2026 NAUTILUS ALUMNI ASSOCIATION, INC. REUNION
September 28 thru September 30 2026
- The “Short and Sweet”
Reunion Dates : Monday, September 28 through Wednesday, September 30, 2026
Where : Groton, CT
Hotel Accommodations/Info : Hilton Garden Inn, Groton
Price : $180 per night (Mon-Wed, also for Sun and/or Thur night if wishing to arrive early and/or stay one day later)
Reservations: Call 860-445-6800 and ask for group code “Nautilus Reunion 2026” or use link USSNR to make reservations online.
Venue for Wed night banquet : TBD
- NAAI PRESIDENTS’S MESSAGE
The NAAI Board of Directors has approved the dates and location for the 2026 Nautilus Reunion. Once again it will be in Groton on September 28, 29 and 30, 2026, with the primary hotel being the Hilton Garden Inn, Groton — the same hotel we used for the 2024 reunion.
The reunion committee searched diligently for the best hotel price. Most hotels in the Groton/Mystic/New London area with sufficient rooms for our group and with a hospitality room were VERY expensive during late September 2026, all well over $300 per night for weekend nights. The least expensive for weekday nights was $279 per night. So, we went back to the Groton Hilton Garden Inn and got its best price—$180 plus tax per night for weekday nights Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, September 28, 29, and 30, 2026. The lowest price for dates that include a weekend was $250 per night. That’s one of the reasons for selecting weekday night for the reunion. Another great reason for choosing weekdays for the reunion is that we will be able to have our culminating banquet on Wednesday, the 30th, the actual 72nd anniversary of the commissioning of USS Nautilus. For those wishing to check in a day early on Sunday the 27th, or remain an extra day and check out on Friday, Oct 2nd, fifteen rooms will be held for that purpose at the same $180 rate.
We are currently negotiating with venues for the Wednesday night’s banquet and for an event on Monday night. Once again, Tuesday night will be devoted to “Sea Stories,” with family/legacy members and historic ship crew encouraged to tell their Nautilus-related stories.
The Board realizes that some NAAI members, especially some of our legacy members, bring school-age children to the reunions, and that having the reunion on weekdays/nights require taking the kids out of school. We sincerely hope parents will consider that reunion attendance will be a learning opportunity for children that will outweigh their school absence.
So, mark your calendars for these dates and start making plans to attend what we trust will be another fabulous Nautilus Reunion.
Lonnie Barham, President
Nautilus on display at the Submarine Force Museum in Groton, Connecticut
Nautilus being launched at EB in Groton, Connecticut
REUNION 2026 : The Details
Use the REGISTRATION FORM to register today!
Dates: 9/28/2026 – 9/30/2026
Primary Location/Hospitality Center: Hilton Garden Inn on Rt 184 (Gold Star Hwy) Groton, CT
Group Code for Reservations: Nautilus Reunion 2026
Phone: 860-445-6800 or Online Reservation
NOTES about this year’s Reunion:
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- The Channel Fever BBQ/Lobster Bake on Monday night will be either at the Groton Elks or at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy. Negotiations are underway with both.
- The lunch being planned to honor the Historic Ship Crew on Tuesday, Sep 29th is planned for the historic ship location under a tent or indoors if the weather doesn’t cooperate. (Alternate location is the Hilton Hospitality Room.)
- The water taxi tours of the Thames river will leave from and return to the new water taxi dock located across the pier from Historic Ship Nautilus. The tour promises to be a great time.
- Tuesday night’s Sea Stories event will be in the Hilton Hospitality Room, just the same as 2024. We will again have pizza, calzones and other munchies, along with drinks at the no-cost event. This reunion we will hear Nautilus stories from the historic ship crew and from legacy members.
- We have the Port & Starboard banquet venue at Ocean Beach, New London on hold for the culminating banquet on Wednesday, Sep. 30th. To the day, this will be the 72nd anniversary of the commissioning of USS Nautilus in 1954. We are still looking for a better venue since several attendees complained about the Port & Starboard last reunion.