Any other Families?

mare_imbrium

Hi all, my husband and I are planning to attend South this year with our three sons, 14, 11 and 5. The last time we attended a PAX was just the two of us in 2008, so this is going to be a very different experience, I'm sure! I was hoping to get some impressions from others who have attended with kids before? What did you end up doing, for example? Also I am reading in the official faq there are no age restrictions, as in, under 18 can walk around alone? I realize this depends on the maturity of the child, but what ages have others let their kids go alone? I'm not thinking I could ditch all three of them, but if the 14 and 11 yr olds wanted to go look at something together, that would be safe?

It would also be nice to meet other families who were going...

okpanda

i brought my kids, now 8 & 9 years old, to pax south in 2015, 2016, and 2017. in 2015 we just went for friday night, not totally knowing what we were getting into....completely missed the expo floor but still managed to have fun! after that we knew we needed to do it better, so we went on sunday in 2016 and 2017. the crowds weren't terrible but i did keep the kids pretty close to me and went over plans for where we would meet if we got separated. i really wouldn't want either of my kids wandering around alone, but yours are a little older, so maybe? the crowd seems nice, i would mainly be worried about them getting lost or not being able to find me.

we watched a smash bros tournament, tried to meet some youtubers, played some games....our favorite room is the retro gaming arcade. pc gaming was fun too, we checked out three pcs right next to each other and played stuff on steam for a while.

otoh, there's lots of standing in line and waiting, and there isn't really food in the building, you have to leave and walk up the street to get snacks or water. so bring snacks.

Tofystedeth

There is food service in convention center ( usually scattered around, like an area by the tabletop/vr section) but it's mostly overpriced hamburgers/hotdogs/pizza/ sandwiches kind of stuff. I did get some decent street tacos.

But the nice thing about South is the location, because there's a ton of decent to good food in walking distance.

statton4

im bringing my son2(14 and 5) and daughter

mayapple

I have taken my baby, my then three year old, and older teens. I have gone to south and east many times. South is def more family friendly. Smaller, less people, much cooler stuff to do within walking distance when you want a break. There is a large park with playground behind the convention center. (you can leave out the back, but cant come back in that way unless someone gets sneaky) I would say the most important thing for the little ones is some id on them (ours had his own byoc pass and we put contact info on it and put it on the lanyard) and to know the "get lost" plan just like any outing. We talked about enforcers and what they look like and that they were safe to go to. The older ones we always had a meet up spot and time. Cell service isnt always reliable. We utilize the byoc for a downtime spot and for a meeting place. The teens do basically anything I would do. Board games, computer time, play new games, wander the floor. My three year old actually did about the same things. It was just more guided. My husband and I alternated on kid duty, versus our own exploring time.

Unless something has changed, you can bring whatever food you want in. Snacks are key with small ones as you know. We got a lot of delivery to the convention center to save our own tired legs.

They changed the no strollers rule mid pax east last year, but Im not sure if thats a standing rule or not. You can bring them all over the rest of the convention center. They have bag checks and family restrooms at both south and east. Not that yours is that little. Again, this is where I really like having byoc passes, because its the hub, and I can keep all that stuff there. I actually had a packnplay set up in there where the baby chilled when not in the carrier.

I am going with friends, kid free to south (!!!!!!!), but the whole family will be going to east. Ill try to think of anything else useful. I think mostly making a game plan the night before helped us, so we knew when to switch so whoever could make it to whatever set time event they wanted.

wickedtexan

Hey there!

We first took our son to East in 2011 when he was 5, and have taken him every year since Pax came South. Last year was the first year we let him wait in lines by himself. Every year we give him a little more leeway. I think if your son's are responsible, I'd feel safe letting them check things out on there own, but be aware because of the noise and their distracted attention they more than likely won't notice when you call or text them.

We'd be totally up for meeting up, my son is always a little disappointed he doesn't make any new friends, and I think he's getting bored hanging out with a pair of 40 year olds. Send me a DM.

Aerikan

We just put together a teen game night at our after school art program, SAY Sí, that is ideal for families:

https://www.facebook.com/events/1862115507193075/