Disappointing photo shows what it’s really like to go to Comic Con in San Diego


Left: Cosplayers dressed as Moon Knight, Spider-Man, and Batgirl. Right: The crowd outside San Diego Comic-Con 2022.

San Diego Comic-Con is a popular event, but it also comes with challenges and frustrations.Daniel Knighton/Getty Images; Emma McIntyre/Getty Images

  • San Diego Comic Con is one of the largest and most popular entertainment conventions.

  • While insider reporters enjoyed the rest of the convention, can be more frustrating than you see on social media

  • Fans have to wait in long lines, people are sitting on the floor, and navigating the con can be a hassle.

The crowds were unavoidable as we entered and exited SDCC.

Crowds at San Diego Comic-Con 2022.

SDCC takes place in San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter.Emma Mcintyre/Getty Images

This is the length of the line for fans to arrive at the COVID-validated tent where they must obtain wristbands to join the convention floor.

A long line of San Diego Comic-Con fans waiting in line to get their COVID vaccine wristbands.

You could not enter the SDCC premises unless you had a flimsy orange wristband with proof of vaccination or a recent negative test.Fraser Harrison/Getty Images

The mandatory COVID wristbands I had to wear every day to attend the convention became flimsy, shabby and faded as the week progressed.

Photo of the San Diego Comic-Con wristbands at the four-day event.

Wristbands for the duration of the 4-day event. We’ve heard attendees complain that the wristbands come apart while they’re in the shower.Olivia Shin/Insider

Fans had to circumnavigate tracks that run parallel to the convention center, making it more difficult to get to various activities.

San Diego Comic Con 2022

San Diego’s Comic-Con extravaganza is punctuated by railroad tracks with limited crossing options.Olivia Shin/Insider

The entrance to the San Diego Convention Center was crowded with people.

SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - JULY 22: Fans line up for Day 2 of Comic-Con International 2022 at the San Diego Convention Center on July 22, 2022 in San Diego, California.

Participating in SDCC requires a lot of patience.Daniel Knighton/Getty Images

Once inside, we had to navigate even more crowds of people due to the limited space to walk the floor.

SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - JULY 22: A general view of the atmosphere during Day 2 of Comic-Con International 2022 on July 22, 2022 at the San Diego Convention Center in San Diego, California.

Funkoville is one of the most popular and crowded areas of SDCC.Daniel Knighton/Getty Images

Attendees sat on the floor to rest, but a security guard inevitably walked by and told them they were not allowed to do so because it was dangerous.

SDCC 2022 sitting on the floor

By Sunday, people were sitting across the convention center floor as there were barely any seats for the thousands of attendees.Kirsten Acuna/Insider

The lines to attend the popular event were long and we had to wait outside for hours. The hot sun was beating down on the fans.

A long line of fans waiting to enter 'Abbott Elementary School'. Activation at San Diego Comic-Con 2022.

I waited two and a half hours to get into the Abbott Elementary activation on Sunday.Olivia Shin/Insider

Endless lines of attendees camped out and slept outdoors for days to attend Marvel Studios’ popular Saturday night panel in Hall H.

A long line of fans camped out to enter Hall H for Marvel's Hall H panel at San Diego Comic-Con 2022.

The procession meandered along the marina behind the convention center and entered the hall, which holds more than 6,000 people.Olivia Shin/Insider

Follow Insider’s coverage of San Diego Comic-Con here.

If you received a ticket from the panel to pick up your stolen goods, you had to travel 12 minutes to the back of the hotel outside the convention center to exchange the ticket for an unsuspecting room.

The SDCC swag collection room was really far away, not in the convention center.

Guests had to go to the Manchester Grand Hyatt San Diego Hotel, but many thought it was a different hotel. By the end of Sunday, the line to enter this room had stretched to the marina.Kirsten Acuna/Insider

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