Wait, wait! What's House FanFest 2010? Is this the House convention?

Nope! This is not connected in any way to the House convention. In fact, this isn't even a convention. No renting out a convention hall at the Hilton. No panel of speakers. No guest celebrities. No auctions, no contests, no charity sponsors. No affiliation with House or FOX or NBC/Universal or Bad Hat Harry Productions whatsoever.


Okay, so what *IS* this House FanFest then?

House FanFest 2010 is a bunch of House fans getting together in a city with some House-y stuff in it and enjoying each other's company as we squee over House filming sites on the west coast and/or Princeton-Plainsboro itself on the east coast.


Sounds fun. When is it?

House FanFest West (Los Angeles-based) will take place July 15-16, 2010 (Thurday-Friday). House FanFest East (Princeton-based) will take place July 29-30, 2010 (Thursday-Friday).


Who's invited?

Everybody! House fans of course will get the most out of our stops, but anyone is invited to tag along. (All minors must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian at all times.) Feel free to tell all your fellow House fans on any website about the House FanFest. This isn't just for LJ people.


How much does it cost? Do I need a ticket?

There are no tickets for the House FanFest itself, and the cost is completely up to you. Each House FanFest, both West and East, will offer a wide array of activities, many of which are free. You choose what you'd like to participate in, and that will determine your cost. And while there are no tickets, there are certain things that will require reservations in advance if you wish to participate in them, such as staying at certain hotels or renting a chartered bus.


What will we be doing?

While still in flux, the current offerings are as follows:

House FanFest West, Los Angeles (July 15-16, 2010):
Before the official start...

• Optional group dinner on July 14 (the day before the House FanFest begins) at BIN189, Lake Arrowhead Resort's restaurant overlooking the lake (dinner is $13-$42)
  
• Optional overnight stay July 14-15 at the Lake Arrowhead Resort, featured in 6x07 "Known Unknowns" (We'll look into a group rate if the demand is high enough. As of today (March 28), single-occupancy rooms with a partial view are $169 that evening, and rooms with a lake view are $229 when booked through the hotel directly. Having a roommate decreases the cost per person. I do not know if they offer AAA discounts. Expedia, Orbitz, and Hotels.com all have no-view rooms at the resort for $150 single-occupancy as of today.)

The House FanFest itself...

• Visit the Lake Arrowhead Resort and see many of the places 6x07 "Known Unknowns" was shot (FREE!)
  
• Visit the Frank G Bonelli park, where the rest stop scenes from 5x04 "Birthmarks" were shot (FREE!)
  
• Visit (and eat at, if you'd care to) Cactus Mexican Food, the Mexican restaurant House and gang ate at during House's hallucinations in 2x24, "No Reason."
  
• Visit UCLA and see the lawns House ran across, the stairs House ran up, the bench he skateboard-jumped off of, the short wall where House's team sat, and the open area where House skated and impressed the girls in 3x01 "Meaning" (FREE!)
  
• Visit more shooting locations as I can identify them? (Most likely FREE!)
  
• Get a House-themed goodie bag (FREE!)
  
• Get a PPTH ID-badge name tag (FREE!)

Then stay in Southern California as long as you'd like to check out Hollywood, visit theme parks, go to the taping of a sitcom or late-night talk show, hit the beach, or anything else you want!

House FanFest East, Princeton (July 29-30, 2010):
Before the official start...

• Optional hour-long horseback tour through the Poconos ($28-$30/person) on July 28, the day before the House FanFest begins
  
• Optional overnight stay July 28-29 at a hotel in the Poconos (We'll look into a group rate if the demand is high enough. Anyone have a suggestion for a good hotel in this area?)

The House FanFest itself...

• Official student-led Orange Key tour of Princeton University, where all aerial views of the hospital were shot (FREE!)
  
• Lots of time to wander around Princeton University and check out "PPTH" from all angles, as well as the surrounding campus (FREE!)
  
• Visit Lake Carnegie, the lake right next to Princeton University that's seen behind Jennifer Morrison's credit in the House theme song (FREE!)
  
• Lots of time to wander around the real Princeton and Plainsboro (FREE!)
  
• Optional detour to Westwood, NJ, birthplace of Robert Sean Leonard (FREE!)
  
• Optional detour to Montclair, NJ, hometown of Kal Penn and where RSL says he'd like to live after House (FREE!)
  
• Get a House-themed goodie bag (FREE!)
  
• Get a PPTH ID-badge name tag (FREE!)

Then stay on the East Coast as long as you'd like to check out New York City, see a show on Broadway, visit Six Flags Great Adventure with its amazing drive-thru safari, spend more time in the Poconos, hit the beach, or anything else you want!


Some parts aren't interesting to me. Do I have to do all of that?

Absolutely not! Stick around for the fun parts, bail for the bits you don't care for. Have fun and customize your vacation in any way you'd like. There's no strict schedule. Everything is very relaxed and informal. The main objective is just to have fun with your House fandom pals!


Sounds like a lot of driving. How will I get around?

As with everything on this adventure, it's all up to you. If you live close enough, you can drive yourself. If you're flying in, you can rent a car. If we're a small group, we can split the cost of a rental minivan and I can drive us around. If we're a larger group and there's enough interest, we can split the price of a charter bus. I can't get you from the airport to your hotel and back, but I can do most of the rest of the driving if we're a small group, or we can look into a bus if we're a larger group.


Wait, so we can stay overnight at the Lake Arrowhead Resort or in the Poconos BEFORE the House FanFest? Where do we stay Thursday night DURING the House FanFest?

Anywhere you'd like! Lake Arrowhead Resort is about 1.5 hours from Los Angeles and the Poconos are about 1.5 hours from Princeton, so you can "commute" back to the same hotel Thursday night if you'd like to. Or you can make arrangements to stay at any other hotel Thursday night. Or crash with a local friend. Or find a bunch of people and rent a house if you're staying for a while. Anything! The main goal of the House FanFest is to be as flexible as possible and to accommodate as wide a range of budgets and preferences as possible. (Personally, I'm gonna be staying at a Motel 6 or a Super 8 Thursday night in Princeton, 'cause that's how I roll, lol.)


Why are you planning this during weekdays? Doesn't it make more sense to make this a weekend thing?

Two reasons. First, hotels are cheaper during the week, so if you want to stay at one of the resorts and want to save money at the same time, this is the way to do it. (Lake Arrowhead Resort's prices skyrocket during the weekend.) And also, I'm guessing some people, especially those who traveled far to get there, will want to stick around and do more stuff after the House portion is over. Wrapping up on a Friday frees up people's weekends to explore California or New Jersey/Pennsylvania/New York if they'd care to.


Are any of the meals included?

The only meals included are those provided by your hotel if you happen to stay at a hotel that offers complimentary meals. Since there's no cost for the House FanFest itself, I'm not providing any food, sorry! (Well, maybe some cookies or something. :) But no meals, I'm afraid.) So feel free to head off with some fandom pals at any point to grab a bite to eat!


Are you REALLY sure this is going to happen? REALLY? 'Cause I'm not flying out there if it's not happening!

Completely sure. One of the nice things about doing a get-together in a relaxed fashion like this is that it doesn't become dependent on having a certain number of people in attendance, or getting celebrities and/or FOX on-board, or anything like that. This is just fans coming together and enjoying being fans. If one person shows up or 100, we can still do everything we're planning to do. (Though bear in mind some things require some advanced planning and a minimum number of interested parties, like trying to get group rates at hotels or chartering a bus.)


In in! Now what? Summer 2010 is a long ways away...

Great! I can't wait to meet you! There's no official sign-up. Because of the loose, informal nature of the event, there's no need for a commitment for most activities. You can just show up and hang out with us! However, if you'd like to get in on the things that cost money or require a reserveration (staying at Lake Arrowhead Resort or in the Poconos on a group rate, dinner reservation at BIN189 at the Lake Arrowhead Resort, horseback riding in the Poconos, renting a charter bus, touring Princeton University if we end up with a large group, etc.), I will need to have a firm commitment for those types of things. And of course if you want a free goodie bag and a name tag, I'll need to know you're coming! But I don't need any commitments yet. Just mull things over. If you'd rather arrange for your own accommodations and transportation and don't care about goodie bags or name tags, then feel no pressure to commit at any point!


Who's running this thing? What if I have a better idea for an activity?

Me, hithah, I'm organizing this. I'll be at both House FanFests. Again, this is all very loose and informal, not strictly structured like conventions are. But it will take a bit of logistics to pull this off, and I'm excited to spearhead the effort. If you have another idea for something to add to the itinerary, I'd love to hear it! With the exception of staying at the resorts and riding horses in the Poconos, I've been to each of these places and done each of these things, so I'm just basing the current plans on what I've had fun doing in the past. If there's something else you'd like to see added to the mix, please say the word!


So what are the advantages of doing this as a group instead of just visiting LA or Princeton on my own?

To meet your House fandom friends! To get to know House fandom people you don't know well yet. And because honestly, when you're at UCLA and notice "WILSON PLAZA" etched on the courtyard and want a photo with it, when you rubber-neck because a Honda CBR1000RR in Repsol colors just drove by, when you're staring up at the fourth floor of the Frist Campus Center (PPTH) at Princeton U and trying to figure out where the balcony should go, wouldn't you like to be there with a bunch of other people squeeing just as hard as you are? ;-)


This sounds great! Let's do it!

You got it! See you this July in Los Angeles, Princeton, or both! And please watch this comm for details as plans get firmed up. There will eventually be requests for commitments to things like the resorts, the horseback riding, charter buses, and the like. And I need a recommendation for a moderately-priced hotel in the Poconos, if anyone knows of a good one! There will also be opportunities to find roommates and carpool buddies for people interested in that. This comm will be the primary means of communication about the House FanFests, so please keep a close eye on it.

I hope to see you there!