Celebration 4 - Planning Thread

The figueroa hotel is not taking reservations now. Apparently the cat is out of the bag with them, and they are waiting to sign a contract for the con.

I am sure LFL is getting a cut of all these rooms or something, jeez!

 

LFL for sures, but GenCon's even more greedy, and they're hardly the most organized group on the planet, so it might be a few weeks.

 

BASTARDS!

 

After reading the Official announcement, a shiver went down my back.
I love that Star Wars still has that affect on me!





IOWA! pfft...
That's it! From now on Zoom is Jokey Smurf(except he ain't blue, but everything else applies)

 

Maybe that is their cover, not sure.

Whoa, by sheer luck I emailed them and scored a room reservation at the figueroa!!! Let's see if it sticks now.

BTW, here is a map of the location. You're right, nothing is close at all! Even the hyatt and bigger hotels are MILES away! Even the fig is a couple blocks away (probably about the distance that the embassy was at C3).

[image=http://www.hyperdynelabs.com/misc/la.jpg]

Walking to get there is gonna suck, especially with gear on. Then you have to walk inside the huge convention center itself. What a clusterf$%k. Heck I saw people pass out in Indy, they are gonna need a bunch of ambulances on stand by in LA!

 

It looks like it's got a couple ginormous parking lots next to it. There should be ample parking, and I'm pretty sure there will be shuttles running the whole time.

If not, we're all doomed.

 

what the crap there is no where to stay around there.........

 

OH WAIT...

A couple Ninjas went to E3 this year, and it was at the LACC. I'll ask them how it all worked out. Duh.

 

Ok i have a sales manager from marriot calling me back...they have discount group rates.

normal rate is $219+tax four peps to a room.

http://www.losangelesmarriottdowntown.com/

 

I'm going to look into the Marriott as well. I have a family connection that works in reservations. I'll see what I can come up with.

 

Your welcome

 

From the StarWars.com article to all the doomsayers:

There will also be information on getting around Los Angeles, traveling to and from the Convention Center, and on shuttle buses available for convention-goers who are staying in the city.

It may not be the most perfect situation, but there you go. I stayed at the hostel in Indy and took the bus in most mornings. It can be done. Not conveniently, but it's possible. It just means that you're going to have to plan a bit more.

 

SAHWEEEEEEEEEET...

Ninjas is hooked up! The ones that went to E3 earlier this month said it was a really nice setup at the LACC, parking was super easy to find, and the whole thing flowed pretty well.

And they only live 45 minutes away (I was a bit off on which San Diego suburb they lived in). Ninjas won't need hotel rooms.

I think Kevin went to E3 this year, too -- he can probably verify the LACC setup.

 

YIPEEE i am thinking the marriot would be the best at this point...UNLESSSS we want to stay all the way out at the embassy suites. (my favorite)

 

Woooooohoooooo! I am gonna dork it up big time and bring my scooter! Hopefully they have motorcycle parking right next to the building so I don't have to march acrossed the parking lot all the time.

I am in, wherever the rest of the group decides to stay.

 

ok, my reservation went through - just called the Figueroa Hotel. Rate is pretty good, $134 a night for a NS queen room. It's only 0.2 miles from the con center.

If you guys want, email the fig at: unofig@aol.com. Tell them you are looking to reserve a room for the May dates.

A friendly chap named Uno will write you back. You can hopefully still reserve a room there. He said they had about 10-15 reservations today for that timeframe. Get em while they are still there!!!

 

From my understanding Mel did that this morning, not sure what ever happened with that.

 

NADA...he never wrote back.

I am saying let's go with the Marriott. it is close enough if we NEED to walk and if not we can use the shuttle thing.

 

Hmmm, ok well goto the marriott then! LOL

I prefer to be close to the convention center. Walking distance is of utmost importance IMO. I am reserving a couple more rooms there if I can. Hopefully it will be mohitos at the jacuzzi!

 

Just shot Uno an e-mail. Ninja hookups still look good, but while the female Ninja said "w00t. Party at our place!"...the male Ninja is still at work, and I just want to make sure he'll be cool with more Ninjas at his house. LOL.

I might have to bribe him with a Han Solo jacket.

 

I'll take han solo...oh you mean the jacket. yeah no.

 

A serious question:
Am I the only one who doesnt think we should worry about being within walking distance? The costume thing may need a diffeerent approach this time. Dont know what that would be! but somebody is obviously going to figure it out. It is possible. Seemes weird to base all hotel decisions on location. Anybody ever stayed at the Figureroa? I'm sure the pics are great, but I've stayed at Embassy. I liked it.
And I don't think its that important that we leave together and come back together, either. I don't remember a lot of that in Indy. I'd like us all to be at the same place, sure. At the Con, that doesnt really work in my experience, and thats totally ok. Too much trouble. "Stay with the group! Who's got their buddy?!"
At CIII we all did what we wanted, saw people we knew, and had a good time.

Obviously it'd be great if we were close, I just don't want to stress about it.

It's just a thought, and if you guys don't agree we should move on quickly so we don't miss out on anything, but I'm thinkin we should shoot for a bigger hotel, accept the fact that we may need to use a shuttle, taxi, or rental, and skip any of the GenCon block stuff. We went our own way last time and I think it worked out pretty well.

Why are we trying so hard to walk around an unfamiliar area in LA?

*shrug* Just seems odd to me.

 

I'm with D-Josh.

After talking to people who went to E3 earlier this month, it sounds like it would be best to park in the parking lot and take the shuttle to the front door. There will be ample parking. There will be taxis. Lots of ways to get around. It'll be an added expense, but it's not going to kill anybody.

Unlike...thugs in L.A. preying on a buncha geeks in costume at night, yo.

I can see Jim needing a spot as close as possible. Even then, it might still be best to put R2 in a truck and park just so R2 doesn't get stranded in a busy intersection.

 

I'll be staying at the Embassy Suites I stayed at for E3 (LAX South) - we got there in 10 minutes and I'm a platinum member. Parking is awesome at the Convention Center (but it's $10 a day). I've been to LA every year for E3 and I don't see this being much different drive-wise.

The area around the LACC is NOT nice after dark (and there's not much else around there), so if you walk, I'd advise doing it in a group (if at all).

 

I'm sooooo there!!!! I'll have my stormtrooper armor, and I'll be.......ooooo jesus I'm freaking out!

Austin-