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Messages - Alyxiane

#1
Springhill Suites by Marriott San Jose Airport

Pros:

  • The fact that it was far away from the con means there's a lot less noise and absolutely NO elevator con.
  • Check in and Check out was super clean and easy due to lack of Linecon: Hotel Edition.
  • The hotel itself looks new or at least renovated/updated. So everything especially the bathrooms looked clean without any issue with plumbing.
  • The room already came with a microwave, coffee maker, and an empty fridge.
  • Complimentary breakfast.

Cons:

  • The main deal breaker for a lot of people: distance from the con.
  • While Fanime did provide free shuttles between the hotels and the con, the frequency of these shuttles to this hotel in particular left me and some other guests dissatisfied even though it seemed consistent with what it says on the guidebook and website. (Goes anywhere between every 20 minutes to every hour depending on peak vs off peak hours.) Any of the routes that included the Double Tree looked like it was the most frequent, given the amount of people not only staying at the hotel but also how there's now plenty of panels being held there. It makes complete sense, but it's still discouraging see at least 3 Route A and or B shuttles go by before seeing our Route D finally chugging along. Spending some extra money to call an uber/lyft became a viable option at that point, which kind of defeats the purpose of the con shuttles.

Other things to note:

  • The bathrooms are separated by two rooms: one with a shower and sink, and another with a toilet and sink. Both of those doors are sliding and have no locks whatsoever and has a frosted window which I personally find odd. It's not at all an issue with myself and my roommates but in the case that you're rooming with someone who likes to be a troll and starts invading some privacy, it might become awkward...
  • The Springhill Suites is combined with the Residence Inn since both hotels are under the Marriott name. The shuttle pick-up/drop-off area is on the Residence Inn side for the ease of the shuttle to stop there.

Overall, I still love the hotel since it's my second Fanime year staying in it. The shuttles were definitely the most disappointing part of my stay however, so I'd try my luck again next year in to book at either the Hyatt or Westin or possibly even the Double Tree considering the frequency of the shuttles there compared to everything else.
#2
Registration / Re: 2018 Reg Opens Nov 7th
November 10, 2017, 07:14:35 PM
Quote from: Nina Star 9 on November 10, 2017, 07:11:54 AM
Quote from: Konekogami on November 09, 2017, 11:16:47 AM
I wish I knew what the time frames for the housing blocks were.  As in what gets you into what housing window.  Is it by minute? hour? day?  Oh well.. at the very least I have a few months to steel my nerves for hotel reservations.
It would make the most sense to me to not have it by time, but by person. The first X number of people to register get into block #1, the second X number of people get into block #2, etc. Doing it by time (if you register by 12:05 you get into block #1, by 12:10 you get into block #2, etc.) would cause all sorts of issues if, for example, 3000 people register in the first minute, and then 500 register in the next 10 minutes, since the numbers of people in hotel registration time blocks would potentially be very uneven. So I have a feeling that the timeframes for the blocks would vary by year, and would depend on how many other people registered in that amount of time.

Nina's scenario seems to be the more likely case since our confirmation email has a registration number under the QR code. As to what's the exact cutoff for each hotel blocks (every X amount of people has their own block), that's the uncertain part.

Registration for my case was ok, but I failed to check social media until maybe 7 minutes after noon since the link still didn't show up until maybe 12:15? As mentioned, we shouldn't have to find workarounds since those 7 or even 15 minutes can be crucial because of how hotels have been set up the past couple years. And I wonder if registration was relatively smooth for me *because* most people were just refreshing the website instead of looking through FB and Twitter for the link.
#3
Quote from: Barnes on July 31, 2017, 10:41:45 PM
http://crunchyrollexpo.com/guests-crx/

So far, a couple of artists, some YouTubers and some voice actors.

Some people are flat-out complaining already on FaceBook posts XD

Also, I bought my weekend ticket and reserved a hotel room recently.

Idk if the Facebook complainers are just doing it for the sake of complaining, or they're really putting unrealistic expectations on a con's first year. :P

That said, I'll still plan on going, provided that I'm able to get the weekend off. If this and the following years do well, I can imagine it being a viable alternative to AX.
#4
Definitely one of the better Fanimes I've been to so far, at least from my experience and even despite some mishaps along the way:

PreEvent
Was overall stressed out from the combination of budgeting money, badgering parents regarding school, and dealing with crummy co-workers from work. Last year's Fanime was ok-ish at best, so I was also anxious to how this year would turn out. I still managed to pack well and in time for Thursday.

Thursday
This was actually the first year that I've gone to Day 0 since I stayed with people who booked the hotel from Thurs-Mon. Got to San Jose at around 1:30, dressed as a Ravenclaw student. Got in line before the reg opens and ended up chatting with a group behind me, and once we got our badges, we all decided to get dinner and learn more about each other. I then met up with my roommates who would help bring my luggage to our hotel and we all just settled in, getting ready for tomorrow.

Friday
Was casual!D.Va and pool party!D.Va. Got my light pistol peacebonded, and had my first out of three planned photoshoots which went well. Checked out Dealer's Hall and got a free D.Va-related trinket from one of the vendors since I was cosplaying. My shoes were snug on me so I've gotten blisters and sore feet throughout the day. I started to take a look at Artist's Alley but stopped midway to take a couple breaks at the hotel to just overall decompress and get bandaids on. Was supposed to have my second photoshoot that night, but had to push it back the next day since I was way too tired.

Saturday
Was Trainer Moon for the morning, went to the Cosplay Hangout for a bit before the Pokemon gathering which was fun. Looked through the rest of Artist's Alley, and changed midday for the 2nd D.Va photoshoot, but didn't have concrete plans afterwards. Ended up bumping into a group I know and joined them for dinner.

Sunday
Casual!D.Va once again for the Overwatch gathering. Had to pick up my friend and barely made it to the gathering. Gathering itself was HUGE, which was expected. Felt it was cut off short considering the large amounts of both cosplayers and photographers. I still took a lot of selfies as D.Va though lol. Right after, I went to Caesar Chavez park to have picnic with the same group from last night. Then I went through Artist's Alley again since my friend hadn't seen it before, and we got a little charmander cushion. Went back to the hotel to change for the Black&White Ball and realized that the housekeeper mistook a box of mine that contained $300 worth of stuff as trash because I foolishly placed it next to the trash can. I asked front desk about it and left my contact info so they can update me on it. Since part of the "trash" were some jewelry that I intended to wear for the ball (which themselves costed at least $200...), I just went to Idris' Closet and got some stuff that can work well with my outfit, which was formal!D.Va. I was the one with the awesome LED skirt, so throughout the night, I received countless compliments over it! My group left before the very end of the event, but we somehow lost the charmander cushion on our way to the car so I had to trace back our steps but eventually found it in Lost and Found. Thanks, unknown kind person who founded charmander and turned it in!!! <3

Monday
Frantically packed since I got back to the hotel late the night before because of the ball and the wild goose chase of the cushion. Went to front desk again about my "trash" box since it became more and more likely that the contents have already been thrown out and lost forever. Because they're worth $300 and it's Memorial Day, I'll have to wait at least another day to hear back from them and most likely will have a reimbursement if, at the very least, my jewelry is no longer there. Very sad. Very disappointed. And yet, I can't entirely blame on the cleaning staff just on the fact that I put it next to the trash can. Roommates helped me once again to bring my luggage back to my car. Went back to the convention to grab whatever's left and I happened to want. Waited for my roommates to finish their Artist's Alley stuff, and we had dinner outside before they finally head back to LA. I just stayed in San Jose for a little more, mostly to get some beignets to bring home to my parents. haha


The good moments that happened over the weekend definitely outweighed the bad ones. And I'm just happy how well everything went compared to last year. I'm now hoping the next year keeps it up (and perhaps without losing some stuff).
#5
What would be the stance on LED lights? I'm planning on wearing this, but I want to make sure if this will be allowed. (The skirt length is shown to be a bit short on the model, but on myself it's actually covering my knees since I'm shorter in height.) Thanks! :)
#6
Hotel and Facilities / Re: No more hotel room?
February 16, 2017, 12:04:56 PM
There's the roommate thread if you want to look for a roommate and you can ask that the hotel must be nearby.

Otherwise, you either go on the waitlist through Fanime's housing or book directly which would cost a lot more.
#7
I might make it as Trainer Moon!
#8
Hotel and Facilities / Re: 2017 Roommate Thread
January 19, 2017, 06:55:01 PM
When you feel like finding a room this way is more painless than having to book yourself. :-X

Room Needed

Intro:
22-year-old Alyssa here. My interests mostly lie into gaming/web/art, but I've been open to some anime/manga from time to time. This will be my 6th Fanime, and I'll be cosplaying most of the weekend.

Hotel info and req:

  • Looking for a room from Friday - Monday (Thursday would be nice too, but Friday is fine). Hyatt/Westin/Fairmont/Ramada preferred but Hilton/Marriott and the farther hotels with the shuttles are OK.
  • Budget can go up to $250 if needed. The lower the better, of course! I can also help chip in for food and drink if that's arranged.
  • Bed or floor doesn't matter. I can bring a sleeping bag and a folding mattress when needed.
  • Female roommates preferred. I'm open for co-ed, however.
  • Would definitely like a card key, if possible.
Contact: Either PM me here or send an email to [email protected].

Thanks in advance!


EDIT: Found a room! Thanks so much! <3
#9
Quote from: Nina Star 9 on November 29, 2016, 04:52:26 PMGlad my sister texted me about it so I could at least put up an unofficial announcement on the forums (and know about it at all, really).

I'm not so much as surprised at the lack of official forum announcement rather than annoyed that it's happening at all. I got lucky and saw the announcement on FB, but that doesn't change the fact that the timing and handling is poor. AX just did a Black Friday deal with their registration as well which further factors into attendees not having enough time and/or money to prepare for another con/hotel registration this close in dates. I'm merely an attendee and usually am not the one to book a room for a group, but my heart especially goes out to the artists/press/industry peeps who have to deal with this madness yet again.
#10
Hotel and Facilities / Re: Review Your Hotel 2016!
June 02, 2016, 12:46:16 AM
Holiday Inn
Friday-Monday

Pros:
- It's one of the hotels that's far away, so it's much quieter and easier to get the needed beauty sleep.
- Has a 7-11 in the corner just a crosswalk away, and a Denny's a little further out.
- Room was nice and spacious. Came with a mini-fridge and a simple coffee maker.
- Front desk had the info sign that says how frequent the shuttle comes on certain times.

Cons:
- It's one of the hotels that's far away, so it comes with the inconvenience. Using the shuttle and light rail weren't too bad though, but it does require good timing to catch them.
- My room had the misfortune of having the lock itself malfunctioning on Saturday, even when the key cards were supposed to go through fine. It took the next day for it to finally be fixed.

Overall: This was my first year in staying at a hotel that far away from the con. Aside from having to plan accordingly with the shuttle and/or light rail (and that trouble with the lock), staying there went a lot more better than I anticipated. I wouldn't mind having this hotel again if I don't get the closer hotels next year.
#11
Sunday either the 10am-11am or 1pm-2pm time slots would be ideal for me!
#12
Quote from: Kite on April 10, 2016, 11:28:59 PM
Quote from: Alyxiane on April 10, 2016, 09:13:27 PM
I have the League of Legends gathering cutting pretty close to this one so the most I can do is visit but not participating this year. (Though if I'm able to, I was thinking of having a bunch of "Please do nothing to the cook" aprons to pass out to the Rens lol!)

Still room to adjust for times. Is there a preferred time you're looking for?
Might be a stretch at this point to ask for Sunday instead, otherwise late afternoon on Saturday would be a bit more doable? The League gathering is literally right in the middle of the day (1-2) so it'd be cutting close for my schedule regardless.
#13
I have the League of Legends gathering cutting pretty close to this one so the most I can do is visit but not participating this year. (Though if I'm able to, I was thinking of having a bunch of "Please do nothing to the cook" aprons to pass out to the Rens lol!)
#14
Might as well try this and see what comes up.

Room Needed

Intro:
Alyssa here! I'm 21 and female. I'm more in tune to game/web/art-related stuff than anime, but at least the beauty of Fanime is bringing all the fandoms together. :P This will be my 5th Fanime and I'll be cosplaying most of the weekend.

Hotel info and req:

  • Looking for a room from Friday - Monday. Hyatt/Westin/Fairmont/Ramada preferred but Hilton/Marriott OK.
  • Budget is $100-150. I can go higher if needed, up to $200, but it'll really be pushing it.
  • Bed or floor doesn't matter. So long as there's pillows, I'll bring a sleeping bag.
  • Female roommates preferred. I'm open for co-ed however.
  • Would definitely like a card key, if possible.
Contact: Either PM me here or send an email to [email protected].

Thanks in advance!


Found a room. Thanks guys. :)
#15
Gotta love how well-organized the gathering is in such a large size! Definitely will be back next year, likely as Annie again! :D
#16
Guess there's some things I have on my list too!
  • Get a room at the Sainte Claire/Westin San Jose. My sister works under Westin and it was only the past weekend that I found out Sainte Claire is now part of the hotel chain. If I can use the magic of family discounts and I can get a nice room for half the price next year~ (ノ◕ヮ◕)ノ*:・゚✧
  • Not be so anxious about my cosplays. This year was the very first time I've cosplayed in such a large extent for me with wigs and all. So I was self-conscious most of the day with my fem!Lie Ren wig since I knew next to nothing about wig styling but I still had a great time at the RWBY gathering. The next day was very smooth sailing (mostly because I just used the wig for Annie as is lol) and I've gotten wonderful compliments and pictures taken which really brightened my day. In the end, we're just geeks in costumes having fun.
    (ノ◕ヮ◕)ノ*:・゚✧
  • Speaking of cosplays... I want to actually get Ren's Stormflower since I didn't have the time/money to make/commission it for this year. Some contacts would be nice too so long as I check with my eye doctor for the exact prescription. For Annie I could FINALLY drag my boyfriend to be my Tibbers because height difference reasons and he's due for a Fanime experience and I totally regret not bringing him this year. (ノ◕ヮ◕)ノ*:・゚✧ (<-- I love this emote ok huehue)
  • Get a job? BUDGET ALL THE THINGS. Only reason why I was able to spend a good chunk for this year's Fanime was because of the money from my old job. My parents were fine helping me out with food and gas costs but everything else has been through my pocket. Not sure if I want to do another food service kind of job or even flat out retail (especially since the reasons for my dismissal was because I'm a bit too slow for their liking welp).  Either way, it's a small income that can help.

    EDIT:
    • Also pack some Vitamin C supplements. Totally something I overlooked the past weekend and look who's now down with the cold~~~ (ノ◕ヮ◕)ノ*:・゚✧
#17
^ I have no idea what it is exactly so who knows. o-o
< Bring ALL the energy drinks!
> Doing my packing and blasting some RWBY music to get the blood pumping. Finally get to be at Fanime after missing the past two years!!!
V What's your last-minute Fanime crunch?
#18
Feels odd being part of this forum and posting a lot a few years ago. Activity seemed to have decreased since then but... It's a nice feeling checking back here every now and again even during off-season.
#19
I'm just going by which songs sound fun to dance to. :D
There might be more but that's what I could think of at the moment. :)
#20
Well I'm not going to Fanime anymore thanks to last-minute changes to my work schedule....

(╯°Д°)╯︵ ┻━┻ whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy why must work be so cruel to my hobbies....