Be sure to check out the locals in nifty costumes. Don't be afraid to tell someone if you like their outfit; you don't show up in public dressed like Wolverine with the intent not to be noticed. (Of course, if you encounter someone in the guise of Mystique, they are clearly trying to be invisible, and making eye contact will only hurt their feelings.

Your correspondent, it should be noted, has a Ghostbuster outfit complete with a proton pack that lights up, and as a result gets stopped for photographs like he's Mickey Mouse at Disney World. It's fun, don't worry.

If there's a costume contest, it's worth being in attendance, because the amount of creativity and work that goes into some of these things is truly amazing, and generally there's some cute girls with nice abs, too.

Incidentally, the sweet young thing in the Princess Leia bikini has heard it all before, and she's probably here with her boyfriend anyway. Just sayin'.