teenagers attending

Hi there, my son and his friend are coming - they are both high schoolers, and I'm just wondering if there are a lot of other attendees as young as they are? Should one of the parents accompany them? (They would not be thrilled, but we want them to be safe...) They are both into anime and gaming and MLP, but I don't want them to be exposed to anything too "adult" if you know what I mean. Thanks!

I wouldn't worry about it much. Although I haven't been to this particular con, all the anime cons I've been to have had a significant portion of attendees be underage. Standard rules for any convention forbid mature content out in public areas, and the usual protocol is to color-code the badges so the staff can identify minors and prevent them from entering 18+ events, which are typically scheduled late at night anyways. Your level of involvement really comes down to how much you trust the kids--if you don't want to come along, you can always check the schedule when it gets posted and arrange to pick them up before the adult programming begins.

tunaspleen is spot on it! You really should check the final schedule when it is released (sometime in June) and plan when you will be picking them up. Most (not all) 18+ panels are scheduled late at night (11pm or later) and the staff is very good about checking badges into these events. Sometimes just the badge alone isn't all they may ask for. I have been asked for photo ID as well, although that was two year back. About the only other thing I can see them being exposed to that may be your consideration of 'too adult' would be some of the cosplays worn, but you can't hide that at an anime convention. If you don't go to be around your son and his friend I recommend you come yourself just to see what its like! Chances are your son will love it and want to do more, and I've always only heard good about parents who tag along saying things like 'I'm glad I can understand what my daughter means when she says xy or z about a convention' to even the parents enjoying the experience themselves. I guess you could always be able to apply something you saw later in conversation with your son to bring up 'issues' or concerns about something you or the both of you experienced while at the con. Whatever you decide to do have fun! And personally I welcome your son into the convention fandom! Have more questions? Want feedback? Feel free to email me personally or connect with myself and other friendly convention goers at our Cosplaying Community forum! happycosplayer@gmail.com http://cosplayingcommunity.boards.net

I usually take my sister and a friend of her's every year. They're 16. I let them do their own thing, they know what panels to attend and since they have the under 18 badges, they can't get into anything adult related at the con. I check in on them throughout the day and we meet up for meals and they're usually in the room when we go to the rave around 11 or midnight. The con's a very safe and secure environment and if your son and his friend stick together they'll be ok. :3 Depends on the day and what the final schedule says. Usually the panels that go on late are the adult panels, but they have the game room and video rooms open late as well.