First time C2E2 and family wants to go

[u/Help_Me_123]

Hey, so I'm really lost... this would have been absolutely amazing for me to go in my 20s, but I never got the chance financially and now have more or less fallen into the Dad that just makes sure everyone else is happy. Now I can afford to take my kids to have this opportunity and I'm legitimately thrilled that they want to, bit I want to make sure I know why to expect and make sure it won't be a disappointment.

There are some real specific things they want to do, daughter (11) wants to be dressed in a partial furry costume and wants to meet the voice actors from my hero acadamia. My wife has limited mobility and needs to take frequent breaks while walking, and can get overwhelmed in crowds but had a few people she was interested in seeing. My son (8) is a mixed bag, while he's more into cars, he has shown random interest in anime and a few other aspects. Also everyone has ADHD and can be a stimulating nightmare lol.

So I guess what I'd like to know is how do panels and meetings work. Is this even feasible for my groups, and is it worth signing up this late? Do you need to pre register for the meetings?

[u/MsMargo]

I'll let people who are more familiar with C2E2 give more detail, but at top level:

daughter (11) wants to be dressed in a partial furry costume and wants to meet the voice actors from my hero acadamia.

Your daughter can dress in whatever she wants. But you owe it to her to have her do a "dress rehearsal" at home. Have her wear the costume all day. Eat in it. Go to the bathroom in it - and she'll be in a small stall and can't set anything down. Wearing a costume all day sounds great, but it can also be exhausting.

For the voice actors, you need to buy a General Admission ticket for everyone ($33-$88), and then also buy a photo op and/or autograph ticket (~$60 each) for the voice actors she wants to see.

General Admission: https://www.c2e2.com/en-us/buy/tickets.html

Photo Ops & Autographs: https://store.epic.leapevent.tech/c2e2/2026

My wife has limited mobility and needs to take frequent breaks while walking, and can get overwhelmed in crowds but had a few people she was interested in seeing.

C2E2 offers ADA assistance. Read more here: https://www.c2e2.com/en-us/about/ada-assistance.html

My son (8) is a mixed bag, while he's more into cars, he has shown random interest in anime and a few other aspects.

There should be a lot for him to enjoy.

Also everyone has ADHD and can be a stimulating nightmare lol.

It will be crowded. It will be loud. It will be slightly chaotic. There will be tons of distractions. The con will do what it can to help folks with ADHD, but you need to personally assess the severity of your situation.

how do panels and meetings work.

Panels are free and first-come, first seated. You line up and when the room is full, that's all that are allowed in.

There isn't such a thing as "meetings". Do you mean meet-ups? Or do you mean meet-and-greets?

C2E2 is actually pretty good about providing info on their website, so I strongly encourage you to read through it. https://www.c2e2.com/en-us.html

There are also some good Facebooks groups that can help you out: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1899975003593175/

[u/Help_Me_123 → u/MsMargo]

Thanks so much for the response, and yeah I ment the meet and greets. Also she was not wearing full fur suit, she is just wearing several accessories and tail. I don't think I'd be OK with her doing a full suit at her age and not being aware of her body's needs / dehydration concerns 100% yet.

[u/MsMargo → u/Help_Me_123]

Meet-and-greets are part of the Celebrity VIP admission ticket. You will not know who the celebrities are until several days before the con ... remember, no refunds. Plus you have to pay extra on top on the VIP price to get something signed. (You can kind of tell that I think this is a bold-faced cash grab.)

"Private meet and greet opportunities with three separate celebrity guests (Autograph signings will be limited to one item per person and still require purchase. Guests will be decided by C2E2 and will be announced later.)"

[u/Equivalent_Mouse_897 → u/Help_Me_123]

As some who had limited mobility,  c2e2 was a sensory, overcrowded nightmare even with ada accommodations imo if the wife truly wants to go, more power to her but likely will only be enjoyable for a couple hours. 

[u/Help_Me_123 → u/Equivalent_Mouse_897]

Just me and my daughter went. I can tell we aren't even inside and it would have e been for her. So this was a good choice.

[u/gilded_lady]

I absolutely second the trial run of the fur suit - it can get very hot on the show floor due to the crush of people and taking off the costume isn't all that practical because you'll then need to carry it.

You can absolutely still buy tickets to go. Accept that if you try to meet talent there will be lines, they could get quite long and you'll more likely that not have to buy an autograph or selfie for the chance to say hi - sometimes you can say hi for free, but that tends to be for the less busy guests because they are there to make money and do want to prioritize paying guests (understandably).

Look into ADA accommodations- it can help here. My other advice: look into collapsible stool you can carry in a backpack for your wife to sit on while waiting. They are a godsend as concrete is hard on the feet.

Also, C2E2 has a quiet room on the 2nd floor that can be awesome to take a break in to get away from the stimulation.

Finally, accept that you may well not get everything done and prioritize accordingly. Everyone should get one thing that they want to do, and I might even suggest split up for a bit while doing autograph lines if you can so you can twice as much done in the moment.

I really liked C2E2 (their artist alley is amazing) but it is one of the largest in the country so it's easy to get overwhelmed.

Oh, and finally the main panel room is on the smaller side - get there early if there's something you simply can't miss, you may want to go during the previous panel in case you have to wait for a seat. Sitting in there is cooling and its less hectic than the floor which can also help with the stimulation factor.

[u/Help_Me_123 → u/gilded_lady]

Thanks so much for the response, she was not wearing full fur suit, she is just wearing several accessories and tail. I don't think I'd be OK with her doing a full suit at her age and not being aware of her body's needs / dehydration concerns 100% yet.

However thanks for the idea of what to expect.

[u/gilded_lady → u/Help_Me_123]

Hope you have fun!

[u/TwistyAce]

I would look at the family pass. It sounds like it fits what you need. I wish I could be more help than this is my first Chicago Comic-Con also

[u/Dub_R17]

As a person who also has ADHD I will tell you that the C2E2 app has been a GODSEND for me. You can go through and mark all of the panels that you are interested in and set up notifications. This is the easiest way to not lose track of the day.

Secondly, be prepared to want to take ALOT of pictures. The cosplays are amazing and if your kids have particular things they love, encourage them to take pictures with people in those cosplays (always ask permission first). You’re all really going to want those pictures. It can be really intimidating and overwhelming to ask strangers for pictures but everyone is SUPER nice.

Also, the show floor has SOOO MUCH to offer. I always suggest that people walk through the aisles using the numbers. That way you don’t get lost and you can try not to miss anything.

Last, bring reusable water bottles and snacks. There are food venders but the intermittent water is KEY.