Glasgow 2024 Registration FAQ

Do I have to be a member to attend Glasgow 2024?

Worldcon is the annual convention of the World Science Fiction Society (WSFS). You need to have a WSFS membership to fully participate in the convention. Membership is open to anyone who agrees to abide by the convention’s code of conduct and who pays the annual membership fee, which in the case of Glasgow 2024 is £45. 

To attend the convention, members will need to add an attending supplement. The price of the supplement will vary by the type of attendance, the attendee’s circumstances, and their age. 

In recognition that not everybody will be able to fully participate in the convention because of their age, or not being able to attend all 5-days of the convention, Glasgow 2024 will be offering attendance tickets that do not require a membership to be purchased. Note that, if the attendee wishes to attend for 3 or more days of the convention, it will be cheaper to purchase a full 5-day membership. 

What rights come with a membership in Glasgow 2024?

As a 2024 WSFS member you will be able to participate in the convention in ways not available to ticket holders. These rights include

  • You may nominate in the 2024 Hugo Awards, for works produced in 2023, so long as you are a member by January 31 2024. These nominations select who will be on the final ballot
  • You may download the Hugo voting packet and vote in the 2024 Hugo Awards for which of the finalists you want to win the 2024 Hugo Award in each category
  • You are able to purchase an advance 2026 WSFS membership, which combined with your 2024 WSFS membership, will allow you to vote in the 2026 Site Selection to choose which of the candidate cities will host the 2026 Worldcon
  • You may participate in the 2024 WSFS Business Meeting that sets the rules that govern the World Science Fiction Society and its annual convention. This includes proposing motions to be debated, attending and speaking at the meeting, and voting on any resolutions
  • You may nominate in the 2025 Hugo Awards, for works produced in 2024, so long as you have ticked the box that will allow us to pass on your contact details to the 2025 Worldcon
  • You will receive electronic copies of all Glasgow 2024’s generally distributed publications; those attending in-person may also collect physical copies of some of these publications 

In addition, if Glasgow 2024 has to make any events ticketed, WSFS members will get priority in obtaining these tickets over regular ticket holders.

Will Glasgow 2024 offer virtual memberships?

Glasgow 2024 is committed to having a virtual element in the convention, but the shape this will take is still being investigated. Until a decision has been made on what it will be, we cannot set a rate for a virtual membership. 

What we can say at this time is:

  • We hope to have made the decision in time to release virtual memberships for sale on May 1 2023.
  • We will not be offering discounted adult virtual memberships, as these generally make no sense if you are not physically attending the convention
  • We will not be offering virtual memberships to anyone under the age of 11, as we do not believe any of the virtual options can offer a service that is appropriate for this age group 

But we are not committing ourselves to have a virtual offering by May 1 2023. If our virtual offering has not been fixed in time for this date the release of virtual memberships will be delayed. 

Will Glasgow 2024 offer day memberships?

Glasgow 2024 currently plans to sell day tickets (not memberships) which will give the holder the right to attend the convention on specific days. However, unless they purchase a separate WSFS membership they will not be able to participate in the WSFS elements of the convention. 

We expect advance day tickets to go on sale (with a small discount, compared to those sold at the door) on May 1 2024. However, it should be noted that for the peak days (Friday, Saturday and Sunday) the at-door adult days tickets will cost roughly half the price of the adult attending supplement. This will mean that if you plan on attending 3 or more days it will be cheaper to buy an attending membership, and if planning for 2 or more days it will be cheaper to buy an attending membership before our first-rate-rise.  

Will Glasgow 2024 membership rate increase?

The simple answer to this is YES. To encourage folk to join early we will be raising our attending supplement rates every four months from May 1 2023, each time by 10-15%, depending on economic requirements. So, our rates will increase on May 1 2023, September 1 2023, January 1 2024 and May1 2024. We have not yet decided if there will be an additional rate rise for at-door purchases, but this is likely to encourage folk to purchase memberships in advance. 

Will Glasgow 2024 be offering family or group rates?

Given the large number of different types of Adult and Child rates offered by Glasgow 2024, and growing definitions of what constitutes a family, Glasgow 2024 will not be offering a family rate. As an alternative we have chosen to keep our rates for under 16’s as low as possible, such that the average under 16 rate is a quarter of the standard adult rate. This compares to the more common child rates of 50% or higher at commercial events. 

However, we will offer discounts of up to 12.5% for group bookings of 10 or more adults (including young adults). These discounts are not available on our web site and are not retrospective. But if you are putting together a group, for instance a student society, please email the registration team at registration@glasgow2024.org to discuss the requirements and possible discounts. 

Will Glasgow 2024 be offering an installment plan?

The simple answer to this is YES. Glasgow 2024 will have an installment plan to pay for attending supplements up to the end of March 2024. The process is:

  • Purchase a WSFS Only / Supporting Membership and tick the box requesting to be put on the installment plan

It’s as simple as that! Then at the start of each month (starting in January 2023) the registration team will identify each new request and contact you to identify the supplement you wish to purchase and arrange a payment plan with you to pay for it. By joining the installment plan you lock in the supplement rate at the time you ticked the box. So, as an example, if this was done in April 2023, you would lock in the supplement price pre-rate-rise. Payment plans will generally be over 4 months.

If at any time during the payment plan your circumstances change, Glasgow 2024 will cancel the instalment plan and refund any payments made on it (not including the WSFS membership) less a £5 charge to cover credit card charges and other costs incurred by the convention.

What is Glasgow 2024’s refund policy?

Generally, Glasgow 2024 will not be offering refunds. Exceptional circumstances will be decided on a case-by-case basis. Even in the event of a refund, only the attending supplement may be refunded, less a £5 charge to cover credit card charges and other costs incurred by the convention.

If you wish to apply for a refund (not guaranteed), please email the registration team at registration@glasgow2024.org explaining why you need the refund and why you cannot transfer the attending supplement. 

Can I transfer a Glasgow 2024 membership?

After a recent change in the WSFS constitution, you can no longer transfer your WSFS membership to another individual. However, you can still transfer any associated attending supplements you may have to another individual with their own WSFS Only membership

To transfer a supplement simply email our registration team at registration@glasgow2024.org from the email address registered with the convention. This email should specify 

  • Membership number of the supplement to be transferred, this can be found on your dashboard
  • The name of the person to whom the supplement should be transferred
  • The membership number of the WSFS membership to be linked to the transferred supplement

If all is good the registration team will transfer the supplement to the transferee, and set your attending supplement to WSFS Only (Supporting).

Please note if you are transferring a discounted supplement, purchased due to the age or circumstances of the individual it was purchased for, if the transferee does not match the same profile, they should use the upgrade function to change the supplement type and pay the difference before they attend the convention, or they will be asked to pay the difference at the door. 

I was a Friend of the Glasgow 2024 bid, what do I need to do?

As a Friend of the bid (Super, Adult or Young Adult) we will have created a USER account for you prior to the opening of the registration system, and will have populated this with the appropriate membership and supplement records

  • If you were a Super Friend, or an Adult Friend identified as eligible for a discounted membership, or a Y.A Friend born prior to 2010, or you voted in the 2024 Site Selection, you will have been allocated the appropriate in-person attending supplement and WSFS membership and will be an in-person attending member of Glasgow 2024
  • Otherwise, you will have been allocated the appropriate in-person attending supplement, but you will need to purchase a WSFS membership to complete the transition into an attending membership. This is accomplished by using the link on your USER dashboard. However, if you do not complete the transition before we release our virtual memberships, your in-person attending supplement will be changed to a virtual attending supplement plus a WSFS membership, so you will be a virtual attending member of Glasgow 2024. 

As a Friend we will have emailed you login details to your USER account, but if you have not received this email or have forgotten how to login to your USER account, please email our registration team at registration@glasgow2024.org.

I voted in the 2024 Site Selection, what do I need to do?

As a voter in the 2024 Site Selection, you will have automatically being assigned a WSFS membership, and if you were a Friend of the Glasgow 2024 Bid, you will be an attending member of Glasgow 2024 (See I was a Friend of the Glasgow 2024 bid, what do I need to do? For details).

If you were not a Friend of the bid, we will have created a USER account for you shortly after registration opened, and populated this with a WSFS Only (Supporting) membership. To upgrade to an attending membership simply log into your account and click on the “Upgrade” button of the WSFS Only supplement, select the type of attending supplement you want, and then pay. 

As a Voter we will have emailed your login details to your USER account, but if you have not received this email or have forgotten how to login to your USER account, please email our registration team at registration@glasgow2024.org.

When do I receive my entry badge etc?

All convention credentials will be distributed at the convention, either from the Registration Desk, or, if registered with them, the Accessibility Desk, or, if on programme, the Programme Ops Desk. 

To pick up your convention credentials you will need to show official identification that matches the name you registered with the convention, or if picking up for an under 16-year-old, the name of the responsible adult that was registered with the convention. 

It is good practice to check your membership record before coming to the convention to ensure these names match your current identification.

What will appear on my convention badge?

All attending members will have the same badge, and holders of discounted memberships will not be identified. The only information on the badge will be your badge name, optional badge title and membership number. The only individuals with differing badges will be ticket holders, where the type of ticket will be identified as well. 

If you have not specified a badge name we will use a concatenation of your registered preferred name, and if this is not defined a concatenation of your registered real name. 

If you do not wish us to use these, please check your membership record prior to attending the convention.

How do I apply to register with the accessibility team?

All attending supplement records (in-person or virtual) have a number of optional tick boxes. One of these is to be contacted by our accessibility team. If you tick this box our accessibility team will get in touch with you and assess your requirements and how best we can meet them. 

How do I apply to be on Programme?

All attending supplement records (in-person or virtual) have a number of optional tick boxes. One of these is to be contacted by our programme team, and another to tell us you would like to be a performer at the convention. Tick either / both of these boxes and our programme team will be in touch with you to start the process of adding you to their list of possible programme participants.

How do I apply for space in the Exhibits Hall?

All attending supplement records (in-person or virtual) have a number of optional tick boxes. Several of these allow you to register your interest in different areas of the Exhibits Hall.

  • If you want to mount an exhibit – click on the “Exhibitor” check box
  • If you would like to be a dealer – click on the “Dealers” check box
  • If you would like a fan table – click on the “Fan Table” check box
  • If you would like to exhibit in the Art Show – click on the “Art Show” check box

In each case you will then be contacted by the relevant team to discuss your options. 

How do I become a volunteer?

All attending supplement records (in-person or virtual) have a number of optional tick boxes. One of these is to be contacted by our volunteer team who will discuss the options with you. Check this box and they will be in touch with you, with many thanks as Worldcons are run totally by volunteers, from tip to tail and every little bit helps. 

How do I minimise the communications I get from the convention?

All attending supplement records (in-person or virtual) have a number of optional tick boxes. One of these allows you to request minimal, but not zero contact from the convention. If you check this box, we will only send you what we consider essential emails. But please note if you check this box, you will not be sent:

  • Reminders to add a WSFS membership if you were a Friend of the bid. You will just get final notification prior to being down-graded to a virtual member
  • If you are a WSFS Only (Supporting) member you will not get notifications of any rate rises
  • You will only get an initial instruction message when Hugo Nominations and Voting open, you will not get reminders
  • You will only get an initial instruction message when 2026 Site Selection opens, you will not get reminders
  • You will not receive our regular members newsletter
  • You will not receive emails with links to our Progress Reports
  • You will not receive notification of any virtual events we run in advance of the convention
  • You will not receive notification of when the Programme Schedule is released
  • You will only receive an initial message when hotel bookings open, you will not get reminders or updates
  • You will not get emails on what to do in Glasgow/Scotland during your stay.
  • If you ticked any contact request check-boxes you may only be sent an initial contact email

You may also miss other communications but, generally speaking, if you regularly check our web site and follow us on social media you should pick up of most of these messages.