Prepper conventions and survival expos are some of the best places you can visit if you want to take your preparedness to the next level.
The exposure to other likeminded individuals alone is worth the price of admission. You’ll learn about what other people are trying and the philosophies they have behind their own prepping plans.
It gets even better when you add the training, classes, and speaking that most prepper conventions offer. Some of the most respected experts around attend and speak at these events, exposing you to ideas and techniques you may have never heard about otherwise.
And of course, there’s the gear. The number of awesome vendors who’ve created highly effective and unique products to help you stay prepared and ready to survive is both fun and useful at the same time.
Below, we’ve listed out the five best prepper conventions and survival expos out there right now. Your time and money are precious, so you don’t need a list of twenty.
The ones below are more than enough.
Table of Contents
1. Self Reliance Experience
The Self Reliance Experience is an extremely popular prepper convention that takes place in Denver Colorado. The expo focuses on providing survivalist and prepper experience to people of all ages in a family-friendly way.
Attendees will learn about general preparedness, survival, sustainability, and embracing simplicity in their daily lives. This covers a wide range of potential scenarios and makes it one of the best all-inclusive prepper conventions out there.
They have a number of fantastic speakers who come out every year to provide insight and perspective on different topics. Many preppers find that they spend a lot of time being hyper-focused on survivalism and prepping, but neglect other areas. Each year there’s feedback that the variety in speakers leads to a new approach and improvements in their general philosophy.
There are a ton of exhibits that allow you to look at different products and tools that might be useful. There are also some really neat classroom training exercises that attendees can go through as well.
2. Prepper Camp
This is a great prepper convention that offers a completely immersive experience. Those who attend will learn about things like survival, preparedness, camping, places to live off the grid, and general homesteading tips.
One of the really neat things about this expo is that it functions more like a hands-on training hybrid. You’re outside talking with people and getting to use demos that you normally couldn’t use in an indoor setting.
This also makes the convention feel a lot more fun and tactile. While practicality and safety are definitely the main reasons why people get into this sort of thing, there is something enjoyable about working with your hands and getting away from normal society.
Prepper Camp captures this experience better than any other convention or expo out there in our opinion. There are a number of great classes and training sessions that you can schedule that are led by some of the most trustworthy experts out there. These are all in the field and allow you to learn by doing instead of hearing theories and best practices.
This prepper convention takes place in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. Not only does this make for beautiful scenery, but it also provides a great hands-on learning environment.
There are a ton of vendors that show up for this event which is also quite fun as well. You’ll get exposed to the latest gear and definitely won’t leave empty-handed!
Another thing we like is that you can camp, boat, hike, and fish all right on the grounds. It’s honestly the most fun we’ve ever had at a prepper convention, and we highly recommend that you check it out.
3. Great Lakes Emergency Preparedness Expo
The Great Lakes Emergency Preparedness Expo is an underrated prepper convention that is held in Whitmore Lake, Michigan. There’s a wide range of information covered at this event and for some reason, more people aren’t aware of how awesome it is!
Some of the things that you can learn about at this expo are how to get a 72-hour kit ready, water filtration, and food storage. These are principles that you’ll be relying on quite heavily in a SHTF scenario, and the info you’ll learn here will take your existing knowledge to the next level.
There’s also complimentary knowledge and training about first aid, communications, cooking, gardening, and more. This is all stuff that can get overlooked by new preppers, so it’s great to see a prepper convention cover more than just the basics.
For a relatively modest size, there are a ton of training classes and presentations that attendees will have access to. The demos are really interesting as well and are put on by experienced preppers and vendors who have new gear to share with the community.
4. Be Prepared Expo
Replacing the once popular event PrepperCon, the Be Prepared Expo has everything you’ll want to explore in terms of survival preparedness. Held near Salt Lake City, Utah, it’s an all-inclusive convention that covers things like prepping fundamentals, survivalist skills, first aid, food storage, gear instruction, and defense training.
This event lasts for two days and has all kinds of events and presentations. It features two classrooms with hourly classes, as well as classes on the main stage. There are also hundreds of vendors ready to share products and knowledge for all things survival prepping.
Anyone can attend this convention so it’s something that you can bring the whole family to. This is one of the most thorough conventions when it comes to the defense aspect of things which can be useful if you’re trying to teach valuable lessons to your spouse or children.
The main theme of the expo is self-reliance no matter what. This is reflected in the people teaching classes and the vendors that are present. You can also tell that everyone who attends is bought into the idea of being open-minded and learning.
The Be Prepared Expo is one of the best prepper conventions out there when it comes to the overall vibe of self-reliance as a lifestyle choice.
5. Homestead & Prepping Summit
This two-day event is all about learning new skills for self-reliance. It takes place at the St Johns Country Fairgrounds in Elkton, Florida, and it aims to teach people and families from the city and the country alike how to be prepared for anything that may come.
This is an immersive learning event that’s great for networking and learning from likeminded peers. It covers methods on homesteading, self-reliance, and preparedness, and it offers classes and demonstrations throughout each day.
Conclusion
Prepper conventions and survival expos are a fantastic way to expose yourself to new ideas, see cutting-edge gear, and meet likeminded individuals.
From the outside, people sometimes view this community as being solitary due to the “every man for himself” nature of the preparedness philosophy. But really that’s the furthest thing from the truth!
Fellow preppers are some of the most thoughtful and enjoyable people you can find, and the social aspect can make visiting a prepper convention worth it all on its own. Then when you add in the practical element of education and gear upgrades, it’s a no-brainer.
We hope you give at least one of the prepper conventions on this list a shot. We know for a fact you’ll leave with some new tricks up your sleeve!
