Originally sourced from searchaws.techtarget.com. Article reflects information available ahead of AWS re:Invent 2019 (December 1–6, 2019).
AWS re:Invent 2019: What You Need to Know Before You Go
AWS re:Invent is consistently the largest cloud computing conference of the year. With more than 50,000 attendees at the 2018 event, re:Invent 2019 is expected to draw an even larger crowd across its multi-venue Las Vegas campus. The sheer scale of the conference—spread across six properties on and near the Strip—can overwhelm even experienced attendees. A bit of preparation, however, goes a long way toward maximising the sessions, meetings, and networking opportunities on offer.
The conference runs from Sunday, December 1 through Friday, December 6, 2019. Here is a practical breakdown of what to plan for.
Navigating the Las Vegas Strip
The main activity hubs for re:Invent 2019 are the Venetian, Aria, and MGM Grand, with additional sessions and events at the Mirage and Bellagio. Compared to 2018, the MGM Grand is carrying significantly more content this year, so factor that into your hotel choice if you have not already booked.
Getting Between Venues
AWS provides free shuttle buses between venues, but travel time between conference halls can easily reach an hour or more, especially during peak session changeovers. Once you arrive at a venue, budget additional time to navigate the hotel interiors to reach your specific room.
Other transport options include:
- Las Vegas Monorail: A faster alternative during busy periods. Note that the closest Monorail stop to the Venetian is the Linq station, leaving a short walk. The Monorail is often less crowded than shuttles during session transitions.
- Walking: Practical for shorter hops. The MGM Grand to the Aria is roughly a 20-minute walk; Aria to the Venetian is approximately 30 minutes without detours.
- Taxis and ride-sharing services: Available but can be slow due to Strip traffic during conference hours.
New Scheduling Policies to Know
AWS has updated its booking policy to help manage transit times: attendees cannot reserve sessions at different venues that are less than 60 minutes apart. Additionally, the long-standing rule applies: arrive at your session room at least 10 minutes before it starts or your reservation may be forfeited.
Venue Strategy
Mark Nunnikhoven, vice president of cloud research at Trend Micro and an AWS Community Hero, recommends a deliberate approach to managing your venue schedule throughout the week:
“Either pick one [venue] and switch around lunch time or pick a different venue every day.”
Mark Nunnikhoven, VP of Cloud Research, Trend Micro
Key destinations worth planning around include the expo hall at the Venetian, the quad at the Aria, and the various hands-on lab areas distributed across the campus.
Tip: If you are flying in, register at the airport when you land rather than at the conference halls. This can save significant time and avoid the long registration queues.
Planning Your Sessions
Re:Invent 2019 features more than 2,700 sessions, making it genuinely difficult to narrow down a personal agenda. Reserved seating fills up quickly—some sessions were already sold out ahead of the conference. Third-party tools and community-built sites have emerged specifically to help attendees filter and manage the session catalog.
AWS will again distribute topics equally across venues this year, meaning you can stay at a single venue and still cover a wide range of subject areas. Importantly, more repeat sessions are scheduled this year: if a particular talk at the Bellagio does not fit your schedule, there is a reasonable chance it will be repeated at a more convenient venue and time.
Session Formats
Understanding the different session types helps you build a balanced schedule:
- Breakout Sessions: Held in larger rooms, covering a range of expertise levels. Ideal for learning about new AWS services or getting a deep dive on ones you already use. Customer-led talks from organisations such as Netflix and T-Mobile typically appear in this format.
- Workshops (Hands-On Labs): Practical, lab-based sessions where attendees work directly with a service. These typically run around two hours—the longest format at the conference.
- Chalk Talks: Smaller, discussion-driven sessions led by AWS solutions architects. These follow a short presentation with a real-world example, then open into a group conversation. Good for interactive problem-solving.
- Builder Sessions: Led by an AWS expert, with attendance capped at around six people. Participants work in a sandbox environment to explore new or existing technologies. Highly valuable if you can secure a spot.
If you arrive at re:Invent without a full session lineup, look for the digital session boards posted around the venues. AWS staff nearby can review your interests and help you identify available options on the spot.
Keynotes
The keynotes are the headline events of the conference. Based on the pattern from recent years:
- Andy Jassy (AWS CEO) typically leads the main product announcement keynote, covering new services and major platform updates.
- Werner Vogels (Amazon CTO) follows the next day with a broader industry and technology perspective.
- Monday Night Live, hosted by Peter DeSantis (VP of AWS Global Infrastructure), is an in-depth technical session offering a rare look at the infrastructure layer powering AWS. It tends to be light on product announcements but is highly regarded by engineers who want to understand the underlying platform.
Keynote lines form well before doors open. If the ambiance is not your preference—or if your schedule is tight—all keynotes and most breakout sessions are posted online within a short window after the conference ends.
Social Activities and Networking
Re:Invent 2019 includes a full schedule of social events alongside the technical programming:
- Midnight Madness (Sunday evening): The traditional conference kickoff event, featuring music, games, and food.
- Annual Pub Crawl (Wednesday): A popular community social event connecting attendees across venues.
- DeepRacer Competitions: Autonomous model-car racing events for those interested in machine learning and AI.
- re:Play (Thursday night): A large-scale EDM concert and interactive entertainment event—one of the most-attended social events at the conference.
- Lower-key options: New this year are arts and crafts sessions, movie nights, and board games for attendees who prefer a quieter social setting.
Throughout the day, themed networking lounges are open across the campus, organised around topics such as databases, financial services, and artificial intelligence. These are worth visiting even briefly—the mix of attendees at re:Invent has broadened considerably beyond its developer-centric roots.
“There is this wide and diverse audience. You get these different perspectives, which tend to spur much better conversations.”
Mark Nunnikhoven, VP of Cloud Research, Trend Micro
Whether you are a developer, architect, or business decision-maker, the diversity of the re:Invent crowd makes the hallway track—informal conversations between sessions—as valuable as the formal agenda.
Quick Reference Checklist
- Book your hotel with venue proximity in mind—MGM Grand has significantly more content in 2019
- Reserve sessions early; popular ones fill up fast and some are already sold out
- Do not schedule sessions at different venues less than 60 minutes apart
- Arrive at session rooms at least 10 minutes before start time
- Register at the airport on arrival to avoid conference-hall queues
- Use the Las Vegas Monorail as a shuttle alternative during peak periods
- Plan your venue strategy by day or half-day to reduce cross-campus travel
- Mix session formats—include at least one workshop or builder session for hands-on learning
- Budget time for networking lounges and community social events