I convinced my gaming group to go to gencon I had never been. But I had always heard that it was the best con to go to. I got them to save there money and bought tickets and hotel but i did know you need to have the your whole trip planned and all your money in hand 4 months in advance. My group and I have never done Adventure League
we did know that you have to lvl character in AL sessions that you just can get into a game at any lvl. But with all the AL content Sold out is the no way my group and I to get into AL games and lvl.  

If your group has never done AL games before, why the focus now? Maybe use the time to try new systems, board games, or other things. You can also see if there are non-AL games that you could get into. 

If you have 9 hours to spare on Saturday, the Adventurers League Open still has tickets. Looks fun, and I'd be tempted if I didn't already have Talks Machina scheduled during that time. The other days you can spend in the dealer room or maybe check out events in other RPG systems. https://www.gencon.com/events/161354

Depending on how many people are in your group, it can still be possible to get into sold out events.

Sold out is sort of a temporary concept.  People return tickets (up through Jun 16 anyway).  If you check periodically you might be able to get a few tickets.  Probably not a full table's worth, but at least a few of you.  Also up through 30 minutes before an event tickets could be getting returned, so it's worth checking periodically during the con as well.

There are always some player no-shows.  I think at almost ever session some people with generic tickets will get a slot after the specific ticket holders don't show up.  Have everybody hold $12 in generics at a time, show up early to wait in line for marshalling, be flexible on what adventure you do in what order and at least some of you will get seated.  If you've got characters ready for each of the level tiers that would maximize your ability to fill in.

I suspect for some of the larger organizations like Baldman running DnD AL and Paizo running Pathfinder/Starfinder leagues they schedule extra DMs in case of DM no shows.  If all the scheduled DMs show up there might be an extra table that runs with just people using generics.

It won't be as great as having a table with all your friends, but there's a really good chance you all should still get a chance to experience what it's like.

Thank everyone for giving me a little hope for my trip. 

The Baldman Games guys are really good at trying to get everyone that shows up the ability to play in a game as are the Paizo folks. Do NOT despair!

You may message them (they are on the forums) and see if they can help you. If they know in advance, they may be able to set up some tables for you and your friends, plus other walk-ups.

Two years ago I was unable to get any of the events that I signed up for.  I ended up doing some demos but even with generics I was still unable to get in.

We are always hanging about (was at Origins the past week so catching up - slowly but surely). You show up with a new 1st level character and some dice and we will take it from there with the magic and the fun.

The learning curve for first-time GenCon goers is very steep.  There's not much information out there on how to go about planning it, let alone knowing you have to have everything done by May.

I just searched on You Tube for Gen Con tips and Gen Con events and got over 200 videos... for those who don’t like to read.

Most videos are pretty good too.

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let alone knowing you have to have everything done by May.

But - honestly - if you go to Gen Con with the right attitude you absolutely will have a great time.  I've known more than one person who has gone with no registered events (just generics) and I've not known anyone who didn't have a great time.  If your entire vacation is pinned on the hopes of one particular event or schedule, you probably shouldn't go to a big con *ever*.  There is just too much demand for too little supply - you have to be flexible and open to trying new things.

Besides, if all you're going to do is pay to play games you already know how to play. one has to wonder why you don't just save the money and play those games in your local area. Gen Con is a *fantastic* place to try a lot of new games that your regular group may not be interested in trying out.  Obviously, no #wrongbadfun and #ymmv - but whatevs.

Hope everyone, Gen Con rookie or veteran, has an awesome time at the tables this year!  

It's helpful to have everything ready to go by May, but not 100% essential. The biggest issue with waiting is finding an affordable place to stay, but if you aren't set on downtown and keep an eye on prices at the discount booking sites, it's doable. 

Our first Gencon, we bought badges about a week before the shipping deadline and found a hotel by the airport that still had a few rooms for $70/night. We bought a few generic tickets and 2-3 events that weren't sold out. I think we spent $32 total on event tickets. The rest of our time was spent in the vendor hall, pick-up games, and free stuff. We had a great time. 

There's so much going on at Gencon that if you go into it with an open mind, you can literally pre-register for nothing and still find more than enough fun things to fill your days. 

Look up on youtube Nelly's Nerdy adventures, she has a guide that she did last year that is really good for new people to Gen Con.

I understand.... If you guys would like to try a similar game called Dungeon Crawl Classics... Ill be willing to run a group of brave adventurers thru a level 0 adventure :)

I have entirely stopped buying event tickets for Gen-Con at this point because there is just too much else going on so...I realize you specifically have a group excited to do some D&D, and yes you will absolutely be able to do something either just like what you envisioned or very similar, but more importantly you will have an absolutely amazing time unless you actively try to be miserable.