Let's Dive Right In!
This is a long one, so let's get right into things. First off, Super MAGFest 2026 badges will go live on September 16th! And you'll have until September 30 to purchase your badge in order to be eligible for the hotel lottery and Crazy Tier merch packs. More details on both below, starting with...
Hotel Lottery Changes!
We have major changes to the hotel booking system this year! MAGFest is now handling the hotel lottery fully in-house, with new rules, deadlines, and restrictions. Please read all information carefully—it could be the difference between you getting a hotel room or not.
Here are the key points, but please be sure to visit our Hotel Info page for the full breakdown of information:
New system: Hotel rooms are now assigned through MAGFest’s own in-house lottery using the preferences you submit.
How to enter: You must purchase your badge and enter your hotel lottery preferences no later than Tuesday, September 30 at 11:59pm ET.
Lottery run: On Friday, October 3, MAGFest will email hotel room assignment results to all entrants. No more need to be online at a certain day/time!
Confirming rooms: If you’re allocated a room, you must claim it in MAGFest’s system by Saturday, October 11 by putting down a card for a one-night deposit to guarantee the room.
Roommate groups:
Roommate groups of 2-4 people can be formed (all must have MAGFest badges).
Only 2-4 person groups are eligible for Queen-Queen rooms.
Groups of 4 cannot be placed in King rooms.
Groups of 2-4 will have slightly improved hotel lottery odds overall.
Suites: Suites at the Gaylord are included in the lottery. You can enter for just a suite, just a room, or both, but you will only be awarded one.
Restrictions:
Room type assigned (King, Queen-Queen, suite, etc.) is fixed and cannot be changed at check-in.
No upgrades to atrium rooms or suites at the desk—every room is accounted for.
Rooms may not be transferred to anyone else. If you no longer need a room, simply cancel your reservation and we’ll assign it to another lottery entrant!
Free shuttles: For the first time, MAGFest will provide free shuttles between Alexandria hotels and the Gaylord at set times each day. Just show your badge to ride!
Last bits:
We expect all National Harbor hotels to be booked during the first round on October 3. All cancellations go back into the system for later lottery rounds; your preferences are saved.
If you don’t receive a Harbor room, you’ll get access to discounted Alexandria hotel blocks.
There will be an AMA on the MAGFest Subreddit tomorrow (Wednesday, September 10) at 1pm ET for any additional questions you might have.
Visit our Hotel Info page for the full breakdown, detailed timeline, and FAQ.
Closed Profile Event Changes
New for 2026, Super MAGFest will be closed-profile, which means that you must present your badge in order to enter the Gaylord. We believe this will make the event safer and more fair for our attendees. We are working closely with Gaylord security to confirm the logistics and we will share more information on or around November 19, 2025.
There is no need to do anything at this time besides buying your badge as normal--as long as you have one of those, you're all set!
Let's Talk Merch!
Every year, we have three pre-order merch packs for people to choose from, featuring merch that's exclusive to those packs. (Meaning you can't buy it from the merch booth at the event!) But some of you might be aware of the super-secret, invite-only fourth merch pack we offer, lovingly known as the "Crazy Tier".
The Crazy Deets:
The "Crazy Tier" is an invite-only merch pack with highly limited quantities, and even higher prices.
To score an invite, you MUST have purchased the BIGMA $200 tier of merch by September 30th! (The same cutoff for entering the hotel lottery.)
You'll receive an invitation email on October 1st with a link to a pre-order form that features all of the details of the merch pack.
You will have until October 7th to fill out the pre-order form, and until October 14th to submit payment.
As always, the merch packs are first come, first served!
In the past, it's included completely custom-created items like leather jackets, satin robes, woven blankets, whiskey glass sets, and more.
So get ready for September 16th, where you can grab your badge and your merch pack! In the meantime, check out what we've got in store for the Buster and BIGMA Tiers:
For what it's worth, we've worked extremely hard to keep our merch pack prices the same as they've always been, while still offering more high-quality items than ever. But it's been challenging, given the current state of... uhhhh... wildly gestures at everything. This might be the last year we're able to keep the merch prices this low, so we hope you're able to enjoy what we've got for you!
WHEW! You made it to the end. Thanks for sticking around, and we'll see you on the 16th!