melodyr

Who is headed my way next week? Anyone need someone to help them with how it all works? I'm local and love to meet QB members.

csstexas

Nest week my friend and I will travel to Paducah for Quilt Week for the first time. We have a place to stay, tickets to the National Quilt Museum, and we are registered. We would appreciate any suggestions or do's and don't's you might have for us. We are both so excited!

JustAbitCrazy

As anxious as I am to see all those quilts, I have learned to discipline myself and visit all the vendors first, so an item I may want doesn't sell out before I get there. I buy things at major quilt shows that aren't available to me close to home. Take advantage of the free to ride quilt show buses. They are free for anyone to ride, but if your hotel is on one of the loops they each follow, that's even better because it will stop right at your hotel to pick you up and drop you off. When you get there get a map showing where each of the buses go to---there are about 5 of them (?it's been a few years since I was there), each travels an endless loop, and between them you can get just about anywhere.

cjsews

No wheeled carts are allowed in the show for safety sake. There will be a baggage check where you can leave your purchases. Support the local Boy Scouts. They sell the best strawberry shortcake. Have a list of wants when you head to Hancock’s. It is overwhelming in there. Make sure you hit downtown. Lots of interesting vendors and local shops. Wear comfortable shoes and have a ball. I will be there on Saturday

LynnBBQ

You can go online now and see the Show Book - it has all of the maps of the vendors, the buildings, and the shuttle routes. Make a plan. Do not miss the Antique Quilt Show at the Civic Center. Like others have advised, wear comfortable shoes, and bring a tote bag to carry your small purchases and paper handouts. I would try to carry the smallest purse you can get away with - some of the booths are crowded and a big purse will get in the way. The food vendors in the parking lot may technically be "open" until 4 pm but we found that they ran out of food starting around 2pm. By 3pm your choices were very limited so don't plan on eating late.

A word of caution: do not blindly depend on the buses and shuttles to always be on time. I took my husband in 2017 and they "forgot" to pick up about 75 of us from Park and Ride Lot on Wednesday morning. We all got there early to make sure we saw the opening of the Show... but we were not picked up for about 90 minutes. Yes, we were in the correct spot. We called and emailed and Facebook messaged anyone we could think would help but no one answered. Eventually someone drove their car to the show and they sent a bus. THEN on Wednesday night, after the All-Star Show special event, there were no buses to take us back to our cars. I had made sure via email that we would all have transportation but none of the buses were scheduled to take us back to the Park And Ride lot. Several of us were stranded AGAIN. One of the bus company managers sent a driver off his course but it took an extra hour to get it figured out. When I complained on Thursday at the show, all of the AQS staff denied that this had happened. HELLO - it wasn't only me... there were a bunch of us both in the morning and at night. When I emailed AQS, they also denied it happened. My husband was so mad about the situation he refused to go back again. We talked to several people that week who had stories of them missing their tour bus pickups because the shuttles were late or lost. Apparently this happens almost every year. We are going again this year (husband caved in) but we will be parking in the downtown lots and NOT depending on their shuttles.

Onebyone

I have been going for years. It's my me time so I go alone. One thing I learned is to take time to watch all the demos. Many new notions and tools are demostrated and there is usually a show discount. I don't buy a lot of fabric there, not even at Hancocks. I don't think the sale prices are saving me that much. I love Quilt in a Day. Check to see if tickets are available for Eleanor's show. If not you can stand in back. She has two places. One is the shop and one is the warehouse around the corner from the shop. She has the best prices on tools, rulers, etc. Paper Pieces is a fun place to visit. Finkle building is full of vendors, Rotary Club has quilts and vendors, many vendors in historic downtown. If you aren't driving you can ride the shuttle bus. Buses take more time to get around so plan for that. The Marshmallow Pavilion is apart from the convention center and it's full of vendors. The show at the convention center is two stories so don't forget to go upstairs. Food lines are long at lunch time so if you want until then you will waste at least an hour or more. Take a water bottle and refill. Pictures of quilts are okay to take but no pictures allowed at the vendor booths. You will have an amazing time and love every minute of it.

I drive and haven't had any parking problems at any of the places. Traffic is not congested just busy around the convention center. If you park at the convention center get there before the show opens and pay for parking at the center. You can walk to everywhere from there, the museum is across the street, downtown is a few blocks away, Quilt in a Day is walkable and Paper Pieces shop or you can take the shuttle bus to any of those places and back again to the show. I drive to Rotary Club and Hancocks. Parking isn't a problem so I don't know why anyone would drive there and wait in a lot for a bus.

Joan in AK

I am going to the Paducah Quilt show next week. So excited as this is something I have wanted to do for a long time. My question is this for those who have gone: are you allowed to take a tote bag in with your purse to carry what you may buy. What are the rules for entering if there are any?
Thank you

sharonve

We did when we went

LynnBBQ

Yes, you can bring a tote bag. You cannot bring a wheeled cart or an unoccupied stroller to carry your purchases. I went in 2017 and they didn't inspect bags or anything like that. Just be aware that some of the booths are tight and if your purse, etc. is really large, you might bump into the other people or the displays.

Garden Gnome

Just make sure you wear good walking shoes. When I went, it was so crowded at the food stands, the only place to sit and eat was on a curb. I have a feeling if one were obviously handicapped, arrangements would be made to get you a place to sit. The huge crew of volunteers did a great job, directing traffic, answering questions and cleaning up after the visitors. They even kept all the bathrooms clean.
If you get a chance while in town, be sure to go to Hancock's of Paducah.