I went for two years, skipped last year, and am thinking about going this year BUT...I'm not sure if it's worth the money. Yes, a lot of my writer friends will be there, but it's more of an industry networking than it is a meet the reader gig. If your goal is to sign an agent/pub/etc you may find it worth your while. If your a newbie writer the panels will be helpful, but if you've been around the block a few time the majority of panels are either genre themed or entry level author oriented, or at least they have been in the past.
So far, Author's After Dark has been the best for meeting readers and boosting sales, but RT has a larger industry market. Since I don't plan on submitting to a big 5 publisher anytime soon...it makes me wonder if it's worth the vacation time and money to go. ESPECIALLY after the signing bullshit last year with horrible lines(lines are always bad though) and seperate rooms for the big 5 authors and indie. Plus, it always seems like the same fifteen people over and over on panels, but that's just me. So should you go? I have no idea, I'll probably go because I really do have a lot of author friends and readers in the Dallas area, but then again I may not and pick up another conference instead.
I hope that wasn't entirely unhelpful.