Dear Teri,

What is the best convention to go to? There seem to be a gazillion on animecons.com and I can’t figure out where to go!

Sincerely,

Confused and overwhelmed otaku

Dear Confused,

Well, it's obvious: you want the biggest/closest/regional/cosiest convention, plus of course, the one with the biggest dealers room/guests you want/coolest events, and you can’t forget about where you friends are going to be going.

In other words, it all depends on what you want to get out of a convention.  If you’re looking for a giant dealers room and Japanese guests, you might be interested in one of the big regional cons like Anime Expo, Otakon, A-Kon, and Anime Central (Acen), all of which have attendances of over 10,000 and will feature lots of guests and big events. On the other hand, you may feel extremely overwhelmed if it's your first con and it can also feel rather impersonal.

If you’re looking to hang out with your friends, you might be better off going to a nearby convention.  If it's in town, you’ll save money on a hotel.  But if you do head out of town, the more friends you can get together to go, the cheaper it’ll be. Plus sharing drivers is always a good idea.  A closer convention will often allow for more of your friends to make it and give you enough to time to just chill with them in a fun and friendly atmosphere, as well as give you lots of time to meet new people. 

So think about your decision for a bit and balance your budget.  If you can only go to one con this year, find one that has the most aspects you want.  Bigger isn’t always better, but it can also be fun.

By the way, Misty says that Yaoi-Con is obviously the best convention ever, but that’s just 'cause she hasn’t gotten to go yet.  Damn them and their 18+ rules ;_;. Two more years. Two more years.

Loves <3

Teri