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Hauser Two
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Posts posted by Hauser Two
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1 hour ago, Clutch said:
I assume they are all fake. Too many opportunists out there trying to scam people. I would just tell them "I would donate to the official site" and see what reaction you get.
I told them that and they said that if you donate on the official site, it would take about 2-3 days for the money to reach the team but if I donated through them, it would happen instantly. Typical manipulation tactic from a scammer tbh.
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I noticed highly.... "extroverted" people all around outside the convention center this year stating they were from "Doctors Without Boarders" (There was another group too but I don't remember what they said they were called) I looked it up and the charity itself is legit... however, what are the odds that those guys are with them? I remember when Otakon was stationed in Baltimore, the name of the game was to NEVER give out money to anybody asking for it (smart rule) but I figured I'd open up the discussion for anyone to share their thoughts with anyone (possibly in the forum) who needed advice or intel.
My advice: You will never regret NOT giving them your money. If you wanna support a charity, do it on your own time with proper research on the organization.
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16 minutes ago, Golddess said:
And something I just learned that I don't think has been brought up here:
"3. All names on room to ensure double beds"
What exactly does that mean? If I book a double-bedded room for me and one other because we each prefer our own bed, am I going to be booted to a single-bedded room because double-bedded is rated for up to 4?
Yea, I forgot about that. This took me by surprise too. I wonder if you type three names in the reservation, will they charge you per person or can you finesse and write the three names to get the beds, keep the flat rate, and just show up with the two of you?
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Pros: I love the consideration that came from creating a queue so that everyone could get a chance to access the portal without a server overload, and also the early cancellation warning to prevent people from withholding rooms they may not need from others who do.
Cons:
I'll assume the earlier-than-expected queue lineup was either a mistake in the scheduling announcement or a mistake in launch, so I won't go in on them for that butwhat could be an issue for some people with this new arrangement is that in order to hold your place in line, you had to keep your browser open (despite possible shotty internet reception) and wait till you're "called" in order to reserve a room. This could be hard if you are at work and can't be on your phone all day waiting around (as opposed to the latter option which would be possibly excusing yourself, maybe to the bathroom, and hopping online real quick to reserve a room and then going back to work).To be fair, the hotel block has always been a "first come, first serve" thing. Before the new "waiting room" policy, I know from experience that if I were even just an hour late to the reservation, I'd have missed all the affordable and nearby options, so I feel like it's always gonna be a hit-or-miss. Besides, there was over 2000 new attendees this year so it seems like "hit-or-miss" is gonna be the name of the game from now on unfortunately..
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8 hours ago, Daniel Perales said:
I've stayed at the Moxy the year before and the year before that.
I paid about $116 and $121 a night respectfully, and I was going to use them again Being close to the convention center was their good part. But, the lowest price that I found was about $169 earlier this year. I will not reserve a room that looks like a walk-in closet with unpainted walls with no dresser and regular table. In other words, they're overpriced for the type of room it was.
Besides a friendly staff, that's the only other thing that was to their advantage. I didn't know that they had a parking garage.
Definitely looks like the room that I had before. I refuse to pay more than $125 for something like that.
Agreed. I stayed at the Comfort Inn last year and between the two, Comfort Inn has the Moxy beat. The hotel for me was just a place to crash between each con day so I didn't care TOO much about what the Moxy lacked but at the same time, it was a glaring difference.
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5 hours ago, Just a Lad said:
Oh my god, and I thought the Cambria was in bad shape before it got shut down. That’s unacceptable, especially for the price. If I walked into a hotel room and saw an I fished ceiling with water leaking and exposed pipes I would have demanded another room or a full refund.
The dark spots on the ceiling and wall is just rockite-like patchwork, possibly from previous work on the pipes (the walls and ceiling are all concrete). No leaks, but in some places, exposed pipes is the norm. It wasn't bad tbh. I did feel like it was just a little bit overpriced. Last year, I stayed at the Comfort Inn around the corner and paid a rate similar to the Moxy's prices. The Comfort Inn though had more amenities (free breakfast, drawer space, ice machine) so I felt like I wasn't getting my full money's worth here but JUST barely.
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On 8/10/2024 at 4:32 PM, Revan said:
I must say I'm surprised there aren't any of those folders up for auction. Someone put up a 2024 program guide the day after the con.
I have to give kudos to the staff who did the stamping. They were very careful to be sure not to smear the stamps in the book. I appreciate them taking the time to keep them readable when they could have just did it in a second.
That's crazy that the books are even for sale in the first place. I wonder if folks actually buy them lol. And yea, the staff could have easily gotten lazy with all the people constantly asking for stamps but they were all pretty nice and patient each time 😄
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On 8/10/2024 at 9:44 PM, Daniel Perales said:
I did not use the Otakon block discount, sorry to say. I got this room through a hotel discount site and paid in full right at the time of reservation. I paid $131 a night while the Otakon block was charging $204 a night.
If you don't mind me asking, what was the hotel discount site that you used? 👀
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The hotel was pretty cool. The front desk doubles as a bar and cashier for the snack stand. You get a small token for a free drink upon check in and there is a lounge area with table top games available in the lobby. Microwaves are available at the snack area (not in your room) and there's free coffee in the morning. The room design was very cool and the bed was soft and clean; very comfortable to sleep in. The TV allows you to connect to your YouTube/Amazon Video/Netflix account to view on screen (I didn't use these options) but also have a number of other channels available along with public WiFi (use a VPN if you ever connect to public WiFi, especially if you're making an online purchase). This is more of a lively hotel for "party-type" people but you can still get peace and quiet in your room which is what you'd already expect from your hotel, so you won't feel neglected there.
Costs: I reserved my room through the Otakon hotel block and I was quoted about $199/night. I reserved a 3 night's stay (Otakon estimated it would be $692 total), I got to the hotel and they put a $760 hold on my card upon checking in (the charge stayed there until I checked out, then they would evaluate the state I left the room in and determine if I should be charged anything extra (for damages, theft, etc.). Around the following Tuesday, I got a final charge of $720 total from the hotel.
The "Cons": There was no dresser to unpack my clothes (there is a single drawer but it is occupied by the room's safe, you will need to leave your clothes in your suitcase and store it under the bed in a designated area). There is no ice machine/ice bucket for your room (but you could come down to the front desk which doubles as a bar and request ice if needed, so at least there was an option for ice available).Walkability: The hotel is about a 5 minute walk to the convention center, and about a 5 minute walk to their parking garage (but they offer valet so walking is an option). There are quite a few stores within walking distance. You may need to walk a little further to reach the more affordable food spots like McDonalds or 7Eleven though.
Food & drinks: I haven't tried the food/drinks/coffee at the hotel but the bar was packed on Thursday and Friday night, so I suppose the selections are pretty good since they are so popular. The bottled drinks are overpriced though, so it's a better bet to get your beverages and snacks from either the local 7Eleven, CVS, Giant, or Streets Market in the area.Parking: Their parking garage address is 850 11th St NW. I didn't park there but the fee was $60/night and they had valet services. There are other parking garages in the area that are more affordable (they may or may not offer valet though), I used Spot Hero and found a more affordable option.
Room Photos:
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On 8/7/2024 at 11:13 AM, Krabstarr said:
The activity itself was enjoyable. I liked visiting all the different places. It's just unfortunate that there were such a low amount of prize provided by the sponsor. One anecdotal report says that Programming Ops told them that they were only provided with 500 prizes for stamp collecting despite Otakon telling them that the amount is nowhere near enough. It put them in a tough situation where people (such as myself) were arriving at Programming Ops on Saturday afternoon and there was nothing available and were told to come back later that day or tomorrow as they were trying to get more prizes. My friends who went back Sunday morning said they had stickers and buttons.
Beyond that, the page in the program book made no mention that this was a Yuru Camp sponsored activity and had the page labeled "30th Anniversary Stamp Rally", so some people had different expectations on what might lie at the end of the trail. Social media posts about the Stamp Rally did mention that it was a collaboration with Furyu, but you can't expect all attendees to have seen a social media post from 5 days before the event.
TL;DR - Liked collecting stamps, less enthusiastic over prize logistics and information provided regarding the activity in the program.I felt the same about the hunt/prize feel. Since you said that they were limited in the amount of prizes they had to distribute, it is possible that the prize I received was one of the "last minute editions" that you mentioned.
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On 8/4/2024 at 9:58 PM, Attendee7000 said:
I enjoyed the premise behind this. I was kind of hoping I'd also get the 30th Anniversary badge ribbon for it. Ahhh well.
Same. I didn't wanna complain because I know Otakon is a non-profit so you can't expect too much in terms of "free stuff" but an anniversary prize would have been cool.
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2 hours ago, Revan said:
- Did anyone try the Escape Room? I noted it on the map, but didn't really see it until I was near the AMV theater this morning.
I'm sorry, "Escape Room"?????? 👀
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Here's what the stamps look like + the prize in case you were curious. The prize was a folder with a design from a manga series called "Yuru Camp" which is apparently about girls in a high school camping club.
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This is what it looks like, in case you were curious. My photo doesn't do it much justice but it's a light blue color, size XL.
https://www.deviantart.com/stash/0zc7v113gu1
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I read in the "Badges have shipped" thread that some tried to activate their badges and saw the activation block was closed. I just activated mine so I figured I'd let everyone know in case someone was still waiting.
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Definitely miss the fact that it was in my hometown. That made it way cheaper for me to attend the con (no hotel, no parking garage necessary; just a day pass for the subway and a little spending money for the weekend).
I also miss the fountains which were a good place for photoshoots and a place to cool off (if you were willing to dip your feet/hands in)
I also miss the Ice Cold Water Man. Apparently he's still on the grind and his water is still only $1. This update is from a year ago but it's the most recent update I've found in case anyone was wondering what happened to him:
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On 3/28/2024 at 5:54 PM, Attendee7000 said:
Honestly, hotels are usually known to have more expensive parking, because their guests are largely a captive market. Not all DC hotels have their own parking, and those that do usually don't have enough parking for every room (knowing that many guests will arrive via Metro or Uber).
If you want cheaper parking, watch Spot Hero and other parking reservation sites. More parking will become available as we get closer to the con, for some reason a lot of garages don't like to reserve overnight parking 5-6 months out. In general though, I'd expect $25-$30 per night.
I ended up using SpotHero for my parking reservation and it was a HUGE help! Thank you so much for the advice!
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21 hours ago, EdKitten said:
Also, I've found the people at TripAdvisor.com to be really helpful with trip questions (almost all the time). You might want to tell them the dates of your travel, hotel name, cost of parking, and ask if they can recommend a cheaper place that's safe.
https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowForum-g28969-i39-District_of_Columbia.html
If the url doesn't work, you can get there by:
www.tripadvisor.com
click: More (near the top)
click: Forums
click: US
click: District of Columbia
You are awesome! Thank you!🙏
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16 hours ago, marii said:
I've stayed at the Marquis every year and while we never parked there, our friends who did never received a parking discount. It was always $50/night valet parking only costing them $200 in parking for the weekend. If Otakon could work out a deal for members staying that would be lovely! I know some hotels (Marquis included) do have benefits for members such as free internet, food discounts, etc.
If you drove there, where did you park and was it cheaper/free? 👀
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Last year I stayed at the Comfort Inn and got parking passes that reduced my parking down to like $40 for the weekend (if I remember correct). I'm staying at the Moxy this year and I called the hotel to check the rates for parking at it was about $60/night??? What are the odds that Otakon members get discounts for parking if we booked through the hotel block?
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Echiiro Oda (One Piece creator)
EMC Monkeys (YouTubers/Stuntmen/Martial Artists)
The Samurider (Martial artist)
RDC World (YouTubers/actors)
Gabriel Picolo (Character concept artist @_picolo)
Rudy Reynon (Matial Artist/Stuntman @ru_areyou)
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On 10/28/2022 at 7:13 PM, Clutch said:
I am not from that area and only do shopping during the day. Never had any problems walking down from the convention center towards Chinatown. Highly recommend getting one of the folding maps they sell in one of the drug stores (maybe Wallgreens?). They have indicators for the train stops on those maps too. A decent compass is not a bad idea, either.
Have been going to DC since Otakon moved there and only found the 2nd Dunkin Donuts this year. When waiting to check out from Otakon 2022, I noticed some courtesy printouts of the local restaurant locations at the Concierge desk. Will have to check for that at arrival next year. There is a Giant grocery store a few blocks from the convention which gets visited a few times over the weekend. That is all by foot travel.
Never driven a car in D.C., but imagine parking will be difficult and expensive. When Otakon was in Baltimore, we would park the car in the hotel lot for the entire weekend. Driving in an unfamiliar town is always stressful, and I try to avoid doing that when possible.
Yea, I'm kinda nervous about driving down there. I think I might try and take a drive before the convention just to get a feel for the area. Thanks for the tip on the maps and food stops! I'll definitely check em out!
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This will be my first Otakon in DC and I don't know what to expect. I grew up around Baltimore so when the con was there I knew all the places not to go after hours, good places to eat, etc.
Anybody have any tips for navigating the area? (both on foot and by car)
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13 hours ago, Aresef said:
According to Otakon's policies, if it has wheels and isn't a mobility device, it's not allowed in. They indicate that that rule is from the venue but they probably wouldn't let them in anyway, IMO, because of liability.
I figured as much. Thank you 🤙
Anybody know anything about the "connections" feature in the Guidebook app?
in Otakon 2024
Posted
It looks like we were supposed to be able to communicate with others at the con through the app but it looks like either Otakorp doesn't enable the feature or I'm just slow and don't know what I'm doing?
https://sta.sh/01cjjkp3zoah
https://sta.sh/019erxqsmr77
https://sta.sh/01vy28e99e2i