Palmetto Anthro Weekend (PAW)

Palmetto Anthro Weekend is a furry convention in Greenville, South Carolina, and its first edition in February 2027 will be the first full furry convention the state has ever hosted. It runs at the Crowne Plaza Greenville under the theme "Fur In Love," a Valentine's weekend built by the Palmetto Anthro Collective, a South Carolina 501(c)(3) that spent two years running smaller events before attempting this one.

2027: Fur In Love

Palmetto Anthro Weekend 2027 runs 4 to 8 February at the Crowne Plaza Greenville with a Valentine's theme, "Fur In Love." Wyviryn, an artist and composer from Lexington, South Carolina, is the Guest of Honour, and is designing the convention shirt as well as a custom piece for the single most expensive registration tier.

Registration is open. General badges are $65 early bird and $80 from 1 November 2026, with Sponsor at $125 and Super Sponsor at $250 before the same deadline. Two novelty tiers sit above those: ten Super Sponsor slots, a single $1,000 "King of the Event" badge that puts your character on the convention's own badge art and comps a guest, and five $1,250 slots that cover five years of membership at once. The charity partner has not been named yet, and the full schedule is due in mid-January 2027.

Two practical things to know before you arrive. Everyone over 18 has to show a government-issued photo ID to collect their badge, and all face coverings come off at the registration desk while staff hand it over, fursuit heads and pup hoods included. Once you are inside, staff are identified by lanyard colour: yellow for general staff, magenta for directors, cyan for the chair, and black and white for security. Badges have to stay visible.

The hotel block runs from a Thursday afternoon check-in to a Monday morning checkout, so the convention covers a long weekend rather than the usual Friday-to-Sunday. Day passes are sold for Friday, Saturday and Sunday, which is where the bulk of the programming sits.

Why Attend?

South Carolina furries have had to drive out of state for this. Carolina Furfare is up in Hickory, North Carolina, Furry Weekend Atlanta is a few hours the other way, and the whole point of Palmetto Anthro Weekend is that the Palmetto State finally gets its own. The organisers say as much: the convention exists so that southeastern and specifically South Carolina furries have somewhere local built with them in mind.

The practical case is the price. A $65 early-bird badge and a $99 room in a hotel where every part of the convention shares one building is close to the cheapest weekend in the region, and the convention has put its money where its mouth is on the room rate by contracting it as the lowest available that weekend. The programming choices point the same direction, at people who want a relaxed first convention rather than a spectacle: a runway you can enter without owning a fursuit, a proper quiet room, and a lobby bar in the middle of everything.

The trade-off is honest. This is a first year run by a young organisation, the schedule is not out, and nobody knows how many people will come.

How Do I Get to Palmetto Anthro Weekend?

By air: Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport (GSP) is the closest commercial field, about 9 miles from the hotel or a 10-minute drive without traffic, and the organisers note it carries nonstop service to more than 30 domestic destinations. The Crowne Plaza runs a free shuttle from 6am to 11pm and will collect you from the terminal if you call the hotel on (864) 297-6300 and ask. Rental cars and taxis are both available at GSP if you would rather not wait on driver availability. Two smaller fields exist for unusual cases: Greenville Downtown Airport (GMU) is only 4 miles out if you fly yourself, and Donaldson Field (GYH) sits 10 miles away and handles military aircraft, though its access roads are restricted.

By train: Greenville's Amtrak station (GRV) is about 7 miles from the venue, a 14-minute drive, and the same hotel shuttle serves it on request within its 6am to 11pm window.

By car: parking is free and self-service, and unusually it covers buses, RVs, trailers and trucks, so arriving in something large is not a problem. The hotel sits about 6 miles from downtown Greenville, roughly nine minutes out.

Once you are there, the shuttle will take you anywhere within a 5-mile radius, which covers groceries, pharmacies, a mall, and most of the food in the area.

Where Should I Stay for Palmetto Anthro Weekend?

The convention is at the Crowne Plaza Greenville, 851 Congaree Road, and staying in the block is the obvious choice because the convention and the hotel are the same building. Rooms in the block start at $99 a night plus tax, which the organisers estimate at $13.07 for a real total near $112 a night. There is no prepayment, cancellation is free up to 24 hours before check-in, a $25 per night security deposit applies, and a 13.2% nightly charge is waived for block bookings. The organisers state they hold the lowest contracted rate available that weekend.

Two room types are in the block: a king with a sleeper sofa, and a two-double room that sleeps four. Both are 336 square feet with free 300 Mbps Wi-Fi, a mini fridge and a Keurig. The block opens for check-in at 4pm on Thursday 4 February and runs to an 11am checkout on Monday 8 February, with late checkout on request. Note that the minimum age to check in on the block is 21, which matters if a younger group is planning to share a room.

The hotel itself carries a heated indoor saltwater pool open 8am to 11pm, a 24-hour gym, two restaurants that deliver to rooms, a marketplace, a business centre, and self-service laundry. It is smoke-free and vape-free throughout, single-use-plastic-free, and takes no pets other than service animals. On accessibility, it lists nine accessible rooms, 16 accessible parking spaces, ADA-compliant elevators and ramp access to the property, its leisure facilities and its restaurants.

Book the block early. A 202-room hotel is not large, and a first-year convention with a $99 rate is exactly the kind of thing that fills faster than anyone plans for.

Plan Your Trip

If Palmetto Anthro Weekend would be your first convention, our first con survival guide covers the things nobody tells you in advance, from the 6-2-1 rule to what post-con depression feels like, and the first con packing list is worth running through before you zip the suitcase. A first-year con with cheap badges is also a good place to test a budget, and the con budgeting guide breaks down where the money actually goes once registration is paid.

Staying in the Carolinas? Carolina Furfare runs each October in Hickory, North Carolina, about two hours north, and is the closest convention of a similar character. If you want to pair a small February weekend with something much larger later in the year, Furry Weekend Atlanta is the region's heavyweight and a few hours down the interstate.