A Spooky Event Finds a Home

Why This Horror Convention Keeps Coming Back to Seattle Southside

Last Updated: September 23, 2025

Every year, the Pacific Northwest’s signature horror gathering, Crypticon, returns to Seattle Southside—drawing thousands of fans, filmmakers, vendors, and cosplayers.

Held at DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Seattle Airport in May, it’s a three-day affair that feels as much like a reunion as it does a convention. For owners Mickey Bunnage and Troy Bowers, the choice of venue has been central to the event’s growth and the community it nurtures.

When they first started the con in 2008, they had trouble finding the perfect location. After trying the Seattle Center and Everett, which did not work well for them, they returned south and reconnected with Hilton’s properties.

The conference spent several years in the Hilton Seattle Airport & Conference Center, which offered great advantages: “It was our own little world, and we loved it,” says Bunnage. As the convention expanded, they moved it to its current location, which has “been a dream”.

The Ghostbusters NW crew are regulars at Crypticon.

What Makes DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Seattle Airport an Ideal Venue

What keeps Crypticon rooted in Seattle Southside? For Bunnage, it’s a combination of layout, hospitality, and the way the space supports the fan experience from Friday through Sunday.

“They are so welcoming,” she says of the DoubleTree team. “They just spoil us rotten, and they’re so accommodating and so sweet.”

That partnership shows up in countless details that help the weekend run smoothly for attendees, vendors, and volunteers. The space itself also works beautifully for a multi-track event.

“It’s that it’s not super spread out,” Bunnage explains. “We’ve got the Grand Ballroom and the Northwest rooms down on the main floor, then up on the second floor, there’s the Cascades and Evergreens, which work perfectly for our panels and our film festival. And then the 13th floor—we buy the suites so we can make that be a party floor.”

It’s a configuration that naturally flows—from headline sessions and vendor shopping to screenings and late-night meetups—without endless treks between buildings. That thoughtful footprint supports what Bunnage sees as Crypticon’s defining quality: connection. The show’s programming and social spaces are designed to keep people together all weekend.

“It’s literally… like a family reunion,” she says. “There are so many of our attendees that come in on Thursday because they don’t want to miss a single second of it.”

Attendance reflects that loyalty. By the convention industry’s standard door-count method, Bunnage estimates 7,000–7,500 entries across the weekend, with close to 5,000 people participating for the full run. The majority stay and play on site—good news both for the event vibe and for local hotels, restaurants, and nightlife.

The vendor hall features dozens of local artists, authors, and craftspeople.

Learning From Past Experience

Of course, a long-running convention doesn’t reach year after year of success without listening and adapting. Saturdays can be especially popular, so the team keeps tuning the schedule to spread marquee moments across Friday, Saturday, and Sunday to ease congestion and give attendees more chances to catch what they love. The venue’s flexible spaces make that kind of fine-tuning easier.

Looking back on the journey, Bunnage is candid about why Seattle Southside works while other experiments didn’t. At the DoubleTree, wayfinding is intuitive, rooms are clustered, and the entire environment feels purpose-built for a community-forward fan convention.

Event attendees listen to a panel.

Why They Love Seattle Southside

Being in the heart of the Seattle Southside region adds practical advantages. Proximity to SEA Airport (formerly Seattle-Tacoma International Airport) simplifies travel, and the cluster of hotels, dining, and entertainment options makes it easy for fans to extend their stay. A large percentage of attendees book hotel rooms for the weekend. In fact, demand can be so strong that the hotel was full on that weekend, with convention guests and regular travelers.

As Crypticon gears up for future editions, Bunnage’s gratitude for the people behind the scenes is unmistakable. She knows the banquet and events team members by name, praising their responsiveness and care. Their attention to detail when handling contracts and logistics make the weekend feel effortless, even when thousands of moving parts need to sync.

Ultimately, place and partnership are inseparable from Crypticon’s story. The layout supports discovery and delight; the staff makes ambitious ideas possible; the location helps fans turn a single panel into a full weekend of memories. For the Crypticon team, that combination is rare. With a proven footprint, a welcoming team, and a community that treats the weekend like a reunion, it’s easy to understand why Crypticon keeps coming back to Seattle Southside—and why the owners truly love the venue.

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