Yes.  Online Convention registration is available to members in the Members Only area of the club’s website and becomes accessible when the Convention Registration Form is delivered to members via The Lion Roars club magazine, traditionally mid-February.

In order to receive the special registration gift, you must be among the first 400 registered Member Convention-goers and be a registered guest of the host hotel UNLESS your primary residence is within 50 miles of the host city hotel.

No. You must be present at the Convention to receive the special registration gift. Members may not pick up gifts for other registered conventioneers who are not present.

Convention fees will be refunded up to May 31. After that date, refunds may be made for those tours and events which the club has not commited funds. Refunds will not be made after June 30.

You will receive your registration gift (if you qualify) and all of your tour tickets, meal tickets, and identification badges (which are required to be worn at all events) at the convention registration desk in the Host Hotel.

Yes. You’ll always be in the center of the action. The LCCA room rate is significantly less than the hotel’s published rate for the general public, and parking is usually free for registered hotel guests. Also, the fabulous Get Acquainted Party (GAP) will cost you less. It’s good for your club, too. Your reservation adds to our total room count, which gives LCCA leverage with the hotel for gratis space for the LCCA Store, display areas, train show space, registration center, and storage areas. These freebies enable the club to keep Convention costs down and maintain our dues at $43/year and provide a collectible registration gift and other goodies.

Yes. It is important that people reserve their banquet seats in advance of the day of this event. You will have the opportunity to reserve your place at the banquet in the Convention registration area at mid-week. To avoid duplicate reserved seats, we cannot allow members to reserve seating for other members at your table unless you have communicated with them and have their complete names and member numbers.

The Trading Hall is open on Friday evening and all-day Saturday. The Trading Hall will be open for trading starting on Friday night at 6 p.m. for registered Convention attendees only. This registered-only trading will continue until 9 p.m. The Trading Hall will open on Saturday at 8:00 for registered-only trading. Starting at 9 a.m. Saturday, the Trading Hall opens for the general public and LCCA members not registered for the Convention. Trading Hall closes for all at 3 p.m. on Saturday to give members and dealers time to prepare for the evening Gala Banquet. Non-registered LCCA members will be admitted to the Trading Hall free of charge on Saturday after 9:00 along with the public. During registered-only trading, admittance is limited to registered convention attendees and MUST HAVE A VALID REGISTION BADGE FOR ENTRY. Non-registered LCCA members show your valid membership card at the entry door.

The LCCA stives to increase interest in the model train hobby and in the LCCA by offering a no-charge admission to its Saturday Train Swap at the host hotel. The LCCA does select a local charity and encourages visitors to donate to this charity. The entire donation is gifted to the charity. The trading hall is open to registered convention attendees on Friday evening and on Saturday from 8:00 AM till 9:00 AM on Saturday. The general public is invited to enter the hall starting at 9:00 AM. There is NO CHARGE for the public to enter the hall and after 9:00 AM Saturday.

Dealer Trading Hall information:

• Check-In – Prior to setup, all dealers must complete Convention registration and check with the Trading Hall coordinator for table assignments.
• Trading Hall Assistant – Those dealers who require assistance from non-convention attendees are allowed to have two Trading Hall assistants. The Trading Hall assistant must be registered at the time of check-in and will be charged a $10 registration fee. The Trading Hall assistant will be issued a unique convention badge for the Trading Hall only, which must be worn at all times. Trading Hall assistants are not permitted to attend other Convention activities.
• Load-In – The Trading Hall provides for ground level load-in and load-out. Setup for the Trading Hall will commence at 7 a.m. on Friday and continue until 5 p.m. At that time, the Trading Hall will be vacated. Dealers will be readmitted to the Trading Hall at 5:45 p.m. prior to member trading at 6 p.m.
• Table Size – Trading Hall tables are 8 feet long and 30 inches wide (in most cases).
• Security – Security will be provided for the Trading Hall beginning with load-in and will be maintained through load-out.

Volunteers are always needed and appreciated. In all LCCA activities, people are needed to help with the Convention work. Contact the Convention Volunteer Coordinator for more details - Coordinator contact info on Officers/directors page  Train Set Collectors - LCCA Officers, Directors & Officials (lionelcollectors.org) page .

Smoking is prohibited in all LCCA activities. The LCCA respects that most hotels have a no smoking policy that is in effect at each hotel.

All LCCA tours are scheduled to leave from and return to the host hotel at the designated tour departure area. Exceptions will be noted and explained.

The host hotel generally offers connecting rooms for those families that need more than one adjoining room. You must request this accommodation at the time of registration.

Parking at the host hotel is free for members who are registered guests of the hotel. All others pay the posted parking rate.

The LCCA contract with the hotel includes a provision for members to extend their stay up to three days prior to the convention start date and three days after the convention ends. This offers attending members an opportunity to enjoy the LCCA Contracted Book Rate if they wish to come early or stay later. Many members take advantage of this opportunity to explore the additional activities in the area surrounding the convention city. The host hotel will offer these contracted rates based on availability at the time.

The LCCA does have a policy for dietary restrictions at its conventions. The LCCA wants every attendee to have the best possible experience, but it cannot provide nor guarantee the unique dietary needs of individual attendees on tours. The LCCA will work with the hotel staff to assist attendees requiring special meal selections at ticketed hotel events. More