Excited about anthrocon 2011!
Hi everyone, I am really looking forward to making it to anthrocon next year and I'm really trying to figure out how I will budget for it....If you don't mind me asking what most of you spend going to anthrocon? =3 I always like to have more than enough but I don't want to be borderline and not have any money to buy stuff, a good estimation would be much appreciated thanks all and I hope to see you at anthrocon!!!!! 
Hotel: Last year, a hotel room varied in cost from (approximately) $136 to $147 depending on the hotel. You can put up to four people in one room and divide this cost but that's your decision.
Please note that this cost was $136-$147 PER ROOM PER NIGHT INCLUDING TAXES.
So, staying 4 nights at the lowest rate would cost $136 x 4. If 2 people split
that cost completely in half and stay 4 nights, that's $136 x 2 for each of them
(so long as they actually pay their way.)
Transportation: To fly from Savannah round trip would cost anywhere from $304 to $516 and that's before any of the new fees are added. Amtrak would cost either $224 or $278 round trip and would require a (Roughly) 14-hour trip from Savannah to either DC or Philadelphia and then another 7 hours to Pittsburgh. MapQuest indicates that driving would take just over 11 hours.
For the curious, travel by Amtrak on a weekday from Savannah, Ga to Pittsburgh, Pa
has 2 choices-
A)travel from Savannah to Philly (98 Silver Meteor), then Philly to
Pittsburgh (43 Pennsylvanian). (2-hour gap between trains, enough time to
freshen up, eat a respectable meal, and get to your train early.)
That's 14 hours to Philly, and 7:30 to Pittsburgh from there.
That's $139 one way, arriving in Pittsburgh 8pm.
B) travel from Savannah to Washington DC (98 Silver Meteor), then DC to Pittsburgh
(29 Capitol Limited.) (8-hour gap between trains.)
That's 12 hours to DC, and 8 hours to Pittsburgh.
That's $112 one way. Travellers arrive in Pittsburgh approaching Midnight
because there's a gap of 8 hours between the trains.
Both the Silver Meteor and the Capitol Limited are trains complete with full
meal cars. The Pennsylvanian has a "snack car" from which one may order
fast food and make meals of it if one wishes. (I've ridden the Pennsylvanian.
I bring food and drink, and I supplement it on the train with the snack car.)
(Figure the same prices again for a return, which is what Charlie said.
I thought seeing the details might be interesting.)
Some people (me) might take Amtrak that long, but most people would prefer to fly if the
distances are that great, and of course, driving will prove faster and cheaper-
so long as one has a car that can handle the trip.
I work all night so Ive gotten use to staying up long periods of time. Also I sustained a trip from here to Washington DC (10 hour drive) though I didn't drive I never fell asleep so I don't think I will have a problem driving there especially with being as excited as I will be X3. I will be bringing a friend with me who will be adding $250-$300 for help with hotel and other things, but you guys are great thanks for the help and I will see you at anthrocon!!! 
Splitting a hotel room with a local, trusted friend is a very good plan; people can have up to 4 people in their hotel rooms at Anthrocon, but for your first year, if you can afford it.. 2 is a good number. It will help the hotel room be a quieter retreat from the whirlwind of events of Anthrocon. To note, at least one of you must be 18 or older to book a hotel room, as well.
As mentioned, when registration opens in the fall, Pre-registration is a very good idea. It historically has been about $10 cheaper than On-site Registration, and the lines are much, much faster.
Plan very thoroughly; then improv off that plan, and you'll have a good trip. 
=D haha I'm 20 so getting a room won't be a problem, I'm trying to go ahead and grab as much money as I can now (selling some items) seeing as work just does enough however with the many months till the 2011 event I believe I can match or double what I will hopefully be making off my items. I definitely want to pre-reg and get everything set up...I'm not trying to sound like I'm doing this on a budget however If I can do it off of $600-700 that would be nice since I will be driving and my car to fill up is only $20. I know the biggest chunk of my money will be in the hotel room but thats where my friend comes in to help support that so that means besides gas, food, and merchandise I should be good to go!
As an additional note: $20 a day assumes that you've probably packed out food for one meal, or that you're only eating 2 meals that day. If you've packed out food for one meal, great. If you're planning to eat only 2 meals a day...well, i'd plan to eat 3 and try to make sure that at least 2 of them happen.
Within the FRESH-T system, there are priorities.
Personally, once i get into springtime preparations, i start by paying my registration (free for staff!) and making sure that my hotel and transport are solidly nailed down, because they usually represent the biggest chunk of my budget. If i share a room with others, i try to allow some space in my budget, just in case the worst happens and none of them pays their share of the room. If you're traveling by car, i advise you to make sure your budget also includes money for more gas than you think you'll need and a possible repair along the way, just in case.
After that, i try make sure i have cash for food: I allow $30 a day, myself, because i like to have the option of eating something non-fast foody with friends once a day, should i want to. I rarely spend all of that, but i would rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it. Any day i'm traveling also figures into my food budget, though i pack out a meal when i can.
My stuff budget is very limited, because i rarely buy non-edibles during the con, but i try to make sure that the money i'm spending for other things isn't going to send me much off what's usually in my bank account--that way, i know that i have about the same freedom to pick out pretties as i do in my everyday life. But then i'm someone who agonizes over every penny and gets pretty distressed over serious dips in my balance. So i leave a pretty hefty cushion in the bank account all the time, so i never have to worry about sudden expenditures leaving me feeling vulnerable.
As a follow-up note, 'Food' includes beverages as a planning category. You will spend more on beverages each day than you plan, even if you're able to bring a coolerful of soda, juice, or water (Which can make for a big savings in your budget). You'll also spend a certain amount of food money on way to and from Anthrocon.
Quite. For my purposes, i find it sometimes helps me to set two numbers on a few things: the one i shoot for, and the one i plan for.
For instance: This past year i shot for paying 1/4 the cost of the room i was staying in, because i was sharing it with 3 others for the most part. That's what i wanted to have happen (and it did, with a couple nights' exception. yay me!) However i know that some folks are more trustworthy than others when it comes to repaying their share of the room, so i planned for paying the entirety of the room myself, in case i found myself rooming with 3 flakes. The remainder fell into emergency funds.
If something completely awful happens, i want to make sure i'm covered, so i can spend my time thinking, "Wow, what a jerk" or "wow, do i feel dumb" instead of "Omigod, what am i going to do".
The guy thats going with me has been a very close and personal friend for about 9 years and I know for a fact I can put all my trust in him. But emergency funs are good to have encase the car messes up or something.
Thanks for the helpful information, I will definitely be driving there since it would be the cheapest route. Now I have something to go by and plus I have a good while to save up 
. Thanks again your help was much appreciated!
I hope to go to AC 2011 2 hope to see you all there
=D I'm a pretty social person and from the many videos I've watched of anthrocon I believe I will make many new friends. I just love how the fursuiters just make everything that much more fun because if there not beating up on each other someones getting targeted!!! LOL they just seem to be great people and thats my kind of atmosphere to be in, fun and friendly! Thats one reason why I want to go so bad is because these guys just goof around and have such a great time and where else can you get that kind of action besides anthrocon, being a furry is the best thing to have happened to me =3.
Oh cool, someone from my hometown! Why does it have to become interesting once I've left?? XD
Seriously, there is a Savannah furs meetup every now and then, my brother could probably tell you more about it since he attends regularly. His name is Blue_Hayze on LJ. :3
Your from savannah??? Bourn and raised here my friend , however its been the hardest thing to find furries here.....>.< but thats awesome man! My uncle is an AMAZING artist and I would love to get into drawing but its odd to get 3D onto a 2D surface haha (random tangent)but I cant wait to come to anthrocon, meet people and just get to release my wilde side >=3 sometimes it feels that I'm the only one here in savannah with a good sense of humor but then again you have to be a furry to have this much fun HAHAHA nice to talk to you man and good to know there are more furries that are local or have been here.
Well, just to note: While we certainly encourage you to come to Anthrocon, there is a furry convention in Atlanta every year: Furry Weekend Atlanta. In addition:
http://www.georgiafurs.com/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SavannahFurs/
http://community.livejournal.com/savannahfurs/
--Chi
WOW who knew there were so many furries freaken 10 minutes away from me! T.T the world seems that much brighter! I figured after all the people Ive dealt with here I would NEVER run into a group of furries! It just never seemed that anyone here shared anything in common with me...except for 2 of my closest friends being furries I figured we kinda were really the only ones, I want to thank all of you for making me feel as welcome here as you have...you guys make everything worth while =3. Also it may take me some time to join a local group or what not since I'm just now finding this out...but for now me and my good friend Jason have a trip to PA to plan for next year
if all goes well, ill be going this year! not sure how ill get there this time, but if i have to walk i will! D< *grabs a carriage full of stuff & fursuit*
but this past convention my parents tagged along, in which they also agreed to pay for half of my hotel bill. food was a bit of an issue (pricey if you ask me), especially after 11pm, when all the shops were closed (& coming back from the dance after that time wasnt a good idea). being from NJ & living so close to NY city, you dont expect somethin like that to happen in a big city like Pittsburgh! D: so this is a lesson learned; always, ALWAYS, have some form of food in your room/bags at all times. when your stomach calls, listen to it at all costs. :3
Greetings, Murkrow!
So your parents tagged along, eh? And they will let you come again, I presume; Soooo...what was their overall impression of AnthroCon, and of Furry Fandom Up-Close? Are they not as inclined to come with you, next year?
food was a bit of an issue (pricey if you ask me), especially after 11pm, when all the shops were closed....being from NJ & living so close to NY city, you dont expect somethin like that to happen in a big city like Pittsburgh! D:
Actually, any city which has a "downtown" which is so exclusively composed of office buildings and businesses, will pretty much roll up the sidewalk within a couple hours of after 5 O'Clock; after all, the office buildings are all closed, the people who are there during the day are only there to work, and they go home. Downtown Los Angeles is notorious for this. There has been a movement in the last twenty years to convert vacant or under-used office buildings into "loft-style" apartment living space, but prospective tennants complain about lack of any sort of nearby after-hours life, or even of things like produce markets or supermarkets; potential market developers won't invest in such projects, because the markets and restaurants would be under-utilised, because nobody actually lives Downtown. It's a vicious circle.
In older cities, where Downtown is more mixed-use - more "cosmopolitan" - there will be mom-and-pop markets and delis and diners, pizzerias, chinese restaurants, hole-in-the-wall burger or hotdog counters, because people do live in the neighborhood, or there is nightlife like a "Theater Row" or dance halls or clubs or parlors for them to spend time at. If there is a concert hall or a ballpark or arena nearby, especially if there is public transport running late adjacent, there will be people wanting to catch a light-night nosh.
I'm afraid that the area around the DLCC is not yet quite so cosmopolitan, because of the lack of people actually living within a couple blocks or so - and it seems that the DLCC itself hasn't really established a lot of business in its short history; it may be that AnthroCon is currently the longest repeating event that it has hosted so far. If they had more convention business, then the need for supporting places at which to eat and unwind would be more apparent...but then, if the city could get regular gigs from major convention players, like national conventions for stae and national political parties, trade unions, veteran's organisations (VFW, American Legion), or fraternal organisations (Masonic Lodge/Shriners, Benevolent Protective Order of Elk (BPOE), or the Moose, or the Eagles), or huge industrial trade shows...would they continue to be so accommodating and welcoming (and affordable) for AnthroCon?
Good Luck!
As long as I get to go I will be fine, I bring as much food with me as possible to conserve on spending money 
. Thanks Chi for the extra information however this being my first con of any sort I wanted it to be something special and what better way than to go to anthrocon! Really its the only convention I will attend as furries are really the only thing I'm interested in unlike anime and other things....so even though I could go to something local I would have much more fun on the trip to anthrocon and god knows the con itself will be nothing short of amazing! Every video Ive seen has shown me that almost everyone has my kind of humor so there will be no lack in entertainment! Thanks again guys and its been great talking to you!
Remember this acronym: FRESH-T. It stands for Food, Registration, Emergencies, Stuff, Hotel, Transportation.
Food: Many con goers get by on roughly $20 per day. Eat at least two meals (not snacks) a day.
Registration: If you Pre-register, you can attend the con for less. You make it easier for Registration Staff and it's something you can pay before the con instead of having it impact at the last minute.
Emergencies: Put money away where you won't spend it at the con while you're at the con. It won't help you any if you've spent your last dime getting to the airport and then can't get home from there.
Stuff: The hardest to anticipate. There will be plenty of art and furry stuff to buy and, since it's your first Anthrocon, you won't have any idea what you might like to buy. This is the largest variable in your budget.
Hotel: Last year, a hotel room varied in cost from (approximately) $136 to $147 depending on the hotel. You can put up to four people in one room and divide this cost but that's your decision.
Transportation: To fly from Savannah round trip would cost anywhere from $304 to $516 and that's before any of the new fees are added. Amtrak would cost either $224 or $278 round trip and would require a (Roughly) 14-hour trip from Savannah to either DC or Philadelphia and then another 7 hours to Pittsburgh. MapQuest indicates that driving would take just over 11 hours.