The only 'assigned' seating was for those with the sorcerer's packages - front and center. Everyone else is seated in sections. A - B - C (with B in the middle). Each of those sections had 2 sections each (Dina will correct me if I am wrong - could be three sections). In the queuing area there were three sections - D23 Gold members got priority, then those with Stage Pass (reservations), and standby sections. Best viewing would be B section, and those were the first to fill up. Those with reservations could show up by 6/7am and get decent seats. On Friday, for the Legends awards, we got there at 4:15, and the gold section closed around 4:45 - we were in the C section because A & B were already filled. Luckily for us, there were about 6 of us sitting together, and then we made friends (some were podcast listeners) and became a group of 12. When they finally took us up to be seated (around 10am?) we were going to be sat in the last row but because there were 12 of us they took us to another section, and we were about 4 or 5 rows from the front - but still on the side. The screens helped. I was one of the ones that basically got nothing, even though I was in the queue 2 minutes before noon, and automatically got in the official queue. Luckily for me, some of our friends had an available "plus 1," and so I was able to go to all three big panels and the Disney+ panel (Thanks
@dina444444 &
@HydroGuy ). I also saw the Art of Storytelling where John Stamos and his wife interviewed Floyd Norman, Tony Baxter, Don Hahn, and Paul Briggs. It was a little more low key, but I always enjoy these panels with insights to the thought processes behind some of these beloved animated features and attractions we enjoy.
So, Friday, I was there by 4:15, Saturday by 5am, and Sunday by 6:45. Sat in the gold section on Friday, and stage pass on Sat/Sun. It was really luck of the draw whether you sat in the front or back, and we had no control, except for choosing available sections down in the waiting queue in the basement.
One of my roommates got in the overnight queue at 10pm on Friday, and the rules were changed so no pillows or sleeping bags, so a lot of people just left them there at security. She ended up with a light blanket and no pillow. She was there for pins. The next morning, her group was being led up to the store, and by the time they reached the Expo floor to go to the store for pins, they opened the hall doors to the general public who also rushed to the pins and some got in front of the people who had spent the night before. It was a real mess, but they finally got it straightened out (this happened a few times for merchandise, especially pins). She finally was able to purchase her pins by 3:30pm.
Overall, I had fun at the Expo. Not sure if I'll be getting in those 4am lines in 2 years. I'll be 61. Ha ha