Are these the same? Is one bigger than the other. Sorry if this has already been asked.
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October seems to be a little more active being that Christmas is closer. Other than that pretty much the same.
April has worked for me. AND there's always the hope of some warmer weather after winter.
As MARTYE stated above, October York can be viewed as a springboard for our annual Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday season. For me, nasty weather, spring or fall, can be an annoyance when walking from building to building. But to any o gauge toy train person, York, no matter when, is always a slice of childhood heaven.
I have always preferred the October show, if for no other reason than the drive to get there through the PA mountains a very pretty drive with the fall colors. It's also heading into the fall, a season which I enjoy.
I prefer York in the fall as well. 
On the drive to York from Parma, I take the turnpike so as not to be late on Thursday, (pockets full of money). 
However, I usually take US 30 (Lincoln Highway) on the return trip and enjoy the scenery at a more leisurely pace, (pockets completely empty). 
Regardless, I really enjoy the Appalachian Mountains in the fall after attending The York Experience.
Chief Bob (Retired) 
TheDude23112 posted:Are these the same? Is one bigger than the other. Sorry if this has already been asked.
To give a direct answer to your question, April and October are the same, same size.
Yes, as far as the Meet itself, there is no difference between the spring and fall Meet. They are both the premier toy train event in the country.
The only real difference is that there are Christmas sets and items for sale in Oct. Also, you can pick up Lemax Halloween and Christmas buildings and animations from at least 2 dealers. Oct. is the time to buy your wife train oriented Christmas presents.
I dont think it makes much difference. In my experience there's more to buy in October, but the deals are better in April.
All the above comments are spot on. Regardless of which one you pick you can't go wrong - they're both great meets! Personally, I prefer the October meet simply because Fall is my favorite season and the holidays are right around the corner.
- Greg
I enjoy the April & October meet the best.
When I was attending these events in the past, the fall show was always more interesting, more lively and in season. If you were in the market to buy trains, the selection there was always excellent, the prices reasonable and the club members and hobbyists that we met there were always very nice. However, the expense of two days of lodging, food, auto/fuel, admission/membership, entertainment and other shopping (for two) always overwhelmed the amount of train purchases by a huge margin.
eddie g posted:I enjoy the April & October meet the best.
I agree!
Happy railroading,
Don
DGJONES posted:eddie g posted:I enjoy the April & October meet the best.
I agree!
Happy railroading,
Don
Who am I to argue? It's all good.
Driving a convertible through the PA countryside in the Spring is an olfactory experience!
eddie g posted:I enjoy the April & October meet the best.
I also like the International Postcard Show held in the white hall on November 18-19.
Shoot, I'd go more often if they held it more often.
The meets are typically the same. April meets tend to be less well attended than October, but both are worth attending.
Hard to beat the Pennsylvania Turnpike in the fall for scenic value. One scenic challenger for that would be the Juniata River valley through the Lewistown narrows (US 322).
But, God willing, I attend both and hope to attend both as long as possible.
They are, as someone above stated, the ultimate escape back to childhood.
George
I love York. Doesn't matter what season it is. I do, however, prefer the October show for some reason. Seems their is more excitement in the air both with me and the entire show. Not to mention, it is a beautiful, low stress drive for me up I-270, Rt. 15 and Rt. 30 from the Washington suburbs. I (try) to go to both shows. Haven't missed one in a few years now and I hope it stays that way. I'm planning to curb my buying but I'll still be there and still find something to buy!
Admittedly, my passion and excitement for the hobby has dwindled a bit in recent years but about a month before each York show, I start getting this child-like excitement within. This October is no different! Can't really describe it but I know what it feels like. Just excitement and a "can't wait" attitude. Feels sort of like Christmas morning as a kid! While I have different plans for my life in the next few months that won't involve trains, something about the excitement of York will always be there!
I used to go to both but now that i'm getting older just try doing the fall which I always liked best. I'm going this month.
When I worked, I took off days for the fall meet only ( always more heavily attended). Since I retired 12 years ago, I go to both. ALWAYS had a good time. Don't go over your budget ( hard to do sometimes) and have a great time..
Both are great. October is typically more crowded.
I've been to three York shows, two oct and one April. While a small sample size compared to most attendees, I had more fun at the Oct show.
Ten years ago the fall meet used to to seem larger and more crowded,,,for the last few years they have seemed about the same, except I find less.
irish rifle posted:Both are great. October is typically more crowded.
From the statistics the Eastern Division publishes, the difference in attendance between April and October is about less than 100 to 400 attendees. In fact in 2010, 121 more people attended the April Meet than October's. The biggest difference was in 2015 when there were 1, 086 more registrations in October. Kind of interesting.
Traindiesel posted:irish rifle posted:Both are great. October is typically more crowded.
From the statistics the Eastern Division publishes, the difference in attendance between April and October is about less than 100 to 400 attendees. In fact in 2010, 121 more people attended the April Meet than October's. The biggest difference was in 2015 when there were 1, 086 more registrations in October. Kind of interesting.
Always has to be someone to use facts to dispute a hypothesis!
-Greg
I have only have been in April. I was told there are more deals in the Spring. October, I was told there seems to be more product. Not sure because I have never made an October show yet.
J Daddy posted:I have only have been in April. I was told there are more deals in the Spring. October, I was told there seems to be more product. Not sure because I have never made an October show yet.
There are deals at every York - it really is dependent on what you are looking for. Some Yorks, it's engines, some it's accessories, and some it's rolling stock...etc. If there are good deals on engines but you're looking for something else, you will most likely state "no deals at this York".
As for more product in the Spring - I think you see more NEW product some years in the Spring due to missing delivery dates prior to the Christmas season. But as for product in general, again...it's about the same for all meets.
Of course, this is just one person's point of view.
- Greg
Greg Houser posted:Traindiesel posted:irish rifle posted:Both are great. October is typically more crowded.
From the statistics the Eastern Division publishes, the difference in attendance between April and October is about less than 100 to 400 attendees. In fact in 2010, 121 more people attended the April Meet than October's. The biggest difference was in 2015 when there were 1, 086 more registrations in October. Kind of interesting.
Always has to be someone to use facts to dispute a hypothesis!
-Greg
I've always read that people observe that October's Meet is so much more crowded than April's. For the last 35 York Meets I've attended, it didn't seem like there was much of a difference in attendance between April and October. So to get technical , 400 extra people at the Meet spread over seven buildings over the course of three days averages about 19 extra people per building per day of the Meet. Not much of a difference.
Luv um both!
The differences are subtle.....probably due to the excitement of the coming Holiday season which it typically the traditional train season......
Peter
