As graduating students at the University of Mississippi return their textbooks and prepare to start their professions, hotels across Oxford are looking to profit from students’ big day.
Some hotels in Oxford say graduation reservations begin much earlier than many people expect, especially for those close to campus.
Hannah Holbrook, sales manager at The Oliver Hotel, said she watches the books fill up quickly as soon as spots become available during graduation week.
“We open up rooms 365 days in advance. Typically, we have a waitlist for those that are booking,” Holbrook said.
Kristin Oglesby, catering and sales manager at Marriott’s Courtyard Oxford, said the hotel started booking guests early in 2026 for what is their biggest weekend of the year. She said visitors should not be surprised if prices look a little higher than they do on many other weekends in Oxford.
“They’re definitely gonna be inflated a little bit. So is the whole city. Everyone raises their prices a little bit for special event weekends,” Oglesby said.
Oglesby detailed the weekend room price tag.
“(The price is) around $580 per room per night for Thursday and Friday. I think it’s around $460 for Saturday,” Oglesby said.
Visit Oxford, the city’s tourism and marketing organization, publishes a list of accommodations on its website to assist visitors in finding a place to stay. Some families choose to book short-term rentals on sites like Airbnb or VRBO. Even there, for a three-night stay, you can expect to pay more than $400 per night for a two-bedroom, one-bath rental around graduation time.
While it may be too late to snag a cheaper hotel room for the 2026 graduation season, Oglesby offered advice for next year.
“Look early,” Oglesby said.
