About a year ago, I wrote an article about how cheap hotel rooms were becoming a thing of the past and how getting a hotel room at several shows like SPX and NYCC was becoming increasingly difficult. I also vowed to book any hotel rooms I needed in advance.
Well, I didn’t do that.
But in at least one case, I can’t.
As I pointed out last year, hotel rooms at the Small Press Expo (one of the most important independent shows of the year) sell out quickly because the show is held in a specific facility and everyone wants to stay at the same hotel. I was put in the only other hotel in Rockville/North Bethesda, the Canopy Hotel, but it turned out to be really great.
It seems that there are no vacancies in the hotel for this year’s performance! I and a few others tried to book a room, but the website said “hotel information will be available soon.”
Yesterday, this sad picture.
Woohoo.
As mentioned before, competition for rooms at the Bethesda North Marriott Hotel & Conference Center is fierce. Attendees are usually locals, so hotel rooms are not required. That said, a lot of comics people have traditionally come from New York and other places on the East Coast, so accommodation is an issue. For myself, I anticipated this and booked a room at Canopy again, albeit at twice the price than last year, so required and ensured a roommate. Lesson: Book your room early!
But there’s a lot of good news about SPX, which remains one of the best shows of the year.
Ngozi Ukazu, Cara Bean, Claire Connelly and Chris Gooch unveiled the badges.
The list of exhibitors has been announced!
The cover of Yuko Ohta’s program guide has been revealed!
A poster of Max Huffman has been circulating for a while.
There were also a lot of great guests.
So whether you have a room in a hotel or not, it’s going to be a great time.