Pre-Registration Opens for Anime Expo 2009

Pre-Registration has opened for Anime Expo 2009, the annual anime / manga / J-pop culture event held in Los Angeles, California on Fourth of July weekend. While July 2-5, 2009 may seem far away, pre-registration has its benefits, including a significant discount on 4-day passes compared to the at-the-door prices. If you sign up before Monday, March 16, 2009, your 4-day pass will cost you $50. If you miss this early opportunity, then the passes will be $55, and the price will go up regularly until day of show, when they'll cost you $70. Find out more about registration pricing.

You can register now online, and take advantage of the early bird discount. Registering early also means you can then reserve your hotel room at the special discounted con-rates for this event, which is held at the Los Angeles Convention Center in downtown L.A. Veterans of this event know that the most conveniently-located and most reasonably priced hotel rooms go fast, so if you're definitely going to this annual event, planning ahead may pay off.

Why go to Anime Expo? It's one of America's largest and longest running anime conventions, and as such, it is chock-full of special events and noteworthy guests. So far the headline guest is Morning Musume, a chart-topping supergroup of very cute girl singers who are hugely popular in Japan. Early registrants also get first crack at getting tickets for the concert event, which is sure to be popular.

Anime Expo also provides fans with four fun-packed days of cosplay, games, anime screenings and concerts -- so much fun that it has to remind fans who want to enjoy every minute of this 4-day event to take a break to sleep, eat nutritious meals and bathe.

See what you missed last year with my Anime Expo 2008 Photo Gallery. Also, have you been to Anime Expo? What do you like about it, and what do you think they could do to make it an even better show? Add your comments below!

Image credit: © Deb Aoki