Texas Frightmare Weekend

I've gone to TFW for a number of years and have made friends with people all over the country because of it. To the point that the main reason I keep coming back is that it's become more a reunion of friends vs coming for autographs/shopping. Though of course they have amazing vendors every year that I tend to get gifts for friends and family's birthdays or way early Christmas shopping when there.A few tips for newer people coming, go ahead and spring for the weekend pass if you can. Friday is the best day for autographs. If there is a must get autograph, go get in those peoples lines first because some can take a long time. Saturday is usually the busiest day and Sunday usually the most chill. The snack bars and coffee shop are the most reasonable priced food options but I usually just bring my own water & have some of my own snacks in my bag ... then eat when I've left or on my way in as I live close enough to come & go. Bring cash, because most if not all of the guests that you would get autographs from only take cash. Vendors take card though so if your not big on getting autographs then cards can be used! Get the cash from your banks ATM before you arrive. That should be a habit of anyone going to a convention, don't depend on the ones there. ATM's on site have run out quickly in the past, like they have at other major conventions, and the company doesn't come out to refill it as quickly as could be needed. Then that way if there was an issue your bank is able to help you because it's your banks ATM malfunctioned vs a 3rd party ATM. (Which all the convention or hotel can do is give you the contact info for the ATM company because it's their machine that malfunction. Also Have fun, meet some of the fellow fans & people watch!

I am in my late 40s and have been a horror fan and somewhat connected to the industry for a long time. I have been going to horror conventions since the 90s. Fangoria Weekend of Horrors, Monsterpalooza,Midsummer. Etc. This year was my first time at Texas Frightmare. All in all it was a good time (except for day 2 but I'll go into that in a bit). I had purchased a 3 day pass with souvenir tshirt. Friday I got there really early, met up with my industry friend from Hollywood, got my wristband and killed some time until the event opened up. Throughout the 3 day event I managed to score a few autographs for both me and a friend of mine from SoCal that couldn't make it...as well as a bunch of blu rays, books and art. And I caught some really good panels and screenings as well as getting my picture taken with many people. The people that run the event are friendly and seem to know what they're doing. The vendors in the merch room are good. But there are a couple of big issues. One is the parking. On Friday I arrived shortly after 11 and managed to park in Terminal C which is the event. Saturday I arrived a bit late...around 12 noon and was detoured to terminal B and was told I had to take a shuttle to terminal C. The line for the small shuttle was massive and folks in the line had clocked it at being over an hour long. I decided to leave Sunday I got there much earlier and lucked out by snagging the last parking spot on the roof of terminal C. I felt bad for the row of cars behind me. The fix for this problem would be to move to a venue outside of DFW since parking lots are shared with airport traffic. You don't run into parking problems at other horror cons. Now I get why they have it there. Because it's convenient for out of towners. But Monsterpalooza is in Pasadena nowhere near an airport and yet still attracts people from all over the country and world. My next issue them mixing autograph booths with merch booths. It makes it hard to enjoy shopping at booths when you're bumping into people who are in a massive line waiting for signings so close to where merch is sold. Monsterpalooza has most autograph oops on the outside of the vendor room to leave room for the vendors. Also a bigger volume of vendors would be nice. I know many local horror shops that couldn't set up because there wasn't anything available. Monsterpalooza and Midsummer both have more vendors. Then my final critique is the screening room in the maverick hall. To put such a great documentary Beset by Demons in that room, on such a tiny screen with crappy sound was insulting. I have a bigger portable screen and higher quality projector I use in my backyard for my backyard parties. I felt bad for Mr. Henkel. But the crazier part is that I messaged Frightmare on FB offering constructive feedback and they flat out shot me down. In my industry I work closely with businesses to help them grow in a sustainable way and part of that is them being open to candid feedback from their customers and patrons. It took me by surprise they they would be against feedback. There is always going to be 'went wells' and 'better next times'. I remember giving Tony Timpone feedback on one of their last Fangoria Weekend of Horrors and he thanked me for it. We're still friends to this day because feedback is not out of meanness but out of wanting them to do better and better. I want Frightmare to continue to be successful. And if they listened to their patrons they would be.

I have been attending this event for years, It is a great event for horror Gore fans. Also great photo ops for your next Christmas Card. In the past I would attend the VIP parties but since Walking Dead was the highlight It was too crowded and I did not want to jump on the band wagon this year. Don't get me wrong I love the cast and I am glad the show has been such a big hit...Good for the industry. I uploaded my pics on the hotel site (LOL) I will upload some over here. Def check it out children 12 and under are free. I missed the movie screenings so I was kinda of bummed but I had like 3 other things planned this weekend ;( At least I got to enjoy for a few hours. Next year I will def be back to check it out. I am a total closet Horror Geek

If you are a horror fan, this is thee place to be! Horror movies and gore galore! Everyone was super friendly at this event, I have to say this was the friendliest group of people out of any con I've ever been to. I got pictures with a number of people in costume, and people were just having a great time. This year they had a bunch of the cast from The Walking Dead as well as a plethora of other guests. As this was my very first time at Frightmare I decided to skip the standing in line for signatures this go around, and instead get a little taste of everything at the place. It was fun to walk by the tables and see all the famous faces though. I did see Bill Moseley from Repo the Genetic Opera, and though I was too shy to say hi, seeing him there made my fan girl heart all happy. I also got to see a panel with the funny Danny Trejo. I made it in to see the end of some short films, and watched the special screening of Rue Morgue's first feature film "The Last Will And Testament Of Rosalind Leigh". The dealer's rooms had plenty of variety, and there were some hilarious as well as truly creepy finds here - which as a horror fan is usually a good thing!I really wanted to stay for Rocky Horror, but there was a big lull in the program, as things were already started and packed wall to wall standing room only. I found myself sorta hanging around awkwardly doing not much of anything and so decided to call it a night. So my only two suggestions for the event are they need some smaller entertainments to hang out at during the lull between the dealers rooms closing and the big events at the end of the night so not everyone is packed into a few spaces. I need some breathing room! Also, why in the WORLD would you choose to host the event at an airport hotel?! I got lost going in, I got lost going out, and traffic, the chaos and blah. On the plus side though that place was cranking out the AC!! I hate going to cons where I am hot and miserable the whole time and get hit in the face by a wall of BO. But this place was ice cold and I loved it.When we go again I hope to get a room in the hotel so that I can see all three days and can also take breaks when I so choose before going back for more. I think if you have the cash to burn that is the ideal way to see this con. All in all I'd say it was a really fun event, absolutely worth going to if you are a fan of the horror genre at all.

Always a fun weekend. Been coming here for the last ten years. Current home is at the Hyatt Hotel at DFW airport. Runs over three days. Lots of celebrities, parties, and movie screenings all with the horror genre in mind. Don't like horror? Check out their website. Their celebrity guest lineup will surprise you with stars like David Arquette, Malcolm McDowell, Robert Englund, Danny Trejo, Neve Campbell, and Tobin Bell. They usually spotlight a classic horror movie with many of it's stars in attendance. A few years ago it was Phantasm and Scream. This year (2017) it was The Thing and Fright Night. It does get crowded, and there are lines, but nothing too bad. I've waited in longer lines for a cronut. Come with friends or family and you'll enjoy the experience so much more.

I've read the complaints and have to disagree. This event is hosted by some of the friendliest, most polite staff. I've been to other conventions and been hearded like cattle, condescended to, and generally ignored. From the organizers, to hotel staff, to the guests this is a far more friendly and intimate event. Can it be crowed? Yes. Will glitches arise? Yes, but I think the poor reviews are from people who are placing blame for errors on the staff when it was not the organizer's fault (talking to you, ATM guy and woman who cannot enter her personal information correctly). My fiancé and I have been regulars for over a decade and we ALWAYS have blast, get star struck, meet cool new people, and come away looking forward to the next year!

Always so excited to be there! It's always great to see everyone, and especially some of your favorite guests!!! Can't wait to be there this year. 69 days left!!!

First and last time going to this convention. It doesn't even matter that this is the only major horror convention in Texas - it's so awful it's not worth it. The admin(s) on their Facebook page have huge egos and attitudes and respond to customers by threatening to cancel events if they complain. I'd rather keep my money and go to conventions that are actually fun and have respectful staff. They should be ashamed that this was their 9th year in operation and they were bungling it this badly. Problem 1: They pre-sold photo ops with celebrities before releasing the photo op schedule. When they did, each celebrity was only taking photos on one day, during very limited time slots. What if you bought a Friday pass but your celebrity photo op was on Saturday? Guess they didn't think of that. People started complaining, and some suggested that there should be more time slots and each celebrity should do photo ops on multiple days. TFW responded that if people keep complaining, they'll cancel photo ops altogether and move on. Then they deleted the whole post. The next day they posted a new photo op schedule...and did exactly what people were suggesting they do. More time slots, and celebrities taking pictures on multiple days.Problem 2: Less than a week before the convention, they e-mail people that pre-ordered convention t-shirts that there were "unresolvable design issues" and that there would be no t-shirts (or posters) this year, and to expect a refund. They didn't bother posting this information on their Facebook or site to inform customers that were planning on buying these items at the con. I only found out because of the slew of people that posted about it on their Facebook. When VIP members bought their passes, these items were listed as being in their goodie bags. They were asking if they'd be compensated for this somehow (partial refund or extra goodie bag items). TFW never responds to them.Problem 3: I had asked on their Facebook page why Ghost (band) didn't appear on their map. They told me that they were only appearing Saturday, so they'd put up and take down their stuff. When I got to the convention, I had to keep asking the help desk about it, and was given different information every time. Eventually I was told that they would just be walking through the convention, and wouldn't have any table. When Ghost arrived it was chaos. They were mobbed everywhere they went. There were points where it was hard to breathe because I was being smashed so hard between people. You had to run/shove through a crowd to even catch a glimpse of them. This is NOT what I was expecting based on the lies I was told on their Facebook. It was horrible. Problem 4: People complained on their Facebook about how dangerous the Ghost appearance was, and that it should be more organized. TFW responded that they just wouldn't have the band come at all again next year. Then they said that it was perfectly safe because they had volunteer security following the band around. That wasn't what people were saying at all. It was dangerous because they created a situation for people to crowd into rooms over maximum capacity. Their response to that? Delete the whole post.Problem 5: They sell beer in the concessions area but don't check ID. Apparently all you have to do to get beer here is pay for it.

I recently read the updates beginning to come out for next years Frightmare weekend 2019 and realized I had forgotten to write a review on how absolutely amazing this event was in 2018. Me and my son are huge fans of Horror and came specifically to see the IT cast. This was our first year and we had one of the best times of our lives at this event. It has been over for more than 3 months and I can't get over it. In addition to the awesome guests that were there and very accessible for autographs and photo's, we located an awesome mask company, Blood Line Designs, who custom made a mask for us for Halloween this year. There were a lot of people there but no different than a rock concert, it was awesome seeing all the people there dressed up and just loving horror!!! We will go to this event annually until it stops or I'm DEAD!!!

Hello awesome people watching. I'm not a big horror fan- I'll be honest. Some stuff I really like(vampire, werewolf &scifi) so I think a bit of this may have been wasted on me :) My boyfriend really enjoyed it though. Seeing Gary Busey was fun- that guy constantly looks like a hot mess. He had a black eye! I loved all the vendors. Lots of old toys and we even found a booth with zombiefied disney princesses. Took lots of pics with the folks in character- My biggest disappointment was Norman Reedus cancelling. Da Fuq?!?!?! I was so ready to stand in line for that guys autograph and photos. Booooooo. All in all - I'd return next year!