Each paid member 14 years old and younger may bring a grown-up for free.

Simple to state, but what does that mean? How does the adult sign up for it? Why do we have this option?

Any grown-up — a relative (step-parent, aunt or uncle, grandparent, etc.), a friend of the family, a neighbor, a teacher — can be eligible for this program. We’ll even give you a “Parent-in-Tow” ribbon for your badge. The child is anyone 14 or younger when their membership fee is paid.

With our online registration system, enter the total number of people for the quantity. (So if you have two twelve-year-olds, one 16-year-old, and one grownup driving them all, enter 4.) For the grown-ups, select “Parent-in-Tow” as the type of membership, and it will automatically show those as “0.00.”

If you weren’t able to figure out how to do it via our complicated “Shopping Cart” system, and you’ve already paid for the 14-or-younger person, just send a message to our Membership department. Tell them you’d like to be the Parent-in-Tow for so-and-so, and your mailing address is such-and-such. We’ll take care of it. Or, if you don’t get it figured out in time, we’ll deal with it at Registration, but our Membership department really prefers to know how many are attending… planning ahead is preferred.

We have a student discount membership option. Some students are in college, some in high school, some are younger than that. (We also have a group discount program. It doesn’t matter what rate the child 14 or younger paid, as long as they’re a paid member. If they volunteered the previous year and have a free “pass-on” membership, that counts too, as long as they’re still under 15.)

The students 14 and younger are generally the ones that aren’t going to conventions unsupervised. We offer the chaperone a free membership so as to make it easier for our younger fans to join the fun.

The Parent-in-Tow gets a full membership, with all the same perks that every member gets. For example, the adult can go to the Con Suite and have a cup of coffee or a bottle of water, and hang out with the other grown-ups. We expect that the adult and child will have some way to stay in touch — regular check-in times, cell phones, holding hands — whatever works for them. We’re also going to have a Parents’ Lounge if you’re not interested in being in the middle of the action. There will be a house phone there, so it will be possible for your precious darling to check in by picking up a hotel phone or calling the hotel operator (310-641-5700) and asking for the New Orleans room.