Planning the trip to Blizzcon '16!

[Deleted]

Hello, again, folks!

Me and my wife are planning going to Blizzcon '16, so I would like some tips/advices mostly on a room to stay, places to visit, where to eat. The intention is to save some money, if possible of course. We are from Portugal and about the plane tickets we got that covered. Our concerns is where to stay, since I looked up on Anaheim and the prices were really high, I think its due to being close to the resort(?). So is there a website where I could search for some economic rooms to book? Is public transportation expensive? Also, where to eat?

We'll stay for about one week in California, so do you knows have some tips on places to visit?

Thanks for your time guys and much appreciated!

[Tojara]

If you didn't book a room before Blizzcon was announced, or shortly after you landed tickets, good luck actually getting a semi reasonable priced room at this point, let alone a room that's close at all.

For a reference point I got a room on the same block for 220 dollars a night (just staying two nights) the day that the tickets went up on the website.

People will duck out for sure or cancel reservations, but it's pretty expensive to stay close to the convention center, especially in convention season. You will probably have better luck getting a hotel either on the outskirts of Anaheim, or to one of the cities to the south of Anaheim. I can't speak for public transportation in the area as I've never taken it, but I know there are buses all over Anaheim taking people to Disney Land.

[-aiko-]

In the future I recommend the Hilton. It's expensive but right next to the convention center with amazing rooms. Cost-wise, and since everything else is booked by now, a motel is definitely your best bet. There are tons of them in the general area, and you can even rent a car for cheap (like $15-$20 a day) if you have to go to a further motel. As for food, if they continue the trend of last BlizzCon there will be some food trucks outside the convention center with amazing food. If you plan on extending your stay in California, use a rental car to drive to Carmel-by-the-Sea and visit this special little hole-in-the-wall called Tommy's Wok. To this day I've yet to find better Chinese food. There are also some amazing coffee shops and a great beach to chill at in Carmel. If you don't want to go that far (it's like a 6 hour drive from Anaheim) at least visit Little Tokyo. Delicious food and rich culture.

[Independent voter]

http://www.alpineinnanaheim.com/

It's tacky but you can walk to the convention center.

[ItachiZaku]

Have fun and bring lots of money, america is expensive, if you actually want to enjoy yourself.

[Radux]

My wife/friends and I stayed at the Travelodge every year we went. It's only a few minutes walk from the convention center. It wasn't a super pretty room, but it was clean and more affordable than some of the other options.

Travel cost from the airport to your hotel will highly depend on which airport you fly into.

In terms of food, most places are well within walking distance (within 30 minutes walk). There are also usually food trucks outside the convention center during lunch hours, on top of food (really expensive and crappy food) inside the center.

[Mazar]

My suggestion is don't go to BlizzCon. It's a massive waste of money.

Don't listen to poor people, their opinions don't matter when referring to fun that cost money. Money is only wasted if you don't get what you want out of it.


Blizzcon is located right in the heart of Tourist Anaheim. Everything is right there. So expect to pay for it. Last year we booked a room about 10 miles away to save money. But after parking fee's everyday and the hassle we opted to stay walking distance this year.

Downtown Disney is close to the convention center as well, there is tons of places to eat there, The house of blues is fun when they have live music going. Rainforest cafe is kinda cool. All of it is very commercial but I enjoy it.

[Schmeebs]

I like the Red lion, reasonable rates for decent rooms (and basically right next to the convention center.)

Theres also the Ramada thats about a 5-10 minute walk from the convention center, dirt cheap rooms really, but not the prettiest.

[Celista]

Don't listen to poor people, their opinions don't matter when referring to fun that cost money. Money is only wasted if you don't get what you want out of it.

The value of money matters less if you have more of it? Sounds like something someone who doesn't know how to manage their money would say.


OT: have fun at Blizzcon, OP! I'd make sure there's going to be a Blizzcon next year, sometimes Blizzard skips years.

[Mikita-EU]

AirBnB all the way. Cheapest and best way to secure (nice) accommodation.

[Tziva]

A hotel within short walking distance is super super nice while you're there. There's a number on that block - the Hilton, the Marriott, and a Sheraton are probably the closest, but there's tons of others nearby since it is right by Disneyland. People always go for the Hilton first, but the Marriott is just as close and usually cheaper. The Sheraton is a teeny bit further but even cheaper still. There is also the Anabella on the other side of the block, but I've never been inside there aside from the patio once for a party, and a few other smaller ones nearby. There are definitely budget hotels/motels nearby but they probably fill up faster and will be a bit longer of a walk.

You better start looking for a hotel now; it's going to be tough to find one thing close, and your chances get smaller for every day you wait.

Parking at Blizzcon is a bit of a pain in the ass, so if you are renting a car you can drive in, but the parking isn't cheap and there's no in/out. I've booked a hotel (Sheraton) before even though I am local just to avoid the hassle of driving in and out and parking each day, and it was definitely worth it to be able to collapse in a bed immediately after a short walk after such a long day.

There's plenty of food in the area for the same reason, but it will be costly like the hotels.

Public transportation in southern california is generally bad. I'd recommend that you rent a car, or take a shuttle from a hotel that is walking distance of the places you want to go. Taxis are costly, buses are super inefficient, and there are very few light rails in the area. You can probably get a cheapish shuttle from LAX to your hotel, but everything else will likely be costly and/or annoying. It is an area of commuters where most people own cars due to the large spread and consequently that ends up being the expectation for getting around.

[Flutterguy]

If you haven't already booked a hotel room, do so ASAP.
https://www.priceline.com/stay/#/sea...pe=CITY&page=1
http://www.hotels.com/search.do?q-de...&f-lid=1531643

Obviously, adjust check in and check out and all that in your search. Unfortunately, California isn't cheap like anywhere. But if you look hard enough you can find some sweet deals. Since you're going to be here for a week, there's plenty you can check out. As far as what to do, all depends on your budget and such.

Definitely rent a car. Public transportation exists and if you're in the right area it's actually pretty solid, but it's not consistent. You'd have to do a little research.

Other things to check out while here.. There's the usual touristy trip to Hollywood. Santa Monica Pier is pretty awesome(although right now it's a bit of a traffic nightmare with the California Incline closed).

If you like the arts and sciences... Totally recommend the Getty Museum. One of them is by appointment you have to plan ahead of time. The other is pretty much open to the public. You'd have to check it out for details. http://www.getty.edu/museum/ If it works for your schedule, totally worth it.

Also check out the Observatory..
http://www.griffithobservatory.org/v...admission.html

The Endeavour space shuttle is near USC
http://californiasciencecenter.org/e...ttle-endeavour



This website covers more:
http://www.discoverlosangeles.com/

It's a bit cluttered, but meh. Could give you ideas.

One extra little bit.. Not sure when this El Nino is supposed to dump the Pacific Ocean on California, but getting into November should be the beginning if it happens at all. So bring some wet weather gear with ya. Could be our worst rain season since 1997.

[Deleted]

The value of money matters less if you have more of it? Sounds like something someone who doesn't know how to manage their money would say.


OT: have fun at Blizzcon, OP! I'd make sure there's going to be a Blizzcon next year, sometimes Blizzard skips years.

They do? Aw hell tittehz! Gotta make sure of that then! Thanks for the heads up!

Yeah, I know it's an expensive trip but I only intend to go once to BlizzCon, so I wanna plan it right and let my wallet take a "jab" not a "right hook" :b

Thanks for all of the suggestions, taking notes atm and will make sure to check websites and all the great information you've given.

Much appreciated, really <3

[Celista]

So was Blizzcon confirmed for 2016 then? I mean, I assume we'll get one if we're moving towards 1-year expansions, but I know that we don't always have a Blizzcon every year.

[zenkai]

id like to plan a trip but then I probably couldn't score tickets.