In the event that you’re heading to VMworld 2013 in San Francisco, this post should help to prepare you for what to expect.

Packing

This is a five-day event that will consist of a ton of walking, some bouts of sitting, social engagements, labs, and fun.

Packing rule #1 – wear comfortable shoes.  Walking back and forth from your hotel, to the conference center for sessions, to the solutions exchange and general moving about will destroy your feet.

Packing rule #2 – leave room in your suitcase.  If you plan on picking up any swag (and there will be lots of it) you will want some extra space in your bag to get it home.  You CAN get away with only bringing a shirt or two because I guarantee you’ll receive a few before the week is over.  Below is a picture of the swag I brought home from last year’s conference.

Scheduling

Plan your days out ahead of time and then expect those plans to change.  My suggestion is to over book your days and then decide what you’re doing when the time comes.

VMware Sessions –  VMworld.com has a schedule builder that is useful in signing up for any sessions that you might want to sit through.  Sessions can be a great way to learn about VMware concepts that you’re weak on or want a better understanding of.

Social Engagements – There will be opportunities to go to plenty of parties, tweetups, sporting activities and vBeers.  The full official list is here: http://www.vmworld.com/community/gatherings but you can find other listings with additional info all over the web.  Hans DeLeenHeer has posted a great article about where to be at.  If you can do it, you’ll want to be at the Hall Crawl which is open to everyone, and the very difficult to get tickets for, the vMunderground Party.

Solutions Exchange – Plan to spend a decent amount of time at the solutions exchange.  If you want to learn about all the products that are influencing the virtualization market then go to the solutions Exchange.  There are so many industry experts to talk to, you’ll find it hard to leave.  If you want to see the list of exhibitors, VMworld.com has it covered as well.  http://www.vmworld.com/community/conference/us/sponsors/list

Come and Find Me!

I’ve got swag as well to give out and would love to have a chinwag with any readers of my blog.  I’ll have buttons, stickers, and business cards while supplies last! 🙂

I’ll also have stickers for any bloggers who were on the http://vlp.vsphere-land.com/ list of top 50 bloggers for 2013.  Please stop me and ask me for one if you’re on the list.

I’ll be playing v0dgeball on Sunday, and will be at the vExpertVCDX party, VMunderground, vBacon tweetup and will certainly be in the solutions exchange and the blogger lounge.  If you see me at the conference, please stop by and say hi.  If you hate the blog, stop and tell me that too!

Need to get in touch with me?  Find me on instagram, twitter, facebook, linkedin or Google Plus.

Good luck, learn lots, and have fun!