For pop culture lovers, there’s no better place on earth than Comic-Con. Each year, the creators of some of the world’s favorite comic books, television shows, movies, video games and more gather to provide their respective fans with an immersive experience.

If you’re thinking about attending this fan-favorite event, there are some things you should know first. We’ve put together this short guide to help you make sure you get the most out of Comic-Con when you go.

Planning Your Trip

The first step to having a great Comic-Con is making sure you plan your trip right in the first place. And because of how popular this event is, planning has to start very early.

Before you’ve even decided you’re going to purchase tickets to San Diego Comic-Con (SDCC), you’ll need to sign up for a member ID on the Comic-Con website. If you don’t sign up for this, you won’t be notified when tickets go on sale and you won’t be able to buy them.

Once the event is drawing near, you can start to make your actual plan for what you want to do while you’re at SDCC. There are booths for various shows, movies and video games set up by trade show display companies all around the convention. In general, the exact details of these booths will come to light a few weeks before the actual event, so you’ll have time to plan.

Finally, when you’re requesting vacation time, take an extra day off. SDCC is a long event that’s as tiring as it is fun, and the last thing you want is to come home from a great event like this and go straight to work. Instead, give yourself some time to rest and recover. If you have been planning it for a while, you’ve probably gone all out on your trip to make it a memorable one. Some people want to travel in style so they may get first-class tickets for trains and planes, or maybe they’ve looked up “how much does a private jet cost to rent?” so they can make it a luxurious and fun trip that they will always look back on fondly.

Prepare Your Costume

Besides hopping the many stores that offer eye-catching comic goodies and clicking great photos in front of the picturesque frames put up on the site, you can also participate in cosplaying. What better way to portray your love for your favorite Marvel character than gearing up in their suit? All you have to do is get your costume ready. One of the most economical ways of going about this is to make your own outfit. Say that you want to cosplay as Dr. Doom. Instead of buying a costly ensemble, why not source and assemble different pieces of the suit? Begin by looking for a medieval-styled shoulder guard and a breastplate made of steel. Pair them up with a knight tasset, followed by a pair of gloves, a full-head helmet, brown slim pants, and leather boots. Add a green cloak to get a feel of power and mightiness. And behold, you have your Dr. Doom costume ready! This could be done for any other character that you love, be it Marvel, DC, or any other comic personality. All you need to do is learn about the most important pieces of your character’s suit, source them, assemble them, and there you go.

Where to Stay

Finding a place to stay during Comic-Con can be a bit tricky. The area immediately around the convention is pretty much always packed because the event is in such high demand. You can get access to early bird hotel sales from the convention, but these hotels are non-refundable and a lot more limited.

The best thing to do is to make sure you book your hotel as early as possible if you plan on going to Comic-Con the following year. It’s not uncommon for people to plan out their entire SDCC trip more than a year in advance, so you need to get your hands on a room as soon as possible.

What to Bring

Like many events, there are some specific dos and don’ts when it comes to Comic-Con. For starters, you’ll need to have cash for everything there, so it’s a good idea to withdraw your daily budget from an ATM before going to the con.

You may also want to get a Regional MTS pass to help you get around more easily without having to drive a car. If you’d prefer the convenience of having your own car to drive, make sure you figure out parking beforehand as it gets very crowded.

Enjoying Comic-Con is easy as pie, but your trip will be better if you do it right. Follow these tips and you’re sure to have a great first experience at SDCC next year.