Planning to go to Comic-Con International, but couldn’t get a hotel room during last week’s lottery? Over at K-Squared Ramblings, I’ve posted some tips on how you can still stay in San Diego.
Tag Archives: SDCC
Booked for Comic-Con (2010)
Well, I’ve got a hotel room for Comic-Con International. It wasn’t one of my first few choices — it wasn’t even one of the 12 I submitted — but it’s at least in the downtown area, which is better than a lot of people got.
I’ve written up the whole thing at K-Squared Ramblings, but here’s the capsule summary: The initial process of submitting a request through the website went amazingly smoothly. I was done in five minutes. Then it was eight hours of waiting, wondering whether they’d lost the request, or I’d mistyped my email address, or it had gotten blocked as spam, or something.
- Pre-Game Thoughts on the New Procedure – based on how they described it and how the old procedure worked (and didn’t).
- Reviewing the Reservation Form – How the new design made it possible to finish in only five minutes. (Slightly technical, from a web developer’s perspective.)
- The Reservation Experience – the day of frustration, speculation on what went on behind the scenes, and thoughts on the impact of the new system.
The one thing that I really wish I’d gotten was a confirmation for the request itself. Even if it was just “You’re number 4,321 in line,” at least I could have been sure that I was in line. That would have saved a lot of anxiety. And a record of exactly what I’d submitted wouldn’t have hurt, either. (Next time I may take a screenshot.)
Comic-Con Hotels: Pre-Game
Hotel reservations for Comic-Con International open tomorrow. I’ve posted some thoughts on the new procedure over at K-Squared Ramblings.
We’ll see how it actually works tomorrow.
Answering Searchers: Convention Questions
Here are some more questions (and implied questions) pulled from search terms that have shown up in the site stats, all about conventions.
Why are some tickets for the comic con more expensive than others?
That depends on the convention. Some of the price variations I’ve seen include:
- More popular days cost more. (Simple supply and demand to help balance the crowds.)
- Days with longer hours cost more. (Friday starts later, or Sunday ends earlier, or both.)
- More expensive tickets include access to special events or exclusive merchandise.
How can i get tickets to Comic Con?
In most cases, you can go to the convention’s website and order a ticket online, or find a phone number to call. Regional cons will often sell tickets through nearby comic stores.
I’m guessing that this person meant Comic-Con International (San Diego), which has sold out of full-weekend, Saturday, and Friday passes for this year. You can still buy a Thursday or Sunday ticket. If you want to get a 4-day pass, or a pass for a day that’s sold out, don’t give up hope just yet.
But first: you can’t just buy a ticket second-hand because they’re linked to names, and you have to show ID when you pick up your badge. Maybe if your identical twin bought the ticket and is willing to lend you his or her driver’s license.
You can keep your eye open for promotions. Last year, as the con approached, there were companies that held contests or raffles where the prize was a ticket to the convention.
You can also wait until June. Last year, after the cancellation deadline, the con organizers counted up the number of tickets returned and started selling them online. To keep them from selling out all at once, they put them up in small lots in fixed-price sales on eBay. They’ve said that they plan to do something similar this year.
Wizard World Anaheim Review
I’ve seen a lot of variations on this one, which is interesting because there hasn’t been a Wizard World Anaheim yet to review! The convention coming up in April is the first one.
It will probably be similar to the last few Wizard World Los Angeles cons, though the change in venue will almost certainly have an effect. WWLA itself changed drastically (I’m told) when it moved from the Long Beach Convention Center to the Los Angeles Convention Center, and the new con is going to be literally across the street from Disneyland. More importantly, Wizard World itself seems to be broadening its focus to general pop culture and celebrities even as it’s adding “Comic Con” to its name.
If you’re interested, here are my write-ups of some recent LA-area cons:
- Wizard World Los Angeles 2007
- Wizard World Los Angeles 2008
- Long Beach Comic Con 2009 (different company, but run by ex-Wizard staff)
- Update: Wizard World Anaheim 2010, now that it’s happened.
On a related note, I also saw this:
Comic-Con Anaheim Geoff Johns 2010
Sorry to break it to you, but he’s not going to be there. The same weekend, he’ll be at C2E2 in Chicago.
Update: I forgot to mention another weird one related to Anaheim: “WonderCon Anaheim.” I don’t know whether someone got the names mixed up (it does start with a W) or was looking for information on both conventions.
Comic-Con Int’l 1-Day Tickets On Sale Tomorrow
Quick note: One-day passes to Comic-Con International in July 2010 go on sale tomorrow at the convention’s website. That’s Tuesday, December 15. Four-day passes are already sold out, so chances are that one-day tickets will go quickly too.
If you plan to go, but haven’t bought your membership yet, you may want to take a few minutes out from holiday preparation to order your tickets.
Convention Plans for 2010 (And a Look Back at 2009)
Well, I did attend three comic conventions in 2009…but not the three I was expecting! WizardWorld Los Angeles was canceled with just two months’ notice, but Long Beach Comic Con stepped in to fill the gap.
I’ll most likely be staying in California again next year, so here’s what next year’s convention season looks like for me:
WonderCon
April 2–4, 2010; San Francisco, California. Probably.
The last two years have been a lot of fun. It’s a lot like San Diego Comic-Con used to be before it exploded, actually. (It’s also a good excuse to travel and visit people in the Bay Area!) This one’s still up in the air for now, since they haven’t started selling tickets yet, but despite the distance, it still ends up being cheaper than San Diego.
» Wondercon 2009 report and photos.
» Update: WonderCon 2010 report and photos.
Anaheim Comic Con
April 16–18, 2010; Anaheim, California. Maybe.
The show that officially replaces Wizard World Los Angeles is only 10 minutes away, so it would be a shame to skip it. And it’ll be close to the time that Flash and Kid Flash are launching. But it’s also only two weeks after WonderCon, and Wizard, or Gareb Shamus, or whoever is in charge keeps doing things that annoy me.
» Update: Anaheim Comic Con 2010 report and photos. After a lot of dithering, I went for it.
Westercon 63: Confirmation
July 1–4, 2010; Pasadena, California. Maybe.
It’s been years since I’ve been to a general science-fiction/fantasy convention. The last one was the 2006 WorldCon in Anaheim, L.A.Con IV, which I experienced through the haze of a summer cold and Day-Quil. I’ve considered Westercon the last two years, but the last two have been Las Vegas and Tempe, Arizona in July. Admittedly Pasadena is a good 10 degrees hotter in summer than where I live, but it’s probably not as hot as Vegas or Tempe…plus I can commute to Pasadena.
» Update: Westercon 63 Report. I finally decided to go.
Comic-Con International
July 22-25, 2010; San Diego, California. Definitely.
I’ve been going every year since 1990, and I’d hate to break that streak. Even if it ends up being too expensive to stay in town next year, it’s just close enough to commute for a few days.
UPDATE: I’ve just learned via Twitter that one-day tickets go on sale tomorrow (Tuesday, December 15). Four-day tickets are already sold out, so if you plan to go, but don’t have tickets yet, now’s your chance!
» Comic-Con International 2009 report and photos.
» Update: Comic-Con International 2010 report and photos.
Long Beach Comic Con
October 29-31, 2010; Long Beach, California. Definitely.
I had a good time at the first event this year, and just discovered that they’ve set a date for next year! The website also mentions some sort of one-day event on February 20, but doesn’t provide any detail.
» Long Beach Comic Con 2009 report and photos.
» Update: Long Beach Comic Con 2010 report and photos.