So, to keep this ball rolling, I'm going to attempt a smaller post....Ha! Well, I did say "attempt", so here we go!
Boat, train, plane or automobile; whichever way you choose, somehow you are getting to the convention, in or out of style. No matter which way you travel initially, most will find themselves driving somehow during their Con stay. So, keeping that in mind, how do you find the little ways to save up a fuel fund for the Con and while you are there? Well, that's what I'm hoping to help with here.
Saving up:
When looking at traveling by automobile to the convention, there are a few things that need to be thought out way in advance. Such as, what type of vehicle are you taking? Be it personally owned, rented, or borrowed. Next thing to decide is how much you feel, in advance, you will need to save towards the gas fund needed to get to the Con, while at the Con, and to get home from the Con. Now, unless you have completed this same trek in years past, with the same vehicle and passengers, in which case you may have a roundabout idea of how much you spent in gas money. For those that this is their first time, or may be using a different vehicle, then I have a few tips. First off, I despise Math, always have and always will, but in this case it is unfortunately unavoidable. But remembering High School Algebra class enough to remember the formula to figuring out gas mileage, is impossible to say the least. So I have found a FREE site to help with some of that.
AAA offers a fuel calculator that is so simple to use, it's ridiculous! You simply enter your year, make, and model with your start point (as close as you are able, if you don't live in a big city) and your destination, hit "calculate" and away you go. The site keeps track of the current gas averages by region and the site will give you the exact amount of how much your vehicle will use one way getting to your Con and a round trip. Pretty cool, huh? So how does this help you with a budget? Well, its simple. By having a basic idea of how much your vehicle will be using you can begin adding in some educated guesses on how much you will need for the entirety of the trip.
Let's stop here and use my own planned trip as an example to illustrate this idea. According to the AAA site, our Con trip, one way, should take about 120 miles to get there, resulting in about 6 gallons of gas at a current cost of about $20.00. Our round trip then will cost approximately $40.00. But what about the duration of the trip? The traveling back and forth between the Con and the hotel? Heading somewhere to get a bite to eat? Shopping? Well, figuring out the price of going from the hotel to the Con should be pretty simple, it's just an estimation, but based on the figures we received from AAA, and knowing how far our hotel is from the convention center, (if you are unsure of this, just use a map site such as Google Maps to enter the address of your hotel and the address of the convention center, viola!) we can take a stab at roughly how much we will use in gas. Our hotel is approximately 7 miles from the convention center and the routes will be traveled by using intercity bypasses, so keeping that in mind, after four days of two trips a day, we are looking at approximately 56 miles of just traveling to and from the convention center. With the current gas prices, this may cost us approximately, a round about number, of $10.00 in gas. So figure in then if we travel to a nearby town or exit to grab a bite to eat or do some running around, or had to make several trips back to the hotel add in another $20.00 just to be safe. Makes a grand total of about $70.00 in gas money, (I usually add another $10.00 or so just to be on the safe side so we will say, $80.00).
Now that we have an idea of how the fuel budget looks, we can focus on saving a few dollars to put back into our pockets. Because hey, whatever we don't use in gas, can go towards swag in the Dealer's Room!
Money Savers:
Now, that we have an idea of how much we should budget in for the gas, how do we go about pulling some leftover funds out of it? Well, one way that I have found is to find the best price. Websites such as GasBuddy allow you to search for all the nearby gas stations and their prices. How that helps? Well when you can save ten cents a gallon by going two streets over, it adds up quickly. The neat thing about GasBuddy is they also have a mobile app for Smartphone owners for checking on the go.
Another saver is, filling up in the mornings. Believe it or not, many gas stations change their prices for the next day, closer to the rush hour block of the day, catching many motorists filling up before heading home. By filling up in the mornings, you have a better chance of catching it a few cents cheaper compared to later in the day.
Also, keep in mind that the heavier the vehicle, the more gas you are going to burn while traveling. So, keep that in mind when packing your suitcases for the trip. Less luggage equals more gas in the tank. I recommend, even though it's a pain, once you get to your hotel take out everything, that is not necessary, from the vehicle and stash it in your room until you check out.
Turn off that engine! Idling is another gas sucker that is easily avoided. If you are stuck in traffic, at a drive-thru, waiting to unload the vehicle, picking up a passenger, anything of the sort, just go ahead and turn the vehicle off! Not only is it better for the environment, it will save you in gas usage too. I know during the summer months, it is way too hot to be sitting in the vehicle for long periods of time without AC. If something does come up that forces you to be stuck in your car for that long, then turn the AC/car on in spurts of approximately 5 minutes, after being off about 20 minutes, long enough to get a mini cool down, but you aren't using huge amounts of gas.
Check for discounts! Many gas stations offer FREE reward and discount cards that could save you some serious change. Speedway has a great reward program that will save you 3 cents off at the pump just by swiping it, but there are some ways to make that discount even better. On the Speedway website they have a listing of "Fuel discount partners" (link is on the right side of their website) that just by shopping at some well known locations could lead you to some major fuel savings. Another simpler, yet little known way to save is by "purchasing" a FREE Speedy Fuel Card. It is simply a prepaid, re-loadable gift card that can only be used on fuel at Speedway. By heading inside and putting the money you would be putting in your tank, on the Fuel Card first, then using the Fuel Card AND the rewards card to prepay for your gas, you could save as much as 6 cents off your gas. Even if you stumble upon one of the few Speedways that are not currently offering the 3 cent discount for the Rewards Card holders, you will still get the discount for using the Fuel Card. Either way it's a win win situation. And the Fuel Card can be "loaded" using your Credit/Debit card or cash, but has to be loaded inside the station. A good way to find out if a local gas station offers a fuel discount is to simply check out their website. If they offer it, it should be posted on the site and explain how to take advantage of them.
Now that you are rolling in all that extra money we have just saved, what are you going to do? I'm thinking go buy any ice cream cone. Seriously, these tips may indeed lead you to saving a little cash on your fuel budget, but by no means can I guarantee that it will be a vast amount! But it's as I have continually said, every little bit helps! So rev up those engines and hop on the Road to the Con!
So, I have to say that perhaps it's only some friends being kind, but it looks as though I may actually have some interest in this little endeavor, so I figure I will keep the ball rolling and see where it takes us.
The last entry I rambled on and on about making lists, this time I'm going to steer in a slightly different direction and ramble on, (and it may run a bit long), about the mundane task of getting yourself all booked and ready for the trip to begin with. It's so easy to jump on the bandwagon and get yourself all psyched up for the road trip, the friends, the convention, and of course the miles of dealer specials; but the thing is, you have to have a place to rest your head each night. Unless you, like me, are the one doing all the legwork, its easy to overlook how tiresome it is to find a good hotel that is within your desired distance of the convention, has all the amenities you want, and is able to accommodate your budget. So, for those that are just starting out on the fun "business" side of convention traveling, lets start at the beginning.
Things to Decide:
As this section says, you need to decide on a few things. Every person is different, just as every convention is vastly different, so what one person considers a top priority may not be the same as the next person, but I will do my best to break it down as it falls in my book.
Budget:
It's just as it says, budget. That nasty little thing that always seems to get in the way of all the thrills and frills of any good convention. For me, it unfortunately is the ruling factor of my life. If I could avoid it, erase it, let it go with the wind, trust me, I would! But, since it doesn't seem as if it will ever let go of my leg, I will use it as good place to start. Whenever we decide to even begin considering attending a convention, I begin looking at the numbers involved. And the biggest number always seems to fall with lodging for the entire length of the Con. No, there is no set in stone rule that if you attend a convention that you have to attend all the days that are offered. But I will be honest, if you have the leave and have the budget, it's well worth it! But finding the little tricks to saving some serious Con Funds is something that takes a little tinkering with. And of course looking at your budget goes hand in hand with one other factor in helping decide your slumber location, and that is...
Location:
Pretty simple actually: how far away are you willing to be and how much are you willing to spend? When traveling to any Con, you have to look at where it is being held and how far are you willing to be away from the central attraction? Many conventions are held in adeptly named Convention Centers, which are oddly enough, located directly near, *dun dun duuun* a hotel! But here is the sticky wicket about that convenient hotel, it's 1.) Going to be jam packed. 2.) It's going to cost more. 3.) Have some heavy foot and vehicle traffic all hours of the day. The positives about it are, 1.) Free parking. 2.) Walking distance. 3.) Close proximity for dropping off any loot in the room. 4.) Makes catching early morning and late night events a breeze.
So back to deciding on the question: how far away and for how much? I have to agree that the appeal of being right next door to the Con is oh so tempting. But I have to be honest, I have never actually been able to do it! Mainly for three deciding factors, 1.) The price! The closer you are to any major city event, the higher the price goes up for lodging. Unfortunately, the hotels know they can squeeze more out of patrons, because there are so many willing to pay the asking price, for the convenience offered. 2.) They are booked way, way, way, way in advance! These close lying hotels are like gold mines! The serious veterans that attend every year, usually book their room in the same hotel every year, even for the next year, before the Con is even fully underway. (Now, there are a few ways around that, because the hotels have gotten smarter, but I will talk about that in a little bit.) 3.) Too many events and people! Many of these closer hotels, may actually be participating in the convention! Many times their ballrooms, and conference rooms will be rented out to event holders throughout the duration of the Con. And the times these rooms are being used, do not always follow the same schedule as your typical 9-5 work/sleep schedule. So that means when you're wanting to sneak back to your room and rest up for that early morning gaming event the next day, you may not exactly be getting the peace and quiet you were hoping for. Also, having a gaming event moved into whole hallways of a hotel, is also not uncommon.
All this together has always been why I choose to go a little further away. Now by choosing to forgo the free parking for a little bit of quiet, I of course have to look at that pesky Budget again; but parking is another entry topic. As for now lets just talk about ways to save on the hotels themselves. Now, most Cons have gotten smart and have teamed up with local travel sites to offer discounts on everything from airfare, car rentals, hotels and public transportation. They will offer even some of those coveted "golden rooms" mentioned earlier for a discount price, once you have purchased your Con Badge. You see the Cons know that they will be able to bring in a few more patrons, especially those traveling long distances, if they offer one stop shopping for them right there at the checkout screen. So they will work with hotels all along a roughly 3-5 mile radius from the convention center, to reserve rooms that can be offered at the discounted prices in what they call a Housing Block. Now, granted these can be great deals, especially when combined with airfare and car rentals; but for the rest of us who are a little closer and only looking at getting a hotel, they aren't that 'knock you out' great. After trial and error, everything from scouring page after page of hotels, looking at various travel sites, making dozens of phone calls, checking out the rooms offered by the convention Housing Block, and just plain old asking "where did you stay and how much did you pay?" of other Con attendees, I have found that the best prices can be found in a few simple steps:
1.) Start looking early.
Most Cons start selling their badges way in advance, so their Housing Blocks become available for viewing around the same time. Take for example Gen Con; they begin selling their badges in January for the Con in August. The Housing Block opens up only a short week or so after the badges begin going on sale. So depending on when you buy your badge you can take advantage of first dibs on better rooms being offered in the Housing Block. But even if you are not looking at purchasing your badge at that time, you can still get an idea of what the pricing looks like at other locations to give yourself some comparisons. This is done easily enough now with the use of such websites as KAYAK which as the commercials say, "search one and done," but after fiddling with all the sites that popped up by using Kayak, only one, in my opinion, seemed to offer the best deals; and that was Hotwire. The first year I used Hotwire, I got a Three-Star hotel, for four people, for three nights, for $41 a night. It was about 7 miles from the Convention Center but worth the 15 minute drive. Now, I'm not getting any endorsements for promoting one site over another. I just have this crazy idea that if you find something that saves you money, you share it with others! And I have to say, so far, I've been impressed. Not only did the site save me a ton the first time, they have saved me a bunch this time around as well. This year I added an extra night, I got another Three-Star hotel in the same area as before, for the same amount of people, for only $53 a night; but the best part was, since I was a current member, the site had sent me a $20 coupon, off my next hotel reservation that I used during checkout.
2.) Keep on eye on prices
Of course, as I mentioned earlier, my Budget has a way of telling me what I can and cannot do. So, when I began looking at hotels in January, (like I said, start looking early), I was literally doing just that, looking. I knew that if I was going to make this whole thing work I was probably going to have to either save up, or wait for something to happen...say, a tax refund? Luckily, many of these sites have ways of helping you keep on top of prices and how they change. They offer email programs that will notify you when the dates and locations you're interested go on sale, so you have a little bit of notice, and can save a few more dollars at the same time. Which luckily enough for me one of those email kicked in the same week as I got that $20 coupon and my tax refund...it doesn't usually happen that way.
3.) Be flexiable
Sometimes you have to be willing to give up a few things to get a better location, or a better price. This is where knowing what amenities you just can't live without comes in. When you use sites such as Kayak or Hotwire they usually all have a checklist of all the things you are looking for in hotel. Use this to your advantage. Play around with the options you want, scope out the results you get and if you don't find anything that fits just right, start taking things off the list. Usually for me one of the first things to go is a swimming pool. I hate to do it, but lets be honest, unless you are traveling with children, you are going to be spending almost your entire day at the Con and won't have time to be cannon balling off the diving board anyways. From there, I just keep chopping things in order of my personal importance level, to include distance, until I'm left with the price range I want and the choices I can live with.
I suppose in my round about way, what I'm really trying to say is: to get the best bang for your buck, know what you want. Know how close you want to be. Know how much you can spend. Know what amenities you want. And know what you realistically can do without, and what you are willing to settle for. Taking a little extra time to shop around, and even a little extra time to wait for a better price, sometimes can make all the difference in where you sleep during your Con-venture. Of course, I didn't mention at all if you are bunking up with other friends. Of course if you are fortunate enough to do that, then you have just saved yourself a whole two pages worth of headache. You just get to pay your share of the stay and away you go. Of course now the only question that remains will be, do you get the Queen, the King or the Roll Away?
So starting out is actually probably the hardest part of getting ready for the trip. Which character costumes am I going to bring? How many sets of dice should I pack? Do I bring a camera or just trust to have my cell phone handy?! And most importantly what kind of snacks do I pack!? *Freaking out mode!*
Well, first off, breathe! This is a convention, it's not moving into a new home! It's a blissful few days spent participating in events and activities that bring some small bit of happiness to your little life!
I suppose I should backtrack and explain a little of where I will be going and participating in during my own little bit of Geek Nirvana. I will be attending the Best Four Days of Gaming in the U.S., Gen Con! Currently, I only live approximately three hours from Indianapolis, Indiana where the convention is being held. Our current plan is to stay all four days, going up early Wednesday night, and staying through Sunday. There is a group of us going, my husband and I, my best friend and her boyfriend; all traveling in one car and sharing a hotel room. This is going to be a wild ride!
So back to the original thought process: how do you begin preparing for a long gaming filled weekend? Well, I have found the best way to organize it all is very simple, lists! I start making lists for EVERYTHING almost as soon as our hotel is booked, and badges are purchased. It may seem like a little overkill to make so many lists, but trust me it helps to break it all down, and to help remember things from year to year. So, you're probally wondering what type of lists I make, even if you're not, I'm going to fill you in anyways. :)
The Lists:
*To Pack (in suitcases, in a car bag, things to go in the car, in the backpack)
*Groceries (food for hotel, in car, drinks)
*Gaming (all things gaming, books, dice, costumes, etc.)
*Paperwork (hotel reservations, tickets, other important documents)
So these may seem like pretty vague lists, and as title holders, they are. But I even go a step further and break each list into subcategories. This is of course why it helps to keep a small composition notebook or binder to keep it all together in one place.
The Breakdown:
*To Pack
-By Person
-By location (either suitcase, car bag, backpack)
*Groceries
-By Person (favorites and requests)
-By location (either food suitcase or car bag)
*Gaming and Paperwork
-I always keep my gaming supplies in my backpack, at least until the hotel. As for paperwork, depending on how important depends on if it goes in the car bag or backpack.
I suppose I should stop and explain what I mean when I say "car bag" and various things. Every time we go on a long trip, there always seems to be three pieces of "luggage" that end up being packed in the vehicle. The suitcase that has all the clothes and such in it. The car bag, which has all the things you know you're going to need in a hurry while on the road. Then there is the backpack. This is one of the top things I recommend for any convention goer! If you are able to pick up a sturdy one from a discount store, or even get one for free, DO IT! I picked mine up for $8 before my first Con from Big Lots and it has lasted and lasted! You would not ever realize how tired you get of carrying things when you are walking miles and miles by the end of the first day!
I'm sure that there are a few other little things that I have a list or two floating around of, like music that everyone can agree on, where to order pizza from, and which gas station bathroom we should stop at. But those can be added and deleted by personal discretion. For now, for all those keeping track, I recommend lists, even lists for your lists, however it helps you keep it all together.
So for the first blog I didn't mean to ramble on, but I figure get the hardest part out first and then the rest will come easier. I have ideas what the next blog could be about but until I sit down at the keyboard and begin typing, I can't be a hundred percent what I will say. So for now I will just say, goodnight and I will have more, hopefully helpful, tips and tricks next time!
Now, that we have an idea of how much we should budget in for the gas, how do we go about pulling some leftover funds out of it? Well, one way that I have found is to find the best price. Websites such as GasBuddy allow you to search for all the nearby gas stations and their prices. How that helps? Well when you can save ten cents a gallon by going two streets over, it adds up quickly. The neat thing about GasBuddy is they also have a mobile app for Smartphone owners for checking on the go. 
