GAMA Expo 2027Baltimore exhibitor guide: booth costs, dates and deadlines
Built to the 12-foot line: GAMA Expo 2027 booths for Baltimore
- Event dates
- April 25–29, 2027
- Exhibit hall
- April 28–29, 2027 (Wed–Thu 10 a.m.–6 p.m.; exhibitors from 8 a.m. Wed, 9 a.m. Thu)
- Venue
- Baltimore Convention Center, Baltimore
4.9 client ratingSince 201510,000+ booths built3,000+ exhibitors
Quick answers
GAMA Expo 2027 in 30 seconds
The short version for GAMA Expo exhibitors. Each GAMA Expo figure is sourced further down the page.
- When is GAMA Expo 2027?
- April 25–29, 2027, at Baltimore Convention Center, Baltimore.
- When is the hall open at GAMA Expo?
- April 28–29, 2027, Wed–Thu 10 a.m.–6 p.m.; exhibitors from 8 a.m. Wed, 9 a.m. Thu.
- What does booth space cost at GAMA Expo?
- $3,600 standard rate, 2027 ($3,225 early pay), paid to the organizer.
- What does a 10×20 GAMA Expo booth cost all-in?
- $7,500 – $15,000 for a Purple rental at GAMA Expo with design, graphics, lighting, install and dismantle. Space and show services are billed by GAMA Expo.
- For GAMA Expo, what is the next exhibitor deadline?
- GAMA membership renewal opens; membership is required to exhibit: November 1, 2026.
Official GAMA Expo 2027 links: GAMA Expo 2027 scheduleGAMA Expo 2027 booth space
Everything about GAMA Expo 2027 in one place
GAMA Expo 2027 fact sheet
| Official name | GAMA Expo 2027 by GAMA: The Tabletop Game Association |
|---|---|
| Event dates | April 25–29, 2027 |
| Exhibit hall dates | April 28–29, 2027 (Wed–Thu 10 a.m.–6 p.m.; exhibitors from 8 a.m. Wed, 9 a.m. Thu) source |
| Venue | Baltimore Convention Center One W Pratt St, Baltimore, MD 21201 |
| Organizer | GAMA: The Tabletop Game Association |
| Who attends | Hobby game store owners and buyers, wholesalers, publishers, creators, and media and event organizers |
| Booth space | $3,600 standard rate, 2027 ($3,225 early pay) source |
| Next deadline | GAMA membership renewal opens; membership is required to exhibit: November 1, 2026 source |
| Nearest airport | Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI) |
| Hotels | GAMA's Expo hotel block, opened to exhibitors September 17, 2026; the 2027 housing provider is not confirmed yet |
| Official website | gama.org |
Official GAMA Expo resources
GAMA Expo 2027 calendar
GAMA Expo 2027 dates and deadlines
The dates the organizer has published, in order, each linked to the page that states it. The next date is highlighted.
- GAMA membership renewal opens; membership is required to exhibitExhibitors source
- Booth application deadline (2027 space full, waitlist open)Exhibitors source
- Final booth and marketing asset payment dueExhibitors source
- Booth placement begins (December 14 to 18)Paid exhibitors source
- Last day to cancel without penalty; 50 percent fee from January 15Exhibitors and sponsors source
- Certificates of insurance due to GAMAExhibitors source
- Exhibit hall set-up begins (sponsors 8 a.m., all exhibitors noon)Exhibitors source
- Exhibit hall opens to attendees at 10 a.m.Exhibitors and attendees source
01 Purple at GAMA Expo 2027
Built to the 12-foot line: GAMA Expo 2027 booths for Baltimore
We build GAMA Expo booths for hobby store owners who want to sit down, learn a game in ten minutes and write an order with a show special. GAMA sells bare booths, no carpet, table or power, so we bring the floor, furniture and lighting to the Baltimore Convention Center.
- Hall open Apr 28–29, 2027
- Baltimore Convention Center
- 12-ft display height cap
What makes GAMA Expo different, and how we build for it
GAMA Expo is the business side of hobby games: GAMA: The Tabletop Game Association runs it as a members-only, order-taking trade show where retail sales go through the Show Specials program and distributors, not cash at the booth. The week runs five days, but the hall opens on only two, Wednesday and Thursday, after two days of seminars, Speed Presentations, Premier Presentations, the Creator Pavilion and Game Nights. GAMA sells bare booths with a hard 12-foot height cap and keeps everyone under 18 out of the hall. The 2026 Expo was in Louisville; from 2027 to 2032 GAMA has booked the Baltimore Convention Center, and 2027 booth space sold out before the November 30 application deadline.
A seat at a demo table, a game they can learn fast enough to teach on their own shop floor, and a show special worth writing an order for before Thursday's close.
Release schedules, case packs and margins in one place, with a quiet corner for terms away from the demo tables.
An early look at upcoming releases during the Media & Events First Look, product they can film with permission, and a contact who knows the street date.
Your team in Baltimore
Two shops and one project manager for GAMA Expo
Production happens in our own shop in Fishkill, NY, and at our Las Vegas hub, and we ship to the Baltimore Convention Center and install with vetted local labor, led by our own project manager on the floor. Every GAMA Expo build runs a predictable 30 to 45 days and gets a pre-show QA, with secure storage after.
The booth is lit and stocked when your team reaches the Baltimore Convention Center. You just show up.
Inside GAMA Expo 2027
GAMA Expo rules that shape your booth
No booth display may exceed 12 feet; in a linear booth the back of any structure over 8 feet must be finished and logo-free, and side pieces may run at most 5 feet from the back and stand at most 4 feet tall (2027 rules). We draw every wall and tower to those limits.
GAMA booths come with no tables, chairs, carpet or electricity, and any table visible to the public must be covered to the floor, with boxed stock covered too. We ship skirted demo tables, flooring and lighting so the booth arrives complete.
GAMA Expo is an order-taking show, with retail sales handled through the GAMA show special program and distributors. We build an order counter with show-special pricing on display instead of a retail checkout.
No one under 18 is allowed in the exhibit hall at any time without an exception requested in advance, and booth staff under 18 need approval. Music, special lighting and fog machines need pre-approval, so we design demos that work at table volume.
Dismantling before the exhibit hall's official close on the final day costs $500, forfeits priority points for the show and holds future bookings. Your project manager starts tear-down at 6 p.m. on April 29 and not a minute earlier.
Programs worth planning for
A reduced 10×10 for new exhibitors, $1,200 inline or $1,350 corner at the 2027 standard rate, limited to the first 50 applicants and one booth each.
Open Monday to Thursday of Expo week, April 26 to 29, 2027, with open playtesting again at the evening Game Nights.
Paid 45-minute presentations to retailers, scheduled Tuesday morning in 2027; in 2026 retailers who attended six received the Retailer Appreciation Box of publishers' products, with packages from $4,000.
Honors people and organizations making tabletop gaming more welcoming; nominations from anyone close October 31, 2026, and winners are announced at GAMA Expo 2027.
GAMA Expo is the trade show of the U.S. hobby game channel, where publishers meet game store owners and distributors; choose it over Toy Fair New York when your buyers run hobby game stores rather than mass or specialty toy chains. Every consumer products show we build for, side by side →
consumer products at GAMA Expo
The industry behind GAMA Expo, in pictures
02 Booths & pricing for GAMA Expo 2027
Popular booth sizes at GAMA Expo
GAMA sells inline, corner and endcap booths from 10×10 to 10×30, endcap and island 20×20s, and islands up to 20×40, all bare. Publishers with several lines take a 10×20 or 10×30; larger houses take islands for demo tables. We recommend a 10×20 endcap when you want two open aisles for learn-to-play.
Two demo tables, a 12-foot back wall with your release calendar, and a shelf of finished boxes a store owner can pick up and read.
Shown: ergoPouch, a Purple inline booth
See 10×20 rental booths →
Multiple product lines, a small meeting nook
Pictured: Funskool, a Purple inline booth
See 10×30 rental booths →
An island or endcap with four demo tables, a counter for show-special orders and a tall center tower that still stops at 12 feet.
Above: Asian, a Purple island exhibit
See 20×20 rental booths →
For publishers with several lines: a seated distributor room, a play zone per line and storage for demo copies, all within GAMA's 12-foot cap.
Shown: a Purple island exhibit for SMOXH
See 20×30 rental booths →In Purple's GAMA Expo price
- Design work and a 3D rendering, with revisions until the GAMA Expo layout is right
- Structure, graphics printed for GAMA Expo, counters and storage as specified
- Lighting plus power distribution within the booth at GAMA Expo
- Install and dismantle at GAMA Expo, led by our project manager on the floor
- Every GAMA Expo show-service order and deadline tracked for you
What GAMA Expo and its contractor bill
- Exhibit space (paid to GAMA: The Tabletop Game Association)
- Material handling / drayage, if the GAMA Expo space rate leaves it out
- Electrical service, internet and rigging
- Booth cleaning and whatever union labor the GAMA Expo venue requires
Rates to plan with for GAMA Expo:
- Booth space, 10×20 inline $3,600 standard rate, 2027 ($3,225 early pay) source
- Booth space, 20×20 island $7,700 standard rate, 2027 ($6,950 early pay) source
- First-time exhibitor 10×10 $1,200 inline, $1,350 corner, 2027; first 50 applicants source
- Drayage (Purple planning figure) About $140 per cwt, 200 lb minimum, 2026 to 2027
Every one of these is estimated on your proposal, so you see the full GAMA Expo total on paper before you sign.
Each price is an all-in 2026 rental range for design, structure, graphics, installation and dismantle; we quote custom builds project by project. For an exact GAMA Expo figure, try the booth cost calculator; the 2026 booth cost guide has the ranges.
Send us your booth size for GAMA Expo and what the space needs to do. You hear back within one business day, and a rendering with a fixed GAMA Expo proposal usually follows within a week. No charge.
At GAMA Expo, your team walks into a lit, stocked booth. You just show up.
03 Built by Purple
Booths to look at before you plan GAMA Expo
Case study · Amazon
Amazon at ESSENCE Festival of Culture, New Orleans
A walk-through environment for Amazon’s first ESSENCE Festival activation, welcoming hundreds of thousands of attendees across Prime Video, Amazon Live and Alexa.
Amazon's ESSENCE Festival build welcomed a public crowd, while GAMA is a members-only trade show, but both ask for a space people play in rather than just look at.
Read the Amazon case study All case studies →“Itzy and his team are the real deal. If you want to wow your potential customers at your next trade show, this is the team for you. They create the best custom and portable trade show exhibits by far.”
Sherri McManus, Corporate Training, The Lou Everett Group · what other clients say
Trusted by exhibitors including
04 Designing for tabletop game publishers, manufacturers, wholesalers and accessory makers at GAMA Expo
Four things we get right for GAMA Expo exhibitors
1Twelve feet is the ceiling
No GAMA Expo display may stand higher than 12 feet, islands included. In a linear booth, the back of anything over 8 feet must be finished and free of logos, and side pieces beyond 5 feet from the back stay under 4 feet. We put your box art on the 8-foot face and keep the side rails low.
2Demo tables are the booth
Store owners come to GAMA to play, and the hall is open just two days, April 28 and 29. We plan the footprint around demo tables first, with covered skirts to the floor as GAMA requires, then fit storage for demo copies and a teacher's stool behind each table.
3Bring the floor and the power
GAMA sells a bare booth: no carpet, tables, chairs or electricity, and only the aisles are carpeted. We ship flooring, tables and lighting with the kit, so your booth looks finished next to bare concrete, and order power through the contracted services company when GAMA releases the forms.
4Show specials, not a cash wrap
GAMA Expo is an order-taking show; retail sales run through GAMA's show special program and distributors. We design an order counter, not a checkout: a clear price card for the show special, a tablet for orders and a shelf showing what ships next.
Concept rendering
Your proposal for GAMA Expo includes a rendering like this one
You see your GAMA Expo booth in 3D before we cut a single panel: layout, graphics, lighting and product positions, revised until it is right. This one is a Purple concept for Rayan.
Start my GAMA Expo conceptFloor at a glance
Where you could be at GAMA Expo 2027
GAMA has not yet released the 2027 Expo maps. These are the spaces the Baltimore Convention Center offers, from Purple's venue guide; GAMA places booths December 14 to 18, 2026.
Exhibit rooms
Seven exhibit rooms with 300,000 square feet of contiguous exhibit space, used by large national trade shows and comic conventions.
Our advice Booth placement follows payment, so we plan the footprint once GAMA posts your number and check sight lines against neighbors under the 12-foot cap.
Meeting rooms
Fifty breakout rooms totaling roughly 85,000 square feet, the kind of space the Expo's seminars and presentations use.
Our advice For Speed or Premier Presentations we print a portable banner and table throw that travel in the same crate as the booth.
Hilton skywalk
The Hilton Baltimore Inner Harbor connects to the center by an enclosed, climate-controlled walkway.
Our advice Staff staying at the Hilton can carry demo copies over each morning without going outside, which matters for paper product.
05 Baltimore Convention Center · Baltimore
Logistics for GAMA Expo 2027, handled
The Baltimore Convention Center has 300,000 square feet of contiguous exhibit space across seven rooms, with the Hilton Baltimore Inner Harbor connected by a skywalk. Maryland has no right-to-work law, so union rules hold firm: two full-time employees get sixty minutes each way to set up and strike without a carpenter, after which the Carpenters build and the Teamsters move every crate. Purple's planning figure for drayage here is about $140 per hundredweight in 2026 and 2027, with a 200-pound minimum. GAMA holds set-up on April 26 and 27 and tear-down from 6 p.m. on April 29. Our project manager runs vetted local labor.
Hall rules, drayage estimates and freight deadlines for the building that hosts GAMA Expo are in our Baltimore Convention Center exhibitor guide.
What Purple handles
- Booth design that keeps every element under GAMA's 12-foot cap
- Flooring, tables, chairs and lighting for a bare GAMA booth
- Demo-table layouts with storage for demo copies
- Baltimore union labor, drayage and power orders, run by our project manager
- Purple's certificate of insurance naming GAMA and the BCC
- Storage between GAMA Expo and your next game or toy show
GAMA Expo timeline, counted back from move-in
GAMA Expo 2027 booth application deadline (space full, waitlist open): November 30, 2026. Applications after this date are not accepted, and space is already on a waitlist, so send us your booth details as soon as GAMA assigns you a space.
We need your GAMA Expo design signed off by mid-February 2027.
- By November 30, 2026Booth application or waitlist request filed with GAMA, with exhibiting-year membership renewed from November 1.
- December 4 to 18, 2026Final booth payment due December 4; GAMA places booths December 14 to 18, and we sketch the layout on your assigned space.
- Mid-February 2027Design sign-off, about ten weeks before set-up; certificates of insurance went to GAMA by January 29.
- March to early April 2027Production in Fishkill, NY over 30 to 45 days: demo tables, flooring, lighting and the 12-foot back wall.
- April 26–27, 2027Exhibit hall set-up at the Baltimore Convention Center, noon to 8 p.m. Monday and 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday; our project manager leads the crew.
- April 28–30, 2027Exhibit hall open Wednesday and Thursday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; tear-down from 6 p.m. Thursday through Friday, April 30.
Purple planning timeline. The official GAMA Expo move-in, freight target and order dates come from your exhibitor kit and assigned schedule; when you book, we confirm them against your booth.
Printable GAMA Expo budget & deadline sheetTravel to GAMA Expo 2027
Getting to GAMA Expo 2027: airport and hotels
Fly in
Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI)
Stay
GAMA's Expo hotel block, opened to exhibitors September 17, 2026; the 2027 housing provider is not confirmed yet
Travel facts from gama.org.
GAMA Expo by the numbers
GAMA Expo year by year
How GAMA Expo 2027 compares with other consumer products shows
The consumer products shows closest to GAMA Expo on the calendar, with the latest size each organizer has published. Each name other than GAMA Expo opens our exhibitor guide for that show.
| Show | Dates | City | Latest published size |
|---|---|---|---|
| ShoptalkShoptalk Commerce | March 22–24, 2027 | Las Vegas, NV | 3,500+ leaders attendees · nearly 350 solutions exhibitors (2026) |
| New York Tabletop ShowThe Tabletop Association | April 6–9, 2027 | New York, NY | – |
| High Point MarketHigh Point Market Authority (HPMA) | April 10–14, 2027 | High Point, NC | – |
| Sea Otter ClassicLife Time | April 15–18, 2027 | Monterey, CA | 350 athletes and 150 spectators attendees (1991) |
| GAMA ExpoGAMA: The Tabletop Game Association | April 25–29, 2027 | Baltimore, MD | 50 first-time exhibitor booths offered for 2027 |
| ECRM SessionsECRM | May 3–5, 2027 | Atlanta, GA | – |
| ABC Kids ExpoAll Baby & Child Corporation (ABC) | May 12–14, 2027 | Las Vegas, NV | 350–400 exhibitors projected for 2027 |
| LA Spring PreviewThe Toy Association | May 17–21, 2027 | El Segundo, CA | 65 showrooms leased exhibitors (2026) |
| Licensing ExpoInforma Markets | May 25–27, 2027 | Las Vegas, NV | 12,500+ attendees · 410 exhibitors (2026) |
| ASTRA Marketplace & AcademyAmerican Specialty Toy Retailing Association (ASTRA) | June 6–9, 2027 | Pittsburgh, PA | – |
GAMA Expo exhibitor questions
Questions exhibitors ask us before GAMA Expo
When is GAMA Expo 2027?
GAMA Expo 2027 runs Sunday, April 25 to Thursday, April 29, 2027. GAMA has booked the Baltimore Convention Center through 2032, with April 23 to 27, 2028, April 22 to 26, 2029, April 28 to May 2, 2030, April 20 to 24, 2031 and April 25 to 29, 2032.
Where is GAMA Expo 2027 held?
In Baltimore, at the convention center on West Pratt Street a short walk from the Inner Harbor. The Hilton Baltimore Inner Harbor connects to the building by an enclosed skywalk, and GAMA opened its 2027 hotel block to exhibitors on September 17, 2026.
When is the GAMA Expo 2027 exhibit hall open?
On two days: Wednesday, April 28 and Thursday, April 29, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., by GAMA's tentative schedule. Exhibitors get in from 8 a.m. Wednesday, with media and event attendees from 9 a.m. The first three days carry seminars, presentations, the Creator Pavilion and Game Nights.
How much does a booth at GAMA Expo 2027 cost?
GAMA's standard 2027 rate is $3,600 for a 10×20 inline and $7,700 for a 20×20 island, so space is a small share of the budget. A 10×20 rental from us runs $7,500 to $15,000, and the bare-booth rule adds flooring, tables and power. Baltimore union labor and drayage complete the total.
Is GAMA Expo 2027 booth space sold out?
GAMA reports that booth space for 2027 is full, and new applications go on a waitlist in case space opens. The application deadline is November 30, 2026. If you are on the waitlist, we hold a design and a rental kit ready so a late booth assignment still gets a finished build.
What is the booth height limit at GAMA Expo?
Twelve feet for any display. In a linear booth the back side of anything over 8 feet must be finished and free of graphics or logos, and pieces extending along the sides more than 5 feet from the back may stand only 4 feet tall. We design every structure to those lines.
Can we sell games directly at GAMA Expo?
GAMA runs the Expo as an order-taking show: retail sales are handled through its show special program and distributors. Plan your booth around demos and orders, and we add a counter where a store owner can see the show special and place the order on the spot.
Who can attend GAMA Expo?
It is a members-only professional trade show, not a consumer convention. Each GAMA Voting Member company gets two complimentary badges, and no one under 18 may enter the exhibit hall without an approved exception. Store owners, wholesalers, publishers, creators and media and event organizers make up the crowd.
Who organizes GAMA Expo?
GAMA: The Tabletop Game Association, the non-profit trade organization for the hobby games industry, based in Columbus, Ohio. It also runs the Origins Game Fair, set for June 9 to 13, 2027, and the industry honors that include the Inspirations Awards and Power Retail Awards.
Does a GAMA Expo booth include carpet, tables or power?
It does not. GAMA Expo is a bare booth show: your space has no tables, chairs, carpet or electricity, and only the aisles are carpeted. Carpet is not required but GAMA recommends it. Tables must be covered to the floor, so we ship skirted demo tables and flooring with your kit.
Can our own staff set up our booth at the Baltimore Convention Center?
Only briefly: two full-time employees of your company get one hour to install and one to dismantle without carpenters. Past that, putting up a display is Carpenters' union work and freight is Teamsters' work. Our project manager orders and supervises that labor.
What insurance does GAMA Expo require?
Every exhibitor needs liability and workers' compensation insurance, with a certificate naming the Baltimore Convention Center and GAMA as additional insureds, due January 29, 2027. Exhibitors without one are billed $150 for coverage, or can buy GAMA's Rainprotection policy for $99. We send Purple's certificate for the install as well.
When can we set up and tear down at GAMA Expo 2027?
Sponsors set up from 8 a.m. on Monday, April 26, and all exhibitors from noon to 8 p.m. that day and 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday. Tear-down runs from 6 p.m. Thursday, April 29 through Friday. Dismantling before the close costs $500 and your priority points.
Can we rent a booth for GAMA Expo, and what does a rental include?
We rent GAMA kits from a 10×20 up: a back wall under 12 feet, printed box-art graphics, skirted demo tables and chairs, flooring for the bare booth, LED lighting and a lockable storage cabinet. Shipping, Baltimore labor and dismantle are on one fixed proposal.
Before you sign for GAMA Expo
Ask any GAMA Expo exhibit builder these five questions:
- Are all fees on paper, including what the contractor at the Baltimore Convention Center bills?
- Who builds the GAMA Expo booth: your own shop or a subcontractor?
- Does your project manager stay on the floor through install and dismantle in Baltimore?
- What exactly is in the rental, and what is billed by the show?
- Once GAMA Expo closes, where does the booth go and what does storage cost?
Common situations
Already own a booth? We refresh the graphics, repair what is worn, ship it to the Baltimore Convention Center, install it and store it between shows. You keep the structure you paid for and bring it to GAMA Expo.
Exhibiting from outside the US? We are your team on the ground at the Baltimore Convention Center: freight to the advance warehouse, show-service orders, installation and storage, with one project manager on your emails in your time zone.
Short on time? In two to three weeks, a rental with your graphics can be ready for Baltimore. On the first call, we tell you what is realistic for GAMA Expo.
Get a proposal
Tell us about your GAMA Expo booth
What happens next
- Within one business day we write back to ask about your products, your goals for GAMA Expo and your footprint.
- A concept rendering and a fixed proposal usually follow within a week. Every fee on paper upfront, in full, for your GAMA Expo booth.
- The build takes 30–45 days; we ship to the advance warehouse and install before the hall opens at the Baltimore Convention Center.