There are big changes afoot for San Diego Comic-Con attendees. Once you’ve secured a badge (and if you haven’t yet, your final chance will be on Saturday, November 15), every attendee knows the second biggest hurdle is securing a hotel.
There are two hotel sales:
- The Early Bird Hotel Sale (which should be opening soon), which are non-downtown hotels available on a first-come/first serve basis, and which require full prepayment and are non-refundable
- The General Hotel Sale, which includes all available hotels, and takes place in the spring (typically in April).
The General Hotel Sale (or Hotelpocalyse) has traditionally been a randomized waiting room that takes you to a form to fill out, and you find out your hotel placement several days later. New for 2026, though… this is all going to change.
Instead, attendees will be taken direct from the randomized waiting room to a sale with live inventory. That means you will be booking your hotel as soon as you get through — and that inventory is not held once in your cart (it’s only secured once payment has processed).
There will still be a two-night deposit required at time of checkout — which is non-refundable (also new for this sale). A maximum of two (2) rooms will be allowed at time of booking.
You can read more about the policy change on Comic-Con International’s site.
This is a major shift, and one we’re frankly a little afraid of, but… we’ll see how it goes.
