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Evo Travel Hints & Tips for 2016 For Foreign Players

TheGabStandard

The anticipation is killing me
Hi all. As EVO 2016 has been announced I'm sure the hype train is underway for many of you. Since I along with a few others have been to EVO a few times I thought it would be good to present a few pieces of advice for those looking to go to EVO 2016. There has been a lot of information thrown around in the past about cost, flights etc so hopefully this thread will help give people a clear idea in preparation. This is mainly directed to players from the EU but all can read and take whatever they can that will help.

1. Flights
This is usually the biggest stumbling block for most of us travelling from Europe as it is generally expensive flying to the USA in general, let alone flying in the peak of summer. A direct flight from the UK to Las Vegas around that time costs around £1,000-£1,200 which obviously is a lot of money. However, if you are willing to do a lot of searching and are patient you can find some good deals. So my advice to you regarding flights.

- If you have the money already and can afford it, look into booking your flights as soon as possible while prices are lower than average.

- Use SkyScanner (http://www.skyscanner.net/) This site essentially searches across all merchants for flights and can filter them however you want. From cheapest to most expensive, from certain airlines only, direct flights or 1/2 stop flights, however you want to narrow your search this site will do it for you. On top of that you can set up email alerts for the flight you want (do not need to sign up for an account to do this) and it will email you whenever there is a price change on the cheapest flight possible based on your search/filters. Another good site or an alternative to us is Expedia (https://www.expedia.co.uk/), so I would recommend using both.

- Flights with stops are usually a lot cheaper (sometimes half the price) but be wary of lay over times between flights, it's not fun being stuck in a city you don't really want to be in for 12 hours plus :p

- Check every single day for flights: It seems tedious but it is really worth it. Sometimes special offers come around which last for a day if you are lucky. Last year I was lucky to find my flight for £503, direct flight from British Airways due to a May Bank Holiday Sale. (posted it here: http://testyourmight.com/threads/travel-for-uk-players.51468/) That offer only lasted two days before it was removed. So if you see something at a great price for you, do your best to grab that opportunity as quick as possible.

2. Accommodation
The EVO venue has not been announced as of yet but just a few things to look out for when booking accommodation.

- If you can stay at the hotel EVO is held (assuming it will be a hotel this year and not a convention centre) then do so. When you register for EVO you get a player's discount booking at the venue hotel through their website and the savings are pretty decent.

- Despite the player discount please do research and check these websites every day as well. Booking and Amoma (http://www.booking.com/index.en-gb.html , (http://www.amoma.com/). They usually do special offers across hotels at really good prices. Infact for me this year, booking the EVO hotel through Amoma's offer worked out to be about £10 a night cheaper than the player's discount EVO granted :p but that was because I decided to check prices every day and found that offer.

- You can stay at cheaper hotels that are based outside the Las Vegas Strip but be wary that the savings you might make on the room per night might be made up in taxi fares to The Strip. So if you are going to look into hotels off The Strip then I suggest you take money for taxis or get one that is a reasonable walking distance from The Strip.

So just as a summary taking my examples for EVO 2015 my direct flight and accommodation at the EVO hotel (5 nights) worked out to be £790. Bare in mind when I went in 2014 I didn't follow any of these suggestions and flight/accommodation cost me £1,450

3. Money
At the moment and the times I went, things in America are reasonably priced, but a few suggestions.

- You don't need massive amounts of spending money to go out there. This year I probably only spent around $150, maybe less and still had a great time.

- Definitely carry cash for taxis, you can use credit cards to pay in most taxis but I prefer cash in general.

- If you plan to take quite a bit of spending money with you (because it is Vegas :p) and you are not comfortable taking a debit/credit card with you due to charges, fear of loss etc then I recommend getting a ICE Plus Card (https://www.iceplc.com/prepaid-currency-card/) This is a prepaid currency card where you purchase currency and it is stored on your card. It can then be used as a credit card for purchases or in a ATM to withdraw cash. You can monitor the funds on the card to see how much you have left and can easily top up via their website with the funds appearing near instantaneous.(https://www.iceplc.com) It is helpful for those going with a lot of spending money as you don't have to worry about carrying a load of cash or hiding various envelopes of money in your belongings. You can take a set amount of cash, like $100-150 and have the rest on your ICE Card.

4. VISA Waiver ***VERY IMPORTANT***

Somehow I forgot about this in my initial post, likely because mine was already sorted. If you are travelling to the US you are likely going to need a visa. Those who are travelling from Europe acan apply for a VISA Waiver form from the ESTA (Electronic System for Travel Authorization). Fill in the details and for a $14 fee you should be granted a waiver to enter the US which is valid for two years. From memory though applications are rejected if your pasport is set to expire 90 days before the dates you plan to enter the country. So first make sure your pasport is valid and follow the link below to do the application.

https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/esta/

For now that is it, I may have missed out a couple of things but anything I remember I will add it to this thread. Also if anyone who has been have any more tips to give to those looking to travel please feel free to post them here. It would be great if there is a strong international presence for MKX next year and hopefully some of the things I posted here will help people go on their way to planning their trips. Feel free to tag in anyone else that has an interest in going.

So anyone thinking of going, Start Planning Now! :D

@JTB123 @JustinXavier21 @PND i2 Gaug3 @PND OmegaK @PND_Ketchup @PND_Mustard @UsedForGlue @Phosferrax @BenGmanUk @Undeadjim @Klesk_1 @ENDeverMORE @STRYKIE @Youphemism @Scott The Scot @Mitsuownes @Madzin @rubmytaco @Vak Phoenix @st9rm @stosn @RyuKazuya @Crathen @Braindead @Qwark28 @Falkunn @FireBreather @1man3letters @Espio @STB Boba Grimes @Nivek @Aixy @Nausea @smokey @Karnage @SchiacciSempre @all other international players
 

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Scott The Scot

Where there is smoke, there is cancer.
Wow! That's a great thread, Gab! Well done! I can't believe the different in money you saved between the two years - roughly half! Amazing!

This is a wonderful thread, and should help a lot of people out - especially when people are nervous and have no idea what to for their first time! I'm not a mod or anything, but hell I'd give this front page for sure. Especially if players need to start planning this far in advance! @Tim Static @Hollywood DMS @STORMS
 

TheGabStandard

The anticipation is killing me
Wow! That's a great thread, Gab! Well done! I can't believe the different in money you saved between the two years - roughly half! Amazing!

This is a wonderful thread, and should help a lot of people out - especially when people are nervous and have no idea what to for their first time! I'm not a mod or anything, but hell I'd give this front page for sure. Especially if players need to start planning this far in advance! @Tim Static @Hollywood DMS @STORMS
Thanks man. The main reason I say start planning is because despite the savings it is still quite a bit money that people may not have right now. So if people look into deals and saving money now hopefully it will put them in a good position to travel
 

Nausea

Soul Ascended
Awesome thread and thank you for the tag :) This will really help me financially plan this trip if life allows me!

I've still got a few months to get organised to see if its going to happen so this is a great help to refer to.

Yer some man :D
 

roosTakk

Chode Juggler
I would add :

When looking for flights use porno or private mode in your broswer.

Travel sites log your visit with cookies and if they see you constantly checking flight prices for dest A to dest B on some date they will jack the prices up cuz they know you will buy anyway.

Oh and if you go 0-2 just walk to nearest liquor store and drink your sorrows away
 

MadeFromMetal

Heart From Iron, Mind From Steel.
Sign up for Total Rewards. You can do so online. Multiple casinos/hotels on the strip are under the total rewards umbrella. You can get exclusive email offers or member discounts at their hotels if you book at certain times. It might help with mitigating cost. I recently stayed at the Linq hotel for $45/night on a weekend, because I got an email with an offer. This was in late August so mid July might be similar.
 

RyuKazuya

Jesus is my Lord and Savior!
amzing thread. I ve dreamed for so long attnding evo once. Thanks to you this would help amazingly to organize everything til there ^^

@Grand Flash take a look
 

st9rm

viennality.com
great stuff

i'm really planning to got next year, so this helps quite a lot :)

maybe, in a few months time, we can have another thread with all the europeans planning in going to evo, so we can sort some stuff out with hotels etc
 

DronesUK

Noob
Nice thread Gab always enjoy watching the europeans at EVO hopefully this will inspire some more people to give it a go aswell!
 

MK_Al

Noob
great stuff

i'm really planning to got next year, so this helps quite a lot :)

maybe, in a few months time, we can have another thread with all the europeans planning in going to evo, so we can sort some stuff out with hotels etc
try to book as early as possible. the Austrian airlines offer a small amount of really cheap tickets called "red tickets"; you can go to NYC and back for about 500€ (that's at least what I payed last year). Also keep in mind that flights in the US are way cheaper than in Europe, I remember paying about 120$ for NYC - Orlando. So taking a cheap flight to somewhere in the US and going to Vegas from there might save you a lot of money.

It really sucks that I can't go to EVO :( but I will totally freak out when I see you playing on stream. Also I hope that there'll be lots of European player.
 

TheGabStandard

The anticipation is killing me
Since Evo details have been announced I figured it was worth bumping this thread. Feel free to post any deals you come across that would be worthwhile.
 

Shaikhuzzaman

magicmeerkatman
I would like to go but it's still a pretty hefty price. Also I'm put off by American laws. I'll be in Vegas and be unable to party.

Really good tips though.
 

TheGabStandard

The anticipation is killing me
Added an extra section about the visa waiver application for those looking to go. It is a brief section but very important.