The annual San Diego Comic-Con has come to an end, and that means it’s time to start planning for next year!
As part of its yearly tradition, Comic-Con International announced the dates for next year’s convention on the final day of Comic-Con 2016. We hope you like San Diego’s weather during the third week of July, because Comic-Con 2017 will be held from Thursday, July 20 to Sunday, July 23; with the event kicking off on Wednesday, July 19 for the preview night.
Next year will be the 48th anniversary of the first San Diego Comic-Con, which began with under 300 fans in attendance in 1970. There were reportedly over 130,000 fans at this year’s event, which has long since outgrown the San Diego Convention Center. This year’s Comic-Con programming was held in several surrounding locations, including Petco Park, the Hilton San Diego Bayfront, San Diego Marriott Hotel and Marina, Manchester Grand Hyatt Hotel, and the Spreckels Theater Building. The event hasn’t yet taken over all of Downtown San Diego, but that day seems to be fast approaching.
Related: The Best Cosplay From Comic-Con 2016
For fans, this has been both a curse and a blessing. It’s now incredibly difficult to get into Comic-Con if you’re not an exhibitor, a guest, a professional, or a member of the press. That’s limited Comic-Con’s ability to draw in even bigger crowds, and it’s one of the many reasons that Los Angeles, Anaheim, and Las Vegas are continuously rumored to be courting the conventions organizers for a move.
Earlier this year, Los Angeles essentially auditioned for a theoretical Comic-Con move when it hosted WonderCon, another large pop culture festival that is also run by Comic-Con International. WonderCon will be returning to Anaheim from March 31, 2017 to April 2, 2017. For anyone who was shut out of this year’s Comic-Con, WonderCon may be a better option. It hasn’t quite reached the insane heights of SDCC and you can still buy tickets without dealing with Comic-Con’s infamous lottery system.
Which comic conventions will you go to in 2017? Let us know in the comment section below!
