After 43 years in Maryland, the next generation of the Shore Leave science-fiction convention lands in Lancaster County this July, expecting to host as many as 2,500 hardcore Trekkies for three days.
The 44th Annual Shore Leave will take place at the Wyndham Lancaster Resort and Convention Center, 2300 Lincoln Highway, East Lampeter Township, July 26 to 28. What began as a strictly Star Trek-focused convention in 1979 has blossomed into an event that caters to the far reaches of fandom. In addition to vendors, a game room and panels, there will also be a dozen special guests, including alumni from “Star Trek,” “Star Wars” and more.
“Shore Leave is a lot of different things to different people,” said Mike Schilling, Shore Leave communications manager.“Shore Leave is not a comic convention, though there might be sellers with some.It’s not a literary convention, but there will be dozens of professional writers. We’re not a cosplay convention, but there will of course be people in costumes.”
Schilling said that the closing of the group’s former home – the Delta Marriott Baltimore County hotel – last fall necessitated a quick turnaround to find a new space. The convention’s hotel committee looked high and low across Maryland, Virginia and the suburbs of Washington before finding the Wyndham, with not much time to spare. According to Wyndham sales manager Michelle Weinhold, conventions of this size can sometimes be booked as far as five to seven years in advance, but each group’s respective calendars managed to coincide for the last weekend of July, only two weeks past Shore Leave’s traditional convention weekend.
“We’re very excited to have (Shore Leave) for the first time,” Weinhold said. “We look forward to a long-lasting relationship like they had in Maryland. I think they’re going to enjoy themselves immensely.”
“This is the first time in a new hotel for literally an entire generation, so it’s going to feel very strange to us, but at the same time, it’s also thrilling, because this is a much newer, larger hotel than we had before,” Schilling said.
The new space will allow for new facets of the long-held con, including “Fest with our Guests,” which will allow Shore Leave participants to enjoy a “Pennsylvania Dutch buffet” with select celebrity guests, with all proceeds going to the St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital and Navy & Marine Corps Relief Society. For new guests to the area, Weinhold said that the hotel is hoping to partner with Discover Lancaster to help showcase locales that conventiongoers can explore during their down time. According to a 2024 Tourism Economics report, every tourist who visited Lancaster County in 2023 created roughly $262 in direct visitor spending.
For fans, by fans
For its near half-century lifespan, Shore Leave has been an entirely fan-run convention, operated by volunteers, which Schilling said is an increasing rarity.Compared to gargantuan commercial conventions such as the New York and San Diego Comic-Cons, a convention like Shore Leave is rooted not in appreciation for sharing nerdy interests.
Schilling, for example, hasn’t missed a Shore Leave since 1986, and worked his way up from an attendee to an operator of the video room (“There was a time when you would fill a whole ballroom just to run unedited ‘Star Trek’ episodes and the blooper reel,” he said with a chuckle.) to head of publicity. He said that even if he wasn’t in charge of communications, he would still be singing the praises of the event to anyone who will listen.
While science fiction is the bread and butter of the convention, there will also be space for “science fact,” as Schilling calls it – actual scientists have made it a point to visit Shore Leave annually to give talks on the latest discoveries, usually to a large and rapt audience. Of course, for those not into sitting quietly and still, there’s also a popular Saturday night dance party and costume contest.
Schilling hopes to make a big impression on Lancaster County to secure a new permanent home for Shore Leave for years to come.
“Each of us that put on this show, none of us are getting paid for this. We are all volunteers. We do this because we love it. We love the convention, and we love the experience. And above all, we love the fact that we’ve met so many wonderful people over the years because of what Star Trek and the fandom experience has done for us.”
Celebrity guests at the 44th Annual Shore Leave include:
– Greg Grunberg of “Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens” and “Star Trek: Beyond”
– Todd Stashwick of “Star Trek: Picard” and “Heroes.”
– Amanda Tapping of “Supernatural” and “Stargate: SG-1″
– J.G. Hertzler of “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine” and “Bioshock.”
– Ingvild Deila of “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” and “Avengers: Age of Ultron.”
– Teryl Rothery of “Arrow” and “Stargate: SG-1.”
– D.B. Woodside of “Buffy, the Vampire Slayer,” Lucifer” and “24.”
– Robin Curtis of “Star Trek: The Next Generation” and “Babylon 5.”
– Ashlei Sharpe Chestnut of “Star Trek: Picard” and “Gotham.”
– BarBara Luna of “Star Trek” and “Buck Rogers.”
– Lesley-Ann Brandt of “Lucifer” and “Spartacus.”
– Adele Simmons, assistant director on “Star Trek: The Next Generation” and “Star Trek: Voyager.”