DragonCon 2011 (25th Anniversary!)

[Fan-e-Gate]

I'm not going this year so I don't have a card.

1. I can't recall what mine looked like from past years. I think it just has your name and address.
2. Is there a bar-code on your card? They are having a new system this year where you resister at the con by scanning the bar-code on your card. People have gotten in in years past without the card, but with this new system who can say? If you ordered on-line I think they send you a conformation E-mail, maybe print that out just in case.

ETA: I found a picture of one from 2009.

[SwimChicSQ]

You need your name and you definitely need the barcode that was on that sticker, all you need to do is contact the ticket office and ask them to resend it.

[off_the_post18]

Updated the original post to include our latest guest announcement: David Blue

[lame moose (mocha)]

hi, just learned about dragon con a few weeks ago. found out amanda tapping is a guest so i absolutely must go. never been to a really big con like this before. plan to get my ticket and book the hotel later this week. apparently all 5 main hotels are booked, so i'm glad they have a plan B list also. i need to check out locations so i can just go back and forth with my scooter and not have to spend money on taxis. would it be safe to assume amanda would be in the awards banquet and the walk of fame(whatever that is). do i need tickets for both of those? any advice for this event would be appreciated. like to kinda know what i'm doing before going to an event this large. will check out that livejournal blog.
i agree with EH-T, giving a donation to Sanctuary For Kids would be a better idea than trying to give her a gift. i think she'd appreciate that more than receiving a gift for herself.

[camelot7414]

I don't know about the awards banquet as I've never been to the banquet, but the Walk of Fame is free, however you'll need to pay for whichever autographs you want. Bring plenty of cash as most won't take credit cards. The good thing is the stars are normally at the con all weekend, so you should have several times where you can catch them at their booth.

[off_the_post18]

hi, just learned about dragon con a few weeks ago. found out amanda tapping is a guest so i absolutely must go. never been to a really big con like this before. plan to get my ticket and book the hotel later this week. apparently all 5 main hotels are booked, so i'm glad they have a plan B list also. i need to check out locations so i can just go back and forth with my scooter and not have to spend money on taxis. would it be safe to assume amanda would be in the awards banquet and the walk of fame(whatever that is). do i need tickets for both of those? any advice for this event would be appreciated. like to kinda know what i'm doing before going to an event this large. will check out that livejournal blog.
i agree with EH-T, giving a donation to Sanctuary For Kids would be a better idea than trying to give her a gift. i think she'd appreciate that more than receiving a gift for herself.

Dragon*Con is basically 4 days of organized (mostly) chaos. The Con has been growing by leaps and bounds over the last couple of years and this year has been predicted as the biggest ever (especially since it is the 25th Anniversary.) Don't get me wrong though, it is still my own personal favorite Con I have ever attended and have no plans to ever stop attending. There is so much to see and do, you could be up 24/7 for all 4 days and still not see everything you want.

Getting a ticket will not be a problem and I would suggest doing it as soon as possible (the $ will increase again on May 13th)...getting a hotel, well, that is going to be a challenge. The Westin is the only host hotel that "supposedly" still has rooms available but I am betting they are now sold-out too. As far as the overflow hotels go, most of them (that are near the Con site itself) are probably getting close to being booked. With the overflow hotels, I'd highly suggest getting one that has Dragon*Con shuttle service or is close/connected to MARTA. Not sure what kind of scooter you are thinking of bringing but there won't be anywhere to store it during the day (safely anyways....at least not that I have seen.)

I've attended the Awards Banquet only once and really wouldn't do it again. Will Amanda be a part of the banquet...no clue right now. My guess is no. There will be plenty of opportunity to see Ms. Tapping at other things (if she is announced as being part of the banquet.)

Amanda will have a spot somewhere on the WoF. If she is rep'd by JCB, it will be in a separate room from the rest of the WoF, but still close. You may or may not need a ticket for her autograph, you'll find that out when you get to the Con. Most actors you don't need something, you pay when you get to their table. Some do it differently though. Actors will have posted WoF times and a lot of them spend a good deal of time there when they are not doing panels or photo ops. Like camelot7414 said, bring cash. There are ATM's around the Con but they seem to empty quickly.

The LiveJournal community is a huge source of information. Lots of newbie to D*C posts about what to bring, wear, etc.

[lame moose (mocha)]

well, i ordered a ticket for the con and the banquet. i emailed them to ask if amanda would be at the banquet and all i got back was a statement that the schedule would be out aug. 27. with my luck, i'd wait to buy it, find out that she would be at it and then find out they were sold out. i guess i could always try to sell it if she doesn't attend that event. next challenge is finding a hotel close by.

[lame moose (mocha)]

off_the_post18, thanks for the info. the scooter i use is a mobility 3 wheel scooter-the kind handicap people use . no need to store it, i stay in it - can't walk much. i plan to look today, for a hotel no more than a few blocks away. then i can zip back and forth in my scooter. what is "JCB". do you know if they have any restrictions on where you can take photos?

[camelot7414]

off_the_post18, thanks for the info. the scooter i use is a mobility 3 wheel scooter-the kind handicap people use . no need to store it, i stay in it - can't walk much. i plan to look today, for a hotel no more than a few blocks away. then i can zip back and forth in my scooter. what is "JCB". do you know if they have any restrictions on where you can take photos?

JCB is Julie Caitlin Brown. She reps several of the Stargate actors at Dragon*Con. As off_the_post18 said, they are normally in a separate room from the Walk of Fame, but it's just accross the hall. Last year, if I remember correctly only Paul McGillion and Corin Nemec were in the WOF room, while the rest (Chris Judge, Lexa Doig, Michael Shanks, Jason Mamoa) were in a separate room.

[off_the_post18]

well, i ordered a ticket for the con and the banquet. i emailed them to ask if amanda would be at the banquet and all i got back was a statement that the schedule would be out aug. 27. with my luck, i'd wait to buy it, find out that she would be at it and then find out they were sold out. i guess i could always try to sell it if she doesn't attend that event. next challenge is finding a hotel close by.

off_the_post18, thanks for the info. the scooter i use is a mobility 3 wheel scooter-the kind handicap people use . no need to store it, i stay in it - can't walk much. i plan to look today, for a hotel no more than a few blocks away. then i can zip back and forth in my scooter. what is "JCB". do you know if they have any restrictions on where you can take photos?

I had a good time at the banquet, so it would probably be a fun event, even if Amanda is not a guest. Nowadays I am just so busy doing other things at that time that I don't even think about the Banquet. Yeah, they won't release a full schedule until about a week before.

Photos- You can take photos at all of the panels (unless for some reason they say no, but I've never seen actually seen that happen) and pretty much any of the common areas. The lobbies are huge photo spots....but you will also see people stopping fellow con-goers just about anywhere to take pics of costumes, etc. In the Walk of Fame, well, that is different. Some of the actors will allow you to take photos with them at their tables for a small fee....most however, will not. I don't think I ever take my camera out when I am in there, just as a precaution...unless I can see it posted that you may take pics of the actor.

JCB is Julie Caitlin Brown. She reps several of the Stargate actors at Dragon*Con. As off_the_post18 said, they are normally in a separate room from the Walk of Fame, but it's just accross the hall. Last year, if I remember correctly only Paul McGillion and Corin Nemec were in the WOF room, while the rest (Chris Judge, Lexa Doig, Michael Shanks, Jason Mamoa) were in a separate room.

I am not sure who Amanda is rep'd by, I can't remember from past years. JCB has a unique style of rep'ing people. A good majority of the SG people are rep'd by her though. Joe Flanigan is not, and Camelot is right, neither are Corin and Paul.

[lame moose (mocha)]

i lucked out and got a room in the 1st hotel listed on the plan b list. it's only 2 blocks from the main hotels where the event is held. so no taxis or buses to deal with. just zoom at my liesure. plane tickets are next. anybody know if there is anything going on the last night of the event. is it safe to fly out that evening or would i miss something? it would save one night hotel fee, but don't want to miss anything important either.

[camelot7414]

i lucked out and got a room in the 1st hotel listed on the plan b list. it's only 2 blocks from the main hotels where the event is held. so no taxis or buses to deal with. just zoom at my liesure. plane tickets are next. anybody know if there is anything going on the last night of the event. is it safe to fly out that evening or would i miss something? it would save one night hotel fee, but don't want to miss anything important either.

It's officially over Monday at 5, although it seems like a lot of people head home on Monday. Last year, we left about noon. I'll probably do the same thing this year, but since we're driving we have the option to stay longer if there is something that we want to see. One thing I learned is that you probably won't see everything you want to, there's so much going on. I have last year's schedule if you want an idea of what it's about. Just email me at camelot7414 at gmail.com.

[lame moose (mocha)]

what's with all the skulls and pirate ships? why did i get demoted to a galley slop master?

[WingedPegasus]

what's with all the skulls and pirate ships? why did i get demoted to a galley slop master?

It's the April Fool's day joke. In my opinion, it's waaaay more awesome than turning the forum pink.

[lame moose (mocha)]

It's officially over Monday at 5, although it seems like a lot of people head home on Monday. Last year, we left about noon. I'll probably do the same thing this year, but since we're driving we have the option to stay longer if there is something that we want to see. One thing I learned is that you probably won't see everything you want to, there's so much going on. I have last year's schedule if you want an idea of what it's about. Just email me at camelot7414 at gmail.com.

finally had a chance to look thru that extensive schedule. WOW! there sure is a lot of stuff going on. i had no idea what to expect. i'm really looking forward to this event now. seems like a real blast . thank you for that schedule.