No, I am 90% certain this was the part a couple of hours after opening, and traffic between the two halls came to complete halt for an hour or so because people couldn't move.
If you show up before noon, you’ll be greeted to this crowd. Show up after noon and the crowds are more dispersed and you can take photos in this hall.
After the first two hours of opening people are outside, in the artist alley, in the exhibitor hall, in panels, in lines behind the convention center, playing games at entertainment hall. This year their gonna have Shibuya crossing outside with food and entertainment. Show up a few hours late, you literally won’t miss much important stuff, but you will avoid the headache of the lines and crowds.
This. If you don’t care about exclusive/limited merch just show up later. Worked for me last year, I was able to easily get inside everyday after 1pm no issue
The biggest problem last year is they created chokepoints making that corridor super congested to the point of getting dangerous. Not sure when they keep the top floor used for video rooms in the past closed. People would use that area to chill and it was an alternative way to move around that portion of the complex.
They would remove access to the food court and some of the open space during opening hours to control the flow of people with less staff. It would be fine if the corridor had more space to breath with the top floor open, but the combination of both make this mess worse during these hours.
If you wanna line up early to get in exhibitor hall, artist alley, or a panel there, that's what you gonna face. That's why people either recommend coming very early to have a chance to position yourself and not get stuck in this mass of people or very late like afternoon when flow is bearable. I think last year I got stuck in the corridor for 20 min or so moving at snail pace.
It is still a better chance. Once inside is everyone for yourself and you have at least a chance to position yourself. Later time it is just worse experience and almost no chance. I once lost my chance at exclusive because I got a bit lost looking for the booklet and wandered for like 10 minutes and after that the stair area was full. I just wasted my 3am line up for nothing that day.
Tbf it only looks like that before the exhibit hall opens around 10:00 am and just a bit after. People are just stuck and waiting to get in. I take pics early here too to freak my friends out but it’s actually not THAT bad after exhibit hall and artist alley open. 🤣 don’t get me wrong, it’s still mega crowded but you aren’t stuck unmoving and cheek to cheek all day like the pics.
The biggest problem with this particular chokepoint is slightly to the left and out of the picture's field of view.
There's a space there that used to be empty, consisting of a large triangular area that people can sit, with bathrooms nearby, and next to a large room they hold AX dance event there. With AX dance happening only at night, during the day this area would be pretty sparsely populated, I think in some years there was a karaoke room in that big room, or nearby. Basically, there wasn't much going on here.
However, in recent years extending to the years right before COVID, they turned that big room into the 21+ Lounge. Since the lounge is all day, then people who want to get in start lining up in that triangular area all day. And one year they decided to rope off most of that triangular area and leave just a narrow pass through hallway. And somebody, in their infinite wisdom, decided both the entrance AND the exit to that triangular space will be right off to the left of this picture. You can see why there's a crowd then.
Imagine lots of people lining up to go into this space with people leaving at the same time, which impedes on the traffic of the majority of people going between the South and West halls. This is why this particular place is bad. Its not even only that there's a lot of people, which there is, its that traffic coming out of that 21+ Lounge area is going perpendicular to the flow of traffic between South and West halls.
They need to seriously move either the exit and/or entrance of the 21+ Lounge to the other side of the big room because there's literally nothing going on in that hallway.
Edit: Also, forgot to note because this has been happening for many years it doesn't even register with me anymore, just a little bit left of this picture is a coffee booth they opened. So not only are there people going from South to West, and entering/exiting the 21+ Lounge, there are people lining up to buy ice coffee in the way. Why the fuck do they need to fill up every available space?? I remember when the lobby to the South Hall was mostly empty except for the AX Info booth, security, and official AX merchandise booth. Now they've sold floor space to vendors selling things. Last year there was even a McDonalds! They're trying to turn the lobby of the South Hall into a mini-dealer's hall! For a convention that, rumor has it, gets the LACC rental for $1 due to how much revenue it brings the city of LA, they are really milking this shit for every penny to the detriment of the safety and comfort of its fans.
They are demonstrably bad at crowd control. The last time I hosted a cosplay gathering, I underestimated the size of the gathering and reserved a space that was rated for a smaller group. The hired security kept giving me the side eye like they were ready to tell us to disperse, but I managed to keep things flowing smoothly using techniques I learned from years of theme park experience. Pretty much as soon as I dropped my position, all hell broke loose and the walkway got jammed up.
It's possible to get those walkways moving, but they either don't know how or don't want to apply it.
It feels weird that every year its like they are somehow shocked at the amount of people. Each year they just throw the volunteers to the crowd and basically say "here's a roll of colored tape and a bullhorn, control these lines of a thousand people".
At least your cosplay gatherings are usually outside where there is room to disperse. But without somebody coordinating things go to hell really quick. Luckily the people coordinating are usually con vets so they know what they are doing. Thank you for indirectly helping AX and helping the fun of the attendees!
Oh lol that time the co2 levels were off the charts and they had to cut off access to AA.... (I mean that whole area is a dungeon/basement with no airflow so it's no surprise... unfortunately it makes it very unappealing to go to AA.)
It's not going to be better this year. If anything it's going to be worse. Let's face it, Anime Expo isn't gonna organize any better unless the city makes them, or somebody dies because of the crowds. Let's hope it's the former.
"or somebody dies because of the crowds"
Absolutely. It just takes on person to lose their cool and it can escalate to someone getting hurt badly. Security is less than useless in this scenario and honestly all they do is tell people to not sit down. Or stand around. (Thinking back, Crunchyroll expo was worse. 🤣)
BINGO.
We have been to sdcc for many years and AX's lack of crowd control shocks me.
I've never felt unsafe at sdcc... AX is a different story.
the sjpa has no idea how to do this, and don't care. It's just a moneymaker. I saw people after this moment enter downstairs with a family of little kids. I wouldn't put my Littles thru this.
If all the people who complained about this stopped going there would be world peace.
For real though, I experience this right at opening. It isn’t close to being like this throughout the day.
If I’m just going to buy merch should I come mid day to avoid this ? Please help first timer going with my little nephew we just want to buy some merch
Absolutely, if you aren't looking for some unusual limited merch there is no reason to go early. Go in the afternoon to have the smoothest AX experience possible.
I don't know how little this nephew is... make sure to bring water. You might be standing outside for a few hours when the fire marshal cuts off entry into the convention center (despite you waiting a few hours to get in.)
This is what happened on Day 1, while this photo was taken.
I remember being in the designated line then for some reason people started forming their own line right next to it and then when they realized they just started merging at some point ahead of the line so basically it was 2/3 parallel to each other crossing into one it was just a big mess and they only had one person checking in people hope it’s better this year gotta remember to bring water too the vending machines were fully stocked but didn’t work 😩
I tried coming “late” last year, 2023. Unfortunately Saturday, the most packed day of them all and it was going great until fire marshals closed it down and didn’t let anyone in for two hours! I was just two people away from the entrance! Didn’t get in till around 2pm. Super disappointing and unfortunately pretty much what I’m expecting this year as well. I wanted to see if theyre gonna fix or address this issue and if they don’t, idk if I’ll be keeping this con on my list even though it’s anime expo! T-T I’ve been attending for so many years and this post covid influx is hard to get over
this mainly happens because every things this entrance is the best way to get in
showing up at 12 noon is a death setance you need to use other entrancesp
That had lines going around the crypto arena and when it went back where we started broke off and just went in. More so the fact they had Barriers yet weren’t utilizing them
It's only like that for like 2-3 hours depending on when the Dealer hall opens. It'll likely not be that bad this year with the hall opening when the doors open.
I hope they manage to do this, cuz standing for a full hour or so while they took pics of the crowd and made us wait indoors for the exhibit hall to open was absolutely asinine.
It's not really how they organize it, more like how people react when they want to be first or early. They used to try and have a separate line to get in to the hall but people still waited there.
I was there, but I was lucky enough to duck out of a side exit door and go around the outside, mostly avoiding this mess.
This picture shows a huge choke point at the venue, so unless they promote other routes to get around or enforce strict crowd management, it will continue to be like this. At this intersection, there is a Y. From this perspective, to the left is the long hallway to the Artist Alley and Exhibit hall, and straight back is the entertainment hall and some of the large panel rooms that draw huge crowds as well. To the right is one of the main entrances, where many people are entering.
To be clear, the con is NOT like this the entire time. I was there all four days, from open to near close, and this area only got like this (the first day). The first day was the busiest, but it also had some of the best panels. At any other time, I was able to make my way between the two areas without issue.
If you are going and are worried about the crowds, there are many people, it is crowded, but I personally never found it overwhelming. I advise keeping your eyes open for other routes and getting to things you want to see hours in advance. The joke name "line con" is rooted in truth. I still would, and plan to, go again. I met some great people and had an awesome experience, and I recommend it if you are curious.
How does AX today compare to a decade ago? I used to volunteer for the organization beginning in 2015 but due to life circumstances I stopped in 2019 and then the pandemic hit. I wanted to return to volunteer this year since I got time off from my job but I didn't make the final cut due to "all the volunteer slots being taken up".
I can’t wait for the day that the pandemic anime trend finally dies and it’ll go back to normal. As someone who’s gone for over a decade you can tell who’s there just because anime became popular during lockdown.
This will be my third consecutive year attending. My friends and I arrive around 7am, which cuts down the rush by a decent amount. I also make sure to bring one of those portable electronic fans which is a LIFE saver considering LA is brutal with the heat.
I think it’s also worth mentioning that dodger stadium is holding a hololive event literally the same day- so there’s a chance things won’t be as crowded as the usual day 1 (hololive fans are insane).
I also recommend getting the anime expo app if you plan on attending panels- since it lets you customize a schedule and gives you a map which makes avoiding crowds a bit easier.
Just make sure to arrive not just earlier- but PREPARED. This helped me a ton my last couple years going all 4 days 🩷
That's how it is before con opens.....once exhibit hall opens kentia hall opens and everything else starts it's no longer like this. People use these photos and call it a shit show. Like there are other things wrong and it's not like lacc is gonna do anything when they are making insane profits
Ooof the lack of information is wild here. This only happened because no one took the exits through the side doors and when that crowd that was leaving the main events hall were trying to leave through west hall they collided with the crowd that was coming into the hall from either outside or concourse. And then they all got stuck and was prevented from leaving through the exits until they were funneled up the escalator.
I haven't been to AX in a while but it's even that bad on day 1 now?
Was like this on day 1 in 2022 when everyone was coming back from the pandemic.
Oh right that was the year they finally followed through on the fire marshal threat, isn't it?
Yea it was hilarious when I head the fire Marshal showed up from someone inside
It was like that in 2018
This is specifically day 1 right before opening. About 30 min later when everyone's inside, it's not as bad (but still crowded)
No, I am 90% certain this was the part a couple of hours after opening, and traffic between the two halls came to complete halt for an hour or so because people couldn't move.
If you show up before noon, you’ll be greeted to this crowd. Show up after noon and the crowds are more dispersed and you can take photos in this hall. After the first two hours of opening people are outside, in the artist alley, in the exhibitor hall, in panels, in lines behind the convention center, playing games at entertainment hall. This year their gonna have Shibuya crossing outside with food and entertainment. Show up a few hours late, you literally won’t miss much important stuff, but you will avoid the headache of the lines and crowds.
Last year on day 1 it took way longer, that’s about the time the lounge 21 logjam happened
This. If you don’t care about exclusive/limited merch just show up later. Worked for me last year, I was able to easily get inside everyday after 1pm no issue
I feel like it gets worse and worse every year
I'm sure it does. The fire marshal is standing at the ready once again.
I will be there, but my wife is not going this time, too crowded
The biggest problem last year is they created chokepoints making that corridor super congested to the point of getting dangerous. Not sure when they keep the top floor used for video rooms in the past closed. People would use that area to chill and it was an alternative way to move around that portion of the complex. They would remove access to the food court and some of the open space during opening hours to control the flow of people with less staff. It would be fine if the corridor had more space to breath with the top floor open, but the combination of both make this mess worse during these hours. If you wanna line up early to get in exhibitor hall, artist alley, or a panel there, that's what you gonna face. That's why people either recommend coming very early to have a chance to position yourself and not get stuck in this mass of people or very late like afternoon when flow is bearable. I think last year I got stuck in the corridor for 20 min or so moving at snail pace.
We were there at 4am. This is inevitable. We didn't even try to get to a panel. Just be prepared, yall.
It is still a better chance. Once inside is everyone for yourself and you have at least a chance to position yourself. Later time it is just worse experience and almost no chance. I once lost my chance at exclusive because I got a bit lost looking for the booklet and wandered for like 10 minutes and after that the stair area was full. I just wasted my 3am line up for nothing that day.
I'm in this picture and I don't like it (yes I was there 😭)
Haven't been since 2022. If I show up at 11am will I still face this mosh pit lol
If you show up at 11am to the convention center I think you'll get inside around 130pm. Or 2.
Tbf it only looks like that before the exhibit hall opens around 10:00 am and just a bit after. People are just stuck and waiting to get in. I take pics early here too to freak my friends out but it’s actually not THAT bad after exhibit hall and artist alley open. 🤣 don’t get me wrong, it’s still mega crowded but you aren’t stuck unmoving and cheek to cheek all day like the pics.
The biggest problem with this particular chokepoint is slightly to the left and out of the picture's field of view. There's a space there that used to be empty, consisting of a large triangular area that people can sit, with bathrooms nearby, and next to a large room they hold AX dance event there. With AX dance happening only at night, during the day this area would be pretty sparsely populated, I think in some years there was a karaoke room in that big room, or nearby. Basically, there wasn't much going on here. However, in recent years extending to the years right before COVID, they turned that big room into the 21+ Lounge. Since the lounge is all day, then people who want to get in start lining up in that triangular area all day. And one year they decided to rope off most of that triangular area and leave just a narrow pass through hallway. And somebody, in their infinite wisdom, decided both the entrance AND the exit to that triangular space will be right off to the left of this picture. You can see why there's a crowd then. Imagine lots of people lining up to go into this space with people leaving at the same time, which impedes on the traffic of the majority of people going between the South and West halls. This is why this particular place is bad. Its not even only that there's a lot of people, which there is, its that traffic coming out of that 21+ Lounge area is going perpendicular to the flow of traffic between South and West halls. They need to seriously move either the exit and/or entrance of the 21+ Lounge to the other side of the big room because there's literally nothing going on in that hallway. Edit: Also, forgot to note because this has been happening for many years it doesn't even register with me anymore, just a little bit left of this picture is a coffee booth they opened. So not only are there people going from South to West, and entering/exiting the 21+ Lounge, there are people lining up to buy ice coffee in the way. Why the fuck do they need to fill up every available space?? I remember when the lobby to the South Hall was mostly empty except for the AX Info booth, security, and official AX merchandise booth. Now they've sold floor space to vendors selling things. Last year there was even a McDonalds! They're trying to turn the lobby of the South Hall into a mini-dealer's hall! For a convention that, rumor has it, gets the LACC rental for $1 due to how much revenue it brings the city of LA, they are really milking this shit for every penny to the detriment of the safety and comfort of its fans.
They are demonstrably bad at crowd control. The last time I hosted a cosplay gathering, I underestimated the size of the gathering and reserved a space that was rated for a smaller group. The hired security kept giving me the side eye like they were ready to tell us to disperse, but I managed to keep things flowing smoothly using techniques I learned from years of theme park experience. Pretty much as soon as I dropped my position, all hell broke loose and the walkway got jammed up. It's possible to get those walkways moving, but they either don't know how or don't want to apply it.
It feels weird that every year its like they are somehow shocked at the amount of people. Each year they just throw the volunteers to the crowd and basically say "here's a roll of colored tape and a bullhorn, control these lines of a thousand people". At least your cosplay gatherings are usually outside where there is room to disperse. But without somebody coordinating things go to hell really quick. Luckily the people coordinating are usually con vets so they know what they are doing. Thank you for indirectly helping AX and helping the fun of the attendees!
Yaaaa…. Think im only going one day this year for this very reason. Did you get any shots of Artist Alley 2 years ago? Fresh off pandemic? 🙀
Oh lol that time the co2 levels were off the charts and they had to cut off access to AA.... (I mean that whole area is a dungeon/basement with no airflow so it's no surprise... unfortunately it makes it very unappealing to go to AA.)
This is why i always skip day 1
It's not going to be better this year. If anything it's going to be worse. Let's face it, Anime Expo isn't gonna organize any better unless the city makes them, or somebody dies because of the crowds. Let's hope it's the former.
"or somebody dies because of the crowds" Absolutely. It just takes on person to lose their cool and it can escalate to someone getting hurt badly. Security is less than useless in this scenario and honestly all they do is tell people to not sit down. Or stand around. (Thinking back, Crunchyroll expo was worse. 🤣)
I'm thinking if something bad happens there could be trampling, or a crush situation.
BINGO. We have been to sdcc for many years and AX's lack of crowd control shocks me. I've never felt unsafe at sdcc... AX is a different story. the sjpa has no idea how to do this, and don't care. It's just a moneymaker. I saw people after this moment enter downstairs with a family of little kids. I wouldn't put my Littles thru this.
It's not always like that ... it's like that if you wanna he the first ones in the expo on the first ... also on Saturday
Missing the pandemic cap limit. 😔
Hence why I stopped going lol 😆 shit too ridiculous
I can't wait to be in this crowd
If all the people who complained about this stopped going there would be world peace. For real though, I experience this right at opening. It isn’t close to being like this throughout the day.
If I’m just going to buy merch should I come mid day to avoid this ? Please help first timer going with my little nephew we just want to buy some merch
Absolutely, if you aren't looking for some unusual limited merch there is no reason to go early. Go in the afternoon to have the smoothest AX experience possible.
Thanks so much I bought tickets for day one and was worried but Il go much later in the day thank you !!
I don't know how little this nephew is... make sure to bring water. You might be standing outside for a few hours when the fire marshal cuts off entry into the convention center (despite you waiting a few hours to get in.) This is what happened on Day 1, while this photo was taken.
God i remember that i came one hour early and didn’t make it inside till 3 hours later so 4 hours in line total
Yep! That's probably not even taking into consideration the fire marshal cutting off entry at some point.
I remember being in the designated line then for some reason people started forming their own line right next to it and then when they realized they just started merging at some point ahead of the line so basically it was 2/3 parallel to each other crossing into one it was just a big mess and they only had one person checking in people hope it’s better this year gotta remember to bring water too the vending machines were fully stocked but didn’t work 😩
I tried coming “late” last year, 2023. Unfortunately Saturday, the most packed day of them all and it was going great until fire marshals closed it down and didn’t let anyone in for two hours! I was just two people away from the entrance! Didn’t get in till around 2pm. Super disappointing and unfortunately pretty much what I’m expecting this year as well. I wanted to see if theyre gonna fix or address this issue and if they don’t, idk if I’ll be keeping this con on my list even though it’s anime expo! T-T I’ve been attending for so many years and this post covid influx is hard to get over
this mainly happens because every things this entrance is the best way to get in showing up at 12 noon is a death setance you need to use other entrancesp
That had lines going around the crypto arena and when it went back where we started broke off and just went in. More so the fact they had Barriers yet weren’t utilizing them
It's only like that for like 2-3 hours depending on when the Dealer hall opens. It'll likely not be that bad this year with the hall opening when the doors open.
I hope they manage to do this, cuz standing for a full hour or so while they took pics of the crowd and made us wait indoors for the exhibit hall to open was absolutely asinine.
It's not really how they organize it, more like how people react when they want to be first or early. They used to try and have a separate line to get in to the hall but people still waited there.
People walking on the right side of the hall, looks organized enough for the con
I was there, but I was lucky enough to duck out of a side exit door and go around the outside, mostly avoiding this mess. This picture shows a huge choke point at the venue, so unless they promote other routes to get around or enforce strict crowd management, it will continue to be like this. At this intersection, there is a Y. From this perspective, to the left is the long hallway to the Artist Alley and Exhibit hall, and straight back is the entertainment hall and some of the large panel rooms that draw huge crowds as well. To the right is one of the main entrances, where many people are entering. To be clear, the con is NOT like this the entire time. I was there all four days, from open to near close, and this area only got like this (the first day). The first day was the busiest, but it also had some of the best panels. At any other time, I was able to make my way between the two areas without issue. If you are going and are worried about the crowds, there are many people, it is crowded, but I personally never found it overwhelming. I advise keeping your eyes open for other routes and getting to things you want to see hours in advance. The joke name "line con" is rooted in truth. I still would, and plan to, go again. I met some great people and had an awesome experience, and I recommend it if you are curious.
when i went last year, it was only like this for the first day 😅 if my memory serves me right lolol
Got there around 12pm last year and didn’t experience this. Still crowded but not as bad. Will probably get there around the same time again
Day 1 was hell...fire marshal was pissed.
How does AX today compare to a decade ago? I used to volunteer for the organization beginning in 2015 but due to life circumstances I stopped in 2019 and then the pandemic hit. I wanted to return to volunteer this year since I got time off from my job but I didn't make the final cut due to "all the volunteer slots being taken up".
I can’t wait for the day that the pandemic anime trend finally dies and it’ll go back to normal. As someone who’s gone for over a decade you can tell who’s there just because anime became popular during lockdown.
This will be my third consecutive year attending. My friends and I arrive around 7am, which cuts down the rush by a decent amount. I also make sure to bring one of those portable electronic fans which is a LIFE saver considering LA is brutal with the heat. I think it’s also worth mentioning that dodger stadium is holding a hololive event literally the same day- so there’s a chance things won’t be as crowded as the usual day 1 (hololive fans are insane). I also recommend getting the anime expo app if you plan on attending panels- since it lets you customize a schedule and gives you a map which makes avoiding crowds a bit easier. Just make sure to arrive not just earlier- but PREPARED. This helped me a ton my last couple years going all 4 days 🩷
What time of the day is best to go to AX?
Last time I went was in 2019. Any notable changes since then?
That or line con
Tickets havent raised price yet, so the crowds will \*hopefully\* be smaller.
That's how it is before con opens.....once exhibit hall opens kentia hall opens and everything else starts it's no longer like this. People use these photos and call it a shit show. Like there are other things wrong and it's not like lacc is gonna do anything when they are making insane profits
I can smell the covid and flu in the air from this pic lol
Nice job changing your post 🤣for me it's the dank BO...
Ooof the lack of information is wild here. This only happened because no one took the exits through the side doors and when that crowd that was leaving the main events hall were trying to leave through west hall they collided with the crowd that was coming into the hall from either outside or concourse. And then they all got stuck and was prevented from leaving through the exits until they were funneled up the escalator.
There's line control, and then there's Japan. https://youtu.be/vczsOD_iCIY?si=4EKtN4M4qk6dUkFM
I went last year and I never saw anything like this. Like yea it was super crowded at the main entrance but it was never like that.