Card Show Weekend Preview May 16-17: Mile High Pokemon, Two Collect-A-Cons, Silicon Valley, LA, and Baltimore
Six major card shows hit the calendar May 16-17, 2026, including Mile High Pokemon and TCG Expo in Colorado, Collect-A-Con Phoenix and Philadelphia, Silicon Valley, LA Card Expo, and the Baltimore Card Show. Here is what to expect at each event and how to plan your weekend.
This coming weekend is one of the strongest two-day card show slates of the spring. Six major card shows are running across the country on May 16 and 17, 2026, spanning Pokemon-focused expos, multi-category mega shows, and recurring regional staples. If you have been holding cards back for a strong dealer audience or hunting raw vintage before submitting elsewhere, this is the weekend to plan around.
The Marquee Events
Six shows headline the May 16-17 calendar, and the geographic spread means there is something within driving range for most US collectors.
- Mile High Pokemon and TCG Expo — Gaylord Rockies Resort, Aurora, Colorado. The Pokemon-focused weekend of the spring on the Front Range. Expect heavy WOTC vintage on the floor and a deep dealer concentration of modern sealed.
- Collect-A-Con Phoenix — WestWorld of Scottsdale, Arizona. 500-plus dealer tables, on-stage panels, celebrity guests, and the usual Collect-A-Con exclusive product drops.
- Collect-A-Con Philadelphia — Pennsylvania Convention Center. The East Coast Collect-A-Con of the spring, again at 500-plus tables with celebrity guests and a sealed-product allocation that draws lines well before open.
- Silicon Valley Sports Card and Memorabilia Show — Fiesta Hall at the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds. One of the longest-running recurring card shows in the South Bay and a strong stop for vintage baseball and modern basketball singles.
- LA Card Expo — Warner Center Marriott, Woodland Hills. A two-day Los Angeles area show that historically draws a strong autograph guest list and a Hollywood-area dealer mix.
- Baltimore Card Show — Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena. Saturday 9 AM to 5 PM, Sunday 10 AM to 3 PM. A reliably deep Mid-Atlantic show with strong East Coast dealer attendance.
Who Should Go to Which Show
Pokemon collectors should be at Mile High in Aurora or one of the two Collect-A-Cons. Vintage baseball collectors will get the most out of Silicon Valley or Baltimore. The two Collect-A-Cons remain the broadest multi-category shows of the weekend — sports, TCG, and pop culture all at one venue. LA Card Expo has historically been a strong autograph-show destination thanks to the local pool of athletes and entertainment guests.
"A six-show weekend means dealer rotations get spread thin. If you are selling, lock in your table commitment now. If you are buying, plan to arrive at open — the strongest deals come off the floor in the first two hours."
What to Bring
The standard show-prep checklist still applies. Cash for negotiation leverage, a fresh price comparison on your top three wants, top loaders and a small toploader bag for new pickups, and a charged phone with eBay sold comps loaded. Sellers should bring a clean inventory list, a calculator, and a fresh stack of business cards for repeat-buyer contact.
Use The Card Shop Finder to Plan Around Local Shops
Most of these shows draw dealers from a 200-mile radius. If you are traveling, plan to hit a few local card shops on the route. Mile High weekend traffic almost always benefits Front Range shops in Denver. Collect-A-Con Phoenix lifts foot traffic at every Valley LGS for the following two weeks. Silicon Valley weekend gives South Bay collectors a chance to flip pulls quickly at local shops if the show floor pricing is not where they want it.
If you are planning a weekend, start with the shows you can attend Saturday morning and budget the rest of the day for two or three LGS stops. The Card Shop Finder lets you filter by city and category to plan the route ahead of time.
What to Look For
The mid-May calendar usually means strong inventory rotation. Bowman Baseball boxes that opened today and tomorrow will hit the secondary market by Saturday, and 2025-26 Topps Hoops singles from Thursday's release will start showing up in dealer cases. Pokemon vintage continues to be the strongest single category, but modern Pokemon SIR demand has been the surprise story of the spring. Expect dealers to bring deep Pulsing Aura, Chaos Rising, and Mega Evolution stock to all three Pokemon-leaning shows.