We all know that the current convention calendar leaves little time to recover, unpack or just sit around playing Skyrim. But in 2019 the good news is, you’ll have more time to play Skyrim!
The bad news is that’s because of lot of conventions will be having the very same dates.
Next year WonderCon (Anaheim), C2E2 (Chicago) and Planet Comicon (Kansas City, MO) will all be held the same weekend, March 29-31.
I know there have been some major overlaps before, and with the proliferation of large conventions across the world, it’s impossible for conflicts to be avoided.
This last weekend alone saw C2e2, Dallas Fan Expo, Silicon Valley Comic Con, MoCCA Fest, and several other regional events. IN addition Walker Stalker held it’s Chicvago event the very same weekend as C2E2. Guests and pockeetbooks are being stretched thin by all this.
While some overlap is inevitable, C2E2 (thrown by ReedPOP) and WonderCon (thrown by Comic-Con International) are considered “majors” where most of the big publishers exhibit and have many announcements. I’m not sure if Reed and CCI folks are in direct communication, but it behooves everyone not to have the same dates.
Planet Comicon is in its 20th year and another major mid-western show which I’ve heard draws a large, youthful crowd.
Part of the problem is that comic cons, as hot as they are, don’t get preferential treatment from convention centers where dates are concerned.
A lot of this goes back to the “hotel night” issue. If an event doesn’t sell enough hotel nights, it isn’t considered a major event. Since fans tend to travel locally or have roommates, they don’t sell as many hotel rooms as, say, nephrologist conventions, where it’s one nephrologist, one room.
WonderCon and C2E2 definitely have god relationships with their facilities, but they’ve always been in the March-April period. This time…too close.
While I’m not privy to Planet Comicon’s planning, in 2018 the show was held February 16-18 – a very different part of the calendar. Whether they wanted different dates or had to work with what they got from Bartle Hall (aka the Kansas City Convention Center), I have no idea.
Washington DC’s Awesome Con is another show that moves around. Last year it was in June 16-18th. This year it got moved to the dreaded Easter slot, March. 30-April 1. And in 2019 it will be April 26-28.
In 2019, WonderCon, C2E2, and Planet Comicon will all be on the same weekend We all know that the current convention calendar leaves little time to recover, unpack or just sit around playing Skyrim.
