Hey everyone! This is a very exciting moment for me, as this is my very first blog!!! Which is funny because I really don’t like writing, haha, but when you’ve had such an amazing Comic-Con(SDCC) as I did you’d wanna write all about it as well. During this post I’m going to tell you the ins and outs of SDCC from getting tickets to lining up for panels. After attending for the past four years and attending Hall H for two of those years and autograph signings for one year, well kinda two but the second was pure luck thanks to the amazing Matthew Lillard (More on that in a different post)! So on that note let’s get started shall we.
So, getting badges (tickets) for SDCC can be pretty daunting because, well, the lottery is horrible, honestly. If you’re trying to go for your first time they’ll announce around Jan-Feb an estimated time they’ll have the badge sales for Open Registration. Now if you went to SDCC the previous year, you’ll have two chances to get badges, once at Pre-Registration and once at Open Registration. So how it goes is, you’ll have to go to SDCC webpage and create a member id. This is what you’ll use to get your registration code via email to be able login to the online badge waiting room. Once they announce when badges go on sale you’ll need to login into the waiting room before 9am, its usually a good idea to get there early, and once it’s 9am they’ll start sorting you into random groups to purchase tickets. Then, they randomly pick groups to move into the purhase site. If you’re lucky enough to get picked, you’ll pick from what days are left (they sell fast!), and hopefully the days you want are still available. If so, then YAY you’re on your way to SDCC, congrats! Now about a month before SDCC you’ll receive your badges in the mail and you must have them on you at ALL times in full display at SDCC.
OK, now that you have your badges let’s talk about the prep!! This varies depending on what days you have and whether or not you want to attend Hall H, other panels or autograph signings.
So for the Hall H line sunscreen, water and umbrellas are a must because you’ll be in the sun a lot. The best way to line up for Hall H to get a very good seat is to line up just after they hand out wristbands for the previous line. Let me be clear on this though, if you do not care where your seat is and are happy just getting into this very exclusive hall, then you do not have to wait as long. Sometimes people will start a unofficial line just off to the side, but they’re not suppose to do that, but they always do. And if you happen to see an unofficial line forming, the unspoken rule is to consider that line where you need to be, until the previous line moves. The green flag, which denotes the Next Day Line, is always in the back of the Convention Center next to the water by the yachts. They begin to hand out wristbands for the next day around 730–830pm. You will know they are about to begin because you will notice SDCC staff in red lighted vests, they are known as “Blinky-blinks.” So now that your in line and you’ve gotten your wristband, a security person will walk you in a single file line over to the tents where you’ll sleep for the night. Now, if you have a group of people you can take turns waiting in line. SDCC official rule about holding spots in line is 1 person can hold space for 5 people. So say you have 13 people in your group you’ll need 3 people in line AT ALL TIMES to ensure your spot is saved. So if you have 13 people in your group, only 3 people need to camp out overnight and the rest just have to be back at the tents by 6am to claim your spot with your group again. If you plan on staying the night here’s a list of things I suggest you bring:
Small single person cot or self inflating air mat(grass/concrete isnt fun)
Small blanket or sleeping bag
Small chair
Portable battery packs to charge your phone
Hoodie
Change of clothes
Socks
Baby wipes
DEODERANT — You may laugh but I’m dead serious on this one
Now remember, you’ll have to carry all this with you into Hall H, so keep that in mind and pack light and only what is needed.
Now that you’ve survived the night, which i will say, isn’t the most comfortable, or quietest, but so worth it because of the panels and the possible celebrity sightings. OK, morning has come and now security or the people in green, known as green shirts, will wake you up around 6am to start packing up your stuff. Then around 7–7:30 they move you over into the chutes where you’ll stay for a short period of time, a couple hours usually, until they’re ready to walk you into Hall H. From there you’ll claim your seat and enjoy all that the Hall H panels have to offer you. Each panel last 1 hour or so depending on the panel. Now, during the panels they bring out a moderator and they’ll introduce the cast of the show from there one by one. The cast will typically mess around show a season trailer or highlight reel. Sometimes you’ll get really lucky and see never-before-seen footage from the show/movie or if you get really really lucky you might catch an entire episode (Marvel Defenders and Outlander panels did that this year). During the your time in Hall H, there is a bathroom inside the hall and you’re able to get food right outside the door. The food is usually pretty meh, but hey you aren’t there for the food. Also, you can get what’s called a Pass which you can use to leave Hall H. This pass comes with the rule that you must return before the current panel ends, if you return after it ends, you will not be allowed back into the Hall and must get into the back of the Hall H line which can be long depend on the next panels.
Now for all other panels and autograph signings it’s basically the same process . But, instead of lining up behind the Convention Center, you’ll line up in the chutes under the tents. Once they let you into the Convention Center, you will do one of several things. If you are planning on attending panels in the smaller rooms, such as Ballroom 20 or Room 6, you’ll go to the designated room for your panel and line up until the panels begin. For autograph signings, Comic-Con exclusives and all other things they take you for to the Sails Pavilion, which is also where you will go to get your bags and lanyards(Free Swag). Once inside, you must find the line for your wanted event. For autograph signings, this part is a bit of a mess. You get to the booth and draw a ticket out of a bag. If your ticket has a stamp on it you receive a wristband to attend the signing, if not, you must get back in line to draw again. I find that system horrible personally because someone who waits overnight might not get one. But, that’s rare from my understanding, and I also haven’t done the autograph draw since my first SDCC 4 years ago. Now, if you don’t want to line up the day before or stay the night you can still line up early in the morning and depending on the panel you might be able to get in. You’ll probably be in the back but they have jumbo screens all over to see. I personally am a front row kinda girl so I’ll be there as early as they’ll let me, haha.
The Exhibit Hall is the meat and potatoes of SDCC. It is full of booths that range from Showtime and HBO, Marvel and DC to full comic book sections to Funko and Hasbro toys. They have real movie costumes and props for display in the Exhibit Hall, which are really cool to look at and take pictures with. You can find collectibles and limited editions, even Comic-Con exclusive which are made just for SDCC, they are some of the rarest and coolest finds. Be advised, if large crowds are not your thing then Comic-Con is not for you. The crowds are huge and you are shoulder to shoulder on the Exhibit Hall and the sidewalks. If that doesn’t bug you then you’re golden to run around the Exhibit Hall and find all the fun things to buy and or just look at. You can even buy items that won’t be released for sale for quite some time. The Exhibit Hall floor is also a great place to see all the amazing cosplay that range from simple things like Party City costumes to professional cosplayers who spend thousands on their cosplay! I personally have never done cosplay but i really want to, and probably will next year. I have done my kids though, our 2nd year i dressed my son up at the 11th doctor (Matt smith — Doctor Who) and my two older girls are Weeping Angels (Doctor Who). They had their pictures taken sooooooo much and honestly were over it 30 mins in. But when they did take pictures they went full blown with poses. So be prepared to have your picture taken the entire time if you cosplay.
Take advantage of all the free swag on the floor!!! Some booth require tickets to get into line its just their way of controling line sizes. And they pass out the tickets at different intervals throughout the signing time. I’ve only experienced this system once, this past SDCC with the Outlander booth.
SDCC also has plenty of free events outside the Convention Center, they all have lines but are completely free, open to everyone(even without a SDCC ticket) and you get free swag in most of the events, or it’s just a really fun time. Well it’s that either way, haha.
Hotels are very pricey during SDCC so be warned. Also, they book rooms well in advance through a lottery system. You are able to pick 5 hotels in order of most wanted to least wanted. And you’ll be put into a lottery and which ever hotel is chosen for you is what you’ll get, if you get a room at all. I don’t know much on this since I’m a local and basically turn homeless for SDCC, haha, and just camp out most nights.
Uber and lyft raise their prices during SDCC, which sucks because a ride that is normally $12, can cost you $25+ depending on where you’re going. One thing i loved about Uber this year was Uber Eats. Since I was in line most the time and wasn’t going to spend $8 for a hot dog, I used Uber Eats to order food then ran to the street to pick it up when it arrived.
Random celebrity encounters happen often, especially in the Hall H line overnight. You’ll always want to have your phone or camera on you, a good idea is to also keep a sharpie and something worth signing if you want an autograph. Now, not all of them will stop for you but 9/10 they will. I’ve never had a bad encounter with one yet. Just this past SDCC I met Matthew Lillard from Twin Peaks, Rob Benedict and Richard Speight Jr. from Supernatural, Harry Shum Jr. from Glee, also Stephen Amell from Arrow,and Jon Bernthal from Walking Dead and The Punisher and Cole Sprouse from Riverdale all walked by but i was sleeping during this time which sucked lol.
So, let’s recap shall we… First you need a Comic-Con member ID to purchase tickets online. Get there early for any activites like panels and autographs. Pack light, but bring your necessities. The Exhibit Hall has a lot of great stuff, but gets very crowded. Plan enough time, and make a schedule to see everything you want to see. But you might have to choose what you want to do the most, since a lot of things happen at the same time. I really hope all of this has been helpful. If you have additional questions you can find us on social media at Nerds On Point. The most important thing is to not stress and enjoy your time at Comic-Con!

