Here is a list of survival tips on how to plan for and survive Comic-Con, the annual sci-fi/fantasy convention in San Diego by my fellow NiceGirl Tiffany (with slight tweaks here and there).
This year, Comic-Con takes place over a five-day period: Wednesday, July 20 through Sunday, July 24 – that is if you managed to buy a 4-day pass, which includes Preview Night.
Held once again at the massive San Diego Convention Center, which is located right next to the glorious San Diego Harbor, the convention center spans nearly 3 football fields in length and offers up a treasure trove of activities, all of which must be carefully and meticulously planned.
First, by now, any attendee should have purchased either the 4-day pass or their single-day tickets. If you were thinking you could still get tickets to attend Comic-Con, you are out of luck as this year’s convention sold out EARLY!! And, there was quite a bit of drama for those trying to purchase tickets online once more tickets were made available. Now that the deadline for returning tickets has passed, you MIGHT be able to find some available via Comic Con’s official registration page.
Second, by now you need to have your hotel reservation made and confirmed. There will be little to no hotel rooms available at this point and if there are any those hotels they are, more than likely, over 5 (or more) miles from the convention center and probably not on the free shuttle routes. Thus, if you have your tickets and still need to secure lodging, you may have a difficult time of it. But, go to the Comic-Con website and click on the “Hotel” link to see if there might be any rooms left. Please also keep in mind that you will need to be prepared to get up early so that you can drive to the convention center or one of the nearby parking lots so you do not get stuck in the daily gridlock which begins at 8:00 AM each day. So, if you have tickets and accommodations, then it is only a matter of counting down the days to Comic-Con — and with that thought in mind, the following is a list of tips on how to prepare for such a monumental event:
TRAVEL TIME TO SAN DIEGO
Whether by plane, train or automobile, be sure to give yourself plenty of travel time to get to San Diego. With well over 125,000 people making the annual trek each day, you are sure to run into a few en route — and you will need to be prepared for the unexpected. Having encountered everything from a train fatality, traffic accidents and fog delays at airports, I can testify that you need to budget into your travel schedule extra travel time so that you do not miss the one panel or event that you are dying to see.
GETTING TO CONVENTION CENTER
The same is true of each day you plan to attend the convention. You must allow for extra time to arrive at the convention center because even taking the free shuttles, taxis and trains is not a guarantee that you will not hit traffic and get stuck anywhere from 30 minutes to 3 hours just trying to traverse the final 5-6 blocks to the convention center. If you are staying at a hotel within walking distance, walking is highly recommended in order to avoid the grid-lock – so pack your comfy walking shoes!
CLOTHING & ACCESSORIES
Speaking of shoes and other apparel, what one wears can be vitally important. Given the amount of walking (whether to and from the convention center, or just within the convention center itself), wearing your comfortable tennis shoes or walking shoes is a must. This is not a time to be concerned about vanity. Along the same lines, temperatures can vary widely both inside and outside the convention center. It is recommended that you dress in layers to accommodate the extreme weather fluctuations as you can be hit by a sudden summer rain drizzle, pea-soup fog, or even arctic air-conditioning inside the convention center — or even worse yet, it could be clear, sunny and 105 degrees outside and you forgot a hat and sunscreen — and within 5 minutes you will find yourself with a lobster-red sunburn and on the verge of heat-stroke. So make sure to think about your wardrobe and what you plan to wear carefully. Also, it may seem silly to grab a light jacket each day before heading to the ‘con, but if you have ever been stuck in Hall H or any of the ballrooms for over 3-4 hours at a stretch, you know how insanely cold those rooms can get. So tennis shoes, light jacket, hat, sunscreen, sunglasses and other appropriate clothing are strongly suggested.
CARRYING BAG & ESSENTIALS
Another key essential is a large carrying bag. Each day you will not only need the appropriate clothing and weather accessories, but you will also need a few survival essentials, such as: bottled water, snacks, cell phone, camera, extra camera batteries/memory cards, and medical aids (see our list below). Also in this bag will go the necessary maps and paperwork to navigate through the crowds to find the panels or vendor booths that you are seeking and any goodies that you find in the Exhibition Hall. (Cautionary note: do not succumb to the lure of picking up every “freebie” you can get your hands on as it will only weigh you down and will make it hard to find the items in your bag that you really need in a pinch – you will want to keep your camera ready at all times as you never know who you might run across.)
SCHEDULING
Besides being aware of crowds, traffic, time-delays, unpredictable weather and temperatures, the most important thing to keep in mind is strategic scheduling. Comic-Con offers over 300 different panels and activities over the five days and it can be both hair-raising and mind-boggling to figure out how to navigate it all. So, when the final Comic-Con schedule gets posted online (which should be around July 4), you will want to print-out each day and then start highlighting everything you are interested in attending or checking-out. Then you will have to distill down into a cheat sheet the panels you want to attend. It is only once you have compiled a cheat sheet that you will begin to see if there are any time conflicts or over-lapping panels. There is a fine art to creating a cheat sheet into a manageable timeline of activities. I do not recommend that you automatically cross-off or remove any conflicting panels, as it is always a good idea to have a back-up plan in case one or more of the panels you had planned to attend ends up being booked to capacity and you cannot get into the room and/or panel. So it is wise to have an A-Plan, a B-Plan and even a C-Plan so that you do not freak-out if a panel or guest gets canceled, or 10,000 people show up for a 1,000 seat room and you are stuck outside praying someone will leave so you can get in the room of your choice. I also suggest that you allow extra time between panels so that you can navigate through the crowds from one panel to another and have time to (a) grab food, (b) use the restroom, or (c) wait in line to get in the room and find seats. If you do not allow built-in time in your schedule, you will be very agitated and frustrated to find that you are missing out on something you were dying to see. Time management is absolutely essential. So develop a flexible plan and keep an eye on it. Better yet, keep a printed copy of your cheat sheet (aka: itinerary) with you at all times.
MONEY
Last, but not least, be sure to plan your budget accordingly regarding the costs of attending Comic-Con. Frequently and unexpectedly, it costs more than you might anticipate. It is a good idea to budget an extra $100-$200 for unanticipated costs, such as: parking fees, cab fare, munchies, memorabilia or other odds and ends.
RECOMMENDED ITEMS
With less than a month to go until Comic-Con, now is the time to really think about what you may need to bring with you. There are always some oddities that are hard to remember so I thought I would share a few things that I find essential:
* back-up battery for cell phone (texting and Twittering deplete batteries sooner)
* back-up camera batteries
* extra camera memory cards (you will take an average of 300 pictures per panel)
* cell phone/blue tooth rechargers
* camera battery rechargers
* power cords or wall plugs (so that you can recharge all your batteries each night)
* back-up laptop computer battery (if you are bringing your laptop)
* plastic baggies for carrying snacks/water bottles
* band-aids, extra socks
* Advil, Tylenol, stomach antacids, allergy medication
* notepad/pens
* sheet protectors (if you buy 8×10 pictures or get autographs)
* handi-wipes
* hat/sunscreen
* cash (in small bills – $1′s, $5′s, and $10′s – at least $100 in small bills)
* earplugs/eye cover (Comic-Con hotels tend to be noisy)
* lightweight jacket (the panel rooms are FREEZING)
* snacks (trail-mix, crackers, fruit bars, candy, gum)/papertowels/napkins
* shoulder bag big enough to carry everything you’ll need each day
* list of cellphone #’s of everyone you’ll be trying to meet up with
Those are the oddities. Of course, there are the golden rule items like TENNIS SHOES. Do not even think about wearing cute shoes – you will regret it. You are going to be on your feet standing in long lines, walking long distances rapidly, and in extremely crowded areas where you’ll get stepped on.
Same goes with cute, small purses — skip those too. You are going to need a bigger shoulder bag to hold everything, preferably one that zips so that someone does not steal your camera/wallet, etc. Plus, you will be carrying food items and speaking from experience, even a plastic bag does not stop all food/water from spilling if you’re getting jostled in a crowd or someone kicks your purse/bag.
Snacks are really important each day as the food vendor lines are frequently 200 people long and you don’t have time to wait in those lines. You only have 15 minutes between panels and it will take you that long to run to the room you want to get it and find a seat. And if you’re packing snacks, bring plastic baggies for trash, loose food items, need handi-wipes and napkins so that your fingers are not too sticky to use your camera.
So print this list and use it as a guide as you pack for Comic-Con. If you need to order back-up cell phone/camera batteries, etc., do it now. It can take 12-14 days for shipping.
With these few tips, I hope that you will feel a bit more enlightened and prepared for how to approach Comic-Con and not be caught off-guard by the time constraints, weather, and other unpleasant surprises. Comic-Con can be a glorious, heady time of non-stop fun events with a little forethought — then you can sit back and enjoy the ride!
Rueben's Ramblings 
As a first time comic con’r, thank you for the great advice! My wife and i will be arriving in San DIego wednesday with our 1 day Thursday passes (hopefully can score Friday passes when they relist again), we are staying at mission bay near seaworld. I have a few questions if you don’t mind answering.
1. Should we spend the night wednesday night or get there thursday morning at 5am? My goal is to get to the Hasbro Toy Booth as soon as I can for exclusives and my goal is to join the twilight fans for their panel.
2. should we take a taxi to and from or just park there wednesday night (not sure if there are overnight parking downtown) or just park at 5am on Thursday.
If you don’t have reservations for Wednesday night already set with your hotel, then you won’t be able to go there on Wednesday night, as I’m sure they are booked up at this point (and probably have been booked up for months) unless you plan on staying with friends or family in San Diego or, worse yet, plan on camping out outside the convention center (which is NOT recommended, but is your call!). The doors to get inside the convention center will probably open at 7 AM, allowing people to go inside. From there you will be directed upstairs to get your actual pass at the registration tables and pick up your information packet; you have to get your pass for the day before you can go into any of the panel rooms or the Exhibition Hall. Once you’ve gotten your pass, then you can find the line that allows people to go downstairs to get into the exhibition hall once those doors open up. Then you will have to navigate your way through the HUGE exhibition hall to find the Hasbro Toy Booth – make sure you find out where the booth is set up, courtesy of your Comic-Con program book – that will be in your information packet.
Also, if you have any hope of getting into the Twilight panel, which is in Hall H, you will have to send your wife outside – while you get in line for the Exhibition Hall – to find the end of the line for Hall H (trust me people will be camped out the night before in order to get in Hall H) which could be the whole way to the back of the convention center (or beyond) and then she’ll have to wait until the line – which will be VERY long – starts moving and HOPE that she can get in there before the Twilight panel starts. You will need to join her in line BEFORE she gets inside the building otherwise you will not be permitted to join her in line. Line jumping once inside the building is a BIG no-no for Hall H.
Suggestion: You might want to just get your passes and then head straight for the Hall H line and try to get in there THEN go to the Hasbro Booth afterwards. Or if you’re a real die hard, camp out the night before to hold a place in line for Hall H, then you and your wife can take turns getting your day passes the following morning once the main doors are open for registration – so you don’t lose your place in line for Hall H – hopefully you’ll get in for Hall H – and then you can check out the Exhibition Hall and the Hasbro Booth after the Twilight panel is done.
Parking is very tricky, as most of the parking spaces will fill up quickly and the SDCC organization was selling parking passes earlier this year for those who wanted to make sure they would get a space. If you take a taxi, leave EARLY as the line to just get inside the convention center starts EARLY and the traffic will be a bear regardless!
Good Luck!
thanks for the reply good sir! yes, my wife and i actually booked flight and hotel the first week of February before we even had tickets to Comic Con (which was a risk since we got lucky to even get Thursday 1 day passes!). So we will be in San Diego Wednesday 6pm to Sunday 8am. San Diego is a beautiful city that we have been to before and plan on going back to the Zoo and Legoland (now that it has a Star Wars section!). We are from San Antonio, TX by the way.
My wife might want to just stay the night Wednesday for the line for the Twilight panel since I heard it was for the morning Thursday in Hall H. I have a couple more questions,
1. I read that the only day you can pick up passes early is the Thursday passes that can be picked up on Wednesday night, is this true?
2. So do my wife and I both have to be present to get our passes to show our I.D.? so is that why you said to take turns?
3. Do you know how the Habro Booth does their line? If i get there first to their booth, can i just starting buying stuff or do they have a different system?
thanks for all your info!
I’m glad to help out where I can, but I should alert you that I am a girl, so “sir” really isn’t necessary although very polite on your part. If your wife wants to stay in line on Wednesday night, I would recommend you both stay (if you hadn’t already decided to do that). It’s better to be together than her be there alone – even with all the other people camping out. Make sure to pack plenty of blankets, etc. as you will be OUTSIDE the convention center, the line for Hall H forms outside and it will get COLD because you are on the concrete and near the water. Think carefully before you decide to camp out, as it will be very uncomfortable – no showers, bathroom access will be limited, privacy, et al.
You can stop by the convention center on Wednesday afternoon and ask any volunteer or actually go upstairs to the registration area and find out if you can get your Thursday pass ahead of time. They don’t always follow the same rules each day for the day passes; and since I get the 4-day pass as part of the press, it’s different for me.
Each person MUST pick up their own pass each day – you cannot get her pass for her or vice versa. You must present your ID and your printed out confirmation for the day for which you are registered; that’s why I suggested taking turns UNLESS you are able to get the passes the day before.
There shouldn’t be any kind of line at the Hasbro booth or any other booth in the Exhibition Hall unless they have a great sale going on and there are a lot of people at the booth OR if they are holding an autograph signing or have a celebrity guest at the booth. Otherwise, as long as the booth isn’t jam-pakced with people, you can just go straight to the booth, talk to whoever is there running the booth and get whatever it is you want, as long as they have it at the booth, of course.
Again, good luck and travel safe.
If you do camp out for the Twilight line Wednesday night and you haven’t picked up your badges, you’ll want to decide who will get their pass first (switch to the line for passes early Thursday morning) and who will hold your spot in the Twilight line.
Parking at 5AM can be done. Don’t try to park at the Convention Center. Aim for one of the outer lots. Bring extra cash to feed the parking lot machine. Plan to walk about six blocks.
Unfortunately, I often see long lines at the booths if there is an exclusive or giveaway. Since that’s not my thing, I’ve never gotten in one so I don’t know how fast they move. Accept that you may still be in line for Hasbro while your wife is going inside Hall H.
Again, I don’t know how fast the exclusives go. You may want to ask around to find out if you could just do the Twilight panel and then go into the Exhibition Hall (warning: LOTS of people by that time of day) and get in line for Hasbro.
If you can’t get your passes Wednesday night, I’d get to the Convention Center as soon as possible on Thursday to get in the line for passes. It will stretch back and around the Convention Center and you’ll be standing/sitting for a long time until it starts moving. If you get there are 5AM, you won’t start moving until 8AM or 9AM. When it does start moving, you’re not much more than half an hour from the sign-in. It won’t be too hot in the morning, but hats and sunscreen will be useful.
If you do decide to do Hasbro first, split up. You should get in line for the Exhibition Hall and your wife should get in line for Hall H.
*Find a line for the Exhibition Hall.* There are usually a set of lines in the Sails Pavilion – which is where you pick up your passes – that feed into the back of the Exhibition Hall. Turn to the right after getting your pass and then look towards the left – the autograph line-up area is used for Exhibition Hall lines first thing in the morning. If you’ve gone through the doors into the hallway, you’ve gone too far.
Get in line and take out the map in your convention pack and find the Hasbro booth on it. It should be one of the big ones in the middle. Note the Aisle and Booth number so that you can charge straight for it when you get downstairs.
Once you get to the booth, you’ll need to find the end of the line for exclusive toys and wait to get your goodies. Don’t overbuy. You’ll be carrying that stuff around the rest of the day. I’ve also heard they sometimes limit how many exclusives you can get so that they don’t run out early.
Once you’ve got your goodies, head for the south end of the convention center to find the line for Hall H. If your wife went on early, use your cell phone to figure out where she is in line or just start at the front of the line and follow it back until you spot her.
*Find the line for Hall H.* Turn to the left after getting your pass and start looking for signs that point to Hall H. (Don’t be afraid to ask the staff. Dont’ get into the line for Ballroom 20 by mistake.) Your goal is to come out downstairs on the South end of the Convention Center and find the lines under the tents that feed into Hall H. You will probably pass those lines on your way through to get your passes, so mark where they were and head back.
For Twilight, that line is going to be long and scary, but don’t worry too much. If you get there early enough, you should be okay. Hall H holds like five thousand people. It’ll be a long wait. Panels don’t usually start until 10AM. Bring a blanket or foldable chair to sit on and plenty of sunscreen.
Twilight is a big deal, but so is Harry Potter and I got into that line last year around 7AM and got into the room with time to spare. But I already had my pass by that point and if they don’t start moving the line for passes until 8AM, then it might be tight by the time you get to it.
I’m also going to SDCC for my first time and thank you for this post. A good number of things (like how hard it’s going to be to get food) I’m aware of from reading people’s coverage of the conference in the past, but there were quite a few good things that I didn’t think of at all.
Enjoy the con and pace yourself since this is your first time. Follow the steps on this list and you’ll do just fine. Most of all, have fun!
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