Step 1: Plan When to Go
At first glance, planning when to go may seem simple, however, counterintuitively, some considerations could change the exact dates for you. Defcon is always near the beginning of August and goes on for four days Thursday through Sunday. Check the Defcon website for details on upcoming events.
Defcon 26 = Aug. 9–12, 2018
Defcon 27 = Aug. 8–11, 2019
Defcon 28 = July 30–Aug. 2, 2020
Something that is not often mentioned is that many people cut out Thursday and Sunday for various reasons, ranging from not being able to get off work to travel times. Thursday is mostly a registration day, so it's okay to plan on visiting Defcon then. There are usually a handful of talks in the evening, either in various villages such as Skytalks, or one or two official Defcon talks.
If you want to guarantee that you get a Defcon badge or to be one of the first ones to hold it, then you'll need to arrive sometime on Wednesday and lineup in the early a.m. hours of Thursday to be first in line. Also if you're into target shooting, plan on coming Wednesday to attend the unofficial Defcon shoot. On the other hand, if you have an employer with a few thousand to spare, you can try to convince them to send you to Blackhat, the corporate version of Defcon. It takes place in the week leading up to Defcon, Saturday through Thursday.
A majority of people leave sometime during the day on Sunday to be back home for work on Monday, although there are some people that stay and leave on the earliest flights on Monday. If you do decide to leave on Sunday, you're not missing much. Most of the talks, parties, and villages go on during Friday and Saturday. On Sunday, it's mostly just wrap-up events with a handful of lectures and parties.
If your schedule is flexible, I highly recommend adding a day or two onto either end of the trip to spend some time exploring Las Vegas. The price difference from taking a flight during the middle of the week can often be enough to pay for the extra day at a cheap hotel or Airbnb.
TL;DR version: You can skip most of Thursday and Sunday if you want or need to. Otherwise, consider adding a day or two on either end of the trip.
At first glance, planning when to go may seem simple, however, counterintuitively, some considerations could change the exact dates for you. Defcon is always near the beginning of August and goes on for four days Thursday through Sunday. Check the Defcon website for details on upcoming events.
Defcon 26 = Aug. 9–12, 2018
Defcon 27 = Aug. 8–11, 2019
Defcon 28 = July 30–Aug. 2, 2020
Something that is not often mentioned is that many people cut out Thursday and Sunday for various reasons, ranging from not being able to get off work to travel times. Thursday is mostly a registration day, so it's okay to plan on visiting Defcon then. There are usually a handful of talks in the evening, either in various villages such as Skytalks, or one or two official Defcon talks.
If you want to guarantee that you get a Defcon badge or to be one of the first ones to hold it, then you'll need to arrive sometime on Wednesday and lineup in the early a.m. hours of Thursday to be first in line. Also if you're into target shooting, plan on coming Wednesday to attend the unofficial Defcon shoot. On the other hand, if you have an employer with a few thousand to spare, you can try to convince them to send you to Blackhat, the corporate version of Defcon. It takes place in the week leading up to Defcon, Saturday through Thursday.
A majority of people leave sometime during the day on Sunday to be back home for work on Monday, although there are some people that stay and leave on the earliest flights on Monday. If you do decide to leave on Sunday, you're not missing much. Most of the talks, parties, and villages go on during Friday and Saturday. On Sunday, it's mostly just wrap-up events with a handful of lectures and parties.
If your schedule is flexible, I highly recommend adding a day or two onto either end of the trip to spend some time exploring Las Vegas. The price difference from taking a flight during the middle of the week can often be enough to pay for the extra day at a cheap hotel or Airbnb.
TL;DR version: You can skip most of Thursday and Sunday if you want or need to. Otherwise, consider adding a day or two on either end of the trip.
PSYCHO ARSENAL
