Albuquerque Convention Center

Have been hired several times to photograph events at the convention center and in all cases it has been a great place to work.
When shooting track and field events, I was allowed to go up into the rafters for overhead shots which is an added plus for them.
They have done some major remodeling and the place has a very modern, clean, and new look to it.
Just this past week I was their to shoot a conference over three days. My contact with convention center staff was pleasant as was my experience working their.
Depending on what building you are going to be in and how long you are going to be there, you can either use their convention center parking, street parking, or parking in the City ramp across the street. I even used valet parking at the Hyatt one day when I was running late and wanted to get to my assignment the quickest.

Kind of a run down place. I feel like I’m stuck I the 80’s. They are doing construction, so it may get better eventually. Parking is all around, but pretty expensive. Close to hotels as well that makes it convenient

What is there to say — it’s a convention center. I think you mostly know what to expect. But here are a few things I have noticed in my visits.
If you park in the garage, expect a nice long walk through the hallways from the garage to the center of the center. Kinda cool, however, that it’s past all of the NM Sports Hall of Fame pictures at least.
There are multiple rooms of different sizes, but they are not located or named in a very intuitive manner. Look for the signs and directories.
The food is pretty standard — nachos, hot dogs, pretzels. When a bar is set up, it’s usually a full bar. Prices for alcohol are high, but again, about what you would expect.
In the larger arenas, the sound is terrible. Way too many echos and hard to understand.
Overall, this is a nice looking venue, but not outstanding.

It’s pretty much what you would expect: a big open space within which you will find people, displays, etc. relevant to whatever is being hosted there at the time.
What I don’t understand (and this could just be the fault of the individual expo at the time) was how something was cash only. It’s 2013, people, and we’re in Albuquerque. There’s a friggin’ National Laboratory up the road, and you’re making me shell out paper to go inside? What gives?
I like to park across the street. $ 10 to get in, and the location is nice.

Nice facility overall. It’s time for some updating. Parking structure could be better and the spaces are too small.

Nice, water bottle water dispensers were pretty cool. Lots of homeless like to hang out. Close to bars and restaurants.

I like this place even though it reeks of the 1970’s. The pictures that greet you when you’re walking from the parking lot to the actual convention center are wonderfully creepy. I was there for the ABQ Comic Book Expo and it was all very nice. Met a few well known celebrities in the comic book biz, got myself some gas masks so I can be safe when the apocalypse comes, and hello… Clean bathrooms!

Recently exhibited here for a conference. For a small city such as Albuquerque, I have to say this Convention Center is pretty nice. It covers a couple blocks downtown. It is close to several hotels (my favorite is Hotel Andaluz:
).
The facilities are adequate (I used their business center to ship my stuff back home, and was completely surprised not to find a long line there after the conference).
There is a very nice and big auditorium for talks – complete with stadium seating. Of course I also liked the southwestern art as well. So yeah, this place served us well.

The Convention center– a-​ok. Large, spacious, free WiFi and easy access to conference rooms. A bit chilly when it is cold– but it is a big old building to heat.
Visitors Bureau INC. — this review is mostly for you. It would seem that if you are hosting a conference, you might plan ahead a bit. Notify the cab companies that @ 1,000 people will be flying into the airport during a 3 day stretch– and need transportation. This has failed to happen, for multiple days. Cab lines have been long– really, really long this week. A tad bit of common sense would go far. Cab drivers have not been alerted to the need. I realize that you may not be DIRECTLY responsible– but for many conference attendees– this is the first view of your town. From my experience– this trip, and from the multitudes of people I have spoken with– the first thoughts were not good ones.

Huge place — 3 floors across 2 buildings with a skywalk and multiple, connected parking garages. Bummer that the parking garage was $ 6 without in/​out privileges.
There are information staffers located on the first floor of each building, so it’s nice to simply ask, «How do I get to Acuma or Azura or (enter Native name here) room» and have them point the way.
We had a research conference on the basement level of this place, and apparently there was a jazz show on the main level. A couple times during the conference, the lights went off and on and off and on for a full 20 seconds each time. I’m assuming that was letting people know when intermission was ending and the show was starting and whatnot, but we had no clue. We all just sat in our sessions wondering if there was a power outage, fire, natural disaster, or who knows what.
Nonetheless, this was the first conference that I’ve been to where the facility was equipped with enough equipment to display numerous 5’x4’ research posters. Normally, the conference attendees scramble for mounting material, easels, clips, and space. It was also nice that they offered a cash bar during our poster presentation sessions. It made for a much more relaxed crowd of attendees than other presentations in my experience.
Additionally, it’s not too hard to find the place with some Mapquest directions and the interconnectedness of its expansive buildings. There are several hotels located 5 blocks away, and a few non-​chain restaurants within walking distance. Otherwise, it is a typical downtown, business location.
Would definitely do again.