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PAX East 2014 Information & FAQ. READ THIS FIRST THEN ASK QUESTIONS HERE.
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My husband is I guess what you would call an "experienced" gamer and I guess I would fall in the "moderate" title, all though, I play a much higher variety than he does. My sis-in-law doesn't play any games and her boyfriend is the "I play madden" zone. We dragged them along for a day last year and they loved it. Not only cause we were visiting from out of town and they got to hang out with us, but also because PAX is a bit of a show. It is entertaining. It has bright lights and people dressed up, and a lot to try and play. I mean, why do people go to a carnival or something. If you go with an open mind, you'll have a blast.
On Peak hotels were approximately $150-$210/night if I remember correctly. Generally the closer you were to the convention the higher the price was but hotel costs are influenced by more than proximity. The hotel deals usually go on sale when tickets go on sale. When is that? I have no clue
I'd aim for the Westin or the Seaport as your absolute best shot (Westin is attached to the BCEC, Seaport is a ~5 minute straight-shot walk). Otherwise aim for something in the financial district, which is a slightly longer walk. I don't recommend driving in Boston once you get there.
Second on the not driving bit. Granted I only drove for a few hours, but they were the worst few driving hours of my life. Would not do it again.
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I have been to two PAX Easts so far, first time just a day, second time for a couple and stayed at a hotel further than my buddy and I would like to this year. This time around, we would LOVE to stay at the closer hotels (the Westin attached to the BCEC would be sweet!). We noticed that all the days for the PAX East 2014 dates are blocked out, does that make it so that we can only book rooms through the PAX East website? Which hotels does the website typically book to? How much is each room per night on average? Can you get a room if you book the day the site opens up for it or do they go faster than the PAX passes themselves?
Thanks for the help! Excitedly awaiting for PAX East 2014 Registration to open up!
I found that buying a Charlie Card and using the T was a great option. This did entail some walking, but that gave me a chance to see a little of Boston. There's also a shuttle system from various hotels to the BCEC which I'll probably pay more attention to this year. Finally, based off of the one taxi I needed to use after the Saturday night concerts, as long as one was staying within a reasonable distance from the BCEC, it wouldn't cost that much more for taxis than it would for parking assuming any could be found, and it'd save a ton of hassle.
We could also cab it...about 15 each way with toll and tip...if we really don't want to deal with the shuttle and t.
How did you book for the dates, I tried and it is saying it is sold out or not yet available.
We booked a business plan king.
If I'm not mistaken, part of the reason this is, is because the convention center in Boston can actually fit quite a bit more people? I've been to both Prime and East (missed passes this year for Prime, unfortunately), and I can say that the Convention Center in Boston is much larger than the one in Seattle.
My other main question was if anyone knew who ran the Magic the Gathering events the last few years, and if they are going to continue this year. I'm a level 1 judge now and looking to add to my resume and there's no better place than PAX because of the community.
It's been TJ Collectibles for the whole run of East, I believe, although I admit to not actually paying any attention to it in 2013.
Looking at the spreadsheet from last year, it seems most hotels charge around $20 per night per extra guest over 2. Is this a mandatory fee that I must pay just to have them in the room, or do I only pay this if I want extra room keys?
Apologies if this is a silly question, and thanks in advance for your help.
Even with that extra price per person, it still comes out cheaper per person, say in the above example, yes it's $140 per night, and assuming check in on Thursday, checkout on Monday for a total of 4 nights, that's $560 total, and divided by 3 it's ~$187 per person. Add on a fourth person, same nights, $160 per night, 4 nights, $640 total, divided amongst 4 people is $160 each person.
Theres a possibility you _could_ sneak more people into the room than you pay for if you're ok on key sharing and you can probably snag extra keys easy, but, theres also a possibility of suddenly being on the street of a city in the North East in April. It's just not worth it.
I know at the seaport when I locked myself out of my room last year while roomsharing i got a new key with fairly few questions asked (mostly that of confirming my identity based on the credit card since my wallet was in the room with my ID...i only had a few choice items from my wallet+cash on me). I think when it comes to the charge, its making sure theres enough towels/shampoo/other things that are a concern when the amount of people per room go up. I know my sister and her cosplaying friends usually stack up to the max per room since they're all broke and it looks like a bomb hit it most of the time.
Though its not the right place to discuss it I think, but I have to wonder how many of the people talking about driving in Boston as the "worst ever driving experience they've had"...live in major cities. As a Torontonian, I didn't really notice anything particularly rough. I'm sure the crazy few who drive in NYC would be ok...(for discussion for the faq, it may be better to talk about tips for driving in boston if you HAVE to, or like when you're driving into the city to park for a few days). Though last year there was a separate driving in Boston thread for that advice.
Edit: on that note, @Zerzhul: last years driving thread went a few pages, should a separate thread exist for this year or we can talk about it here until it needs its own thread.