Help with 1st time going to a con

[captain]

Hello, I started an anime club at my school and 1 of the thing were going to do is go to a con. Can you people give me tips on everything?

[Ichigo-Sama]

1. Pack money.
2. If you're going to Cosplay, spend more than $20 on the costume.
3. Some people do not want to be glomped.
4. Pocky. Pocky. Pocky.
5. Be careful of fans. They follow you sometimes. >_>

[Raydere]

Shower.

[Reinna]

Keep your eyes on your stuff.  Be careful with money, and don't bring valuables unless you're sure you need them.  Thieves abound everywhere, and the con is not an exception.  Bring money, but hide it on yourself so it's not easily accesible, or don't bring very much.  Be careful of where you leave you stuff when you set it down for photos.

Bring your camera- it's fun to get pics of people in cosplay.  Conversely, keep your eyes on your camera too.  It's one of those things people like to steal.

Remember to bring sufficient food and drink.  Also, don't glomp people- or hell, even hug them- without permission.  Some costumes are frighteningly breakable, and people won't thank you for breaking the tip off a prop they've worked months to make.

Cosplay if you can.  It's lots and lots of fun.

As someone has already stated: shower.

[BunofGovt]

Ask permission before you take pictures too.  If you can, if you're familiar with the character (or if not you can ask the cosplayer to suggest a pose), you can ask for a specific pose.  That shows an interest in the character instead of "I'm going to take as many pics as I can etc."

Visit the fan forums prior to the convention if there is one.  If a schedule is posted ahead of time, get an idea of what kinds of panels there will be, guests of honor, any events you may want to attend or watch. This helps determine what day(s) you may wish to attend if you can't come all days of a multiple-day convention.

Also if there's a list of gatherings (where cosplayers from different anime gather for photo opportunities).

As for cosplaying, if you're coming as a group, sometimes it's fun to cosplay all from the same anime, or the same character, or similar themed outfits.

Be sure to check for rules of conduct, and policies on cosplay weapons, dealers rooms conduct, etc.

I'm pretty sure there's another thread here about con behavior.

Keep an open mind and promise yourself you'll have fun.  Be prepared to become addicted to conventions.

:D

[zoupzuop2]

Hello, I started an anime club at my school and 1 of the thing were going to do is go to a con. Can you people give me tips on everything?

Welcome to the club, Captain! You'll be assimilated soon enough. :3

*SHOWER.
*Bring more than $200 if you plan on doing anything other than panels, watching anime, and/or Stage Zero.
*SHOWER.
*Cosplay something great. Do your homework on commissioners if you want someone else to make it for you, and/or spend more than $20 on your own work. I once stayed under $15 for my Ranma Saotome... needless to say it was awful.
*SHOWER.
*Bring food. Believe it or not this actually will save you much more money than you expect. Eating out or at-the-con is rather pricey.
*SHOWER.
*Ask before you glomp. Ask before you take pictures. Ask before you take a mid-glomp picture.
*SHOWER.
*Get some sleep. Honestly, I didn't enjoy my encounters with some of the insomniacs I came across. I don't know if you will.
*SHOWER.
*If you're taking transit (VTA), get a day pass. It's worth it, I sware.
*SHOWER
*Please don't do Sailor Beefcake. If you crossplay, PLEASE be convincing.
*SHOWER.
*SHOWER.
*FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THINGS HOLY SHOWER.

Follow those rules and you'll have fun.

[G.I.R]

Rules for the Masses
Okay, been posted before, but switch "A-Kon" with "Fanime", "Dallas Texas" with "San Jose", and  "Three days" with "Four Days" and you pretty much get the idea.

[phoenixphire24]

If you're planning on getting a hotel room (to sleep in/shower in/store things) start saving now and/or find roommates. Hotel reservations usually go up in Dec and rooms go fast. I think rooms were about $90 a night...

[Raydere]

Some more:
- If there's a gaming room with arcade machines, bring lots and lots of quarters.
- If you are cosplaying, prepare to get hugged/glomped.
- Ask before giving a hug/glomp, unless you and the person in question are close friends or has a "Hug me!" sign. There was some drama on the forums over the issue of glomping.

Fanime-specific stuff:
- Need parking? Park on 2nd and San Carlos, it's free on the last 3 days of the con...and if you're going to be in the "small car" slots, PARK VERY CAREFULLY! I scratched my Civic in there T.T

[Krnchichiri]

[[ I'm totally reiterating things, but those are what I'd seriously bold, underline, and emphasize ]].

-If you're planning on staying there, please DON'T sleep in the halls... it's really weird and it's hard for some attendees to go across the halls. It's creepy, too. *shudder*
-As previously stated, shower.
-Don't take pictures of any kind of art unless you have permission from the artist [assuming you're in the artist alley]. Don't take pictures of cosplayers unless you ask them first. Some people really don't like their pictures taken without permission... and you might get a shouting [I'm serious].
-Pocky ain't that important, but bring food there... there isn't much to eat if you're planning to stay, and even during the day, it's either overpriced, you won't know where anything is around that area [unless you're convinced you have a good sense of direction], or it's already seriously crowded.
-Yes, get some sleep. If you don't and you suck/never pulled an all nighter before, you'll basically die and... well, burn.
-Make a LIST with the times and names of panels and events and such that you want to watch.
-If you're in cosplay, try not to bring a lot of things with you, especially in a bag unless you have to. It sucks putting down your stuff to take a picture constantly. If you can, try stashing it somewhere in your cosplay or have a bag that would be consistent with your cosplay [but avoid it]. Or have a friend carry it for you.
-I'd suggest to bring $200 if you're not planning on buying much. I spent about $175 on random things from the Dealers plus food and arcade.
-Get your cosplays commissioned/tailored from you. Ebay is your friend. [Usually around $100-150 for the good ones].

[Raydere]

*If you're taking transit (VTA), get a day pass. It's worth it, I sware.

Only if you're taking more than 2 trips.

1 adult day pass = $5.00
$5.00 / $1.75 for 1 trip = ~2.86 trips
(double the prices for Line 180)

1 youth day pass = $4.00
$4.00 / $1.50 for 1 trip = ~2.66 trips

[~~Loktera~~]

This reminds me... I need to update my Convention Survival Guide and repack it. When I get around to it, I'll put up a torrent.

[zoupzuop2]

[[ I'm totally reiterating things, but those are what I'd seriously bold, underline, and emphasize ]].
-Make a LIST with the times and names of panels and events and such that you want to watch.
-I'd suggest to bring $200 if you're not planning on buying much. I spent about $175 on random things from the Dealers plus food and arcade.

Agreed 100.9%. Making a list will help you decide what you want to do at any given time, and allow for free time to buy food, check out the arcade or dealer's hall, or simply wander the con. And, money is REALLY important if you want to do much at all.

-Get your cosplays commissioned/tailored from you. Ebay is your friend. [Usually around $100-150 for the good ones].

ONLY IF YOU'RE SO DANG SURE IT'S GOING TO WORK. Be INCREDIBLY cautious when looking up commissioners. I picked one that was working just fine, and SHOOP DA WHOOP!-- Lost contact. Almost 3 months after the con, I only recently got word of what happened. While excusable, it still put a huge damper on the con experience to be walking around all "normal". Pugh. At any rate, BE REALLY SURE THIS PERSON'S LEGIT. Or you WILL be scammed. Not fun.

[punk_parfait]

☆ While fun doesn't allow for much of this: Sleeping and Eating really are a must.

☆ Cosplay is fun, try it at least once and see how you like the experience.

☆ Say hello to me if you see me. ♥

[Altomare]

REMEMBER TO EAT

The last convention I went to [ SacAnime July 2007 ] I forgot to eat for about a day and a half. I almost fainted during the rave. Seriously, all the convention stuff gets really distracting, be careful and always take a break to eat. xDD

[hugmeimnerdy]

To the tpic of food, it's about a ten minute walk through the streets of downtown san jose to get to a mcdonalds, or a pizza place, I haven't walked all the way there myself, but it's fairly close.

[Montparnasse]

Heh. This'll be my first con as well. I thank you for the tips.

Edit: Any particular reason why you're all emphasizing the importance of showering?

[BrightHeart76]

Heh. This'll be my first con as well. I thank you for the tips.

Edit: Any particular reason why you're all emphasizing the importance of showering?

At some time during your fanime experience you will be standing / walking / sitting peacefully minding your own business and a FUNK of a variety you never knew existed before will swallow you whole.  Your eyes will water, your tongue will dry up and fall to pieces in your mouth like a dried out sand castle, your skin will pale, and your muscles will convulse.  Words to describe the cloud of thick, furry, pea green, STINK will fail you at the time.  All you will know is that SOMEONE needs a shower and some soap DESPERATELY.  You will lose a solid 5 to 15 minutes of fanime fun while your brain attempts to deal with this smell and it's implications.  At that time you will understand why everyone emphasizes showering so much. 

So yeah...make sure to shower and don't skimp on the toothbrush either.   ;D

[Glitch]

Heh. This'll be my first con as well. I thank you for the tips.

Edit: Any particular reason why you're all emphasizing the importance of showering?

At some time during your fanime experience you will be standing / walking / sitting peacefully minding your own business and a FUNK of a variety you never knew existed before will swallow you whole.  Your eyes will water, your tongue will dry up and fall to pieces in your mouth like a dried out sand castle, your skin will pale, and your muscles will convulse.  Words to describe the cloud of thick, furry, pea green, STINK will fail you at the time.  All you will know is that SOMEONE needs a shower and some soap DESPERATELY.  You will lose a solid 5 to 15 minutes of fanime fun while your brain attempts to deal with this smell and it's implications.  At that time you will understand why everyone emphasizes showering so much. 

So yeah...make sure to shower and don't skimp on the toothbrush either.   ;D

Words cannot acurately describe this experience.
To be more specific on why fanboy funk exist: At fanime your all over the place. With so much energy you exert in all the fun your having and walking to events, you really build up a sweat.(Hell,I was kinda drenched in my own cooling juices after all the shouting at hentai night.I found myself even showering twice in one day.) Then there are some otaku who simply use fanime as an excuse not to shower for four days straight. These are the minority since why the hell would you not shower for a few days?
But anyway, clean otaku is a happy otaku.Scrub often, and you'll be a winner   :)
A message by the Glitch comittee.

☆ While fun doesn't allow for much of this: Sleeping and Eating really are a must.

☆ Cosplay is fun, try it at least once and see how you like the experience.

☆ Say hello to me if you see me. ♥

The last one might be in violation of city laws. I keed,I keed ^^
But yeah, meeting fellow board members is fun. Do so during the con.

[G.I.R]

On the subject of Fanboy Funk, I just had to dig this up.

  If you just rode into town, after a ten hour road trip to Fanime with five of your friends in that small car without air conditioning, you may have Fan-boy Funk.

   If its day two of Fanime and you get on the elevator with a group of people, that immediately get off at the first available stop, leaving you behind, you may have Fan-boy Funk.

   If your over night kit consists of a comb, and cologne,  you might have Fan-boy Funk.

   "Why do birds suddenly disappear, every time you are near?"  It's not a bad omen,  you may have Fan-boy Funk.

   When you walk thru the concourse,  do people keep checking the bottoms of their shoes?   Then you may have Fan-boy Funk.

   If on Sunday your still wearing the same clothes you wore on Thursday,  you may have Fan-boy Funk.

   If you pulled an all-nighter in the hentai room,  you may have Fan-boy Funk.
   
   That vendor in the dealers room you just bought that DVD from with tears in his eyes.  Were those tears of joy over a cash purchase, or is it  Fan-boy Funk?

   If you are in a video room, watching the second story in  Katsuhiro Otomo's "Memories", do people turn around and point at you?   Then you may have Fan-boy Funk.

   If you haven't bathed since Wednesday,  you may have Fan-boy Funk.

   If people start saying to you "You stink!",   GET A CLUE!!!  YOU'VE GOT FAN-BOY FUNK!

So remember boys, and girls: "Attend, don't offend."

;D   But seriously, rule number one should be "Have fun!" when you attend.