Next ‘Fest: May 30-31, 2026 | Crowne Plaza Louisville Hotel
Weekend after Memorial Day
SEARCH THE SITE:
PLAN YOUR WEEKEND
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Tickets
Sold at the door only.
Adults: $40 for 1-day, $55 for 2-days.
Ages 4 to 12: $15 for 1-day, $25 for 2-days
Age 3 and under free.
Ticket booth hours…
Hotel & Restaurant
Special WonderFest room rate at the Crowne: $151 per night! It’s convenient to stay in our show hotel with an award-winning restaurant
Reserve a room online…
Louisville Attractions
Bring your family and take extra time to visit exciting tourism sites in and around Louisville. Go exploring the Bourbon Trails and more.
Fun in Louisville…
MEET THE 2026 GUESTS
Guests will sign autographs at their table or at posted times!
VE NEILL
Make-Up Artist, Actress, Producer: Star Trek The Motion Picture, Pirates of the Caribbean, Galaxy Quest, Beetlejuice
BARBARA LUNA
Actress: Star Trek "Mirror, Mirror," Buck Rogers, Outer Limits, One Life to Live, Hawaii Five-O
THE AMAZING MODEL CONTEST
Greatest in the World for Imaginative Modelers!
The WonderFest “Amazing” Model Contest is focused on all types of science-fiction, horror and comics models. It’s the biggest contest of its type in America, and it’s fun to look at even if you don’t build models yourself!
The contest is sponsored by Amazing Figure Modeler magazine, which is providing a special $300 award for the Most Amazing Figure!
Entry Hours: Friday, May 29th from 2-8pm and Saturday, May 30th, from 8 a.m. ’til Noon
- $20.00 per first 2 models for adults, up to 8 additional entries free
- $12.00 per first 2 models for teens, up to 8 add’l entries free (ages 13-19)
- Free for ages 12 & under
With over 1,085 entries in 2025, it filled an entire ballroom and featured some of the best modeling we’ve ever seen.
MUST-SEE PROGRAMMING
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How-To Demos
All weekend! Learn techniques from other great modelers! Demos last from 30 minutes to an hour. Become a better modeler!
More info…
Iron Modeler
Teams are given a “base model,” a big pile of parts, and 4 hours to build the craziest model with only what they’ve got. Best model & presentation wins!
More info…
The Rondo Awards
4pm Saturday! Fandom’s only classic horror awards—decided by fans. Recognize the best in print, film, web, art, media, toys and models!
More info…
Sunday Wrap Party
Sunday night at 7:30 celebrate the end of the show with exclusive programming! Optional a la carte food and cash bar.
More info…
WHAT IS WONDERFEST?
A weekend of wonder in Louisville!
WonderFest is a weekend of hobby escape that’s held every Summer in Louisville, Kentucky USA!
Now in its 36th year, WonderFest features movie special effects guests, the largest model contest in the U.S. for sci-fi, horror & comics-related subjects, model and toy dealers galore, and seminars to entertain and improve hobbyists of all ages!
It’s always held at our mothership, the Crowne Plaza Louisville Airport Hotel, 830 Phillips Lane, Louisville, KY 40209.
THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS
They help make this event possible!
WONDERFEST LATEST NEWS
From our Facebook feed...
FRIDAY CLASS ANNOUNCEMENT:
Blender 3D: Sci Fi Landing Gear & Deployment Systems
Friday, May 29 · 10am-6pm EDT · Crowne Plaza Hotel
Instructor: Stephen Burns
Join this one-day Blender intensive where you’ll learn to design and model fully articulated, 3D‑printable landing gear for your spacecraft! Starting with core hard‑surface modeling techniques in Blender, you’ll build robust telescoping struts, shock‑absorbing mechanisms, and folding leg assemblies—all engineered with real‑world movement and structural integrity in mind.
The afternoon focuses on 3D‑printability, ensuring your landing gear isn’t just visually striking but also fully functional and ready to bring to life on any FDM or resin printer. Leave with a complete, articulated landing gear assembly, a custom texture set, and the skills to tackle any mechanical sci‑fi prop with confidence.
You will learn:
- Fundamental concepts of Blender 3D
- How to create landing gear components
- Applying modular design principles
- Texturing and Materials
- Rigging and animating
- Exporting and preparing models
- And much more!
Cost is $275 per person. Laptop required; see list of required items at the link. Register for the class: bit.ly/3ZSmszq
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RETURNING GUEST ANNOUNCEMENT: MARTA KRISTEN!
One of our nicest guests ever, the always delightful MARTA KRISTEN returns!
While best known as the original "Judy Robinson," Marta has appeared in dozens of TV shows and movies, such as ALFRED HITCHCOCK PRESENTS, BEACH BLANKET BINGO, MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E., MANNIX, MURPHY BROWN, and even the LOST IN SPACE movie in 1998. She has also appeared in more than 40 commercials.
While her LOST IN SPACE role was not as prominent as promised by Irwin Allen, her fan following has proven that she made a great impact on generations of dreamers. She's a WonderFest favorite!!
Marta's appearance is sponsored by The Jupiter Project.
WonderFest is May 30-31, the weekend after Memorial Day, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Louisville, KY.
Find show details at: www.wonderfest.com
#MartaKristen #lostinspace #wonderfest2026 #wonderfesthobbyexpo
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GUEST ANNOUNCEMENT:
Artist-designer RICK STERNBACH is back with a special presentation to celebrate STAR TREK's 60th! Rick's designs and illustrations have shaped the look of STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE, THE LAST STARFIGHTER, STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION, DEEP SPACE NINE, VOYAGER, and STAR TREK NEMESIS.
Modelers note: Back in 2004, Rick began Space Model Systems, Inc, providing the space modeler with what many consider the best aftermarket waterslide decals for historical spacecraft and s-f. They’re amazing!
WonderFest is May 30-31, the weekend after Memorial Day, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Louisville, KY.
Find show details at: www.wonderfest.com
#wonderfest2026 #wonderfesthobbyexpo #StarTrek #StarTrek60
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NEW GUEST ANNOUNCEMENT: BARBARA LUNA!
We're beyond thrilled to welcome BarBara Luna to her first WonderFest! Luna, as she prefers to be called, has guest starred in more than 500 TV shows, grew up in Broadway musicals, and has 12 motion picture credits! She's a fan favorite for her standout role as 'Marlena Moreau' in the STAR TREK episode "Mirror Mirror." Other favorite shows include BUCK ROGERS IN THE 25TH CENTURY (Koori),THE INVADERS, THE OUTER LIMITS, Walt Disney’s ZORRO, ONE LIFE TO LIVE (Maria Roberts) and HAWAII FIVE-O.
WonderFest is May 30-31, the weekend after Memorial Day, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Louisville, KY.
Find show details at: www.wonderfest.com
#wonderfest2026 #wonderfesthobbyexpo #StarTrek #StarTrek60
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This is an official announcement that the Wonderfest main hotel room block at the Crowne Plaza in Louisville is completely sold out on all days now except Sunday, where there are a few room nights left. We found out a few days ago and added rooms at that time, but those all went within hours. We are now working on getting rooms at the block rate at sister hotels in the area. As soon as that is set up, we will announce which hotels are part of that group. Thank you to all our folks out there who has made this the fastest sellout in our history. And to those still  needing space hang in there we’re working on it now. 
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