Last year’s trip to WPPI was my first ever…not only that, it was my first conference, AND my first time traveling completely alone! So while I can’t claim to be an expert on WPPI since this year’s will only be my second, I definitely learned a lot of things over the course of the week that I thought would be great to share as a lot of people may be gearing up to sign up! The first, biggest tip I have is to make sure you leave your expectations at the door. Go for the experience and just soak it all up! I read a lot of people saying in their WPPI tip posts that it’s so overwhelming…I honestly didn’t feel overwhelmed at all. But I had Jen (who is a beast at traveling and has been to WPPI a few times) to help me. Since you guys probably don’t have her to be your WPPI buddy, here are some things I learned last year that can hopefully help you too!

Stay at the Signature, but get roommates. I’ve seen people in some of the Facebook groups I’m in say they’re staying at other hotels in the area because they found a better deal…but honestly, it’s worth it to stay at the Signature (the closest hotel to where the conference is held). What looks like it’s next door in Vegas is really not as close as you think. So a hotel that looks like it’s across the street or two hotels down is really, REALLY far when you are walking back to your room after walking around all day. Vegas hotels are really like minature worlds…they house casinos, malls, rooms, restaurants, huge theaters, and in some cases, amusement parks! Seriously, it’s bigger than you think. Like deceptively big. You might save money on a different hotel, but you’ll end up either paying for cabs or being really exhausted all the time. Even staying at the Signature last year, we probably walked at least a few miles a day! Which, is great because then you can justify buffet eating:)

Bring transitional clothing. Meaning layers and lots of things that you can wear in warm or cool weather. March can either be really warm, or really cool in Vegas and the nights are a lot cooler, which is something that doesn’t really happen here in Virginia. Last year I had packed tons of winter clothing based on the weather in Virginia and was so hot all of the time! I actually wound up buying some warm weather clothes to wear!

Get out of the hotel and explore. Um…HELLO. You’re in Vegas. Come on. I had been to Vegas the year before (2012) with John and our friends so I already was kind of familiar with it. I never thought of myself as a Vegas person (I don’t gamble, I don’t get buck wild or go to clubs, I’m somewhat introverted, etc) but I LOVE IT. I don’t know what it is…maybe it’s the fun energy or the awesome food around every corner (I love to stuff my face), but Vegas is so much fun even just to walk around and stare at everything you see. If you don’t make it out to the strip at least once during your trip, you are going to miss out on a really cool experience! I mean your business is paying for the trip anyway…you might as well! A group of us also rented a van one day during our trip and went out to the desert to shoot…that was one of the best parts of the trip, especially since we don’t get to see/shoot deserts back home! I’d say this was well worth the added cost:) There’s also an Enterprise location on the strip that will pick you up, and then when you’re done with the car they’ll take you wherever you want to go! So awesome! Just don’t forget your sweater in the car and have to go back…ha.

Hydrate. This includes drinking water, using lotion, etc. Maybe um, a saline spray or something for your nose (you know what I’m trying to tell you). Where I live it’s incredibly humid most of the year so my body was in for a little bit of a shock after a couple days in Vegas. I’ve actually been considering buying one of these to take with me this year. Meanwhile, without the humidity my hair never looked better!

Transportation: If you plan to explore the strip a lot, you may want to go in on a rental car with a couple people, or rent one yourself. We discovered that all of the major hotels on the strip have free valet parking, which is awesome and can be pretty cost efficient if you are willing to carpool/share a car with others. We also got monorail tickets, which was awesome for traveling down the strip. You still have to do a bit of walking, but it’s cheaper than taking cabs and faster than the Deuce bus.

Eat at In N Out Burger. I mean, this should be a given. Especially if you’re an East Coaster like me. I LOOOOVE this stuff.

Preboard for classes you’re interested in.  Preboarding is a way to sign up for classes early and ensure you get a spot. If you’re seeing someone really popular, I would suggest preboarding! I preboarded for all of the classes I went to last year.

Join WPPI Facebook groups.  The Facebook groups are a great way to find out about meetups, parties, deals, etc as well as ask questions and make friends! Also, stay on top of twitter for info about parties and other things that are happening. Twitter is also a really good place to look for discount registration codes.

Money saving tip: Be creative with your flights. I ended up booking two one way flights last year instead of one round trip because it was cheaper to do it that way. I live near a smaller, regional airport that has inexpensive flights to the west coast through Frontier and was able to purchase a ticket headed TO Vegas on the right day and a ticket on another airline home (Frontier didn’t have any flights the day I was headed home) for cheaper than purchasing a round trip ticket conventionally.

Spend time getting to know other people. One of the most rewarding parts of my WPPI experience last year was all of the time I got to spend hanging out with fellow, like minded creatives and just really getting to know them. The lunches, dinners, and random outings we shared together were such an incredible bonding experience! I left Vegas feeling like I had a pack of new bffs! Those relationships have continued to enrich my life after leaving. So definitely make a point to spend time getting to know others! I think I learned more from my new photog peeps (and have continued to learn more!) than I did from all of my classes combined last year!

Go to the tradeshow with a purpose. If you just randomly go into the tradeshow wandering aimlessly, you might end up getting lost in there forever. It can be REALLY overwhelming, but if you know you want to check out certain booths, that helps make it a little less intimidating. Or at least I think so.

Don’t pack too much stuff and keep an eye on your wallet, northface, and kindle. Don’t ask me how I know. Just do as I say, not as I do.