Reefapalooza

[lilfish717]

I'm wondering if it's really worth the hype. I live 3hrs away. I found a hotel for a good price to fit my needs. Now I'm wondering if it's worth the trip. I have some money to spend also!

 

[Peace River]

I'm wondering if it's really worth the hype. I live 3hrs away. I found a hotel for a good price to fit my needs. Now I'm wondering if it's worth the trip. I have some money to spend also!

I have been to multiple Reef-A-Paloozas including RAP Orlando 2019. You can look up the vendor list and layout online so you can see who will be there. There will be a lot of coral for sale including a lot of small frags, however there probably won't be too many fish or inverts available. There will be a lot of hardware, salt, food, and other vendors with a lot of information. There will also be plenty of swag and some raffles. Only you can decide if it is worth it and I'm not sure what hype that you have heard, but I can tell you that for me it was worth it for my experience. Whatever you decide - happy reefing!

 

[BadFish619]

It's in Anaheim right? I plan on checking it out. I'm about 1.5 hours south

 

[Peace River]

It's in Anaheim right? I plan on checking it out. I'm about 1.5 hours south

Reef-A-Palooza New York
DATE: June 22-23, 2019
VENUE: Meadowlands Exposition Center
355 Plaza Drive, Secaucus, New Jersey 07094

Reef-A-Palooza California
DATE: August 17-18, 2019
VENUE: Anaheim Marriott
700 West Convention Way Anaheim, CA 92802

Reef-A-Palooza Chicago
DATE: October 19-20, 2019
VENUE: Renaissance Schaumburg Convention Center Hotel
1551 Thoreau Dr N, Schaumburg, IL 60173

Reef-A-Palooza website

 

[lilfish717]

Will there be good deals? Well you can't tell me that, but was there any when you guys were there? I have the money now but I'm still a cheapy. Haha.

 

[Mal11224]

In my opinion, it’s worth it. You can talk directly to vendors and get so much information and as mentioned, plenty of freebies from food to clothing and raffles. Im going to the one in NJ this weekend and can’t wait. Also, the coral vendors are likely to give an extra discount on the price especially if you buy a few corals. They want to sell as much as they can as well.

 

[MTBake]

Looking forward to the Chicago one myself. It's a 20 minute drive for me:)

 

[lilfish717]

Talked it over and you guys persuaded me to go a little. I wanted to anyways. Going to book a 2 night hotel for Saturday and Sunday night. And take my mom and brother, girlfriend and son, and make a beach trip out of it also.

 

[Breadman03]

Will there be good deals? Well you can't tell me that, but was there any when you guys were there? I have the money now but I'm still a cheapy. Haha.

The deals will be hit or miss on Saturday, but there are often good deals on Sunday when vendors don't want to pack stuff up for the ride home. I'll forever regret not getting a sweet 200 gallon cube with stand for a song because I had to go to my daughter's birthday party. Priorities got in the way.

 

[Peace River]

Talked it over and you guys persuaded me to go a little. I wanted to anyways. Going to book a 2 night hotel for Saturday and Sunday night. And take my mom and brother, girlfriend and son, and make a beach trip out of it also.

Great! I really think you will have a good time! A couple more things to think about - there will be good deals and there will be some not so good deals so it is a good idea to go into it with at least a general sense of what the market value is for the different types of corals.

Secondly, ask the vendors the questions that you want to know. I have seen too many people telling the vendor all the details about their tank when the vendors are usually the experts who should be doing the talking and the attendee should be point a direction for the conversation and doing the learning. I have found the information to be the most valuable part of the shows because I make a conscious effort to go hunting for information to fill in the gaps of what I don't know. For example, I literally make a list of the areas that I want to learn about and of any specific questions that I might have. So at RAP Orlando when I ran into Chad from @Reef Nutrition and Eric from @AlgaGen Direct I was ready for the conversations. They were both extremely knowledgeable and helped me fill gaps in my knowledge. Unfortunately later in the show when I connected with Randy from @Bulk Reef Supply and AskBRS I was so tired and my brain had shut down I had nothing more to offer than a friendly greeting (hopefully I will be ready if I am able to touch base with him at MACNA!).

Finally, if you are planning to stay an extra day and go to the beach - make sure that you have a plan for any corals that you may purchase. Good luck and I look forward to hearing your post-trip feedback!