Have a question? I may be able to help!

THE FINAL SCHEDULE IS OUT FOR MIDWEST 2015! View it here: http://animemidwest.com/schedule-2015 If you have a question and you wan't a fast reply (I mean super fast, people. Like I check my email and this forum WAY too often fast) feel free to ask it here! If I cant answer it I can direct you to the staff of Anime Midwest who can ^^ I am not staff. But I have been to Anime Midwest two years in a row (This being my third for 2015) and may be able to answer any first time Midwest convention goers questions. If you don't see your question being asked and answered below feel free to post your question here. AGAIN I AM NOT STAFF! If you feel you would rather email the staff to ask a basic question go for it. Or, like I said, just post here and I will do my best to answer it. Question: Is the convention in the Hyatt Regency O'Hare Hotel? Answer: Yes and no. While many of the main events and panels are held at the Hyatt Hotel other events and panels (including the venders hall and artists area as of 2014) are held across the street in the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center. This can be accessed by walking across the road and entering the convention center or by using the sky bridge which connects to the Hyatt as well as a few other hotels. Question: Where do I pick up my badge? Answer: At Con. So far as I know Anime Midwest has not yet implicated the pre-order a badge online and get it mailed to your home address a month before. So you would have to go to the registration area at the convention and get in the appropriate line for you. If you pre bought your badge online there is a fast line to picking up your badge (you will need photo ID), or you can buy a weekend badge or one day badge by getting in another line. ------------------ I WILL ADD MORE QUESTIONS TOMORROW! Sorry but now it's time for bed. =-=; Good night all!

Question: I'm staying at the Hyatt and was wondering what they meant by placing a hold on my credit card. And also when do I get charged for my stay at the Hyatt? Answer: having stayed at the Hyatt twice for midwest I know how this all goes. You will have a hold put onto your credit card during your stay. So during the con that amount will not be accessible during the weekend of your stay. You will not be charged for your stay until after you check out, and typically you won't see the charge on your bank statement for a day or more. Varies. My charge showed up two days after con (Tuesday), others were charged Sunday at check out and some not for a few days more. Question: Where do I park my car? Answer: Parking garage. Depending on the hotel you stay in or the distance you wish to walk you can park your vehicle in one of the many garages. The Hyatt has a garage that offers parking ONLY to it's hotel guests. And with that being said please note the Hyatt only allows one car per room booked during your stay in the garage. So for me last year I could pay the money to park in the Hyatt garage but my room mates had to park in the spare garages across the street that connect to the.embassy. Keep in mind of you are staying in a hotel they may have a deal for the weekend parking in their garages. Otherwise daily Parking is between 15 and 25$. Question: Do we really get free ramen and soda? Answer: Yes. While supplies last. They have what is called a con sweet. Here you can go and get some ramen and soda for free. Just have your convention pass (badge). They had rice too, but supplies tend to run out by Saturday. So don't count on the staff feeding you all weekend. Question: I have a cosplay prop that Is pretty big. Am I allowed to carry this around? Answer: When you arrive at con you can check all props that you are unsure of at the con ops or ask a staff for help. I've Brought large props every year to Midwest and never been told to return it to my room. You must: Have it checked by con ops so they can verify it is safe. Be respectful of others around you. Don't crowd hallways or walkways with your prop. Carry it on your person rather then all awkward like where others may run into it. Generally speaking large props should only be brought out to large open areas, like lobby space or outside for photo shoots, and then safely returned to your room. The only problem I had with two of my large props was being stopped every five minutes for either a staff member to check and make sure the prop had been seen by another member of staff for safety, or someone wanted my photo with it. Both are acceptable to me. Question: Are lines a problem at Midwest? How Long should I plan to be in a line for an event? Answer: Depends on the event. Steam Powered Giraffe has been known to generate large lines early before show time. For large events you can plan anywhere from 1 to 4 hours in a line, depending on how badly you want to be the first to get in. Realistically you can expect an hour and a half for a line for an event that's considered big. I have run panels at Midwest in previous years and will be running two more this summer. You will need to fill out the information about your panel and send that information over to staff ASAP. Question: How can I submit a panel and when will I know if it's been accepted? Answer: Go to http://www.animemidwest.com/submit-event to submit your panel to con staff. Now 90% of the time the panels submitted get accepted, so even though you won't get en email back anytime soon saying your panel was accepted you should go ahead and act like it is the moment you send in the panel submission. You'll get an acceptance (or refusal) email sent to you closer to con when the final schedule is released. A pre release schedule was put out last year in June, and the final one I believe the week before con. So expect to know if your panel was accepted sometime May/June and check for the FINAL schedule release and not any pre release schedule to know what day/time/panel room your panel will be held in. In you have any other questions regarding panels at Midwest please don't hesitate to ask me personally or contact a member of staff (which I am now). happycosplayer@gmail.com I'll post more questions here soon. If you have one post away and I will respond.

I've never been to Midwest before but I attended ACen last year. I don't know if this is more of an opinion question but is Midwest any more or any less crowded than ACen? And regarding badge pick-up, is it true that they have an area where you can get your badge Thursday night? If so, where is that place? I'm going up on Thursday and just want to be prepared. (: Thank you!

Much less crowded then Acen! Although midwest still brings in quite a large crowd the attendance doesn't match Acen at all. I believe last year midwest was expecting 10,000 and had around 7,000. I expect somewhere around the same for this year. They opened the convention center last year and used party of the lobby as the registration area. Assuming they do that again everyone can get their badges there Friday. I've never arrived to midwest a day early, but I did hear they had a time slot last year on Thursday night for those who wanted could come pick up their badges. Where that is at I would assume outside con ops but cannot say for sure. I don't see them opening the convention center lobby for three hours Thursday. Sorry I can't be more informative on the Thursday badge pick up. They should have that again this year, so keep an eye for when they post about it. I'll do the same for you! I hope you enjoy the lovely Midwest con! Maybe I will see you there (:

Would you have any idea as to how the platinum passes work? My friend and I bought them, but I'm kind of confused about it, so I was wondering if you could explain it. I did read the FAQ for it, but should we still get in line to go to the rave dances and concerts hours before, or can we truly just arrive about fifteen minutes before it starts, like the FAQ says? Thank you!~

Is it a little more organized getting the badges? ACen was waaay crowded and the line was kind of interfering with walking into the huge dealer's room. Haha sorry for so many questions! But I really appreciate your answering! Hope to see you there too!

Platinum badges: Lucky you! I've never had one myself, but I have a friend who has. They allow you quick first entry into events or autograph lines. Normally when lines form for big events they will continually announce platinum badge attendees to move with them to another location or to the front of the line. I can't say because it want verified but platinum badge attendees may have their own line, however I don't remember seeing one. I just know staff is good about announcing and bringing those with said badges to the front. Acen vs Midwest badge pick up lines: So last year they opened the conference center across the street for the con and badge pick up was located in the main lobby (where the glass doors leading out to the circular pick up area the fountains are in) just outside the large half of the side room where the dealers hall is. For Acen (2014) they had badge pick up literally right beside the entrance to the dealers hall. Midwest last year was not set up this way and it was lovely! Instead where Acen had its long messed up lines midwest had dealers selling stuff. So if its set up the same as last year it should be very lovely. If you pre order online you not only get a slight discount but you'll have a much shorter line if any line at all! Totally worth it I recommend you do that. Hope my information is helping people! I can always provide photos of the nap used for last years midwest to help. Thanks for the questions! If anyone has any other questions keep them coming.

More information about lines: Lines are still a thing for large events/concerts/photo signings but don't be alarmed! Generally the lines aren't too bad. Midwest is having more and more events and panels so with all that's going on this helped keep some lines down last year. Please be prepared for waiting though! My helpful tips on waiting in lines for long periods: Have a friend relieve you when you need to use the restroom unexpectedly. Bring a snack! Have a hand held game to play, or better yet, talk to your neighbors in line about the con! Use any sitting time to give your feet a break, and remember to drink some water while waiting! Common sense things: Use the bathroom before. Eat before waiting for long periods in a line. Make sure you have a charged camera or extra batteries if you plan to take photos (fail on me my first time waiting in line). Questions about places to eat: Where can I eat that's near the con? There is a dennys just down the road. You can walk it, but after walking all day Friday and Saturday I doubt you'll want to walk to it on Sunday. There is a more expensive restaurant between the embassy and double tree hotel. There is also a dinner across from the Hyatt located connected with the conference center, as well as the Hyatt having its own food joint. There is a snacking area near the dealers hall, and of course free ramen and soda at the con sweet. Tips: Check to see if your hotel room will have a fridge. You can always bring food and snacks to live off of for the weekend. I usually bring pizza rolls, ramen, tea, chips, and various other items. Sharing a room with friends is great, and you can all benefit by having each room mate bring a snack to share. You'll have left over if everyone does believe me!

Platinum badges are like VIP badges. You get the perks of waiting less in line and sometimes getting into rooms early. Anime Midwest isn't too detailed about the platinum badges, but you can always ask the staff more information about it and for the things that you can do with it.

For the formal fantasy ball, do you have to pay to get in? And will people wearing fancy dresses, or will they be wearing just regular dresses? I know you're required to wear something formal, but if I wear a gigantic poofy dress, will I just look like an idiot who dressed too formally? And for the rave parties, is there a curfew? I think ACen has one, but the site is kind of confusing, so I can't really tell, but is there one at Midwest? Sorry for all the questions, this is going to be my second year for Midwest, but due to having no sense of directions, my friend and I never actually found any of the rooms where the events were hosted, so I have no idea what the events are like. Thank you~