If one is only going to do York once ...

The next one. I had a customer and a good friend, Arnold Jones here in Roanoke that said he wanted to make the trip. Unfortunately he passed away before he ever had a chance to go.

Scott Smith

i have been to 2 spring and 2 fall meets . seemed to me ,prices in the member halls were a bit lower an i could haggel prices a little more at the spring meet.also there is far more daylight in april, its getting harder for me to drive nights.make sure you plan a day in the altoona area and see the curve.its worth the extra expense.about 2 hours west of york,if you leadfoot it alittle.-jim

I prefer fall, nip in the air, thinking about layouts etc. Seems like April is the beginning of the summer hibernation industrywide

My vote is for October as well.

Although it isn't raining, it should be, and rain would be annoying.  Trying to get stuff back to the car without getting it wet, etc.

So, while I went to my first York today and enjoyed it, I would suggest October weather-wise on general principal.

However, today was really nice.  So, I would take Scott's advice.

Mike

I plan to go this coming October for my first time there. I suppose it would be a good idea to make hotel reservations now?

Thx!

Alex

Alex, Yes

Many hotel takes reservations this week from those attending. so you should probably get yours

I don't think I would pick which show based purely on weather.  I'm pretty sure there have been some rain soaked days in October as well (might have even been one of the October shows where it rained all 3 days somewhere in the last 2-3 years).

-Dave

Scott makes an excellent point.  We need to live life like each day is our last.

Planning based on weather alone would pretty much be a crap shoot.  I have been to York Meets in April that were a washout (literally).  This past meet could not have had better weather.  I prefer the October meet myself simply as a prelude to the holiday season, but have not been able to attend that one in recent years due to the magazine's schedule.  I love the fall and driving through the Pennsylvania mountains and countryside during that season, but I have also attended fall meets where the weather was miserable.  Like I said, it's a crap shoot, weather-wise.

However, every York Meet I have ever attended has been a wonderful experience, even if I didn't buy a single train item (that has happened once or twice).  It's all about the people as far as I am concerned.  As others have noted, life is fragile and short.  Enjoy these experiences whenever you can and for as long as you are able.

As for product I'm not really sure there's that much difference about when you go, Me I like spring and hope for temps in the 70s, it was perfect this year. Wet on Wed. but the other two days this old Michigan guy soaked up sun every time he went outside.