Defeated by the economy

Unfortunately, I will not be going to EXP Con like I planned. Though there were multiple problems that arose throughout the past few months, it all boiled down to the fact that I did not have the money to go alone and stay there for all three days. Though I won't be able to give you a report on EXP Con, I will give you, my readers, some useful advice. Please note that this advice is not perfect.

1) If you are going to pre-order your ticket, it would be wise to wait until the last week before they stop taking any pre-order payments.

Most conventions don't offer refunds under any circumstances (EXP Con included). However, if you ask the right people, you may be able to have your ticket moved to the next year if a situation arises that causes you not to be able to go. In my case, the EXP Con chairman (along with the help from one of the guys running the convention...he goes by the name, MeikenhousIsEXP on the EXP Con forums) were very understanding and moved my ticket to next year. Just keep in mind that it is purely up to the convention heads to decide whether they will move your ticket or give you any other options. If you wait until the last week, you have a better chance of not wasting your money if something goes wrong.

2) If you plan on staying at a hotel with friends, make sure you have a back-up plan.

I cannot stress this enough. This is actually one of the reasons why I was unable to go. Though I had four friends that all wanted to go, for one reason or another, all of them had to cancel. Unfortunately for me, I was planning on riding with one of them and I did not have a back-up plan set up.

3) If you get a reservation for a room, make sure you have the ability to cancel beforehand without a penalty or that you get a "deposit" from your potential roommates.

Fortunately, EXP Con had a deal with their host hotel that allowed those who got a reservation to not only cancel their reservation, but allowed them to not have to pay until after their last day in the room (thank you, EXP Con!). However, if this wasn't the case, then I'd have to pay full price for a room that would have been split by five people.

4) If you followed all of this advice and still come across a problem, don't be afraid to ask those in charge of the convention.

They don't bite. They will not attack you. They will not chase after you....well, not unless you're going to Necro Con...in which case, they have zombies and I cannot guarantee your safety. Seriously though, all I did was ask and I was able to make arraignments to move my ticket to next year!

I can't say for certain that following this advice will completely protect you. However, if you keep this information in mind, it will greatly reduce your chances of encountering any major problems in the future. Hope this helps!


Donations: From this post forward, I will be adding a "Donation" link to the end of all posts. This is purely optional, but any and all donations would be GREATLY appreciated. These donations will be used for the purpose of buying items at conventions to give away to you, the readers. The more donations I have, the more I can spend on these items! Here's the link below:

Note: If the button isn't working, simply go to Paypal's site and login (if you don't have an account, it's free to sign up and use), go to the "Send Money" tab, and enter the email address, darkswordsman05@hotmail.com as the one you want to send it to.