Visitors to the Las Vegas Hilton are used to encountering the occasional Klingon, Ferengi and Borg. The hotel is home to the Star Trek: Experience attraction and Quark’s, a Star Trek-themed restaurant, so running into the show’s aliens is expected.
But this weekend, August 9 – 12th, the bulk of the Star Trek fandom will be descending upon the hotel for the annual Official Star Trek convention. This year marks the 20th anniversary of this convention and it’s bringing in the heavyweight guests to celebrate.
From the original series, William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy will be present, as will George Takei, Nichelle Nichols and Walter Koenig.
“Star Trek: The Next Generation,” brings several main character guests including Jonathan Frakes, LeVar Burton, Brent Spiner, Gates McFadden and the very cool Wil Wheaton.
From “Deep Space Nine,” look for Avery Brooks, Terry Farrell, Rene Auberjonois, Armin Shimerman, Nicole de Boer, Penny Johnson, Marc Alaimo, Chase Masterson and Nana Visitor.
“Star Trek: Voyager” guests include Kate Mulgrew, Tim Russ and Dwight Schultz. And from the fifth series, “Enterprise,” look for Dominic Keating, Casey Biggs, Anthony Montgomery and Jeffrey Combs (love him!). Even Catherine Hicks (“Seventh Heaven”), who appeared in the fourth Star Trek movie, will be appearing.
Over four days, these and many more actors and other people connected with the Star Trek phenomenon will be in attendance at the convention to entertain thousands of fans with panels and autograph sessions.
The top tier ticket packages and the special events (dinners, breakfasts, etc) with the actors are sold out. But if you just want to go and mingle, single day and two weekend packages are still available, for cash only, at the door.
If you want to go all out, you’ll want to pick up the “preferred weekend package” for $314, which includes a reserved seat at all panels for the event, a special collectors item and tickets to the Saturday night gala, featuring members of the Las Vegas Philharmonic performing a special Star Trek musical salute with “Deep Space Nine” actress Nana Visitor. If you don’t care about the concert or the reserved seating, the “general admission weekend package” is available for $129.
Single day tickets are also available, with preferred/reserved seating priced at $65 a day, and general admission seating priced at $35 a day.
None of these prices include the autographs or photo ops with the actors, but those can be purchased from between $25 – $60 on average, for those celebrities that are doing them. Of course, expect to pay more for Shatner and Nimoy ($75 a piece just for autographs and $199 for a photo with the two). But if you’re a Star Trek fan, the memories will be worth the price, I think.
For more information on the convention, please visit www.creationent.com. Otherwise, live long and prosper…and enjoy immersing yourself in all things Star Trek.
