Even though I live in San Diego I never made it until last summer. I’ll never miss again. I had a lot of help from Twitter in preparing for the Con, because people posted links to blogs that had helpful hints. Here’s my contribution to this year’s crop.
I went for the tv panels, and everything else was secondary. Also, I had a 4-day pass with access to the preview night. Keep in mind recommendations may vary depending on your particular goals.
WHAT TO BUY/PACK/BRING/DO AHEAD OF TIME
I had read that attendees receive a lot of freebies, so I brought a messenger bag. Kind of a no-brainer. What I came up with on my own is a legal-size expando file to fit inside, the kind you can get at any office supply store or even Target. This was GREAT. I kept my schedule inside but also all the other paper goods I received, including comic books from the Psych and Doctor Who panels, postcards, a photo signed by John Barrowman, and lots of other cool things. They didn’t get munched by the other things in my bag but were kept safe in the folder.
Most people recommended bringing food or at least snacks. I’m SO GLAD I DID. My favorite snack was individual bags of trail mix with peanuts and chocolate. The peanuts give the illusion of protein and the chocolate is, you know, chocolate. Snack boxes of chocolate covered raisins were also a win, as were packs of gum because you can share the gum. Look at Comic Con as a 4-day diet and exercise program. Once you get in your seat it’s not always easy to leave and easily return, even with someone saving your place. Food and drink lines are long, and popular panel lines are longer. Bring some good munchies (hubs brought a reusable lunchbag with a coolpack in it and stocked it with a sandwich or two every day) and at least one bottle of water (but no more than two because they get heavy).
Last year a read a post that recommended being open to meeting new people, since you’ll already have common interests. It’s true, I did, and was hoping to stay in contact with them. Although I had business cards, I didn’t want to hype my business, so I made contact cards from business card stock (it works on your home printer) I picked up at the office supply store. On them I printed my name, my city, my email, and my Twitter name. This year I’ll also have my blog names. That’s the kind of info that I wanted to exchange with all of the cool people I met, and I’m really glad I had it already printed up.
Cell phone - Of course you’ll want to bring your iPhone/BlackBerry/etc; just be forewarned that services often went down inside of the ballrooms, and the spinning circle of death was a common screen site. Though you should bring your cell since there is no paging system and you may need to connect with your friends at some point, trust me, it’s often almost impossible to hear a ring at the Con. Just hold it in your hand or check it periodically.
Sign up for Twitter at www.twitter.com and use your phone to keep following it during the con. I got great tips about some excellent booths and where to find certain things from others tweeting from the con. Start now and search for the hashtags (a word with a # sign in front of it) #sdcc and/or #comiccon and you’ll find info about the con. Find and follow people that are fans of the same shows as you by using the show hashtag (#Lost for example) for the latest show information. Tell them you’re going to #sdcc and they’re going to want to follow your tweets. Here’s an example:
I’m going to #sdcc and I’ll be attending the #Fringe panel. I can’t wait!
You’ll likely hear from a few people, and make a few online friends. Don’t be afraid; I have met hundreds, and they’re almost all great. You can always block them, but more often you’ll meet terrific people from around the world who share your love for a show.
If you’re already active on Twitter, consider making a second account just for your Comic Con tweets. I loved tweeting info from the panels last year but many people don’t want to hear about the spoilers you may get from a panel. Tweet your new name, put your regular Twitter name in your new profile, and tell them you may be tweeting spoilers from the con. In addition, I follow hundreds of people on my main account. On my account for Comic Con I’ll only be following people that are attending. I don’t want to miss great con info because my stream is full of my beloved non-con friends’ tweets. By the way, my main Twitter account is @Loster21, and my con account is @Lostersdcc. I have a Comic Con list there, and I recommend them all as great follows. If you are not following the official site for Comic Con, DO IT NOW: Comic_Con
Of course constantly streaming Twitter and periodically tweeting pics meant that my BlackBerry’s battery was severely taxed. Fortunately I had an idea that I might run out of battery charge before I was done for the day, so I bought an extra BlackBerry battery before the con and brought it with. Even though I fully charged both batteries every night, I ended up changing batteries every single day about halfway through. Depending on your camera you may want an extra battery for that as well; same if you bring a laptop.
I spent hours standing in line for panels. If you need to change rooms for different panels, you will almost certainly be standing in line. Yes, lines sometimes last far longer than the panels. Obviously, wear comfortable shoes. Not so obviously, if you sunburn easily, wear sunscreen because last year the line for Ballroom 20 was so long every day that they routed the line OUTSIDE (the “bay side terrace” on the map) with switchbacks like at amusement parks. There were canopies set up for some shade but they weren’t continuous.
You should also wear clothes that work for sitting on the floor. Trust me, there may come a point when you leave a panel or the exhibit hall and you just wanna sit. Do yourself a favor and wear darker colored shorts or jeans so you’re not worried about getting them dirty on the floor.
Parking – Get a parking pass if they’re still available These weren’t available last year, but I jumped on the chance this year, since there were still passes available at a very-near-to-the-con lot. Because of the passes, many lots that may have been available may not be available this year.
THINGS TO KNOW:
Arrive early! Friday morning we slept in just a little (arriving at the shockingly late hour of 8:30 am) and all of the good nearby lots were full. We decided to park in one of the farther lots and catch oneof the shuttle buses. The problem with that was, every shuttle bus that came by to pick us up was already full, so we ended up walking the whole long way to the convention center. If you’re planning on arriving really late, park really far away and take the trolley, or just plan on walking. My best suggestion: don’t arrive really late. 7-7:30 am is best. You’ll wait in line to get in, but at least you won’t be walking. Unfortunately, you’ll also miss out on some of the free things that get passed out outside the con, because those people sleep in. Curse you, SyFy! If you’re done with panels for the day, take a walk outside and you’ll probably see freebies being handed out. If you wait til the end of the day you may miss out.
On the other hand, LOOK AT ALL THE GREAT SWAG! Almost everything you see here was a freebie; we only bought the four bobbleheads, the two 8x10 prints, the two official Comic Con tees (the black tees with Comic Con printed on them; the other tees were freebies), the autographed photo, and the special lanyards.
Last year, Warner Bros had cards listing the days and times of their Exhibit Hall giveaways (including the cool Star Trek foam fingers pictured above) so grab one of those if you see them, so you can plan accordingly.
Buy something early on from a company that’s offering those free giant bags – you’ll want one. Last year Entertainment Earth and Warner Bros had them, and I’m sure many others did as well. I emptied mine out every night, ready for anything bulky I might get the next day.
Get to the panel room early - Try to get to your panel room at least two panels early. I stood in one panel line for 2 hours, and I know people that waited longer. Those lines move VERY SLOWLY. Hopefully, you can start the day in one room and stay there all day. It’s worth it to sit through a couple of panels that don’t seem as immediately interesting to you if it means getting a good seat at your favorite show’s panel. Some for me were pleasantly surprising, only one was complete rubbish.
Expect that you won’t be able to do or see everything that you want to. The Con is just too big, and the lines too long, to do it all unless you have very few things that you want to do or see. Knowing this ahead of time made the frustration a little more bearable.
Nevertheless, do make a plan. Go to the Comic Con official website often, and as I said above, follow the official Comic Con Twitter account. The panel schedules changed often, and you’re going to want to know. Last year we were able to search the schedule by category, such as TV or Movies, and that made it possible to see what panels were coming.
It’s great to go to the Con with a friend, but be open to attending different panels than your friends once you get inside. You will of course be surrounded by other fans of your favorite shows, and that’s a great experience.
When you’re done for the day or are at least done with the panels for the day, there are restaurants around that you can check out. The ABSOLUTE BEST place to eat last summer was just across the street at the Hard Rock Hotel. The Syfy channel took over their diner and turned it into Cafe Diem, named after the diner in the show Eureka. The food was GREAT, was named after Syfy characters, places, and props, and was relatively inexpensive. They also had standups of characters for photo ops!
I had an amazing time at San Diego Comic Con 2009, and I can’t wait for SDCC 2010! If you’ve been before and have additional tips, please put them in the comments!
