AWS re:Invent 2022 - My Experience

What an amazing and hectic week in Las Vegas, so much fun and so much learning in the event. In this article I am going to share my experience, impressions and some tips for the attenders that will be attending the event for the first-time next year!

Venues

As already known, the event happens in six venues: The Venetian, MGM Grand, Mandalay Bay, Caesar Palace, Encore and Wynn.

The Venetian is the main venue, there is the place where you can find the Certification Lounge, Expo, Ping Pong tables, Arcades, Lab Self Paced and where the Key Notes happen.

The other venues have lunch and sessions, but nothing more than that! They are also less crowded then The Venetian.

That’s very easy to get lost in the casinos and the venue (fact). On the first day, even the employees were a bit lost. My first session was in the Mandalay Bay and there wasn't anyone from the event to guide the attenders in the main entrance. I walked for a couple of minutes to find the first AWS employee , and even they struggled to help me find my way. There wasn't any kind of identification in the venue either.

Badge Pickup | Registration

Registration was open on Sunday and it was possible to signup in four different places:

• Harry Reid International Airport - Terminal 1 & 4
• Venetian Hotel & Resort
• MGM Grand

I went to The Venetian because that was the closest registration point to the hotel that I was staying in.

You need your ID in order to get your badge. Don't forget it!

Swag

The swag can be picked up in the same places where you pick your badge.

After picking up your badge you can go directly to the swag area and ask for it.

This official swag items this year were a hoodie and a water bottle. If you are certified, this will be the place to take your t-shirt as well. It won't be in the Certification Lounge like I thought that was.

Sessions

Like mentioned in my last article, I was waitlisted in a couple of sessions. I confess that I was a bit unsure if I would be able to attend any of those sessions. Well, I gave a try and worked.

Reserved x Waitlisted (Walk-up)

If you are in the reserved list, you can arrive at any time. However, you should be aware that they open the Walk-up line 10 min before the start of the session, and if that is full you might not be able to join, even if you are in the list.

On the other hand, if you are in the waitlist (Walk-up) side, you must arrive at least 40 min before the session starts, otherwise, you might not be able to attend the session due the amount of people in the line.

Don’t panic if you haven't made any reservations before going to the event, you are still good to go. I met some people that didn’t have time to make all the preparations in advance, and they still attended the sessions and enjoyed the event. Keep in mind that almost no-one made all of the sessions that they intended to.

Expo

The expo is the place where you can get some swag: T-shirts, Stickers, Socks, Cap Hat, Cables, Laptop Case, play in the machines, have some drinks (beer, soft, wine etc.).

The swag and drinks are very nice, right? However, there is one more thing that is also cool in the expo: The opportunity to learn something new.

There are many mini sessions, most of which take no longer than 10 minutes to explain and/or show what the product does.

You can also ask for a demo, discuss about some?issues that you are facing, spend time with their specialists on some features that need further explaining, or highlight something you think is missing from their products.

For swag the best moment to pick up them, specially if you are going for T-shirts is on the first day, so you can find the right size easier :).

Certification Lounge

For some reason I thought that the certification Lounge would be available at any venue (wrong)! Certification Lounge is only available at The Venetian venue.

This is the place for certified people to relax and recharge their batteries, by having some coffee, eating some snacks/fruits or chatting.

It doesn’t matter which certification you got; you are allowed to go inside.

My advice is: Get certified before going the event.

The perks of being certified are:

• Access to the Certification Lounge
• AWS Certification Appreciation Reception
• Extra Swag (Stickers and T-shirt)

Shuttles

I read that the shuttles could be an issue. This year, (at least when I needed to commute between the venues) everything went well. I didn’t wait longer than 3 minutes to for a bus ride. A big shout out to the people that read the complaints from last year and fixed it.Tips and Tricks

Comfortable Shoes

I walked an average of 20KM per day. I don’t think I need say more than that =).

Planning your sessions

Try to plan your day in 2 venues max. There is one thing that nobody tells you; you will get very tired by the end of the day. By planning everything in one venue (or two venues max) makes things much easier and less tiresome.

I did it and worked for me.

Last Sessions in the Afternoon

I don’t know if that is just a feeling or something real, but the?sessions I attended at the end of the day were super easy to get in to, even being in the Walk-up line.

I have to say that I skipped some sessions as well and my place was given to another person.

SIM Card

If you are travelling and cannot use your current mobile subscription to roam, a good tip is to download and install Airalo. It is an eSIM that can be installed on you mobile.

You can buy it before travelling and activate it the moment you arrive. It saved me a lot of time and effort, rather than buy one while I was here.

Travel Adapter

If you are travelling from South America or Europe (or any other country), be aware that the plugs are different in US, and you might need to take one with you to charge your equipment. If you forget, you can buy one, but it might be very expensive. I found at Walgreens and paid US$10.

Announcements

Top announcements can be found in the link below.

Parties

There are many parties organised in the evenings during the event, and the good news is that you can have some food and drinks for free =).

Restaurants Reception

These receptions are sponsored by the vendors and provide snacks and drinks *(like beer and wine). It's a good opportunity to meet people and talk about culture, lifestyle, technology while drinking and eating some snacks.

You don't need to register for these events, just be sure that you have your badge with you and have fun!

AWS Certification Appreciation Reception

Same style like mentioned above, but only for the people who hold the certification.

re:Play

This is the main party! They provide food, drinks in general and you can also get a t-shirt.

You must wear you badge to get access to the party.

Improvements

Workshop Sessions

I think the workshop sessions should have more time or have less content to be done!

In many cases I struggled a bit to finish what was proposed (I heard others complaining as well), in two cases I couldn't finish the exercises.

Two hours are provided to complete the tasks, however, the speakers give a 15 min introduction and it takes almost 5 minutes to connect to the environment. The thing is, for you to read, understanding the context of what you are doing, then running through the steps to complete the task is close to impossible.

Lunch time

You'll be glad to know there is food at the event.? It starts with breakfast in the morning around 7AM.

Lunch is served between 11AM and 1PM with two options: "to-go" and buffet.

I think the buffet is the best option, but as some of my sessions where scheduled between 11AM and 1PM (and as I was on the waiting list) I couldn't quite make it work.

My only other option was to grab a food box that was given out whilst crossing the venue. As an improvement for next time, I think they could extend the buffet until 2PM.?

Wrap-up

In my opinion the event was great. There were lots of interactions, different opinions and visions about the same subject (which is very cool). The quality of the contents were very nice, although I wished there was more Infra as Code in the sessions.

re:Invent 2022 is over, but you still can take advantage of this article to plan your trip for the next year.