I've always wanted to attend Anime Expo but I haven't been able to due to reasons (It's halfway across the States, lol). Maybe next year. For the time being I'll settle with AnimeIowa( it's actually quite popular here in town) or AnimeMidwest in Chicago.
FTR, I'm not stating that AnimeIowa or AnimeMidwest are inferior to AX, or vice versa but I've always wanted to attend a con of a magnitude like AnimeExpo.