When you’ve never gone to a Comic-con before, you’re filled with many different feelings. Excitement, for sure, but also a sense of not being sure about how much of a fan or a total geek you want to show of yourself to others. Dressing up as your favorite character or making a list of the collectibles that you’re wanting to pick up should certainly be near the top of your list when you are preparing for it though. Here are some other things you will need to take care of:

Perfect Preparation

Ticketing is one of the most important things. Tickets sell out quickly and you will want to secure your place early. Each Comic-con for a city has a different list of planned events and scheduled panels featuring the stars of the big and small screen. Many are there to promote upcoming TV shows or to discuss previous ones that fans still adore. Looking over the schedule, you can decide what events are must-attend ones and those that are not.

Separate booking a ticket from planning based on which panels and events you’ll go to. The tickets are sold much earlier than the published schedule is released. You must treat them as separate ‘to-do’ items and act accordingly.

Where to Stay

Comic-con is a multi-day event where you’ll likely have different things you will want to attend on different days. You should plan to attend all the days that Comic-con runs for. Even if there’s no event you’re interested in on the last day, you can always take the opportunity to do some local sightseeing too.

Hotels get booked up often months before the Comic-con event, so early booking is recommended. Do look at where a hotel is compared to the event because things like late-night taxis get expensive unless you make use of Uber or Lyft to cut costs down. Check out restaurants nearby and the safety in the local area between the venue and the hotel in case you plan to walk between them.

Cosplayers

If you have a penchant for dressing up as your favorite comic book character or a movie character that resonates with you, Comic-con is the place to show off. Come up with a few different ideas for costumes and work on them well ahead of attending the event. The last thing you want to happen is to run out of time to perfect your costume before the big day.

Be Prepared for Queues

There are some people that camp outside to attend panels with movie and TV stars at least a day ahead. They come armed with water and snacks. You may not be this dedicated, but you’ll surely want to have what you need including a smartphone and a charged power bank to ensure you can get those all-important snaps at the right moment.

Prepare Your Home

If you are leaving your house unattended, you will need to put a few other things on your ‘to do’ list, like asking a neighbor to collect your mail or water your plants. You might also want to invest in gadgets like a pet camera to keep an eye on your animals from your smartphone while you’re away. Not only can you deliver snacks through a sophisticated treat device, but you can also take selfies when they’re facing the camera and talk to them through your phone. You might also want to link your security cameras to your phone for that extra peace of mind.

When you plan well in advance for your first Comic-con, it’s easy to organize yourself to have a great time. It’s when you don’t do this and leave everything to the last minute that you make life difficult for yourself with costumes, Comic-con tickets, and hotel reservations. Plan early and you’ll have a better time for sure.