miller park guide
In 2001 the Milaukee Brewers got a new stadium. You can check out the official Miller Park page here. We are going to talk about some different opportunities for you to save money at a Brewers Game by planning out your parking, food, and tickets. The great news for bargain seekers is the Brewer's were worse in 2009 with the losses of Sheets and Sabathia, so tickets were readily available. Hopefully this continues for years to come.
parking
First of all, parking can be a mess at Miller Park. The biggest problem isn't necessarily the $8 you would pay for the general lots, but getting out afterwards is a nightmare for crowded games. One alternative is to combine your pregame beer and food with a free shuttle to the game. Most of the places on this list have free on the street parking after 6 pm, so you can save some serious money. Click here for a list of bars with free shuttles One place in particular that you can save some serious money is Fiesta Garibaldi. They are on the list of places that offer a free shuttle and they also offer gift certificates on Restaurant.com You can buy a gift certificate worth $25 for the price of $10, or even lower if you will do a google search for "restaurant.com coupon code." Typically you can get an additional 60 - 80% off that. You can grab a subsidized dinner here and also get free transport to and from the game; not bad.
If you aren't into taking a shuttle and just want to find free parking, your best bets are between 51st and 54th streets and also Wisconsin Ave. Parking maybe hard to find on these streets in particular, but they have a good number of side streets around them where you can park. Obviously you need to pay attention to the parking signs on that given street, and you will probably want to arrive early if you want a shot at finding parking, which is to be expected.
Milaukee maybe one place where paying for parking has its benefits. The Brewers fans are known for tailgating outside of Miller Park that rivals a football game. Arrive early and park close to the stadium and your nose will be dancing to the smell of sausage. If you are coming from out of town it maybe worth paying for parking just to experience this unique pregame atmosphere.
food
Well I already mentioned one specific place that is on restaurant.com, which 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 Miller Park (53214) to see what restaurants are nearby.
If you are going to eat in the stadium, don't waste your money - go with the sausages. Men should eat like men and sausage will help ensure that is going to happen. If you go to quite a bit of games you probably don't enjoy paying the ballpark prices, so your best bet may be to eat before the game. You can also bring in bottled pop if its sealed, so you don't have to pay $5 for a Coke. You can also save money on beer by going to Dukes on S 68 St. for $1 beers before the game. All in all I would recommend buying some sausage at the store and take a little grill and tailgate; especially if you don't get to go often.
where to stay
If you are going to Milwaukee from out of town, I recommend for any city is hotwire.com. I have had nothing but great experiences with them. Some people are scared because it doesn’t give you the name of the hotel until after you have bought it, but I would never use another travel site. Their ratings are trustworthy, and you can get a really good idea of the area you are staying on their map. A couple of personal examples: I got a room at the Intercontinental on Michigan Ave. in Chicago for $79 per night. I also had a room at the Hilton in St. Louis, with a view of the arch for $89 per night. In my experience; the hotel you get will have you a room available, but when you check in they ask what kind of room you want. If the person is cool, they give you one of the nicest rooms available. I will use no other travel site for hotels.
You may or may not know about couchsurfing.com, but this is a pretty cool network where you can find people who will let you sleep on a couch or in a guest room for free. If Miller Park is one destination on a big baseball trip, this could save you some serious money. I think the risks are obvious, but to me if you use your head by making sure the person has plenty of references and pictures, you are pretty safe.
For others who may want free accommodation, I would recommend Home Exchange. You may have seen this in the movies, but basically you pay $100 to join and then you can swap houses with other families for a vacation. The safety record of this is literally unblemished, and if you are taking a baseball trip or just a vacation to the area, you might find somebody to trade places with you for a week. Its an option.
tickets
Brewers tickets at Miller Park were hard to come by at the end of last year because of their playoff run. I may not have the clout of Peter Gammons, but I feel pretty strong in my prediction that they won't go to the playoffs again in 2009. Sabathia and Sheets being gone make for some tough replacements in the rotation. I took that shot at the Brewers to make the point that tickets should be easier to find at Miller Park this season. Most of the time the Brewers leave their retractable roof closed, some fans say too often. So there aren't many times in the summer when you are baking in the sun at Miller Park. That being said you can still find some decent ticket values at Miller Park. I think the best view for the money is something in the Terrace Box sections between 419 - 425. You are going to pay $20 per seat, but I think the view is better than some of the other seats that are close to double that price.
One thing to keep in mind if you only go to a couple games per year is that the Brewers designate some games as premium games, and those tickets cost more. A good number of these premium games are Cubs games. The reason for that is because Cubs fans travel so well, and Miller Park is just a stretch down the road from Chicago. Here is my recommendation; if you are just a casual fan, don't go to these games. Cubs fans are generally obnoxious and really take away from your ballpark experience overall. But from a value perspective I think the view to price ratio is probably best in the sections I mentioned above.
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 a couple of auctions ending soon with a current bid under $50.
parking
First of all, parking can be a mess at Miller Park. The biggest problem isn't necessarily the $8 you would pay for the general lots, but getting out afterwards is a nightmare for crowded games. One alternative is to combine your pregame beer and food with a free shuttle to the game. Most of the places on this list have free on the street parking after 6 pm, so you can save some serious money. Click here for a list of bars with free shuttles One place in particular that you can save some serious money is Fiesta Garibaldi. They are on the list of places that offer a free shuttle and they also offer gift certificates on Restaurant.com You can buy a gift certificate worth $25 for the price of $10, or even lower if you will do a google search for "restaurant.com coupon code." Typically you can get an additional 60 - 80% off that. You can grab a subsidized dinner here and also get free transport to and from the game; not bad.
If you aren't into taking a shuttle and just want to find free parking, your best bets are between 51st and 54th streets and also Wisconsin Ave. Parking maybe hard to find on these streets in particular, but they have a good number of side streets around them where you can park. Obviously you need to pay attention to the parking signs on that given street, and you will probably want to arrive early if you want a shot at finding parking, which is to be expected.
Milaukee maybe one place where paying for parking has its benefits. The Brewers fans are known for tailgating outside of Miller Park that rivals a football game. Arrive early and park close to the stadium and your nose will be dancing to the smell of sausage. If you are coming from out of town it maybe worth paying for parking just to experience this unique pregame atmosphere.
food
Well I already mentioned one specific place that is on restaurant.com, which 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 Miller Park (53214) to see what restaurants are nearby.
If you are going to eat in the stadium, don't waste your money - go with the sausages. Men should eat like men and sausage will help ensure that is going to happen. If you go to quite a bit of games you probably don't enjoy paying the ballpark prices, so your best bet may be to eat before the game. You can also bring in bottled pop if its sealed, so you don't have to pay $5 for a Coke. You can also save money on beer by going to Dukes on S 68 St. for $1 beers before the game. All in all I would recommend buying some sausage at the store and take a little grill and tailgate; especially if you don't get to go often.
where to stay
If you are going to Milwaukee from out of town, I recommend for any city is hotwire.com. I have had nothing but great experiences with them. Some people are scared because it doesn’t give you the name of the hotel until after you have bought it, but I would never use another travel site. Their ratings are trustworthy, and you can get a really good idea of the area you are staying on their map. A couple of personal examples: I got a room at the Intercontinental on Michigan Ave. in Chicago for $79 per night. I also had a room at the Hilton in St. Louis, with a view of the arch for $89 per night. In my experience; the hotel you get will have you a room available, but when you check in they ask what kind of room you want. If the person is cool, they give you one of the nicest rooms available. I will use no other travel site for hotels.
You may or may not know about couchsurfing.com, but this is a pretty cool network where you can find people who will let you sleep on a couch or in a guest room for free. If Miller Park is one destination on a big baseball trip, this could save you some serious money. I think the risks are obvious, but to me if you use your head by making sure the person has plenty of references and pictures, you are pretty safe.
For others who may want free accommodation, I would recommend Home Exchange. You may have seen this in the movies, but basically you pay $100 to join and then you can swap houses with other families for a vacation. The safety record of this is literally unblemished, and if you are taking a baseball trip or just a vacation to the area, you might find somebody to trade places with you for a week. Its an option.
tickets
Brewers tickets at Miller Park were hard to come by at the end of last year because of their playoff run. I may not have the clout of Peter Gammons, but I feel pretty strong in my prediction that they won't go to the playoffs again in 2009. Sabathia and Sheets being gone make for some tough replacements in the rotation. I took that shot at the Brewers to make the point that tickets should be easier to find at Miller Park this season. Most of the time the Brewers leave their retractable roof closed, some fans say too often. So there aren't many times in the summer when you are baking in the sun at Miller Park. That being said you can still find some decent ticket values at Miller Park. I think the best view for the money is something in the Terrace Box sections between 419 - 425. You are going to pay $20 per seat, but I think the view is better than some of the other seats that are close to double that price.
One thing to keep in mind if you only go to a couple games per year is that the Brewers designate some games as premium games, and those tickets cost more. A good number of these premium games are Cubs games. The reason for that is because Cubs fans travel so well, and Miller Park is just a stretch down the road from Chicago. Here is my recommendation; if you are just a casual fan, don't go to these games. Cubs fans are generally obnoxious and really take away from your ballpark experience overall. But from a value perspective I think the view to price ratio is probably best in the sections I mentioned above.
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 a couple of auctions ending soon with a current bid under $50.