Diem wrote:Funds allowing, 2011 will be my first Botcon. So I have a question or two for those who have been to BotCon before:
1) How much cash did you budget to take?
2) How much cash did you end up spending?
3) What did you buy while you were there?
1) Lots
2) More than lots.
3) Booze.
First off, remember...BOOZE AIN'T FOOD. That tip will get you far.
ok, real talk...
Travel and Set cost aside...
You need approximately $200-250 for souvenir sets. Usually you can get the whole thing for under $200, but there may be posters, lithos, beer pitchers or something else to buy.
Now the way a lot of long time goers do it, they plan for either $500-1000 in just "go money". That may or may not include the souvenir sets. Botcon is like a strip club, you can spend every dime you have and not be satisfied, so plan accordingly.
Your question 3 is the most important one. Have a game plan. Know the rare things you want, the fun stuff you want, and then budget it out +$100 of mad money. You will, as soon as you run out of cash, find just what you were looking for $20 less than you expected and HAVE to have it.
Now, here's my game plan. I truthfully only take $400 of buying money. Souvenir sets get included in that. Job #1 is Mini-cons I still need. Price be damned. They are my goal. From there, I usually only purchase G1 toys that I prefer to see in person before buying. Like this year, I will be looking for a Superion. In 2010, I had bought everything I wanted by Saturday afternoon.
Sometimes the room factors in a bit. In 2009 prices were REALLY cheap. I bought a lot more than I expected because I could. In 2010 prices were quite high, I had no reason to buy more.
Remember that it's REALLY fun to go nuts with the spending, but prices are higher there and you may not find what you really want, so don't break your own bank.
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