Forum - View topicNEWS: Anime Expo Sets New Record of 422,000 Turnstile Attendees
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Kougeru
 Posts: 5822 |
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that's... not something they should be bragging out when they had a lot of the venue blocked off and when the 90% of the discussion about the convention is how overly crowded it was.
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Joe Mello
 Posts: 2569 Location: Online Terminal |
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The problem is where else does it go? Anaheim was a bigger space, but is likely less amenable to holding offsite events. San Diego and San Francisco has more overall space but less exhibitor space, and exhibitors are a big chunk of revenue. The next closest places that are bigger than Anaheim are in Las Vegas. The most pragmatic ways to make AX less crowded would be either to exponentially increase the price or close it off to the public. |
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Hiroki not Takuya
 Posts: 3051 |
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VEGAS, BABY!! Most current attendees should be able to afford the trip, it's not terribly far and there are other attractions locally for after-hours. Also, the daily attendance was supposed to be limited to 100k by the fire marshal, so how was this allowed? Bribery...?
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kucinglaper
Posts: 26 |
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No wonder the photos I saw looked like packed sardines.
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Wasureta
Posts: 90 |
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Aside from the early morning entry line to the JW Marriott and the badge pickup line, I thought the con this year was better than last year. The crowds were thinned out by adding more exterior space (trading Pico Street for Figueroa Street). Even in the middle of the day, walking from the South Hall to the West Hall was much faster than last year due to people following the divider. There was intermittent congestion on the 400- and 500-level when people were brought into the panel rooms from outside.
To further prevent crowding, ban cosplay shoots in the middle of the fricking lobby, keep Figueroa closed when Pico is reopened, install more tables and tents outside, and maintain a clear entry line to the autograph area. Having written this, I would love it if the con was moved to Moscone Center in San Francisco. Last edited by Wasureta on Sat Jul 11, 2026 4:05 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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PerplexdElement
 Posts: 17 |
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I was there all four days and honestly the photos made it look a lot worse than it really was. I'm claustrophobic and didn't have a hard time getting around for the most part. There were a few places where it was too crowded and places like Artists Alley were inexcusably too crowded, but the con was not packed shoulder-to-shoulder constantly like the photos made it out to be. |
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Turtleboy76
Posts: 216 |
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God i miss the 90s and 2000s.
Anime becoming mainstream was such a mistake. High attendance numbers mean nothing. |
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Vanadise
 Posts: 602 |
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Turnstile accounting is kind of bullshit, anyway. They know how many badges they sold and could just report that number, but it looks more impressive if you count the same person four times.
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Key
Moderator
 Posts: 19163 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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Turnstile attendance of 422,000 probably means the unique attendance is in the 120-130k range (since you can't assume that all attendees had four-day badges), which would put it in line with the biggest Comic-Con events in the U.S. and not terribly far behind Comiket in Japan (which estimated unique attendance in 2025 at around 150k per day). Definitely keeps it in the highest tier of fan conventions in terms of attendance.
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catandmouse
Posts: 257 |
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I’ve been going to Anime Expo since 2011 and I hear the same complaints every year. Yes, the con has its issues and they need to really figure out their logistics (Comic-Con does a much better job of controlling the crowds), but overall, it’s been a long time since I’ve felt the con was overly crowded. Yes, going from the South Hall to the West Hall is always crowded, but it’s also a narrow path.
And the Artist Alley is always crowded no matter what. TBH, I find Comic-Con to be a lot more crowded |
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