Ann Arbor Michigan Pinball Show

The Fall 2025 Ann Arbor pinball show will be Saturday and Sunday, October 11/12, 2025. This is the largest pinball show (by unique game count) in North America. Get show ticket reservations for the next Ann Arbor pinball show here.

the VFW Pinball Show is the largest in world (by unique game count.) You will not find a pinball show with a greater number of restored and working pin games available for play any where in the World! And using a registration ticket system keeps people numbers low, so there’s always games to play, with no lines!

2025 Fall VFW Pinball Showcase has pin games from 1933 (essentially the start of coin operated pinball), to 1950s “woodrails”, to the 1960s/1970s/1980/1990s all the way to the latest current games of the 2000s and beyond. Every decade, manufacturer and game type is represented at the museum. There are many rare and hard to find games set up and ready to play. All machines are free play, so one entrance ticket allows unlimited play for the day. There’s something for every pinball fan here (we are the one of the largest dedicated pinball facility in North America.) But unlike other pinball museum type facilities, we are here every day working on our machines, making sure they play perfect!

2025 Fall VFW Showcase Dates and Times.
– Saturday Oct 11, 2025
– Sunday Oct 12, 2025

Ticket Reservations for the Fall 2025 VFW Pinball Show.
Tickets Reservations for the showcase will be available in advance. We want to ensure that all attendees have the absolute best possible experience and have plenty of room to mingle and experience and play the pinball machines. To do this we have a limited number of tickets available. Once the limit is reached, we are sold out, and no more reservations will be issued.


How Many Games will be at the Show case?
There will be about 525 games available for free play. We list the game titles in a separate post here. These games are of known quality and caliber, and some are very rare. You’ll know what titles will be at the show ahead, there’s no guessing.

IFPA Pinball Tournament Saturday and Sunday. With the cost of your admission to the VFW show, there’s an IFPA pinball tournament. Cost of the tourney is included in your show ticket price! It is a blind “Herb” style event. Note you must have a phone or tablet with Internet access to compete, since you will be using our custom tournament web page. Sign up for the tourney is at the front desk when you check in for the day.

Why is the Ann Arbor VFW Pinball Show better and different?
First off nearly everyone goes to pinball shows to play games (versus say going to seminars or other related activities.) Hence the number of working games ready for play is a big draw to our show (most shows struggle to get games.) And at the Ann Arbor VFW Pinball Museum, there are no duplicate titles. Meaning when we say there are “X” many games, there are that number and all with unique titles. (There’s aren’t five Stern Godzilla pinballs, for example.) Hence there is more variety and more representation of pinball’s history. We strive to have all the popular games, and many rare machines, all restored and working.

Also the games are already on site. No set up or tear down like other shows. This means they are leveled, prep’ed, and ready for play. Also the show has the same games on Friday as there are on Sunday (many shows have problems with games leaving early, making the last show day lame.) And there’s a full on-site repair and parts shop (biggest pinball parts department in Michigan), so if anything breaks, it gets repaired quickly and easily. Finally the venue is customized for pinball. That is it’s not a converted school or hotel – it’s a permanent fixture with proper power and display requirements for pinball. Additionally, all the modern games with dot matrix displays have “glare guards” and color dot matrix displays (where available.) This makes the playing experience a lot better than a typical pinball show.


Vendors.
We do have space for vendors who will be showing their products. (Please contact us if you’re interested in doing this.) There is no cost for being a vendor (vendor space is FREE, as is show admission for vendors.) Note the Ann Arbor pinball museum does not sell games or parts, so all we can do is point you to known good vendors.


Nearby Hotel.
Just a few miles away there are a couple places to stay, if you’re from out of town. We don’t have anything set with them, so you will have to call/email to see about reservations. The Holiday Inn Express is a nicer place, but the Best Western is a better deal. Note if it’s a busy University of Michigan or MI State weekend, you may need to get a hotel in Howell or Wixom or Novi to avoid Ann Arbor/Lansing high hotel rates. The hotels below are (more or less) listed by distance to the VFW pinball show.

  • Days Inn by Wyndham. 9897 Main St, Whitmore Lake MI 48189. 734-449-2058.
  • Holiday Inn Express. 6910 Whitmore Lake Road, Brighton MI 48116. 810-227-6300.
  • Hampton Inn, 8068 Challis Rd, Brighton MI 48116. 810-225-8363.
  • Candlewood Suites. 151 Library Dr, Brighton MI 48116. 810-220-1200.
  • Courtyard by Marriot. 7799 Conference Center Dr, Brighton MI 48114. 810-225-9200.
  • Homewood Suites by Hilton. 8060 Challis Rd, Brighton MI 48116. 810-225-0200.
  • Wyndham Baymont. 4120 Lambert Dr, Howell MI 48843. 517-618-1150
  • Country Meadow Inn. 26820 Pontiac Trail, South Lyon MI 48178. 248-437-4421
  • Magnuson Hotel Howell. 1500 Pinckney Rd, Howell MI 48843. 517- 548-2900
  • Best Western Of Hartland. 10087 Highland Rd, Hartland MI 48353. 810-632-7177
  • Comfort Suites Wixom. 28049 S Wixom Rd, Wixom MI 48393. 248-504-5080
  • My Place Hotel. 48881 Alpha Drive, Wixom MI 48393. 248-344-7991
  • Hyatt Place. 46080 Grand River Ave, Novi MI 48374. 248-513-4111
  • Holiday Inn Express. 39675 W 12 Mile Road, Novi MI 48377. 248-344-8204
  • Radisson Country Inn & Suites. 21625 Haggerty Rd, Novi MI 48375. 248-504-0808
  • Extended Stay America Suites. 39640 Orchard Hill Pl, Novi MI 48375. 248-344-4555

Airports.
There are two airports close to the show. The best and easiest airport is the Flint Bishop (FNT) airport. This is a smaller airport, but it’s just so much easier to deal with than Detroit Metro airport (DTW). If you can get a flight to Flint (about 45 minutes due north of the show), we recommend that over Detroit Metro (which is about 45 minutes south east.) DTW is a huge airport and hard to navigate. Flint Bishop is smaller and friendlier, and the security is way easier to deal with.

The Location and Address.
The Ann Arbor pinball museum is located on a scenic 10 acres in the countryside north of Ann Arbor in Green Oak Township. It’s very relaxed and located on a beautiful piece of natural property. The facility has a full pinball restoration shop and of course many games. There’s plenty of parking too. Official address is 8891 Spicer rd, Brighton MI 48116