Boston Comic Con/FanExpo

If you’re ever in Boston in early August and like comics and pop culture, I do recommend seeing if Boston Comic Con/FanExpo is running that weekend.

I’ve been attending Boston Comic Con/FanExpo for about 6 years now. It was always something I wanted to do, but was embarrassed to go. And then one year I just embraced how geeky I was and went, and loved it. I started with just one day and driving in to doing all three days and getting a hotel room. It’s like a mini vacation for me.

In this post I will discuss:
Location History
Getting There
Hotels
Standard Weekend Happenings

To see what happened in specific years, please check out the following:
Boston FanExpo 2019

Location

Boston Comic Con originally occurred in April at the Hynes Convention Center and was there until 2013. Sadly, that was the year of the Marathon Bombing. The convention was scheduled to be held just a week later, but due to the bombing that area was still under turmoil and the T stop was shut down. The decision was made to postpone until August and was moved to the Seaport World Trade Center.

Apparently, people loved it being in August and at the new location! The convention then stayed at the Seaport World Trade Center from 2013-2016. During this time, it also gained in popularity as Geek Culture also started to become accepted in society thanks to shows like Big Bang Theory. Each year more people came and it quickly became over crowded and hard to move.

In 2017 Boston Comic Con moved up the street to the Boston Exhibition and Convention Center. This space is a lot bigger – PAX East, the largest gaming convention on the East Coast is held here each year. The following year in 2018, is when it was bought out by FanExpo. There is still much debate among the convention goers if this is good or bad. Some say it is no longer about the comics, but about celebrities. Others say it’s about all of Geek Culture and celebrating all different aspects of it, comics being a part.

Getting There

There are three ways to get to Boston Comic Con/FanExpo

Drive
Uber/Lyft
Subway

Driving
Getting there by car can either be complicated or easy depending from which direction you are coming. For me, it’s pretty simple: jump on 128 for a short period, take the exit to 90, and then 3 easy turns later I’m there. However, there are a lot of one way streets in Boston and traffic can be a nightmare during rush hour.

Then there is also parking to consider. I suggest using Spothero to reserve a spot, and doing it several days in advance. Parking will range from $25-$80 a day depending on where you park. On average you are looking in the $40-$60 range.

Uber/Lyft
If you don’t want to drive, but also can’t/won’t take the subway, Uber/Lyft is in Boston. On average a 20 minute drive was costing about $25 with tip for a one way ride. Overall it’ll cost the same as parking, but with someone else doing all the driving.

Subway
Depending on where you live, this could also be very easy or very difficult. Ultimately, you will need to get to South Station located on the Red Line. From there, you will switch to the Silver Line (which is actually a bus shuttle) and go to the World Trade Center stop. When you exit, you will want to walk across the bridge towards the Convention Center.

Hotels

There are three hotels officially associated with Boston Comic Con/FanExpo:

The Westin
Aloft
Element

All three are Marriott properties. Every year a large block is set aside in each hotel and offered at a convention rate. It’s not a great savings, but any savings will help. And, even though they are Marriott properties, one thing to note is that the cancellation policy is different for rooms booked under the convention rate. Starting in 2019, no matter when you cancel, you will be charged a 1-night cancellation fee. It’s not listed anywhere, I found this out the hard way. So, hopefully this will be more transparent going forward.

The Westin is the ideal hotel to get if you have any badge except the VIP. This hotel is located right next door to the convention building and is connected via an indoor walkway. I stayed here in 2017, check out my review I posted on TripAdvisor after my stay.

The Element and Aloft hotels are the two you want to stay in if you are a VIP badge holder. People with VIP badges get an entrance that is closer to the Main Floor, so they do not need to trek through half the building to enter. This entrance is located at Lawn on the D, which the Element and Aloft hotels are right across from. Otherwise, you would need to walk about 3-4 blocks to reach the Convention Center.

I have not stayed in the Aloft, but have stayed in the Element. I apparently forgot to write a review on TripAdvisor. The highlight about the Element is that they have kitchenettes – so you get a full-size fridge, microwave, and two table top burners. The hotel also provides free breakfast in the morning. It’s also cheaper than the Westin, so overall, I think a better bang for the buck.

Standard Weekend

Boston Comic Con/FanExpo spans three days: Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

Friday
Very first day, doors open to VIP at 2pm and to everyone else at 4pm and goes until 9pm. Throughout the evening you’ll be able to get celebrity autographs and photo ops, as well as hit all the vendors and artists who have booth space. There are panels, but not very many, and most likely no headliners – unless they can only be there Friday. What you’ll typically find is some of the famous cosplayers will have their panels that day or some of the voice actors. That evening there will be an offsite dance party with some sort of theme.

Saturday
This is the main and busiest day. Doors open at 9:30am for VIP and 10am for everyone else and goes until 8pm. Everything will be happening: autographs, photo ops, vendors/artists at booths. However, this is the day where you will have your celebrity headliner panels. And in the evening is the cosplay contest followed by an offsite party with the hosts and judges of the contest.  

Sunday
The last day is very much like the first. Doors open at 9:30am for VIP and 10am for everyone else and goes until 5pm. Once again you will be able to get autographs and photo ops with vendors/artists still at their booths. However, today is the day to get the deals. A lot of vendors, and sometimes artists, will start offering last day discounts so they don’t have to pack up and lug back as much stuff. The tricky thing is that something you saw on Friday may not be there anymore, or a certain size for a shirt may be sold out. Panels will also be happening throughout the day, with usually one big name having their panel that day to help keep the crowds coming back for that last day.

I hope you found this helpful, and I hope to see you at a future Boston Comic Con/FanExpo event!