The hotel reservation service for this year's Comic-Con International opens tomorrow morning at 9:00 AM, Pacific Time. A few weeks ago, someone inaccurately reported it as 9:00 AM, Eastern Time, and a couple of my local friends were irate because they figured that meant getting up to be ready at 6 AM.
I don't know how many rooms will be available but it would not surprise me if they're all gone by the time the late risers log in. The last few years, I've had friends calling me in despair. They didn't get in quickly and found themselves faced with the choice of staying in New Mexico and commuting…or paying a per-night figure roughly equal to the price of a near-mint Action Comics #1. I cannot help these people. You have X number of hotel rooms near the convention center and Y number of people who want one, and Y is at least ten times X, maybe twenty or thirty times. It's simple math.
But don't give up too quickly. Anecdotal evidence suggests that a lot of people, well aware of the inevitable shortage, long ago made any kind of reservation they could get — sometimes, several — and they'll be cancelling some as we get closer to the date. Some hotels (I don't mean the ones available through the con) may be holding back rooms 'til later. Last year just before the con, when everything south of Disneyland seemed booked solid with a waiting list, a friend of mine innocently called a hotel within walking distance of the convention center and got a room at a decent price. The person who took the reservation told him, "For weeks now, we've been laughing at people who call and ask what you asked, but someone just cancelled."
So don't despair. But also don't call me.
Anyway, the gold rush begins tomorrow at the Comic-Con website. Let the games commence.