Youngstown State's campus sits on the north edge of downtown, and the hotel that matters is the DoubleTree by Hilton Youngstown Downtown on Federal Plaza, 125 rooms, four minutes from the Beeghly Physical Education Center where commencement is held, and named on a YSU housing page. Boardman's hotel strip is ten minutes south. Commencement runs over two days: Friday 11 and Saturday 12 December 2026, firm on the catalog calendar and the commencement page. Spring 2027 is 30 April and 1 May in the catalog, but the registrar's calendar writes "(tentative)" after those dates and the graduation page still lists the ceremony as TBA, so spring rooms should be held on cancellable rates only. What makes this cluster easier than most is the ring: Niles, Sharon, Warren and New Castle are all under 31 minutes, four separate hotel markets on the doorstep.
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One hotel downtown, a strip in Boardman
DoubleTree by Hilton Youngstown Downtown, 44 East Federal Plaza. About a mile and a half and four minutes from the Beeghly Physical Education Center at 1 Tressel Way. 125 rooms per the Cvent directory. Named on a YSU housing page. The only full-service hotel this close to campus.
Holiday Inn Youngstown-South (Boardman), 7410 South Avenue. About ten minutes south on the main hotel strip. Named on the same YSU page. No room count confirmed in an English-language directory, so none stated.
Comfort Suites Youngstown North, 201 Perni Lane, on the north side toward Liberty Township. Named on the same page. No count stated, and no map pin; its address did not geocode and the pin is omitted rather than guessed.
No matched-window availability series has been run for Youngstown, so this page publishes no count of what remains, and the size of the graduating class was not verified in the research.
December is firm, spring is tentative, and the booking rule follows
Friday 11 and Saturday 12 December 2026, Beeghly Physical Education Center, and YSU’s commencement page has the split: Friday 5:30 p.m. for the Williamson College of Business Administration and the College of STEM; Saturday 10 a.m. for the Beeghly College of Liberal Arts, Social Sciences and Education and the Cliffe College of Creative Arts; Saturday 1:30 p.m. for the Bitonte College of Health and Human Services. A Friday-evening family needs the Friday night and, from far away, the Thursday; a Saturday family needs the Friday.
Friday 30 April and Saturday 1 May 2027 appear in the catalog calendar. The registrar’s own calendars page says: “Commencement Ceremony is held on April 30 & May 1 (tentative).” The registrar’s graduation page gives a conferral date of 1 May 2027 and lists the ceremony as TBA. Three YSU pages, not yet in agreement. So: spring rooms on cancellable rates only. The DoubleTree and the chains all sell free-cancellation rates; hold one and release it if the dates move.
Four towns under half an hour
This is the unusual part. Niles, 19 minutes northwest, the Mahoning Valley’s mall and hotel cluster. Sharon, Pennsylvania, 23 minutes northeast across the state line. Warren, 26 minutes, the Trumbull County seat. New Castle, Pennsylvania, 31 minutes east on US 422. Most clusters on this site have one overflow town within half an hour, or none. Youngstown has four.
Drive times are off-peak road routes to Beeghly computed on 14 September 2026, not measured journeys.
Not claimed here
No availability count and no graduate count. No room counts for the Comfort Suites or Holiday Inn. No claim that 30 April and 1 May 2027 are confirmed; YSU’s registrar says tentative, and this page repeats that word. The ceremony weekend logistics page tracks when the three YSU pages agree.
Verified hotel rules
| Hotel | Min. stay | Prepayment | Cancellation / forfeit | Typical rate | How to book |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DoubleTree by Hilton Youngstown Downtownsourcecheck rates | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published | Online, hotel’s own site |
| Comfort Suites Youngstown Northsource | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published | Online, hotel’s own site |
| Holiday Inn Youngstown-South (Boardman)sourcecheck rates | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published | Online, hotel’s own site |
- DoubleTree by Hilton Youngstown Downtown: 44 East Federal Plaza, downtown, about a mile and a half and four minutes from the Beeghly Physical Education Center. 125 rooms per the Cvent venue directory. Named on a YSU housing page for arriving students. No commencement-specific minimum stay, prepayment or cancellation policy was found, and none is claimed.
- Comfort Suites Youngstown North: 201 Perni Lane, on the north side toward Liberty Township. Named on a YSU housing page. A room count was not confirmed in an English-language directory, so none is stated. No commencement-specific policy was found. No map anchor: the address did not geocode in-house, and the pin is omitted rather than guessed.
- Holiday Inn Youngstown-South (Boardman): 7410 South Avenue, Boardman, about ten minutes south of campus on the main hotel strip. Named on a YSU housing page. Room count not confirmed; none stated. No commencement-specific policy was found.
Opens live availability around campus via our partner Stay22. Several of the properties above take graduation bookings only by phone, mail-in form, or lottery, so treat this as a price check against the rules in the table, not a replacement for them. We may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
The ring
| Town | Drive time | Typical availability | Rate vs. epicenter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Niles, OHCheck rooms in Niles, OH → | 19 min | Not measured for this cluster. A Mahoning Valley commercial centre with chain lodging near the mall. | Not measured. |
| Sharon, PACheck rooms in Sharon, PA → | 23 min | Not measured for this cluster. The Shenango Valley, across the state line, with its own hotels. | Not measured. |
| Warren, OHCheck rooms in Warren, OH → | 26 min | Not measured for this cluster. The Trumbull County seat with a regional hotel base. | Not measured. |
| New Castle, PACheck rooms in New Castle, PA → | 31 min | Not measured for this cluster. A western Pennsylvania hotel market. | Not measured. |
Drive times are off-peak road routes to the Beeghly Physical Education Center computed with OSRM on 2026-09-14, not measured journeys. No matched-window availability series has been run for any town in this ring.
“Check rooms” are partner links (Stay22), and we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Live availability near campus
Map and booking links are provided by our partner Stay22. We may earn a commission on bookings made through this map at no extra cost to you.
Frequently asked questions
Which hotel is closest to Beeghly Center?
The DoubleTree by Hilton Youngstown Downtown at 44 East Federal Plaza, about a mile and a half and four minutes, 125 rooms per the Cvent directory. The Holiday Inn in Boardman at 7410 South Avenue is ten minutes south; the Comfort Suites North on Perni Lane is on the north side. All three are named on a YSU housing page.
Will Youngstown sell out?
No matched-window availability series has been run for Youngstown, so this page publishes no count. One 125-room hotel downtown is the pinch; the Boardman strip and four ring towns under 31 minutes are the relief. The class size was not verified.
Which night do we need?
For December, the Friday night: Business and STEM walk at 5:30 p.m. on Friday 11 December, so those families need the Friday and possibly the Thursday; Liberal Arts, Social Sciences, Education and Creative Arts at 10 a.m. on Saturday 12 and Health and Human Services at 1:30 p.m. need the Friday. For spring, the same two-day shape on 30 April and 1 May, if those dates hold.
Should we book spring now?
Only on a cancellable rate. The registrar's calendar says "Commencement Ceremony is held on April 30 & May 1 (tentative)" and the graduation page lists the spring ceremony as TBA. A free-cancellation booking costs nothing if the dates hold and nothing if they move.
Where is the overflow?
Niles, 19 minutes northwest by the mall; Sharon, Pennsylvania, 23 minutes northeast; Warren, 26 minutes; New Castle, Pennsylvania, 31. Four hotel markets under half an hour is more depth than almost any cluster on this site.
Does YSU publish a hotel list?
A YSU International Programs housing page names the DoubleTree downtown, the Comfort Suites North and the Holiday Inn Boardman for arriving students. It is not a commencement list, and no commencement rate is claimed.
What about December?
Friday 11 December at 5:30 p.m. (Williamson Business and STEM) and Saturday 12 December at 10 a.m. (Beeghly Liberal Arts, Social Sciences and Education, Cliffe Creative Arts) and 1:30 p.m. (Bitonte Health and Human Services), all in the Beeghly Physical Education Center, per YSU's commencement page. Firm, unlike spring.
How we verified this
Last verified:
- YSU catalog, academic calendar ("Dec 11 | Fri. | Commencement"; "Dec 12 | Sat. | Commencement"; "Apr 30 | Fri. | Commencement"; "May 1 | Sat. | Commencement")
- YSU Registrar, calendars ("Commencement Ceremony is held on April 30 & May 1 (tentative)")
- YSU Registrar, graduation ("Graduation Date | May 1, 2027"; Spring 2027 commencement ceremony TBA)
- YSU, Commencement (Fall 2026 schedule: Friday 11 December 5:30 pm; Saturday 12 December 10:00 am and 1:30 pm, by college; "All above ceremonies will take place in Beeghly Physical Education Center.")
- Cvent venue directory, DoubleTree by Hilton Youngstown Downtown ("Total guest rooms 125")
- YSU International Programs Office, housing (names the DoubleTree, Comfort Suites North and Holiday Inn Boardman)
This page is verified in two stages. Every fact is checked against the primary sources listed above, then the page is reviewed and signed off by our editor, A. Hassan. Corrections and enquiries: hello@graduationstay.com