Community Forums

Boyle908 · 10-08-2016, 11:13 PM

Hi All

I am thinking of going to the FMCA Convention in Arizona May 2017. What activities can I expect? Is it worth going. Is it pretty typical where they have factory reps, sales, vendors Etc.

We have never been because of time but we are now retired.

Would it be best to camp outside the area and visit daily?

Is it noisy in the generator area? (+175 for 30amp) No water/sewer

Would love any input you have

Mike

Gary RVRoamer · 10-09-2016, 05:52 AM

Usually have lots of new coaches on display, plus numerous accessory and service vendors showing their wares. Seminars are offered on various topics of interest to RVers, so check the schedule and plan your time.

The evening entertainment is usually excellent, plus there are often events throughout the day, e.g. amateur musicians, parades, social gatherings, etc.

The venue is usually large, so take advantage of the free trolley service to get around.

The hum of hundreds of generator in the evening is annoying to some but becomes just background noise for others. Sometimes your neighbor has a smelly genset (out of tune). Coaches are usually packed in pretty tightly.

ronjhall · 10-09-2016, 06:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boyle908

Hi All

I am thinking of going to the FMCA Convention in Arizona May 2017. What activities can I expect? Is it worth going. Is it pretty typical where they have factory reps, sales, vendors Etc.

We have never been because of time but we are now retired.

Would it be best to camp outside the area and visit daily?

Is it noisy in the generator area? (+175 for 30amp) No water/sewer

Would love any input you have

Mike

The Chandler Convention will be held March 7-10, 2017.
We will be driving over daily because we have a winter site in Mesa. If you do the daily gate visits You will not be able to attend seminars. But will get to visit all the exhibits.
Staying in the generator area was not bad. Many of the attendees were using Genturi's on their exhaust.
If you do attend and are in the full generator area. Using generator auto start worked well for us. We used about 20 gallons of diesel over 5 days in Indy a few years ago. I was in the mid to upper 80's everyday.
There will be lots of seminars. Some are going on at the same time as others. You need to pick the ones you want.

twogypsies · 10-09-2016, 06:24 PM

There are certain generator hours. You can't run them all night. You would most likely be busy all day and there are evening things going on so you won't be at your RV all that much. It'll be quiet for sleeping.

I think you would get more out of it if you stayed on the grounds. You'll meet people who could be helpful to you in answering questions you might have.

ronjhall · 10-10-2016, 03:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by twogypsies

There are certain generator hours.

There 2 options for generator use.
1. 6am to 10 pm use.
2. 24 hour generator use.

Hgrace56 · 02-03-2017, 05:06 PM

What about dogs here?

Indy Glenn · 02-04-2017, 02:34 AM

Good info given.....

First, I would suggest you stay "On-Site". You will have access to "Everything" and social events in the evening when the gates close.

Second, when you get your daily itinerary for the rally, look at it carefully, decide what you want to attend. There are many, many seminars, most only offered once. The FMCA rally we attended last Spring (Great Lakes Area MotorCoach Association annual rally - or - GLAMARAMA) was small in comparison, what we did was study the itinerary, decide what we wanted to attend and if we needed to, we went our separate ways and swapped notes........

Dogs are allowed.......keeping in mind, every second coach has a dog or cat... LOL

People are friendly - consider volunteering.

You will have fun and enjoy your time.......

Good luck!

g