details hotel options including price, location, amenities, and availability."
What the bureau tells groups about downtown
On length of stay the policy warns that "the most difficult groups to place are those only staying one-night," and that a one-night group may wait longer while the administrator pairs it with other participants and with Music for All's contractual obligations.
On parking the policy states the district rule: "ALL downtown hotels, regardless of full-service or select-service, charge for parking." On vehicles it states the limit: "Downtown hotels will not be able to accommodate buses and will charge for overnight vehicle parking." Suburban properties generally take buses and trucks at little to no additional cost.
On location the policy removes the argument for the centre. No performance flow advantage attaches to a downtown hotel, and for Indianapolis "the connector tunnel is not open as a point of entry for performance flow." Breakfast included in the rate is arranged through the administrator and carries its own cost.
The rooming-list clock
The final rooming list is due 45 days before arrival. For a November 12 arrival that date is Monday, September 28, 2026. A group may cancel rooms at any time before that mark, and the policy warns that reducing a block by more than 20 percent could incur a penalty. Individual room cancellations depend on the property, with a published rule of thumb of at least 72 hours before arrival.
An entire booking is cancelled through the administrator. The document is explicit: "please do not cancel with the hotel directly."