A road closure at SDCC - just for us

19 JUNE 2018

In the battle between San Diego traffic and San Diego Comic-Con attendees, a small victory went to our side today. The section of Harbor Drive between First Avenue and Park Blvd will be closed to all traffic during the Con except for shuttles and emergency vehicles. (No bikes, scooters or skateboards, either.) The shuttles will be on the actual road. And the area where we used to see the shuttle buses? That's just for us now, giving us another 34 feet of room beyond the walkway.

First-timers, if this all sounds trivial to you - you'll see how much of a difference this can make when you arrive. Depending on the hour, the area in front of the Con tends to be packed with various lines, general crowds waiting for access, cosplayers posing for photos, media crews and attendees hustling to and fro. (Once our bible-quoting doomsday friends were there too, holding up their signs, but they've been banished and can now be found scowling in the Gaslamp.) And as you can see in the photo below, our foot traffic amounts to a parade just crossing the street.

 

Because it's 2018, this is also a security move. Only badge-holders can be in the expanded area. With concerts and other large gatherings marked as a terrorism target, Con officials have been instituting tougher measures all over the country. CCI has previously enlisted outside help to keep everyone safe - and this is another way to protect attendees and the convention center. In the words of Lt. Brent Williams of the San Diego Police Dept:

"If someone planned an attack, this could be a perfect place if this wasn't shut down. Because of what we've seen around the country, this is a way to protect attendees. Also, in the event of an evacuation, we could get our first responders there more quickly."

Makes sense - especially for those of us who just lived through a Comic-Con evacuation. (Ahem, Phoenix Comic Fest.)

If you have any questions about this change - about entering the Marriott, about being a member of the media, about ADA access, about parking - please read this FAQ. It answers pretty much every question you can think of.

So you got an SDCC badge: the next 100 days

10 APRIL 2017

If you survived the extinction event known as Open Registration - congratulations. I didn't want to be insensitive on Saturday by throwing a giant Badge Holder Smugness party, but it's been 48 hours and I think we can all revel in our glorious luck. And frankly, it's time to get down to business, because San Diego Comic-Con is just a little more than 3 months away.

Here's what you should do now.



Take advantage of Early Bird Hotel sale or prep for Hotel Day while arranging a backup plan.

Locking down a hotel room for SDCC has gotten harder each year, and there's good reason to think that this year will bring a radically new process that you won't like. Here are your options: book a non-downtown room now without stress or uncertainty in the Early Bird sale; gamble in the Hotel Day sale; look for an Airbnb or other alternative situation. In fact, I'd partner those last two together, because it's so unlikely that you'll get the downtown room of your dreams.

First-timers, you may think 1) I'm exaggerating or 2) it doesn't matter where you stay. I'm not and it does. Staying in Mission Valley or elsewhere doesn't have to ruin your Con, but it's definitely more convenient to be closer. For those of you who've successfully traded reservations before on the attendee underground market, it's getting increasingly difficult to do that too. With the process changes expected this year, I'm guessing that will hold true.

What I'm saying: be scrappy and do what you can to lock down some lodgings.


Sign up for the parking lottery.

If you think you will be in the unfortunate situation of driving in and out of the area each day, you'll want to sign up for the parking lottery now. The drawing is on 25 April so don't delay. Be aware this isn't an option to drive into San Diego, deposit your car and pick it up Sunday; there's no overnight parking. (If your hotel doesn't have parking or even if it does, consider parking at the airport - it's significantly cheaper than hotel valet.)

 Save money.

I know, I know - you just paid for a badge and now you'll need to make a 2 night deposit on your hotel room. You may also be paying a hefty tax bill this week. No one is in a saving frame of mind. But you will have a much better time at SDCC if you wine, dine and shop as much as you want - and that means having a pretty sum put aside. Now is the best time to start; by June you'll see events tickets going on sale and certain exclusives will go up for pre-sale too. If you're currently having financial struggles, then you should definitely start saving now.


Get in shape.

SDCCfit is a thing now but far too many people still show up at Comic-Con unprepared for its physical demands. You can always identify them by Friday; they're sprawled in hallways with defeated expressions as they rub their feet and beg off other events. No one is ever prepared for how tiring Comic-Con is - all the walking and standing, the unexpectedly vast distances between going to lunch at the Fox Sports Grill at Hilton Bayfront, grabbing swag from the fulfillment room at the Hyatt, then heading back to Hall H. Seriously, pioneers didn't walk this much when their horse and buggy broke down. To make sure you're not sidelined by Day 2, start walking regularly and building up your endurance.

Make friends.

Here's something not many people know: a large percentage of Comic-Con attendees go alone. They don't have friends who share their interests, or their friends have kids/jobs keeping them at home, or they had a breakup when it was too late to invite someone else. There's nothing wrong with going to SDCC alone, but it's definitely more fun to meet up with friends. Start hanging out in the online SDCC communities. Not only will you find out about more events and exclusives, you'll have a better social life when you're there.


Take time off. 

Maybe you were waiting to see if you got a badge before doing this, but request vacation time off from your job now. Make sure you won't be guilted for skipping family weddings or graduation parties or summer trips, and if you need childcare help or some other kind of coverage, make those arrangements too.

Make a cosplay decision.

If you're part of a cosplay group, start working out the details now; if you're going solo, at least make overtures toward getting/making your outfit and props. This often takes longer than you think, and I know so many people who abandon their first plan mid-way and opt for something else. You can avoid getting stuck at the Con in an outfit you hate by getting started now.

Study up.

First-timers! What a journey of discovery awaits you. I know you've seen San Diego Comic-Con on YouTube and you've heard wild stories, and you probably think you have a decent idea of what to expect. You are wrong. It's bigger, louder and more multi-faceted than you can imagine, like a monstrously huge cephalopod that sucks you in and forces you to stumble, lost, through its many tentacles. That's why so many first-timers come home from SDCC dazzled but slightly resentful; they know they were in the midst of something incredible, but they also know they missed a lot of it.

Read up real accounts of people who've gone, and all of the advice on navigating what can be a bewildering experience. Hear what your first-timer ancestors thought - here and here and here and here. Oh, and here and here too.


Pay attention, starting now.

Comic-Con may seem far off but certain developments are already stirring. SyFy announced it will be broadcasting live again for instance; various exclusives will quietly go up for pre-sale and sell out before you found about them (already happened with DC Bombshells figures this year); tickets will be given away but only to people subscribed to a certain newsletter who happen to be online 15 minutes before go time. This takes knowledge and skill, and if you're new to Planet SDCC, it may be really frustrating how everyone seems to know this stuff but you. Make sure your Member ID account is checked to accept third-party offerings and stayed connected on social and the blogs so you find about events and sales in time. The Conan O'Brien tapings are a great example of people not understanding how to get tickets.


The next 3 months are going to whip by. We are firmly in Comic-Con season and there's no turning back - so get ready.

Reserve your parking now for Image Expo & ECCC

23 FEBRUARY 2016




I know April seems far away, but event parking is a scourge best dealt with in advance. Reserve spots now for Image Expo and Emerald City Comicon and you won't have to go crazy circling city blocks and waiting for those intense Con crowds to cross the street.

Today is the deadline for hotel deposit refunds

15 APRIL 2015




Happy Tax Day. Don't forget this is the last day you can get your full hotel room deposit back.

You paid for two nights already; if you cancel today, you can get it all back. For cancellations starting tomorrow, 16 April through 15 May, you can get one night of the two back.

From 16 May and onward - you're out of luck. But you can usually trim the unpaid nights off your stay if you need to without penalty; just check with your hotel.

I know for some of you, today is the day you come to terms with the reality that you will not be upgrading your hotel room. Given that it's also when Ace is notifying people of whether they'll have a parking spot or not, I can imagine this is a day of many feelings for SDCC attendees.

The Ace parking sale devises a new form of torture

13 APRIL 2015




Let me start with a caveat: I like Ace Parking and I think they're trying hard to keep everyone happy after last year's tragedy of a parking sale. There's no question they have a tough task at hand.

However, their form of doling out parking spaces is doubtlessly going to frustrate a few people.  We knew it would be a lottery; you were told to email them by 12 April and maybe your name would be picked or maybe it wouldn't. However, now they've revealed their method - and timeframe - of picking names and it's a bit of a head-scratcher.

You'll know if you were selected at all by 15 April. That's good. However, going forward everyone who was selected will be put into random groups, with one group drawn at a time. Each group gets 5 days to buy a permit. At the end of those 5 days, all available permits go back into the pool and the next group gets a crack at buying them. They also get five days. And so it goes on down the line. While all groups are guaranteed a spot, only the first three are guaranteed a spot at the Convention Center or the Hilton.

You thought it was bad waiting for your hotel room assignment? This could take weeks. However, they will let you know your group assignment in your email, so there's that. And at least everyone finds out by Wednesday whether they're getting a spot at all.

It's kind of incredible that no matter how many years we all repeat the same processes with the same organizations - badge sales, parking, hotel rooms, Travel Planners, CCI, Ace - every year brings a new twist.

Reminder: parking lottery deadline is 12 April

30 MARCH 2015




In all the hotel sale drama, it's been easy to forget about that other sale looming over your SDCC fate: Ace parking.

This year it's a lottery, and you have to email your entry in by 12 April. That's just 2 weeks away, so don't forget - especially if you're also consumed with your taxes right now as well.

We're working with fewer spaces than normal (at least 500 fewer) so be prepared for possible disappointment. Although if you've gotten this far in the San Diego Comic-Con race, you probably already understand that.

And now the parking sale is a lottery too

11 MARCH 2015



I suppose it was inevitable. The Ace Parking sale - which is NOT run by CCI but is totally its own operation operated by Ace - will be a lottery.

Here's why: last year's parking sale was an epic maelstrom of horror, one that was handled badly at every turn. Let's review. First CEO Jon Gjerset promised a smoother experience due to his partnering up with AWS. The actual sale crashed, although a few people got parking; after trying to resurrect it a few more times that day, Ace said the sale would go live the following morning. But some wily attendees (are there any other kind at this point?) kept poking at the system and successfully got in that night and started buying up spots. So when other attendees woke up and tried to get in, as advised, almost everything was gone. In the meantime, other people were charged multiple times for 1 spot, other people who had gotten a reservation confirmation later found out they didn't have a reservation after all, checking accounts were overdrawn, a Change.org petition was started - it was a spectacular mess.

So now Ace is doing a lottery.

How to register: send an email to cci2015@aceparking.com and you're in their system. On 12 April, they'll hold a drawing. Lots will be filled in this order:

• Convention Center
• Hilton Garage
• Petco Lots (except campus lot which will be closed)
• Padres Parkade
• Diamond View Tower
• Horton Plaza
• Gaslamp City Square

If you're picked, you'll be notified by 15 April and told how to pay for your spot.

Observations I feel obligated to make:

• It's one entry per email address, which means people are going to be creating or using fake email accounts up the wazoo.

• There are far fewer parking spots available this year, due to the loss of part of the Petco lot - more than 500. Ace omits the actual number but I thought you should know it.

• Anyone can participate in this; you don't need a badge. So you're competing with every random person who wants to come down and enjoy the sights.

All in all, it's good to be aware you have other transportation options; be aware of other parking options as well, like Parkopedia. Which isn't to discourage you from the sale - go ahead and throw your hat in the ring. Just be prepared to make alternate plans in case you're not that lucky.

Yes, we're in an SDCC lull. Enjoy it.

5 MARCH 2015




Several people have asked me this week where's all the Comic-Con news? We've  actually had an average amount of updates for these post-registration weeks; we got the Souvenir Book cover, the Early Bird Sale and we know that Hotel Day is right around the corner on 24 March.

But it feels quiet after the intense fever of Open Reg, so I understand where they're coming from. Here's the reality - you're not going to learn a whole lot about SDCC over March and April. And while that might feel frustrating right now, it's actually kind of nice. Once the tumultuous river of Comic-Con news starts roaring through the Internet, it colonizes your whole brain and induces a biological excitement/anxiety that doesn't stop until Sunday night of the Con. You'll be scrambling to make sure you hear about all the exclusives, buy tickets for the best events, are informed of all those thrilling offbeat corners of SDCC that seem tailored just for you.

So enjoy this relative calm while we have it. Here's what's coming up:

Hotel Day: March 24.  I'll share my guerilla tactics over the next few weeks.

The Ace Parking Sale: not sure when it will be yet. "We are still working with CCI and the locations to lock in the date and rates for this year's sale." Last year's parking sale was the worst pre-SDCC event of the entire year; while I'm hoping they rectified the system weaknesses behind the crashes, it's still going to be extra tight this year given the loss of several hundred parking spots. Join Ace's Twitter feed to stay on top of developments; I'd investigate other transportation methods in the meantime.

Signing up for Portfolio Review, Comic Creator Connection, other stuff: this usually comes closer to the Con. Start looking for these announcements in June.

Buying tickets for outside events: These have been getting announced earlier and earlier, probably to beat out all the other events. In the past, events like this have been the Nerdist shows, the Zombie Prom, San Diego Summer Pops concerts, various band shows - you get the idea. I would say we'll start seeing announcements and live sales by May, if not sooner.

The intense rush of news regarding exclusives, celebrity appearances, panels and clips: June is going to be a nonstop SDCC media circus, but May should offer a good number of announcements as well. The drumbeat will be palpable by late April.


So as eager as you might be for SDCC to happen right now, there's not a whole lot to do.  I already suggested the basics, like saving money, getting in shape and selling off your old back issues and collectibles to make way for the new.  I also strongly suggest that first-timers review the old programming - I know it's a ton of information, but that's why it's good to get familiar with it. You're going to have to digest the same amount of information for this Con, and it's helpful to understand in advance what kind of options are available and how you might prioritize them. Otherwise you'll be overwhelmed once everything hits.

Comic-Con starts four months from Sunday night. It might sound like a long ways off - but trust me, it'll go fast.

Some clarity (& guesswork) on registration & hotels

8 FEBRUARY 2015



Apparently I sent a few people into a tizzy last week by posting about Creative Pro Reg and Early Bird. I've gotten a few emails asking how I know these things, what's happening when, did they miss an email and so on. The anxiety is strong with our kind.

To put it in simple terms: I don't know any dates. The below is all deduction and guesswork, but fairly reliable all the same.

• Creative Professional Registration is for creative professionals only. If you're eligible for this, you got an email about it. If not, don't worry about it. This is not for attendees.
• Open Registration is for attendees and no, I don't know the date. I predict late February possibly but early-mid March is more likely. If you have a Member ID, you will get an email telling you when it is.
• Early Bird Hotel Sale will probably kick off in a few weeks.
• Hotel Day has been reported as being in late March.
• The Ace Parking Sale will probably be in April or May. If you remember what a hot mess it was last year, you might speculate that they've overhauled the process. So I find it hard to call this one.

If you're still anxious about missing something, just make sure your Member ID has the right email address and that you've opted in for email notifications. Make sure you have a credit card with enough room on it for badge-buying. If you want to team up with others for the sale, start asking around.

But overall you just need to stay attentive. The next 2 months will be probably busy with the sales we loathe/anticipate so much, and after that will be 2 months of hearing all the media announcements about events and promotions and exclusives and panels - and then will come those final weeks of packing and obsessing over Comic-Con.

See? Nothing to be anxious about at all.

Last chance for premium parking

11 JUNE 2014




I know most of you who took part in the parking sale hate Ace Parking and possibly CEO Jon Gjerset with a fiery passion. However, I do think they had the best intentions and made a sincere effort at facilitating a smooth sale - they just didn't handle the ensuing meltdown very well. Hopefully they've learned both technical and psychological lessons from what was truly the worst online sale of 2014 (and maybe recent years.)

In a show of good faith, Gjerset has offered to make some reparations (though I'm guessing his ability to do so is limited.) He just tweeted "If you wanted a spot at the Hilton or Conv Ctr and didn't get it, let us know. We may be able to help. Email cci-info@aceparking.com." Probably there's been an avalanche of emails by now, but it's worth a shot if you're still looking for parking.

Ace's plan to fix your parking woes

21 MAY 2014


I know you're sick of hearing about the parking sale. I'm sick of posting about it. Nevertheless, Ace has given us some updates and they must be shared.

• First off, they're currently working out how to accommodate those of you who were charged for a reservation but didn't get an actual spot.
• Duplicate charges - refunds will be submitted to your banks by EOD tomorrow. I know that's not much comfort for those of you who had hundreds of dollars withdrawn from your accounts.
• Reservations - first of all, check your status by going into your Ace account and looking under purchased reservations. If you don't see anything, you'll need to book another spot. Your reservation did not go through.
•  If you do have a reservation, you'll need to check if it's valid. You'll know this by the dates and locations under the bar code: your reservation is legit if these are listed. If not, your reservation did not go through.

This is a much more layered hell than your typical online sale disaster. The people whose checking accounts are overdrawn by hundreds of dollars. The people who were asleep when the sale experienced its midnight resurrection. The people who thought they had reservations and wound up with nothing. It's like a bomb that won't stop going off.

And all over a parking spot.

State of the parking sale

21 MAY 2014




All of you who went to bed early last night (or went out and lived your life, unlike us zealots monitoring Twitter) probably thought you could wake up this morning and participate in the parking sale at 8 am today.

There won't be much left by then, if the sale is still going at all.

I know yesterday Ace Parking said the sale would reopen at 8 this morning (CIO Jon Gjerset went silent yesterday right before the sale relaunch) but they also said the site might work last night - and it did, eventually. Which means everyone flooded in last night and began buying up spaces as the word spread.

Right now, just before 7 am PST, there are still spaces left. Obviously Hilton and the convention center sold out fast, but if you're not picky about where you park, go in now and get a spot.

Now it's worth noting that last night many people were charged multiple times for 1 spot, or were charged but didn't get a spot at all. Possibly that means that as those multiple charges clear, more spots will open up. Or it could mean that Ace will be forced to honor those people and assign them spots that currently look open. It's hard to say. The dust probably won't settle for a while.


ETA 10:50 am PST: Yikes, this has gotten ugly. Comic-Con sales have led everyone over a cliff before, but this is the first time I can remember a Change.org petition happening. Unfortunately Ace is compounding the core unfairness by not communicating well. They've basically retreated, a classic PR mistake, and are saying different things in different places.

Top issues are:

• getting refunds for overcharged cards
• determining if people who paid actually have a reservation
• people who were told the sale would go live this morning and slept through it going live last night
• Ace's policy to "honor all reservations" 

Right now many people are demanding a do-over, with all reservations nullified and refunded and a new sale date scheduled. Here's why that would create a new round of issues: many people already printed out their permit last night and consider the issue over and done with. They're not paying attention to the social noise anymore and could show up at the Con with their existing permit and nowhere to park.

Don't expect this to be resolved within the next few hours. In the meantime, please don't yell at the Ace customer service people; they're not the ones who did this to you. In fact, I'm going to say that this whole mess should be laid at the feet of AWS, who clearly did not provide an adequate infrastructure or support. Ace made an effort to guarantee a smooth sale, so it's not as if they just don't care. That said, they are definitely to blame for the piss poor communication and service.

I'll post any updates I hear.

ETA 11:24 am PST: Apparently some people are being told that even if they got charged for a reservation, they may not have one - not if it isn't listed under Reservations in the system. While this will undoubtedly suck for many people who think they scored a premium spot, they at least will be refunded. People who are buying permits on Ebay right now may get doubly screwed - so don't do it.

Some people are trying Parkopedia for spots. It won't be as convenient as the best Ace lots, but it's something. I know in the past some San Diegoans have rented out their driveways (near the trolley) so keep an  eye out for ads like that as well, or place your own.

Parking is live and selling out fast

20 MAY 2014



It's 9:40 pm and the Ace site is working. I know everyone's worried about multiple charges on their cards but spaces are selling out fast - so I'd act now rather than wait for Ace to straighten out the system in the morning.


Good luck.

The parking sale is semi-live again

20 MAY 2014


Tonight, that is, though it's not supposed to be working until tomorrow.

Ace's earlier message: "The site should be up by 8am tomorrow. The site may open briefly at times this evening. Please bear with us."

One - I doubt tomorrow will bring us a smooth and efficient parking sale. They should reschedule for Saturday, or a week out.

Two - If there's one way you don't want to torment Comic-Con attendees, it is with ambiguity. We're insane enough; defined windows of availability are the only way to sell us anything. "May open briefly at times" just means everyone will burn out their eyeballs and minds tonight clicking that stupid link. Because maybe, just maybe, some IT person at AWS will figure out the magic algorithm at 2:04 am and the sale will go up again and we'll be there at the perfect moment to beat out everyone else. That's how our crazed minds think.

What a year it's been. Smooth pre-reg, smooth open reg, mostly smooth Hotel Day, then parking and the hotel reservations reopening are mayhem.


ETA: It's 9:00pm  PST and I just got in. Ace says while they've identified the problem, the site won't be back up until tomorrow. But some people are successfully buying parking spots. Some can't get the page to load at all, and others get partially through their purchase before getting an error message. (If that's you, don't assume the sale didn't complete - log back in and check your reservations.) Others are saying their credit cards have been charged multiple times.

Which means that frustrating as the sporadic access is - it's still better to keep trying than wait for tomorrow. Get in tonight if you can.

Parking sale should be live 2:45 pm PST

20 MAY 2014



That's what Ace Parking tells us, as well as that the DNS registration has changed. So open a new browser and hope for the best, but prepare for more problems.

https://space.aceparking.com/events/comic-con


ETA: The site is down and Ace is blaming this, quite ridiculously, on a DDoS attack. Were they genuinely this unprepared for the horde of attendees and exhibitors? This isn't their first rodeo.

Here's hoping they call it off for the day and reschedule. Sorry, all of you who wasted most of your day trying to get a spot.

Parking sale might rise again this afternoon

20 MAY 2014



So another stressful sale has come and crashed. AWS didn't help; some people got parking; mostly everyone else got shut out. According to Ace CIO Jon Gjerset, he "expects to have the system up this afternoon."

I know this is a colossal pain in the ass for those of you who have jobs and demands on your time. These sales are stressful enough when they occur as scheduled. All I can say is keep monitoring the situation.

While I don't have a dog (car) in this fight, I do wish the sale wasn't open to the public. I realize these are public lots, but given the amount of revenue the Con pours into the city, it would be great if only badge-holders could participate in the sale. Instead attendees and exhibitors have to compete with all the people arriving to participate in all of the outer Con activities - and those people are legion. Normally I don't begrudge all of the outsiders pouring into the area, but when it comes to hotels and parking, I think actual badge-holders should get first dibs.


ETA:  We don't have a specific time yet for the sale - if it does launch again today, it'll be PST afternoon, not EST. However, I think everyone is hoping it's rescheduled for another day. Stay tuned.

Ace parking sale goes live at 9 am PST today

20 MAY 2014



Just a reminder that sale goes live today at 9 am PST. Hopefully you already created your account and are ready to roll.

If you've never done a parking sale before - yes, it's competitive. Yes, people do get shut out. However, Ace Parking has listened to past complaints and made a strong effort to improve the system. Not only can you create your account in advance, speeding up the process, they're using AWS to cope with the traffic demand. And this year parking will be like parking in pretty much any public lot - you just put your permit on your dashboard. You're not obligated to enter your vehicle information and then use that vehicle.

Again, here's the Ace FAQ - recommended reading before the sale.

Good luck.

Get the jump on Tuesday's parking sale

17 MAY 2014




If you're a survivor of parking sales past, you're probably dreading Tuesday's sale for Ace parking lot permits. But as noted previously, Ace's CIO Jon Gjerset has really tried to improve the system this year. Not only is AWS lending their hosting magic to make it all go more smoothly, but Ace is now letting you create your account in advance. The advantage: when the sale goes live, you can just choose your parking lot and check out.

As with every online sale, time is of the essence - so seize this opportunity and create your account now.

Parking sale lots and rates

30 APRIL 2014



Ace Parking has come out with a handy little FAQ that provides everything you need to know about parking at Comic-Con. Check it out and note the lot locations and rates - and be sure to read the rules, so you can avoid ticketing and towing.


Again, the sale is 20 May - which sounds far away but isn't. Comic-Con season, it'll be here before you know it.

Parking goes on sale 20 May

28 APRIL 2014



If you've been anxiously waiting for Comic-Con parking permits to go on sale, circle this date on your calendar: 20 May. We don't have locations and rates yet, but we do know (courtesy of Ace Parking CIO Jon Gjerset) that permits will go on sale that day at 9 am PST.

We also know that Ace is using cloud provider Amazon Web Services to handle the avalanche of attendees trying to nab a spot. A lesson in outsourcing for CCI? As a general idea, yes. (AWS in particular, maybe not so much as they're a leader in malware. But don't worry, they're probably still more secure than some of the other Con systems you've put your card data into.) It's inspiring to see a company trying to rectify old technical difficulties by enlisting the right support. Hopefully all of you will experience a smoother sale on 20 May.

Stay tuned for more parking news. For now, check out this helpful FAQ.

ETA: Sorry, I forgot you first-timers. This sale is run by Ace Parking, and concerns individual parking spots in lots around the city. If you're planning on driving into San Diego and parking in some random space, that won't work out so well for you - not for all-day parking at least. You'll want to try to reserve a spot through this sale.

If like me, you're driving to San Diego and parking at your hotel, you don't need to participate in this sale - most downtown hotels have underground capacity for guest vehicles. Check your reservation details to confirm this and see what the daily rate is. Some have valet and self-parking.