Preview Night for Comic-Con International is a mere seventeen days away. If you haven't arranged for a badge, you probably ain't going. If you have one, here are some things someone oughta say to you…
- You can have a great time there if you plan a little. The convention website is full of useful information and it will get fuller as we near the dates. For instance, in a few days, they'll begin posting the Programming Schedule. Take the time before you go to review it and make some notes. Jot down the events you'd like to see. Some of them require long waits in line and taking the chance that you won't get in. Others are wide open and relatively simple. It wouldn't hurt to go there with a list of first choices, second choices, third choices, etc.
- It can also help to study the map of the main hall. Get a sense of where the exhibitors you want to see are located. If you have zero interest in videogames, it's a good idea to know where those exhibitors are so you can avoid that area, which can be very noisy and very hard to get through.
- Wear the most comfortable shoes you own. Consider packing a lunch. Bring as much money as you're willing to spend and hang onto enough to get home without running on empty.
- The building will be packed with people you've always wanted to meet. Don't be afraid to approach them. Just understand that some of them may be swamped or busy, and that you need to be polite about it all.
- There's a colorful, noisy street fair outside the convention center and I always enjoy taking at least one stroll through it. It's big and fun enough that some people don't bother with getting tickets to actually attend the con. They go and enjoy what's going on all around. Check it out.
- If you're attending in costume or eager to take photos of those who do, please remember that aisles are meant for others to walk through. I love cosplayers but dressing up as some fantasy character seems to cause some people to think they have a right to pose wherever they are, no matter who they inconvenience. I have also seen near-accidents from the foot-traffic jams and the swinging of fake weaponry. Last year at Phoenix Con, I had to say to one cosplayer, "You have a lovely costume but the spot where you've chosen to pose is preventing people in wheelchairs from getting where they need to go." She looked at me like I had odd priorities.
- Still need a hotel? Believe it or not, there are still hotel rooms available through the convention. They're five or so miles away but they're on the shuttle route. (And just because they're on the shuttle route doesn't mean you have to use the shuttle buses. I have friends who last year were happier using cabs or Uber to get them close to the Convention Center and then they'd walk the rest of the way.)
- I have no advice about parking except don't drive down there unless you have a pretty good idea where you're going to leave your car.
- I have no other advice about driving except that you need to remember that Comic-Con International is not responsible for how bad the traffic may be at times. If you're coming in on the 5, you have one bonus this year because the convention is earlier in the month than it usually is. You usually have to deal with a huge snarl of autos because Del Mar Race Track is running. But Del Mar doesn't open this year until July 16 and the convention this time is July 9-12. In case you're interested, the San Diego Padres will be away for the entire duration of Comic-Con.
- Those of you who want to take the Amtrak Pacific Surfliner down to San Diego should remember that trains sell out and that some of them already have.
And I close with what may be the most important thing: Pace yourself. Accept the fact that you won't get to see everything you'd like to see and won't get into every event you'd like to attend. Every Disneyland travel guide says it's important to understand that going-in and it's no different with Comic-Con. You can have the greatest time of your life if you do a little planning and don't go in wanting the impossible to happen. Very little in the hall is realistic but your expectations ought to be.