I went to New York to celebrate Santacon for the second year in a row this year, and it was just as much fun the second time. Now that I’m a wile veteran of the Santacon scene, I put together a how-to guide for all the future Santaconners/alcoholics out there.

1. Local Hospitality

(May or may not be where I stayed)

If you’re not from New York, stay with someone who is. This is the most important step in a successful Santacon. If you stay in a hotel and think you can navigate Santacon without a resident New Yorker, you’re in for an interesting day. Navigating in unfamiliar territory isn’t that much fun when you’re 15 beers deep. Luckily, I had two Santacon pro’s to help me out (thanks Jess and Justine)

2. Eat Breakfast

No superheroes are needed on Santacon Saturday. If you start day drinking on an empty stomach it won’t end well for anyone involved. May I suggest a bagel sandwich of some sort.

3. Get Out There Early

The New Yorkers who celebrate Santacon take it very seriously, so if you wanna get a good spot at a good bar, you better get your ass out there early. Ideally, you should be at the bar by 1130am. Make sure your drinking shoes are on, too. You’re in for a beer filled day.

4. Get in the Spirit

There’s nothing worse than someone who does Santacon in normal clothes. Everyone, and I mean everyone, dresses as Santa. So I decided to go with the classic Christmas sweater, Santa hat/beard combo. Beware of drunk girls if you wear the fake beard. I got called an imposter by some scholar who thought my beard was real.

5. Drinking All Day and Visiting Rockefeller Center at Night in the Show is Actually Awesome

You owe it to yourself to visit New York at Christmastime. And if you can day drink while dressed as Santa at the same time, well that’s always a fun bonus. See ya next year NYC. Stay classy.