All the pandemic situation that we are living (thanks, 2020) has had obvious impact on events and a lot of them were cancelled. FlightSimExpo, at Las Vegas, which was supposed to be held earlier this year, was one of them.
And boy, was I eager to visit Vegas!
So, 2020 was a bust for FlightSimExpo but the organization didn’t give up. The event will come back in 2021, but in a different way: a hybrid (online / presential) format.
Sounds weird? Well it’s not very different from what other events do already, where visitors can still attend the premises but there’s also content for those that rather attend it online online.
The organization explains it very well in the official press-release:
FLIGHTSIMEXPO ANNOUNCES 2021 DATES, VENUE, AND HYBRID EVENT FORMAT
FlightSimExpo 2021 will be held on June 4-6, 2021 in San Diego. A hybrid online and in-person event, FlightSimExpo will give simmers from around the world the opportunity to participate from home while welcoming in-person attendees to San Diego.
SAN DIEGO – October 2, 2020 – FlightSimExpo will take place June 4-6, 2021 at the Town and Country Resort, San Diego! As with previous years, the in-person event will feature product announcements, how-to seminars, educational discussions, and a large exhibit hall to try out the latest in simulation software and hardware. And, for the first time, the event will also feature an online component: simmers from around the world will be able to register for the online portion of the event, which will include exclusive access seminars and a virtual exhibit hall.
“Recognizing current times, we wanted to make FlightSimExpo 2021 accessible to anyone,” says Evan Reiter, co-founder of the event. “Safety-permitting, we’ll welcome those who want to join us in person in San Diego. And if you can’t attend the in-person event—or prefer not to—you’ll still be able to connect with this year’s show online.”
Offering great transportation options, fantastic year-round weather, 70 miles of beaches, and world-class entertainment and cuisine, San Diego was selected by past attendees, simmers, and developers as their preferred location for FlightSimExpo 2021. The area boasts a variety of aviation-specific attractions including the USS Midway aircraft carrier museum at Navy Pier/Embarcadero and the San Diego Air and Space Museum, located in the largest urban cultural park in America. Over the next few months, conference staff and volunteers will be working with airlines, transportation companies, and local attractions to arrange special discounts for attendees.
The in-person component of FlightSimExpo 2021 will be held at the Town and Country Resort, a San Diego icon since 1953. After a $90 million renovation that finished last month, the resort offers a four-story waterslide, penthouse fitness facility, a three-acre park, five on-site dining and beverage options, and a short walk to nearby shopping at Fashion Valley Mall. Booking through FlightSimExpo, attendees will pay US$151.87 per night, including taxes and fees. The event has negotiated special perks for attendees including waived hotel services charges, unlimited in-room WiFi devices, and shuttle service to nearby attractions (based on availability). The hotel is located on the San Diego Trolley line, 7 miles from the airport, and minutes from historic Old Town, Gaslamp Quarter, and Little Italy.
FlightSimExpo’s conference and tradeshow will be held all day on Saturday, June 5 and Sunday, June 6. An add-on series of seminars called Captains’ Corner will take place on Friday, June 4. This year, Captains’ Corner will include exclusive early access to the exhibit hall on Friday afternoon. A full schedule will be released closer to the event.
“The theme of this year’s event is flexibility and transparency,” explains co-founder Phil Coyle. “When we had to make the difficult decision to cancel our 2020 show, we gave everyone the option to receive a refund. We will offer the same flexibility again this year: it will be free to change or cancel your registration up to the day before the show and of course there’s the online-only option for attendees to consider too. Even if it’s not safe for us to host an in-person event, there will be a FlightSimExpo 2021!”
Attendee registration will begin in early 2021. For more information on the event, including details about COVID-19, simmers are encouraged to visit www.flightsimexpo.com or subscribe to the mailing list to receive special discounts on 2021 registration.
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About FlightSimExpo. FlightSimExpo is North America’s community-driven flight simulation conference. The first FlightSimExpo was held in 2018 in Las Vegas, followed by a 2019 event in Orlando that attracted almost 1,700 attendees and more than 60 exhibitors. FlightSimExpo 2021 takes place on June 4-6, 2021 at Town and Country Resort, San Diego. FlightSimExpo is proudly produced by active participants of the flight simulation community.
