Munim · Haseeb · Janika — your first SDCC, done right.
Do this first
Exclusives lottery — DONE ✅Munim's 36 entries are in. Haseeb & Janika: enter your own by Thu Jul 16, 12pm PT.
Book Clash of Clans (selling fast)Puzzle-room, ~$7pp, 10-min walk from the con. Grab a Thursday afternoon slot: feverup.com/m/662771
Saturday: get Masquerade tickets at NOONFree seating tickets go out at 12:00pm by Ballroom 20. Miss it = overflow only. The day's one non-negotiable errand.
Cheat sheets
🍕 Eat well & cheap (the food plan)
Real meals are the rails (~$20–30pp/day): a Little Italy breakfast before you leave, an 11:15 lunch (beat the noon crush), and dinner. Free food is a bonus, never the meal.
Free snacks + AC: the Marriott Marquis Hospitality Suite (free snacks/drinks, 2pm–midnight, badge needed) and the free Marvel Games Lounge next door (9:30am–7pm).
Free food in the wild: Gaslamp activations hand out pizza + samples; the Petco zone (MaruMart) gives out bites.
Friday hack: buy 2 meals at lunch, carry one into Ballroom 20, eat it in the 6:30–7pm gap before the Avatar screening (outside food is allowed in panel rooms).
🎁 Free swag game
Guaranteed: your badge = a free tote, program, lanyard + pin (collect any day at Sails Pavilion).
Booth freebies: Bandai free Godzilla pins + printed photo; the Marvel booth's first 50 in line/day get a free gift; DC free poster + MAD facsimile.
Best haul: the Gundam Showcase panel (Thu) gives a full swag bag (poster, tee, model kit) — you must attend the panel to get it.
Rule: grab swag on the way through things you're already doing, never a dedicated mission.
🧢 Survive the day (heat, feet, comfort)
Sun is brutal (UV 10). Sunscreen + hats + refillable water bottles for the outdoor lines (Petco lot, Rady Shell lawn, offsite queues).
Broken-in shoes only. You'll walk 12,000–20,000 steps a day.
A packable layer for the freezing panel-room AC.
Portable battery — phone signal + wifi die on the floor at peak.
Tap your badge OUT every time you leave the building, or you can be refused re-entry.
🚶 Getting around (walk, don't shuttle)
Hotel → convention center: a flat 24-min walk. Beats the shuttle (which doesn't stop at your hotel).
Everything's close: Petco Park 6 min, Rady Shell 6 min, Seaport Village (Clash) 10 min, all from the convention center.
Little Italy (dinner) is a 24-min walk that ends at your door.
Split up? Meet at Sails Pavilion, top of the main escalators.
Download the official Comic-Con app for the live schedule + map.