Last night a Staff Writer for a gaming site I freelance for asked if I was planning on attending E3 this year. That e-mail followed a few hours later with a request that I go. Now I am put into a tough situation and looking for advice.

Before the e-mails, I had no intention on going nor did I even think about it. I was already asked by the site to cover two other events this year (GDC Canada and PAX) so going to E3 was never a thought considering the staff writers were already planning on going. Now that it seems that I am needed in LA, I am really contemplating taking the flight down to attend the event. There are just a few problems with this. First off, I would have to pay my own flight to LA. A flight from YVR (Vancouver) to LAX would set me back around 500 dollars plus a hotel room for a few days. Second, I would have to take time off my regular full-time job to do this. While I have plenty of vacation days available, I was trying to save them for a trip either to Brazil, Spain or Sweden later this year. I know I would only take 3-4 days off work, but considering my plans for a longer trip, I would need those days. Lastly, this wouldn't be really a vacation as I would be working twice as much as I already do. From all the 'horror' stories of the hectic schedule at E3, it's like working 18 hour days.

But at the same time, I see this as a great opportunity for me to interact with others in the press and the industry; making contacts and getting my name out there. I think that alone is worth everything, but I am still bogged down by the other issues. I have time from now until June to save up for the flight and my expenses; I am even trying to see if Freelance Business trips are tax deductible. The fact that I also get to see and possibly sample some of the biggest titles for the rest of the year and for 2010 is another factor that cannot be ignored.

The largest hurdle seems to be hotel accomodations. At this moment, I think finding a hotel in LA for the event might be difficult. I am going to see how much a hotel room would cost for those few days. In fact, I am going to see if any of my buddies from Vancouver want to tag along to LA for those days. They wouldn't be able to attend E3, unless I managed to 'sneak' them in, but they could use the time to sight see. I've been to LA before, so this wouldn't be a huge thing for me to do again. Again, the cost would be a problem for them.

I need to make a decision before tomorrow evening. I have already registered myself with the ESA, I just need to have the site e-mail them my credentials to prove that I do in fact work with them. I am very much leaning towards going but I do have my reservations. If you were given the opportunity to attend the largest event in the industry, would you do it? Any advice or tips about this would be much appreciated.