Anime Festival Orlando 2026!
Blogger: @NillaCosplay
As you all know, my job is cons and community. Every year I spend almost every weekend at a convention. and every year in June I have a very important decision to make.
Do I celebrate my birthday… or do I go to Anime Festival Orlando?
Of course I go to Anime Festival Orlando!
It’s my Birthday Con!
Now, if you look closely at a calendar, you’ll notice those two events mysteriously happen on the exact same weekend every year. Total coincidence. (It’s okay, I know the AFO staff sets this up with me in mind, I just pretend not to know and act surprised ever year! Wink wink!). /s
AFO is close to home and all my friends are already there!
And honestly? It’s not even that much of an exaggeration.
For me, Anime Festival Orlando has become my birthday tradition! something I look forward too every year! It’s the convention where I know I’ll laugh until my face hurts, meet someone new, try something I’ve never done before, and somehow leave already excited for next year.
This year was of course, no exception.
Instead of simply wandering the dealer hall or hopping between panels, I finally decided to dive into one of AFO’s most unique attractions: Tales of Orlandia.
Trying to explain Orlandia to someone who’s never experienced it is almost impossible.
Imagine if Hogwarts houses system, tabletop card games, live theater, and an RPG all decided to throw a convention together.
“Throughout the weekend, attendees choose one of several factions, complete quests, play an exclusive collectible card game, tackle carnival-style games, and interact with volunteers who are in character. Every point earned helps your faction, and by the end of the convention, the winning team literally changes how the story concludes during closing ceremonies. It’s an entire live action convention experience built into the convention itself, and somehow it still leaves room to enjoy everything else AFO has to offer.” (animefestivalorlando.com)
- Here’s an in depth Look at the History of Tales Of Orlandia!
What amazed me wasn’t just how elaborate it has become over the years.
It was how much everyone committed and enjoyed the roles!
The volunteers don’t simply staff the game, they become the world. Bringing elaborate props they made themselves, investing time and energy into makeup prosthetics and accents. They welcome you into their factions, give quests with absolute sincerity of any nerd who loves a hobby, and somehow convince complete strangers to care about fictional politics by Saturday afternoon. It’s charming, a little ridiculous, and exactly the kind of creativity that reminds me why I fell in love with conventions in the first place.
The whole thing honestly reminded me of GenCon before it exploded in size! It’s refreshing and a great way to make new friends.
There’s something wonderfully “old-fashioned-DND” about it. Like we brought back a slice of life from our childhoods. Not amateur, far from it, but personal. Like everyone involved is building something because they genuinely love doing it, and they want you to love it too. It’s easy to make friends, when something someone loves is fun and involves you so deeply into the lore and community
Community. That’s probably the best way to describe Anime Festival Orlando as a whole.
Sure, there are cosplay contests (including the wonderfully named Happy Happy Cosplay GO GO GO contest), cozy fan panels, Artist Alley, gaming rooms, a custom convention menu at the hotel’s restaurant, and yes… the pool always seems to become its own unofficial event by Saturday afternoon. (animefestivalorlando.com)
But those aren’t actually my favorite part anymore.
My favorite part happens between the events.
One of the unexpected perks of running around conventions all year is getting to know some incredibly talented photographers. The downside? Most of the time they’re working. They’re behind the camera while everyone else is making memories.
AFO is different.
Because the pace is relaxed, people actually have time to exist outside of their jobs.
This year I finally got to sit down with some of my photographers instead of standing in front of their lens. I met his wife. We grabbed some food. We played a card game. We talked about everything besides trying to squeeze one more photoshoot into an already packed schedule.
Those quiet moments became my favorite memories of the weekend.
It’s easy to judge conventions by celebrity guests or attendance numbers.
Anime Festival Orlando reminds me that sometimes the best conventions are the ones where you actually have time to know the people you’re sharing them with. It’s not about the price tag, its about the price you put on each moment.
It’s the convention where friendships seem to have room to breathe.
And maybe that’s why I keep accidentally scheduling my birthday around it every year.
*queue the soft happy music*
Thank you for another memorable and amazing year AFO.
We are breaking with tradition next year in many ways. AFO for the first time in ages wont be on my Birthday, we are getting a new and shiny AFO for its 26th year, on July 16-18, 2027 we are not only getting new dates, we are getting a new venue!
The Hyatt Regency!
We will miss the Rosen, but look forward to a shiny fun new future for AFO!
Next Time…
Speaking of photographers, I’ve realized some of my favorite convention memories aren’t actually from standing in front of the camera, they’re from getting to know the incredible people standing behind it.
Next blog, let’s talk about the photographers who help make cosplay magic happen, and why they’re some of the most underrated people at every convention.
Sponsor Spotlight: Anime St. Pete 2026
Big Guests. Big Parties. Big Shopping. Surprisingly Affordable.
Beyond the big guests, cosplay, contests, and after-dark fun, Anime St. Pete 26 offers our popular Fandom Shopping Rewards program, helping fans turn their convention shopping into free tickets for future events. When you spend $50 collectively with vendors, you’ll receive a free single-day pass to another event we run. Spend $75 and you’ll earn a free weekend pass. Limit of 6 total earned passes per attendee. Eligible events include Holiday St. Pete 2026 on November 21-22, St. Pete Comic Con 2027 on April 17-18, and Sunshine City Scare 2027. It’s an incredible value that allows you to support artists and vendors while helping make convention-going for you more affordable all year long.
Anime St. Pete tickets start at $20- learn more and get tickets today.
