With the full schedule out, there’s a lot of questions about how line-up for Hall H panels will work – and CCI has provided answers.
CCI will once again be utilizing Hall H wristbands, and the process will work mostly similar to last year’s system. For those that aren’t familiar, at a certain point the day before, CCI will begin handing out Hall H wristbands for the following day to the Next Day Line (NDL), which is located behind the convention center. Here’s a map:
And here are the times for distribution:
Wednesday, July 20: Wristband distribution for Thursday panels in Hall H will begin at 9:00 PM in the general Hall H line in Plaza Park.
Thursday, July 21: Wristband distribution for Friday panels in Hall H will begin at 7:15 PM at the front of the Next Day Line.
Friday, July 22: Wristband distribution for Saturday panels in Hall H will begin at 9:00 PM at the front of the Next Day Line.
Saturday, July 23: Wristband distribution for Sunday panels in Hall H will begin at 9:00 PM at the front of the Next Day Line.
The wristbands will be broken up into four different color “zones”, with each zone roughly representing 1/4 of the room capacity. You’ll need a wristband to be able to get into the first panel of the following day.
Once you have your wristband, you have two choices – you and your group can either leave the line completely and go sleep in that bed you’ve paid an exorbitant amount of money for, knowing that you’ll make it into the panel the next day… or your whole group or at least one person in your group can stay. If you leave, you’ll still make it into the panel the next day so long as you return by 7:30AM – but if no one stays to “hold” your place in line, you’ll be heading to the end of the wristbanded section.
If you or someone in your group stays, there are a few new stipulations this year. You can’t “hold” spaces for more than five individuals at a time. Any additional people beyond those 5 will be asked to leave and may rejoin the end of the Next Day Line. Again, you’ll still all need to return by 7:30AM, or you forfeit your guarantee to make it into the panel.
You can read all of this year’s rules on CCI’s site.
