My MEGACON Orlando 2024 Wrap Up

MEGACON Orlando 2024 took place February 1-4 at the Orange County Convention Center. My daughter and I received press passes for the event. Our passes were equivalent to four day tickets, that’s it. We weren’t given any special treatment. We paid for our extras and our parking. Just wanted to start this with full disclosure.

We went to MEGACON a couple of times before I started Disney Over 50. When we attended before it was only for one day, and each time it was to see a specific actor who was attending. We went to his panel, got a picture, and looked around. That was it. In 2023, we attended all four days, again with press credentials. It was the first time we had the full MEGACON experience.

MEGACON Orlando is one of the largest conventions in the country. I don’t know what the final tally was, but I’ve heard that over 150,000 people attended this year! It can be overwhelming. It’s important to go in knowing that you won’t do it all.

One of the things that I like about MEGACON Orlando is that they don’t cover just one fandom. It’s also not for just one age group. There were plenty of people there who were older than I am! The guest list was stocked full of actors from television shows and movies that date back over 50 years or more. There was something for everyone.

We spent a good part of our time at the panels. I love hearing the actors share memories from our favorites. Fans were allowed to ask questions, which can be pretty interesting. So many fans are passionate about these shows, and all of the actors that we watched seemed to take their devotion seriously. The actors were also available for photos and autographs, for an additional fee.

Another big part of MEGACON Orlando is cosplay. There was a little bit of everything! Since MEGACON doesn’t follow just one type of fandom the way that something like Star Wars Celebration does, people let their imaginations run wild.

My daughter cosplayed this MEGACON Orlando for the first time. We’ve been to a lot of conventions and it’s something that she’s thought about doing. She dressed as Loonette from The Big Comfy Couch, which was a show that she loved when she was a child. She still has her Molly (Loonette’s doll) that we gave her when she was six, so Molly attended MEGACON with us. She had a blast! We lost track of how many people took pictures of or with her. She even had people tell her that she was their childhood. It was fun.

When my daughter decided that she wanted to cosplay as Loonette, we had no idea that Alyson Court, who played Loonette on The Big Comfy Couch, was at MEGACON Orlando. She’s also a voice actor, and played Jubilee in X-Men: The Animated Series. The only celebrity picture we got this time was with Alyson Court, who was as nice as could be. Thanks to everyone who told us where to meet her. I don’t know how many people saw my daughter’s cosplay and wanted to make sure she knew that the original Loonette was there.

Some of the celebrity panels this year were with really big names, so MEGACON Orlando decided to sell silver and gold seating. General Admission was still available for these panels, but if you purchased seats you were guaranteed a spot. We bought the silver seating for what was called the Jedi Double-Feature. That was actually two panels, one with Ewan McGregor and the second with Hayden Christensen. This was the most important panel to me, and I’m glad that we bought the tickets. People without tickets lined up hours in advance and still didn’t make it in.

The Show Floor is a big part of MEGACON Orlando. That’s where you’ll find the celebrities for the autographs and photos, but there is much, much more. Artist Alley has a little bit of everything, no matter what you’re a fan of. Visit Tattoo Alley and take home a souvenir that will last forever! There are comics, collectibles, t-shirts, games, and a thousand other things. There’s an entire Star Wars themed village that is also a fundraiser for Give Kids the World. The Show Floor is amazing and can be a bit overwhelming. If you’re attending MEGACON all four days I would recommend hitting the Show Floor on Thursday. That’s when you’ll find the best selection from the vendors, and it’s also the least crowded day.

If you plan to attend MEGACON Orlando in the future, you’ll need a plan. Keep in mind before you arrive that it will be packed. On Saturday we didn’t even go on the Show Floor, since Saturday is the busiest day. We decided that was the best time to do other things. Also, the MEGACON App is essential. I went through the app the night before and hit favorite for everything that I wanted to do the next day. Then I took a screenshot, because Wi-Fi can be iffy in the Orange County Convention Center.

Was MEGACON Orlando 2024 perfect? Not at all. There were delays for every panel that we attended. The lines were crazy long. But, just like anything else, if you pack your patience and allow yourself to you can have a fantastic time.

MEGACON Orlando 2025 will take place February 6-9 at the Orange County Convention Center. I’m already looking forward to it!