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What Parents Need to Know

Whether this is the first time that your child will be attending Animaritime or they are a veteran attendee, this section will provide parents information about what to expect at Animaritime 2013.

What is Animaritime?
Animaritime is the Canadian Maritimes only three-day anime and gaming convention.
What will be going on?
Animaritime 2013 encompasses a large number of events and demonstrations including a masquerade, karaoke, video games, board games, vendor room, artists' alley; as well as contests like the AMV contest, art contest, and the fanfiction contest. If that isn't enough to get you excited about Animaritime 2013, we've also got special guests of honor from the anime and gaming industries excited about joining us this year.
When is it?
Animaritime 2013 is being held on Canada Day weekend (June 28th - 30th).
What is the average age of people coming to Animaritime?
As a family-friendly event, we draw people of all ages. The average age of people attending Animaritime is 14-27 years old, but we see people from age 2 - 62.
Are there any age restrictions? Do I need to attend Animaritime as well?
Animaritime requires that all children under the age of 13 must be accompanied by an adult at all times while attending the convention. If your child is between the ages of 13 and 18, you are not required to attend. However we encourage your to join your child at Animaritime and make it a family event. Any child under the age of 18 will be required to have a parent or guardian sign a waiver before they can receive their badge. If you will not be attending, you can send your child with a parental waiver form that you've signed.

If your child will be spending the night at the Crowne Plaza, please note that they will require a credit card to check-in.

Is there a way for you to contact my child if I need to get ahold of them?
Animaritime does NOT have a public address system that we can use to page people. We suggest that if you will need to contact your child while they are attending Animaritime that you arrange for them to have access to a cell phone.
Is my child safe at Animaritime?
We work very hard to make Animaritime a safe, family friendly environment for all of our attendees. You should not be afraid to allow your child to attend Animaritime. Common sense rules still apply, however: Remind your child that there is safety in numbers, not to give their address, phone number, or go anywhere alone with strangers, and not to leave their belongings unattended. Most important of all, be sure to tell them to find an Animaritime staffer if anyone bothers them or makes them uncomfortable.
A note from our Security Staff:

The security staff at Animaritime is here to help make sure that everyone has a safe and healthy time at the convention. While all Animaritime personnel hope that the convention is both successful and enjoyed by all of its attendees, it is not the responsibility of security to ensure that attendees have an enjoyable experience. The priority of security to make sure that everyone is safe – that they leave in the same condition they arrived in and are not exposed to anything that may be inappropriate for their age.

We ask that all parents read and discuss these protocols with their children, especially if you are not going to be there to watch them. Also we must remind parents that there is no convention phone, therefore, if you need to contact a staff member you will have to phone the hotel and have them call the convention floor

Emergency situations:

  • If your child has a medical condition tell them to immediately find a staff member
    • Leave them with emergency contact information
    • If your child requires the use of an epi-pen or any other medication, please make sure they have them with them.

In the event you cannot locate your child:

  • The best way to keep in contact with your child is by providing them with a cell phone and/or to set up designated times and areas to meet. Set these times up before the convention and make sure your child knows the importance of them. If, for some reason, you cannot get in contact with your child please do the following:
    • Do a cursory search of the convention floor. Perhaps they were not paying attention to the time and simply got caught up in an activity.
    • If after you have scanned the convention floor you still cannot find your child, please locate any one of our staff. After this the following will occur:
      • The staff member will ask you to come into the staff room
      • The Head of Security will be contacted.
      • A description of the child will be taken and a room by room search will being.
      • If, after this, the child has still not been located, all staff members will be contacted and informed. We will expand the search and if required lock down the convention and contact the proper authorities.
      • We ask that you please remain in the staff room, unless asked to do otherwise. When we locate the child, we will want to reunite you as quickly as possible and this is greatly facilitated if all staff members know where the parent/guardian is.
  • Though security is here to watch out for the attendees, we cannot maintain (constant vigilance!) over any one particular child. We, therefore, remind you that:
    • Although the hotel can be locked down during emergencies, we cannot keep it locked at all times. We must remind you that if you are not there, or if you have not sent your child with a guardian, there is no one watching whether or not your child leaves the premises.
    • Animaritime does not have a sign in/out sheet for attendees under the age of 13. Any child under the age of 13 found to be without a parent or guardian will have their badge revoked and their parents contacted immediately.

In the event a complaint is launched against your child:

  • When security is presented with a complaint concerning your child we ask that you respect our situation and remain calm. We are dealing with the best intentions of all persons involved and require you to work with us not against us. We understand that great time and effort has been put in on your part to make the convention a fun experience for your child, please remember that a great deal of time and effort has been put in on our parts to make this a fun experience for everyone.
    • If you are staying with your child we expect you to monitor their behaviour, however, if security is called they are the authority and we expect you to defer to their decisions. Incompliance can result in you being asked to leave, taking with you both your child and any others that are there under your guardianship.
    • If you are not staying with your child, please leave the most (contactable) phone number available. The situation may arise where your child will be asked to leave and we would like to be able to contact you as quickly as possible.

Please note that Animaritime is not a babysitting service. It is your responsibility to know where your child is and what they are doing.