Convention Fans:
How Much Do Conventions Cost to Attend?

The cost of attending a convention tends to be one of the primary concerns for people, especially given the downturn in the economy. How much does it cost to attend a convention? Well, the answer to that is almost always, "It Depends." There are a lot of factors that go into determining how much the grand total will be.

Fear not con goers! I'm more than willing to share a price break down for two different conventions. I’ll be taking into account factors such as hotel, travel, food, spending money, merchandise, autographs, etc. so that you can get a good idea of how much a convention can cost.

Cost Estimate: Dragon*con 2010

Dragon*con is a convention I have attended for the past five years, and 2010 will be my 6th. For some, it is a convention that can cost thousands of dollars or less than a hundred, which is why I like using it as an example for a cost breakdown. For the purposes of this price analysis, the assumption will be that you are attending the entire convention, Friday-Monday. If you are only attending for one day, it will be substantially cheaper, but it isn't as useful for comparison purposes.

Entry: A weekend badge for Dragon*con will cost you about $70 at the cheapest. The price goes as high as $100 at the door.

Hotel: A hotel room isn't necessary, but it makes Dragon*con a hell of a lot more fun. You may be within driving distance, or have friends nearby you can crash with, however, and that can definitely make attending cheaper. But let’s assume you’re staying at one of the four host hotels. All of the host hotels are already sold out, but we’ll select the Hyatt for the price breakdown. The Hyatt's base price is $175 per night.

But that's not all. You also need to factor in the state and local taxes (about $24 per night), and parking fees (another $24 or so a night). Assuming you take advantage of hotel parking, that’s approximately $670 (or if you stay Thursday night too, like many do, the total goes up to approximately $890).