8 JULY 2026
2 weeks from tonight, the convention center doors will open to San Diego Comic-Con Preview Night. We'll experience it all - the crowds, the waits, the splendor, the booths, the bombast - and it's going to feel magnificent. Because it always does.
But between then and now, we have a few tasks set before us. If you're a wide-eyed first-timer, this goes double for you. Because if there's one thing I've learned about SDCC first-timers, it's that even the most diligent students often miss important things. Nothing will top a few years ago when 3 teenagers - who I'd been coaching - showed up, milled around the Exhibit Hall, and left. They didn't know there was anything else and they'd ignored every resource and recommendation I'd sent. Ah, youth.
Here's a quick summary of the updates to look out for between now and SDCC.
Panels and programming
Tomorrow kicks off 4 of the most exciting days of summer (for me) - the panel and programming announcements. This always feels like a gun firing at a race; everything gets so incredibly focused and real at that point.
First-timers, here's what this means. Tomorrow, Thursday the 9th, CCI will publish the programming for Thursday, July 23, on Friday they will publish the programming for Friday the 24th, and so on.
The volume of panels will likely stun you a little. This is not a small-city Con where there are 2 panel rooms and hence 2 panels on the hour. You will have many, many options - educational and creative workshops, big Hollywood panels, screenings, nostalgic visits to shows of yesterday, intense discussions of gaming and comic characters, trivia contests, and a dozen other formats. It's a lot - and most of us miss things until we go through it a second and third time.
What you need to do: come up with a system. CCI has an app. You can use an AI like Notion or build an agent. You can manage things manually. Just start your process now so you don't have to catch up later.
The Exhibit Hall map
The Exhibit Hall is the nerve center of the convention center - a massive space full of vendor booths as far as the eye can see. It's crowded, it's chaotic, and the merchandise on sale ranges from tacky trinkets to rare nerd treasures.
What you need to do: study it. Even if you are focused solely on parties and screenings. CCI just published this and I will devote a post to it.
Guest and celebrity announcements
CCI has already announced rounds of special guests - but you'll hear about more actors, artists, writers, and creators who are confirmed to show up somewhere on the premises. Some will announce themselves on their socials, others barely acknowledge the Con until suddenly they walk onto a stage in front of you.
What you need to do: watch the socials of anyone you care about - especially smaller creators or exhibitors. Many of them will announce what they're bringing, invite you to enter a lottery for certain exclusives, take pre-orders and commissions, and generally offer useful information. It is devastating for an attendee to show up at a favorite artist's booth and learn that every item has already been allocated by lottery - so do your research.
Offsites
We've heard about the Lodge and a few others, but more will be announced. Almost always, the best ones are a surprise or fly under the radar, such as the Blade Runner activation or the Dungeons and Dragons one from a few years ago. Then everyone posts photos and they blow up. Fellow attendees are more trustworthy than a marketing campaign so join a group if you can. Pay attention early on; as word of mouth grows, the best offsites will grow longer and longer lines each day.
What you need to do: Follow the pages and socials of your favorite brands, and join their Reddit, Discord, and Facebook and IG groups. That's where tickets and lotteries get announced first in most cases.
Shuttle map
SDCC shuttles go hither and yon, and it's good to know how and where you can leverage that free transportation - especially late at night when you wind up in unexpected parts of town.
What you need to do: look up the shuttle for your hotel but also for any bars, clubs, or attractions you plan on visiting.
Lotteries and sign-ups
The exclusives portal is now open - but don't rush. Wait and see what else becomes available before you submit your picks. Be aware that photo ops, autographs, and exclusives aren't always easy to get but often people shoot themselves in the foot by not understanding how the process works.
What you need to do: Study up on the process before you take your shot.
SDCC Checklists
Every website in existence, including this one, will publish some kind of "17 things to bring to Comic-Con" list. These are helpful if repetitive. What really matters is making your own list and staying organized rather than throwing a bunch of stuff into a duffle bag on the night of July 21.
What you need to do: figure out now what to bring and steadily make your stockpile. Think about things like cosplay repair kits, comfortable shoes, portable stools. I'll post more about this later this week but the best wardrobe advice I can give you now is 1) Most people don't cosplay, they dress for comfort and 2) Some people pack their best sex kitten stilettos but quickly realize they want to dress for comfort. So... pack for comfort.
The last, remaining hotel rooms
Your hotel room is almost certainly settled by this point - right? I wound up canceling a Pali room no one wanted and I was given a 2-bed room at Hilton Bayfront no one wanted. That was a first. So I think most everyone has their accommodations locked down - but if you're looking, we will see a few people cancel or shorten their trips over the next few weeks. Sometimes Sunday panels are a snoozer and people decide to leave Saturday, or they trim off a night to use that $$$ on the floor. Some people will get ill or have a crisis at work. This means a few A-list hotel rooms will flicker back to life, but you'll have to be quick to grab them.
And sometimes you'll luck out. Last year - not that this could ever be repeated - I checked in too early at the Hyatt before my room was clean (not their fault, I was just early) and they gave me a massive apartment-sized suite with a kitchen, office, bedroom, living room, and dining area that sat 12, as that reservation had been cancelled. Comic-Con magic is real!
What you need to do: Stalk CCI's site but also look at the hotel sites. Last year I saw a top 6 hotel have a room drop from 1K+ to $700ish. And if you've decided to arrive early or stay an extra night, it's pretty easy to grab those nights.
Essentially - San Diego Comic-Con starts now. Put your work projects, new flames, job hunts, and home remodels on ice and turn your full attention to Comic-Con prep. Over the next 2 weeks, you'll be engulfed in information. Some of it will be trivial, some of it meaningful, but you'll have to wade through it all to capture what is personally relevant to you.
Again - if you haven't yet, create your system where you immaculately document your wish list, schedule, friends' contact information, etc. I can't stress this enough. Don't think you'll just embed it in your mind. That's like tucking a seashell in the sand before the tide comes in.
2 more weeks!
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