Comic cons are a HUGE part of pop culture nowadays and take place all over the world in varying capacities. If you are a bit (or a LOT) of a geek like me when it comes to movies, tv shows, comics and more, visiting a comic con HAS to be on your bucket list. They are SO MUCH FUN!
I’ve visited a few cons now, the biggest being MCM London Comic Con (you can read my recent review here) and my nearest being Nor Con in Norwich. There is so much to see and do at comic con, so now I’m a fully-fledged experienced con goer, I thought I’d share a few tips for making the most of your comic con experience!
BOOK IN ADVANCE
The more you book in advance, the cheaper the bill! For updates on ticket sales, make sure to visit the con’s various social media and keep an eye out on their official website. For hotels, keep in mind how you will be getting to and from the con. Is it a 5min walk from the venue, or a 20min walk followed by two trains? If you’re like me, and will be cosplaying, wearing outfits that can sometimes be constricting to move in, you won’t wanna walk too far or you’ll be beat before you’re even there! Me and my fiancé stayed at a nearby hotel for MCM London which was only a 5min walk, and it was great not having to travel each morning, especially after a couple of hours of getting ready. It meant I was fresh and ready to face each (very exhausting) day of con!
TRY TO VISIT FOR MORE THAN ONE DAY
Last year, me and my fiancé visited MCM comic con for just one day and while we enjoyed it, it went so quick and we had to rush around to see everything, and we still missed out on so much! While it was tiring, staying for the whole weekend is FAR more worth it, and I ended up spending less money on the con floor as I weren’t panic buying everything and had time to revisit stalls multiple times and really consider what goodies I wanted to take home with me.
MAKE A PLAN (IF YOU CAN)
What are you most looking forward to doing at con? Is it cosplaying? Shopping? Seeing celebrities in the flesh? Make sure to keep an eye on the con’s website as it should have a variety of information about how the con is set out, and what you can expect to see. If you are planning on meeting celebrities for signings/photoshoots, allow time as you will have to queue (the queue will vary depending on how popular they are!) and make sure you read all the FAQ’s online as well as rules and guidelines. Speaking of queueing, there is always a queue at the front door to get into the con! So if you have an activity planned for a certain time, do allow plenty of extra time in case of queue delays. Saturday was the most busiest day at MCM London and at one point, we had to go outside because you could barely move in the halls. If you are cosplaying, check online and you may just be able to come across some fun cosplay meet-ups for your fandom you’re cosplaying from! My personal fave place for comic con discussions is Facebook as there are SO MANY discussion groups you can find through merely using the search bar. For MCM, I like the MCM Expo Facebook group which you can find here.
TAKE CASH WITH YOU
Not all the stalls at comic cons take card payments, and to save on fees of cash withdrawal machines, make sure to take plenty of cash with you! I took considerably more cash at this year’s MCM than last year when I visited for the day, where I only took £60 and it flew by. However, I paid by card a lot less this time and ended up actually spending less than last year in the process (despite being there the whole weekend instead of four mere hours!) as I could actually see what I was spending in front of me, and that helped me to budget a lot more appropriately!
TAKE BREAKS/BRING PLENTY OF WATER
As I’ve mentioned above, comic con is exhausting. My fiancé’s smartphone calculated that we had each walked over 13,000 steps every single day of con within three days – and that’s still probably not as much as some other folks had walked! It can sometimes be hard when you’re so excited and overwhelmed by everything to just step back, sit down and take a break, but you will feel so much better for it. Keep a bottle of water handy at all times and take paracetamol just in case of any unwanted headaches (especially important if you’re wearing a heavy wig!) and if you are wearing heels as part of a cosplay, take an extra pair of comfortable flats as I can tell you now, my feet were killing me after the weekend!
ALWAYS ASK PERMISSION
This is something to be remembered outside of the con floor and cosplay community, but please ALWAYS ask permission before taking a photo/video or touching someone. Just because someone is in cosplay, that is NOT consent for you to touch them or take a photo/video when they haven’t given permission or they’re unaware of it. I’ve found that the comic cons I’ve personally visited are a very friendly place and pretty much everyone I’ve met at cons are polite and know the boundaries (especially when it came to unwanted touching), but I still have had the odd person take my photo without asking, usually while I was posing for someone else’s photo who had asked me first. All you have to do is ask, and you’ll find you’ll actually get a much better photo because of it too! It’s just a simple matter of manners.
COSPLAY!
It’s true that not everyone goes to comic con for the cosplay aspect – I know my fiancé would never wear a costume and much prefers to just explore the stalls and exhibits! But in my humble opinion, cosplay is the heart of comic con. Cosplay allows me the escapism to transform into my favourite characters, involve myself in my beloved fandoms and be able to easily interact with others with the same interests, which means making new friends! I’ve met so many wonderful people at comic cons who I’ve since stayed connected to through our social media. For those who also make their own costumes, comic con is a chance to show off all the blood, sweat and tears of making something they are truly passionate about. I love listening to other cosplayers’ stories of how they found cosplay in their lives and how their costumes came about. There’s a reason it’s my favourite hobby in the world, and comic con is just the ultimate symbol of it. So, if you’re umm-ing and ahh-ing about whether to cosplay or not… DO IT. There’s literally hundreds of people walking around in awesome costumes the whole weekend of all different sizes, budgets and fandoms, and you’re guaranteed to make so many new friends – it’s so much fun!
Have you been to a comic con before? What are your top tips for the BEST time at con? Let me know in the comments!
Mandy Jean World 