Getting around at Comic-Con

4 JULY 2015
 
 

 
 

Happy 4th, everyone. Let’s talk about getting around at Comic-Con. Whether you’re just traveling from the convention center to the Spreckles Theatre or trying to get to your hotel from the airport, you’ll need to know which ways are fast, easy on your wallet and easy on your feet.

If you’re driving in, you’ll need to be braced for the 405 traffic and of course the terrible congestion around the Con. If this is your first rodeo, know that once you arrive in the area, you’ll have to deal with delivery trucks unloading event supplies, gawkers who drove in just to see the sights, regular residents and tons of attendees trying to find their hotel garage. All of them will come to a frequent dead stop to let endless pedestrians cross the street. My advice is to avoid driving during peak hours as much as possible. Taking your car out at night: not a big deal. But if general, you won't need to drive much once you're at the Con.

Here are some ways to get around at the Con. 

First, onto the big news. Lyft and Uber just got authorization to give rides to and from the airport.

Lyft. They’re also running a special promotion where you can enter the code COMIC into the payment section of the app – and get your first ride free. Also, they’ll have plenty of drivers around the area wearing zombie costumes and makeup. When you get matched with these drivers, you’ll actually see a zombie profile picture in the app.

car2go. This is a car-sharing company with a fleet of 400 electric vehicles in San Diego. To help out attendees, they'll have a DropZone (free parking area) by the Con, which is basically a free valet service. You drop off the car and someone parks it for you, while you walk to the convention center 10 minutes away.

Sidecar. Another ride sharing service popular with San Diego locals. You can make your selection based on price, shortest route and other factors.

The SuperShuttle. This takes you from the airport to your hotel and back. You can book it in advance or on the spot. Obviously with the number of people flying in, an advance reservation is a good idea.

The SDCC Shuttle Bus. This is the free Comic-Con service that takes you everywhere - into the Gaslamp, to the convention center, out to Mission Valley and pretty much everywhere. They run around the clock, which makes them a pretty awesome option.

Pedicabs. These are great for when you're traveling a distance that seems too short to merit a cab and too long for your tired feet.

Taxis. These are everywhere. Your hotel valet, the airport loop, empty streets late at night, crawling through the Gaslamp in the day.

The MTS trolley. This is San Diego's trolley that stops right at the convention center. This might be the most popular mode of transportation for attendees so I suggest looking over their site. If you're putting your car at a a park-and-ride lot, pick one by the trolley. They serve the convention center every 7.5 minutes during the Con. And they have a handy app.

Amtrak. A great option for anyone coming down from LA - but you'll need to book in advance. 

     
Coaster Commuter Train. This runs north-south and serves 8 stations between Oceanside and San Diego, with the entire route taking about an hour. This also stops at the Santa Fe Depot.

The Coronado Ferry. If you want to go over to Coronado Island for a beach night, dinner or the Hotel Del Coronado's famous Sunday brunch, the ferry is your friend. You can pick it up right behind the convention center. Just be aware that the last journey home is before 11 pm.

RideScout. Not a transportation method, but an app that shows you your transport options in real time - by bus, carshare, bike, etc - with estimates on how long each option will take.