Collect-A-Con, the nation's largest touring trading card and pop culture convention series, lands in Virginia on August 29-30, 2026, filling Halls A and B of the Greater Richmond Convention Center at 403 N 3rd Street in downtown Richmond. For Hampton Roads and Virginia Beach collectors, this is the one weekend of the summer worth the ninety-minute drive west — a full-scale national convention experience with hundreds of vendor booths under one roof.
The floor at Collect-A-Con is enormous and genuinely mixed. Sports card dealers bring deep inventories of baseball, basketball, football, and soccer, from budget boxes to high-end graded slabs, and national-circuit vendors regularly carry six-figure showcase pieces you simply will not see at local shows. The trading card game side is arguably even bigger: Pokemon dominates entire aisles, joined by Magic: The Gathering, Yu-Gi-Oh!, One Piece, Lorcana, and Dragon Ball Z. Beyond cards, expect anime merchandise, comics, Funko Pops, vintage toys, video games, cosplay, celebrity and artist guests, and on-site grading submissions from major grading companies.
Show hours run Saturday, August 29 from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM and Sunday, August 30 from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Tickets are sold through the official site at collectaconusa.com/richmond, with single-day and weekend options; VIP tiers with early entry have been offered at past Collect-A-Con stops and children's pricing is posted on the ticket page. Buying online in advance is strongly recommended, as the ticket line on Saturday morning can be long.
The Greater Richmond Convention Center sits in the heart of downtown with multiple parking decks within a two-block walk, and it is an easy straight shot from Hampton Roads via Interstate 64. If you are coming from Virginia Beach, leaving by 8:00 AM puts you at the doors for opening.
This convention rewards every kind of attendee. Serious collectors and investors get access to national dealers and inventory depth no regional show can match. Tournament and casual TCG players will find singles for any deck at competitive prices. Families love the spectacle — cosplay, guests, and giveaways keep kids engaged even between card stops — and first-time convention-goers consistently rank Collect-A-Con among the most approachable big shows in the hobby.
Plan your attack: Saturday morning has the freshest inventory, while Sunday afternoon is when dealers start cutting deals rather than packing product home. Do a full lap before spending big, because with this many vendors the same card often varies meaningfully in price across the floor. Bring cash for leverage, a want list to stay focused, comfortable shoes for the concrete floors, and a hard case or backpack to protect purchases. If you plan to submit cards for grading, prep them in sleeves before you arrive to save time at the booth.
Full details, vendor lists, guest announcements, and tickets are at collectaconusa.com/richmond. For Virginia collectors who want the national-convention experience without airfare, this weekend is the highlight of the late-summer calendar.