MegaCon returns today at the Orange County Convention Center.
Like in years past, above, the event is a major tourism attraction for Central Florida.
International Drive is going to look a little different for the next three days.
Elaborately costumed enthusiasts will be heading to MegaCon, a three-day celebration of all things comic book and sci-fi that the Orange County Convention Center expects to draw more than 60,000 attendees.
“Basically, people just stand there with their jaws dropped when they see the costumes like that,” said Elizabeth Widera, the convention’s executive director.
A bow tie and fez might indicate a Dr. Who fan’s in the mix, while a red shirt with a triangular insignia on the wearer’s left pec shows you’re near a Trekkie, a Star Trek diehard.
The event, which opens today at 10 a.m., has brought massive crowds and traffic headaches to the I-Drive district in its 15 years there.
Last year’s event took place the same weekend as several other conventions, only adding to problems. Widera said she thinks traffic blame can be misplaced on convention attendees because they’re the most noticeable people on the strip.
“If they [drivers] see somebody dressed up like Chewbacca, they’re going to notice them,” she said.
This year, MegaCon overlaps today and Saturday with LifeAdvantage Elite Academy, an independent sales company’s training seminar expected to draw about 4,000 attendees.
Even if you’ve never been to a MegaCon-type convention, everyone has a stereotype in mind for the kind of people drawn to these events.
Forget what you think you know. Widera said the median age at MegaCon is 40.
“You’re not looking at a teenager,” she said. “It’s young adults or middle-aged adults and professionals.”
MegaCon is the first of three similar conventions scheduled at the convention center this year.
Walker Stalker Con, appropriately named for its focus on zombies, horror and sci-fi, will take place June 27-28. GeekyCon, a comic convention with a heavy Harry Potter focus, will take place July 30-Aug. 2.
Widera said more than 5,200 hotel rooms have been booked for the weekend. With no definite way to track the full sprawl of convention attendees, she said the center estimates the event leads to as many as double that number of bookings.
“We know that a large amount of our people are not staying in our [partner] hotels,” she said
It’s common for hotels close to a convention’s location to be named a preferred vendor or host hotel.
The Hyatt Regency Orlando has been tapped for all three conventions. Nate Hardesty, director of sales and marketing, said a couple of hundred rooms were blocked for this weekend’s convention, which also blocked rooms in 10 other hotels in the region.
Hyatt Regency’s proximity to the convention center yields an interesting pulse in the building as costumed guests mix with leisure visitors wearing signature Mickey Mouse ears.
“It’s great for us because it keeps the hotel vibrant and alive,” said Hardesty.