Cause for Celebration?

Well, the long awaited announcement has come - THE convention to end all conventions for Star Wars fans, Star Wars Celebration V is going to be held in sunny Orlando, Florida, August 12 - 15, 2010.

Star Wars geeks around the world have been waiting, saving their money and daydreaming of this convention since Celebration IV. And those of us that were unable to make it to IV were hoping against hope that we would be able to make it to V.

So, what would it take for me, a humble Star Wars fan in Washington State, to attend Celebration V? Let's break it down:

• Just to get to Florida is going to cost about $400 in airfare, not counting the extra baggage fees for bringing whatever costume(s) you will be sporting at the event.
  

• Car rental to get you from the airport to the hotel and then to the venue, including parking, is going to run you about $50/day.

• A four-day pass to the spectacular is going to cost $120. That gets you into all the exhibits, halls, panels, workshops and autograph lines that you could possibly stand.

• Accommodations in Orlando are surprisingly inexpensive - we priced out the local Comfort Inn to be about $70/night.

• Food & souvenirs - this is always a subjective category, but I thought $100/day was not out of line, especially when food at these types of events tends to be rather expensive.

That gives you a grand total of about $1,300, give or take $20. Doesn't sound like too much, right? *smirk*

The bottom line is that I highly doubt this Jedi will be able to attend the Star Wars event of 2010. That's OK though...I'm ever hopeful that I will be able to attend Celebration VI in 2012 - wanna join me? I think Seattle in August would be the perfect venue, don't you?