busch stadium guide
The Cardinals opened Busch Stadium III in 2006 and christened it with a World Series Championship. I still contend that they were one of the worst World Series Champions in modern history, but hey; it shows what can happen if you get hot at the right time. This page isn't about ripping the Cardinals, but sharing some advice for saving money at the ballpark in St. Louis. The Busch Stadium page will provide you the basic information. The Cardinals are known for having devoted and knowledgeable fans, so it makes for a great baseball atmosphere.
parking
Downtown St. Louis can provide some parking problems, and when going to Busch Stadium you should keep safety in mind. As in any urban area, St. Louis has some rough spots where Nelly and his good buddies hang out. The main thing is just to use common sense, don't park somewhere if you feel like an armored vehicle would be useful - its not worth saving $5. That being said, you can find free parking near Busch Stadium via metered parking. Most meters are in effect Monday through Friday until 7pm. What that means is you will probably need to arrive early and then feed the meter until 7 pm; at which point you are home free. Here is the official rules for metered parking, according to the po po "Parking meters are in operation Monday through Friday from 8am to 7pm. On Saturdays all meters are in operation from 8am to 7pm, except for some Downtown meters: parking is free on Saturdays at the meters in the Downtown area bounded on the West by Jefferson Ave., to the East by the Mississippi River, to North by Cole St. and to the South by Chouteau Ave. Parking at all meters is free on Sundays and City Holidays."
Another cheap option is a $3 garage on Pine St. This tip was given to me by another fan; but if you are on 7th street going away from Busch Stadium, turn left on Pine and you will immediately see the $3 garage. It is a great deal for how far you are from the stadium. Other than that the best you will probably do is parking for $5, but you will have a sizable walk to Busch Stadium.
A little different way to find free parking at Busch Stadium is to visit Big Daddy's bar. They offer free parking and a free shuttle to and from the Cardinals game. Click here for more information and details on the location of Big Daddy's Soulard.
Some people will tell you about the taking the Metrolink to the Cardinal's game, but while its an affordable option, it may not be too smart. The problem is after the game the station is typically packed out and it's tough to get on a train. The benefits are that you can usually park for free outside of the city at a station, and then you pay about $5 per person round trip to take the train to and from the game. If it were me, I would take my chances arriving as early as I could and doing some laps through downtown looking for metered parking. You can easily wait 20 minutes to get on a train after the game, which is a lot of wasted time. I guess its up to you to put a balance on time vs. money, but if you are going with several people to the game - splitting parking fees (if any) will probably be cheaper too.
tickets
The Cardinals offer some pretty aggressive discounts on tickets, which is great news for fans on a budget. They have already outlined a number of games with half price tickets for the 2009 season, and have family packs, Pujols packs, and God knows what else packs. I think if you are truly in search of good value tickets at Busch Stadium, the key is flexibility. For instance; Sundays shape up to be a great time to go to a Cardinals game in 2009. Stay tuned for the packs for 2010
First of all, metered parking is free in the city - and most Sundays have a promotion where fans in Terrace and Pavilion reserved get a free hot dog and a pop. So you can find free parking, buy a ticket for $16 - $20 and get a small lunch with it, plus the Cardinals offer kids tickets for $7. That totals up to a day at the ballpark including lunch for about Thirty bucks - incredible deal. You could do the same thing on a Tuesday night and easily pay double that amount, because there is no particular promotion. So my point is, the Cardinals provide the options and if you are a savvy fan who goes to 5 - 10 games per year, you can really plan it out and save a ton of money.
Most people don't really plan ahead, and they end up paying top dollar for everything - which is stupid if you ask me. In fact I give the Cardinals a Ballpark Savvy Blue Ribbon for their ticket promotions in 2009. You might expect this from a crappy team, but the Cardinals are perennial winners and they give plenty of chances for everyone to make it out to some games.
I think the Cardinals regular seating is a little pricey for my taste, but I see a great value in sections 441, 442, and 445. These sections are priced at $16 per ticket as Outfield Reserved seats, but they are actually more like infield reserved seats. In fact, they are right above the infield terrace box seats which are $32 a piece. I think if you are going cheap seats, these are your best value tickets at Busch Stadium. Kids 12 and under are also able to get $7 seats in that same section.
Tickets are always available on eBay as well. Here is my advice for ticket buying on eBay; wait until the last minute. I know that sounds crazy, and you would think that closer to the event the prices would shoot up; but that is not the case. I have bought and sold plenty of tickets on eBay and I have found that when I sell them early I get top dollar because there is less competition. As the event gets closer, everybody in America who is selling tickets begins to list them at auction. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that when the market is flooded with supply the price is driven down. I don't know if there are any published numbers to back me up, but I have seen it time and time again. So if buying on eBay, buy late. Here are 2 listings ending soon with an auction price under $50.
parking
Downtown St. Louis can provide some parking problems, and when going to Busch Stadium you should keep safety in mind. As in any urban area, St. Louis has some rough spots where Nelly and his good buddies hang out. The main thing is just to use common sense, don't park somewhere if you feel like an armored vehicle would be useful - its not worth saving $5. That being said, you can find free parking near Busch Stadium via metered parking. Most meters are in effect Monday through Friday until 7pm. What that means is you will probably need to arrive early and then feed the meter until 7 pm; at which point you are home free. Here is the official rules for metered parking, according to the po po "Parking meters are in operation Monday through Friday from 8am to 7pm. On Saturdays all meters are in operation from 8am to 7pm, except for some Downtown meters: parking is free on Saturdays at the meters in the Downtown area bounded on the West by Jefferson Ave., to the East by the Mississippi River, to North by Cole St. and to the South by Chouteau Ave. Parking at all meters is free on Sundays and City Holidays."
Another cheap option is a $3 garage on Pine St. This tip was given to me by another fan; but if you are on 7th street going away from Busch Stadium, turn left on Pine and you will immediately see the $3 garage. It is a great deal for how far you are from the stadium. Other than that the best you will probably do is parking for $5, but you will have a sizable walk to Busch Stadium.
A little different way to find free parking at Busch Stadium is to visit Big Daddy's bar. They offer free parking and a free shuttle to and from the Cardinals game. Click here for more information and details on the location of Big Daddy's Soulard.
Some people will tell you about the taking the Metrolink to the Cardinal's game, but while its an affordable option, it may not be too smart. The problem is after the game the station is typically packed out and it's tough to get on a train. The benefits are that you can usually park for free outside of the city at a station, and then you pay about $5 per person round trip to take the train to and from the game. If it were me, I would take my chances arriving as early as I could and doing some laps through downtown looking for metered parking. You can easily wait 20 minutes to get on a train after the game, which is a lot of wasted time. I guess its up to you to put a balance on time vs. money, but if you are going with several people to the game - splitting parking fees (if any) will probably be cheaper too.
tickets
The Cardinals offer some pretty aggressive discounts on tickets, which is great news for fans on a budget. They have already outlined a number of games with half price tickets for the 2009 season, and have family packs, Pujols packs, and God knows what else packs. I think if you are truly in search of good value tickets at Busch Stadium, the key is flexibility. For instance; Sundays shape up to be a great time to go to a Cardinals game in 2009. Stay tuned for the packs for 2010
First of all, metered parking is free in the city - and most Sundays have a promotion where fans in Terrace and Pavilion reserved get a free hot dog and a pop. So you can find free parking, buy a ticket for $16 - $20 and get a small lunch with it, plus the Cardinals offer kids tickets for $7. That totals up to a day at the ballpark including lunch for about Thirty bucks - incredible deal. You could do the same thing on a Tuesday night and easily pay double that amount, because there is no particular promotion. So my point is, the Cardinals provide the options and if you are a savvy fan who goes to 5 - 10 games per year, you can really plan it out and save a ton of money.
Most people don't really plan ahead, and they end up paying top dollar for everything - which is stupid if you ask me. In fact I give the Cardinals a Ballpark Savvy Blue Ribbon for their ticket promotions in 2009. You might expect this from a crappy team, but the Cardinals are perennial winners and they give plenty of chances for everyone to make it out to some games.
I think the Cardinals regular seating is a little pricey for my taste, but I see a great value in sections 441, 442, and 445. These sections are priced at $16 per ticket as Outfield Reserved seats, but they are actually more like infield reserved seats. In fact, they are right above the infield terrace box seats which are $32 a piece. I think if you are going cheap seats, these are your best value tickets at Busch Stadium. Kids 12 and under are also able to get $7 seats in that same section.
Tickets are always available on eBay as well. Here is my advice for ticket buying on eBay; wait until the last minute. I know that sounds crazy, and you would think that closer to the event the prices would shoot up; but that is not the case. I have bought and sold plenty of tickets on eBay and I have found that when I sell them early I get top dollar because there is less competition. As the event gets closer, everybody in America who is selling tickets begins to list them at auction. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that when the market is flooded with supply the price is driven down. I don't know if there are any published numbers to back me up, but I have seen it time and time again. So if buying on eBay, buy late. Here are 2 listings ending soon with an auction price under $50.
A couple of other notes about St. Louis Cardinals tickets; last year there was a coupon code available with Digiorno pizzas that got 50% off all Monday - Thursday tickets. This year they have a box to put in a coupon code with your online ticket order, which means there are coupons out there somewhere. I can't find any yet, but take a minute and do a google search before paying full price for Cardinals tickets. The other note is the All-Inclusive seats. These actually include beer and food, which is rare for these kind of seats in baseball. For $69 its really not a bad deal depending on how much you typically eat and drink. The seats have a nice view from the outfield, and might be fun to try once or twice.
food
Busch Stadium gives fans another opportunity to save money by allowing you to bring in soft sided coolers with plastic bottles of water or pop, and also any type of food. While the ballpark concession prices at Busch Stadium are ridiculous as usual - once again you are not a captive audience; so stop complaining. Another option that I consistently recommend is Restaurant.com Here you can buy $25 gift certificates to local restaurants for $10. You can also do a google search for "Restaurant.com coupon codes" and almost always get an extra 60 - 80% off that. I often buy these $25 certificates for $2. That is the best way to eat a decent meal before or after the game and save a chunk of change. When you follow the link, just type in the zip code of Busch Stadium (63101) to see what restaurants are nearby (there are plenty).
food
Busch Stadium gives fans another opportunity to save money by allowing you to bring in soft sided coolers with plastic bottles of water or pop, and also any type of food. While the ballpark concession prices at Busch Stadium are ridiculous as usual - once again you are not a captive audience; so stop complaining. Another option that I consistently recommend is Restaurant.com Here you can buy $25 gift certificates to local restaurants for $10. You can also do a google search for "Restaurant.com coupon codes" and almost always get an extra 60 - 80% off that. I often buy these $25 certificates for $2. That is the best way to eat a decent meal before or after the game and save a chunk of change. When you follow the link, just type in the zip code of Busch Stadium (63101) to see what restaurants are nearby (there are plenty).