# I am planning to go to Anthrocon



## furfi (Sep 14, 2014)

Anthrocon 2015 will be my first con ever I can not wait to go. I am very exited and nervous cause it will be the first time going to somewhere new alone. I hope to meet some furry friends while I am there. I also have a question to whoever reads this. What was your first furry convention, what was it like and how did you feel before and after going to the convention?


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## PacificAutumn (Sep 16, 2014)

My first furry convention was Anthrocon, and it CHANGED MY LIFE.  I went there as an artist with some other art friends who had only done anime conventions.  We were a little nervous and very skeptical.  But when we left, we all realized there was a little but of furr in all of us.  And it never left!!!  We were all actually really emotional when we drove away???  That's how awesome it was!  We went again this year and it was just as awesome as before.  I highly recommend Anthrocon!!!  You may be a bit nervous at first and that's okay.  But you'll find out that everyone is really friendly and it'll be great~


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## PantherGus (Oct 27, 2014)

I am going to AC 2015 also. I'm also a fellow noobie, so try to spot me out if it gets too intense. I will be the fellow panther with a nommed ear. I have no idea what to expect but that won't stop me from exploring what AC has to offer.


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## Shaloxeroligon (Oct 27, 2014)

I plan on attending AC 2015 as well. This will be my 4th time going.

I admit that when I first went there, I was nervous. I had never been to a furry convention before (I'm not counting the 4 hours I spent at FA:U on the Thursday before it started), so I didn't know what to expect. However, I was fortunate enough to go there with someone else, so I at least had a roommate and a place to call "home base." I did spend most of the convention off doing my own thing, as the someone I went with was a dealer. 

To make a long story short, I had a BLAST. I met several new friends, went to some awesome panels, got to interact with fursuiters for the first time (including a surprise hug from Duke when I put a dollar in the charity bucket), and went to almost every event that had Kage or 2 in it. I went in as a nervous shut-in. I left as a wannabe fursuiter. 

Now, I have some advice for any new con-goers. First, look at the schedule before you go, so that you have a general idea of what kind of events you want to see. However, don't book your day solid, as the fun/interesting stuff that happens in con videos generally DOESN'T happen at panels (with exceptions here and there). Second, here are some events for first-timers to attend: the "First Furry Convention" panel (a must-see), the "Furries in the Media" panel, Uncle Kage's Story Hour, 2's Rant, the Anthrocon Masquerade, the Fursuit Parade, the Fursuit Dance Competition Finals, Kage 2-gether, the Fursuit Games, and the Opening/Closing Ceremonies. These are all staple events of AnthroCon (and fur cons in general), so I highly recommend attending most if not all of them. Third, expect hugs. The hug is the furry handshake. If you don't want hugs, you don't have to give them (no one will force a hug on you), but generally speaking, furries are very huggy, especially the fursuiters. Speaking of which: fourth, there will be a LOT of fursuiters there. If estimates are correct, there should be over 1,500 of them in attendance. So, if you have a fear of masks or mascots, then... you probably will have a hard time. But if you like big fluffy friendly animals, then you'll have fun. Finally, poke around on the Anthrocon website for more information. They have a lot of helpful hints for new attendees, so it's definitely worth a look.

Hope that helps. =)


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## PantherGus (Oct 27, 2014)

Thanks Shal, that's actually really helpful. I hope to see you at AC. :3 All of you guys really.


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## Haunani (Oct 28, 2014)

I'm hoping to head over that way for it, as well! And it would be my first time.


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## Domino369 (Oct 29, 2014)

Midwest Furfest 2011 was my furst (hehe puns) furry con but Anime Boston 2011 was my first con ever. I had a heck of a lot more fun at that Anime Boston than I've had at most other cons; everything from commandeering a 50in TV to watch the last two episodes of Madoka to going to that troll panel on Gurren Lagen that was actually a tentacle hentai panel. The blueberry sake, the crazy Touhou photoshoot, the playing League of Legends and broadcasting it, the AMV contest where I realized Shin was god :3

Midwest Furfest was alright. I handled it like I do most cons and spent most of it not sober. The 2 years I went after that though I spent DJing... and then spending most of the con not sober.

I furst (hehe) went to Anthrocon in 2013 and there just was something about it. It felt a lot less local than MFF and more international, especially with Sardyon and Tani Del Real gracing us with their presence. I still spent a good portion of the con not sober, but it was some of the most fun I've had at a fur con. It also gave me love for Pittsburgh which before I found as just another city in PA.

The second time I went I had even more fun cause a lot of peeps I know from the Midwest went there for their first time and this was after I moved back to NYC (thank god) so I had to go to see them. I met a LOT of new peeps and overall had a great time. I feel sorry for giving my friend a hangover on Friday, but I had to pull out the 4 Horseman XD

EDIT: I'm biased towards large conventions because the larger they are, the more they have and the more worth they have to go to (Comiket in Japan being 560k and Japan Expo in Paris at 208k are my golden two because oh my god the amount of one of a kind things you can get), so while Anthrocon is still small, it's notoriety (it is the largest fur con by 2x) made it feel 'large' and the fact that you had people coming from all over gives it a special star in my book.


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## Kittaty (Dec 17, 2014)

I'm seriously considering attending Anthrocon 2015 for my first convention too! This might be a silly question (I usually attend music festivals) but is there any chance of the con being sold out? I'm assuming that it just gets harder to find a close hotel room.


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## RailRide (Dec 17, 2014)

There's been only a suggestion in the forums that this may come up, but so far there's no plans to consider an attendance cap. Hotels close to the convention center (the Westin in particular) will sell out quickly when reservations open up. The ones farthest out will often have rooms up to the start of the con, but even this is expected to tighten up if attendance continues to climb. 

In 2013 AC had a shuttle bus between the various hotels and convention center. I imagine they had it this year but didn't actually look for it since I was in the Westin in 2014 (being in Artist Alley I had to haul my art materials back and forth--the shorter the distance the better)

---PCJ


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## furfi (Jul 13, 2015)

That is an awesome fursuit where did you get it?


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## furfi (Jul 13, 2015)

PantherGus said:


> I am going to AC 2015 also. I'm also a fellow noobie, so try to spot me out if it gets too intense. I will be the fellow panther with a nommed ear. I have no idea what to expect but that won't stop me from exploring what AC has to offer.


That is an awesome fursuit where did you get it?


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