Are you a die-hard Star Wars or pop culture fan looking for an out-of-this-world experience? Look no further than MEGACON 2023! This year’s convention promises to be a galactic gathering of epic proportions, bringing together fans from all over the universe for an unforgettable weekend of cosplay, panels, merchandise, and more. Whether you’re a Jedi, Sith, or just a fan of any pop culture, MEGACON 2023 is the ultimate destination for fans. Get ready to immerse yourself in a universe of adventure, excitement, and endless possibilities!
This article will take you through the weekend of MEGACON. The celebrity lineup was very strong this year and to our surprise, didn’t have too many cancellations. MEGACON is such a fun time, but it isn’t all good either. We will tell you about what worked well for the con, what they improved on last year, and also what they still need to work on. Speaking of last year you can read our experience here. Last year we attended just Saturday which we would never advise if you really want to take in all that MEGACON has to offer.
This year we bought the four-day pass and attended three days of the con. Also, we even grabbed a hotel near the con even though we live in the area. Let’s start with getting to the venue. Driving to and from the MEGACON area on International Drive is awful. However, it was better this year. Orange County Convention Center decided to offer prepaid parking. This worked great for us on the two days we used it. We cruised into Parking Lot 1 and left just as quickly. You still need to prepare for an early day to avoid traffic, but it was better.
A pro-tip for any con is to buy your badges in advance and also have them shipped to your house. Once you get them, activate them. This will allow you to cruise right into the con without delay. Comic cons, in general, are busy, but MEGACON is even busier than average cons, so always be prepared with your strategy of where you are staying, parking, and tickets to get in.
Now that the logistics are out of the way let’s talk about our experience. Spoiler alert we had a blast. MEGACON is very crowded and estimated to have 160,000 people go through over the four days. I can tell you that Saturday was jam-packed. I strongly suggest if you go to build in at least two days and make one of those a Thursday or Friday so that you can stroll through the vendors booths at ease.
Our suggestion for any con on a Saturday is, stay at a hotel that is very close to walk to the Convention Center. Park somewhere else and Lyft in like we did, or if you must drive, you will need to sacrifice sleep and be at the parking lot incredibly early. If you start heading over to the con right at 10 when the gates open and expect to park on a Saturday, you really need to re-think your strategies.
MEGACON Celebrities and Panels
Our main focus was getting a photo op with Hayden Christensen, and we decided to add Katee Sackhoff, and Gwendoline Christie to the mix. With our love of Star Wars we had to take a chance to pay our respects to Anakin Skywalker. To set expectations for those of you who have never attended a con, keep in mind the really in-demand celebrities such as Hayden Christensen have massive lines and will run behind. Your time with them is very short and fast.
If you want any meaningful, more than 30-second encounter, we suggest getting an autograph or meeting them at their table if that is an option. You can get a selfie at the tables and spend some solid minutes with the celebrity. For Hayden, I was able to shake his hand, look him in the eye and say thanks for his portrayal of Anakin Skywalker and Darth Vader. It was a fantastic experience, and to his credit, he did this for nine hours until he got through everyone in line. He smiled and said thank you, I appreciate it, and like that, the photo op was over.
Also we have to call out MEGACON for their unsafe conditions at the entrance of the photo op area. It is unorganized and jam-packed with guests who are confused about the process. MEGACON did not address this at all from the disaster of last year. This area is sensory overload and unacceptable. Once you get through the barricade of people the lines are fine. MEGACON needs to organize this better. It starts with them as they tell you your time and yet every time are behind.
Another suggestion is to see if the celebrity is doing a panel. This is where they sit on a couch, get interviewed by a host, and ask fan questions. We love to attend these, and for MEGACON, we attended Katee Sackhoff & Mercedes Varnado from the Mandalorian, the Cobra Kai cast, and Matthew Lewis (Neville Longbottom) from Harry Potter.
Of the panels we attended, Matthew Lewis was the best one. He shared many stories about being on set for Harry Potter to injuring his elbow while playing PS5’s Legacy of Hogwarts. His passion for his time in Harry Potter was only matched by his love of Star Wars and Star Trek, which he continually brought up. He was a blast to listen to, even though he calls himself boring.
MEGACON Floor and Vendors
Another aspect of MEGACON is the show floor. Here you can find all sorts of different experiences. We will highlight some of our favorites, but believe me, this doesn’t scratch the surface of how many other vendors, artists, and creators are on the main floor.
We start with one of my favorite shirt companies RSVLTS. This small business started in New Jersey sells comfortable shirts, many of them pop culture in design. For MEGACON, they released four different shirt designs, limited to only the four-day event. The community of shirt collectors is one of the friendliest groups I have ever been a part of, and met some of them at MEGACON, and it was a blast! I highly suggest you check them out and be careful as once you traverse down the RSVLTS rabbit hole it gets crazy.
Next up on our list from the floor involves one of my favorite things coffee! Comics on Coffee is a coffee roasting company that sells its coffee and even has a DC license to go with it. Their coffees have great aromas, and even the DC characters are matched perfectly to their coffee counterparts. I spent several minutes discussing roasting techniques with their coffee roaster.
Another amazing area is the 501st Legions area. The 501st Legion is a well known costuming group that promotes their love for Star Wars through amazing costumes. They also do charity work and show up at all sorts of events. Their section of MEGACON is like a section of Mos Eisley on Tatooine and has so many little Easter Eggs to find and plenty of characters to snap photos with.
Other sections include a food court, local haunt booths, artist alley, comic book creators. Below are several pictures of these areas. Enjoy!
Final Thoughts and Tips for MEGACON
As we near the end of our MEGACON experience, we want to leave you with a bunch of photos to enjoy. We have already purchased and reserved our four-day MEGACON tickets and room for 2024, and we cannot wait to get back there. Let us know your thoughts in the comments. Excelsior!
