We have some complicated news and exciting news to share with the PortConMaine community.
First the complicated news: The Maine Mall has ended our lease on the space we have, and unlike last time: there’s no other space to move to. So at this time, we no longer will have the Games Arena space. In March we hope to rent additional space at the mall, maybe even in the mall, for the event in June: but at this time we plan on using as much hotel as we can and utilizing our creative staff and planning to make the best possible (if not wacky) year yet. We’re looking into renting the entire second floor of the convention tower to use for various small break out rooms, and even considering renting “the second tent” like we had years ago. We’ll make it work- we always do: our community is hard working, creative, and driven. This weekend staff are getting together to move out 10,000 square feet of stuff from the mall into a second floor garage storage space- the dedication to planning and organizing PortCon is amazing, to say the least!
For other events we run during the year: we are researching places to host in. From renting out space in hotels or looking at vacant retail spaces we could short term lease- we’ll figure it out. Julie loves Nor’Geekster TOO much to not have it happen annually- and we know our get togethers are a great way to keep in touch throughout the year.
Now for the exciting news: we know that not having the additional mall space is complex and not ideal. The DoubleTree worked because we had the mall space and other additional spaces. Knowing that the mall is no longer an option, we are officially in process of signing agreements with the Holiday Inn by the Bay for PortConMaine 2026. This gives us everyone under “one roof” and enough space for us to be able to fit in. We’ll have a larger exhibitor’s space, and options nearby if we ever need to spread out further.
We wanted everyone to know this exciting news so that 2025 can be a celebration of the DoubleTree and everything they have done for us. For a lot of attendees, it has been the “home” of PortCon, and while it is exciting to think of what opportunities new spaces bring, we’ll miss our “home” for so many years. To make the best of 2025- make sure you reserve your hotel room as soon as possible, so that the final year at the DoubleTree can be as awesome as possible for you and this year’s epic event.
As we have more details on mall rentals, the second floor, and where each department will be (including a map of the space with updated locations) we will post here on the website and on our discord. Social media algorithms are not the best ways to stay up to date: join our discord (https://discord.gg/WBEMxke) today or check back on our website (http://www.portconmaine.com) for all the news we can share.