Yankee Stadium Guide – Where to Park, Eat, and Get Cheap Tickets

Last Updated: September 6th, 2023 by Kristen Douglas

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Yankee Stadium is a celebration of extravagance. The prices reflect that. You don’t come to Yankee Stadium for a cheap baseball game. We know what we are getting into but still, we all head to the Bronx at least once because it is a religious experience for baseball fans. There are some choices to be made that will make or break your pilgrimage to one of baseball’s meccas and we’ve got that information for you. We can’t all go to a Yankees game like Jay-Z but we can still get a good view of the field and not miss a mortgage payment that month.

There are ways to find good value at the “New Cathedral,” and we will look into some of those ways.

The Great Hall of Yankee Stadium – via Flickr user Mark

Fun Fact: If you want to watch the players drive into the stadium, the gate for this is about where right/center field would be, near the Family Dollar store. You’ll probably see a small crowd and a couple of barricades in place. No autographs here, but it is cool to see what the guys are driving these days. Plan to get there a couple of hours early.

Arriving at Yankee Stadium

Alternative/Public Transportion to a Yankee Game

Most locals will select from the various public transport options available for Yankee Stadium, avoiding the congestion of driving in the Bronx.

The cheapest option available is to ride the subway to the 161 St. Yankee Stadium stop. The green 4 line runs north from Grand Central Station to connect to points beyond. The orange B and D lines run down the West Side.

Be careful: the B line only stops at Yankee Stadium during rush hours.

The station is never this empty near game time – via Flickr user m01229

Another cheap public transport option is the Metro-North Yankees – E. 153rd Street Station is a stop on the Hudson line, dropping fans off just a two-minute walk from the stadium. Visitors can pick up the Hudson line at Grand Central Station, connecting to CT and other locations afield.

Driving to a Yankee Game

There is plenty of free parking by New Yankee Stadium, but the bad part is it is all reserved for VIP guests, the Mayor, and other public officials. 660 spots in total, but if you aren’t a VIP you don’t need to worry about it.

Honestly, I am not sure why you would want to drive to the game. Stay close by, take the subway or get an uber. Some locals swear there is free parking in the South Bronx. This myth is not for the faint of heart.

People drive like a lawless herd, which I found intimidating, but generally speaking, you need to be able to parallel park exceptionally well to even attempt a search for free street parking in the Bronx. That said, here is a little forum thread about people sharing their tips for free parking in the Bronx and a similar thread on Reddit for you to check out.

The Streets around Yankee Stadium

There are no official parking lots attached to Yankee Stadium. You are on your own in the Bronx.

The most stress-free choice for affordable parking at the Yankee game is using SpotHero. This lets you find a spot ahead of time and reserve it, so you know exactly where you are going before you ever leave your house. Here is a list of upcoming games, just click the date you need to find the cheapest spots:

Best Food At & Near Yankee Stadium

Save Money on Food

Save Money on Food Want to save money? Step one: do not enter the attached Hard Rock Cafe NYY Steakhouse restaurants. Don’t even go in.

Step 2: Bring your own food. As long as you pack your food in plastic bags, you can bring in any snacks or food. They do request you cut your apples and oranges into slices, likely afraid rowdy Red Sox fans will begin pelting players from the bleachers. Drinks of any non-alcoholic kind can be brought in plastic bottles up to one liter.

There are countless convenience stores and vendors selling drinks and snacks outside the stadium, so you do not have to come prepared. Do not try to bring in glass or cans, as security painstakingly searches each bag and delays are common.

If the kids need a quick bite, there is a McDonald’s directly across the street from the gates, as well as local vendors on the sidewalks selling hot dogs and other street foods.

Within a few blocks on any side of Yankee Stadium are many small restaurants, bodegas, and delis that can provide cheap sit-down eats before or after a game. Several local bars also welcome Yankees fans or foes before, during, and after games.

Stan’s Sports Bar has been a local favorite for years. It is across the street from the footprint of the original stadium, an easy walk to the current stadium. Special deals and events connected to games make this a fun option if you can’t afford a ticket.

Another great sports bar across the street from the stadium is The Dugout. This place opens two hours before every home game and is a fun place to hang out with good beer specials.

Stan’s Sports Bar was features in Derek Jeter’s famous retirement Gatorade ad

Food in Yankee Stadium You Shouldn’t Miss

The best potential value, especially for a family or pack of bros, is the $20 bucket. At most of the general stands, they sell a bucket of chicken strips and fries or a bucket of sliders and fries for $20. If you pay with a Mastercard, the deal also includes a soda. While not the healthiest choice, this is the most affordable dish to split.

There are some delicious food options, largely relating to BBQ or steak, but all come with the Yankee price tag. Many only have one location, meaning a lot of time is spent wandering the stadium.

There is a nostalgic satisfaction gained from eating a Nathan’s Hot Dog, and they are readily available around the park. With your eyes closed and a taste of Nathan’s, you can almost pretend you’re back in the House that Babe Built.

I do love that baseball parks bring in local favorites when adding to their concessions/restaurant choices. If you are in town for just enough time for a game, you can still get a taste of the city by choosing a food unique to the city and park. In Yankee Stadium there are some quintessentially New York foods to choose from. The famous chef Bobby Flay has a burger place in Section 132. The Halal Guys serve up the best street meat and falafel all over NYC and you can try them out during a game as well. Get their combo platter so you can try the chicken and the beef with the delicious pita bread.

Nothing beats a Nathan’s – via Flickr user joeymanley

Yankee Stadium Seating Chart

We’ve created the seating chart of Yankee Stadium above to help you better understand some of our recommendations below. Feel free to download this image and use it, we just ask that you credit Ballpark Savvy and link back to the page where you found the image.

Cheap Yankee Tickets (and Other Oxymorons)

I give the Yankees credit for not doing the ever popular tiered pricing structure for ticket prices. Most teams charge more based on the opponent, but the Yankees have a game day price and an advanced price. Always be on the lookout for sales and deals through the Yankees, especially for MasterCard holders, through Ticketmaster.

The Yankees sell their tickets through Ticketmaster rather than through MLB.com (using the team website will redirect you). This makes your Yankees tickets incompatible with the Ballpark App that so many other teams use to display tickets. Make sure you have the Ticketmaster App on your phone when using paperless tickets at the stadium.

So rather than focusing on specific prices and sections which tend to change fairly often, I want to talk about general rules and strategies for getting the best deals on tickets. ​

1. Compare 3rd Party Sites

SeatGeek is a big time ticket comparison site that lets you compare a bunch of different ticket brokers, marketplaces, etc. and find the best price for the game you want to go to. They also have a tool that projects whether ticket prices will go up or down – AKA whether you should buy now or wait. 

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Click here to view Yankee tickets on SeatGeek.

2. Buy Last Minute

If you’ve bought tickets online before, you’ve heard of StubHub. What you may not know however is that with the rise of print-at-home and tickets on your mobile phone via the Ballpark App that you can usually buy tickets right up to a couple of hours before game time. 

Save $5 On Last Minute Tickets: I recently learned about the Gametime app and it’s legit. Save BIG on last minute tickets. Click here to get the app and you’ll get $5 off your first order.

As someone who has sold a fair share of tickets on StubHub, I also know that sellers are encouraged to set a declining price for their tickets. This means they’ll set a starting price and then their lowest acceptable price, and StubHub will auto-magically lower the price of those tickets as the event date gets closer. 

View from the famous inner facade from the original park – via Flickr user Steven Pisano

So in many cases, a game that isn’t sold out will have plenty of below face value deals on StubHub that you can snatch at the last minute and then either print at home, or just use the App on your phone to get scanned into the game. 

3. Avoid Craigslist

It’s not to say that you can’t find ticket deals on Craigslist, you can. It is just more of a peace of mind, safety issue. I’m a Craigslist kind of guy, but I also know it’s easy to get screwed buying baseball tickets there. 

Remember when I mentioned selling on StubHub? When you list tickets there, all you need to know is the barcode number from that ticket along with the other details on section, row, etc. – So when I sell tickets I never mail them to the buyer, they just print them at home and my actual tickets become void. 

If I was a shady character, I could go sell those void tickets to an unsuspecting buyer on Craigslist for cash. The tickets look real, they are “real” in a sense – but what that buyer will find out is when they go to enter the stadium, the ticket scanner will say “thou shalt not enter thy game.” 

Don’t be that buyer. 

Stick to buying tickets from SeatGeek, StubHub, or directly from the team. You can still get deals and you never have to worry about being scammed. 

Best Value Seats in Yankee Stadium

The bleachers are still the clear winner when we look at ticket prices alone. You have a decent view of the action, especially from right field where you are closer to the wall. If you are going bleachers, go right field.

The downside to the bleachers used to be (in the old stadium) that you were disconnected from the rest of the stadium. In the “new” Yankee Stadium that is no longer the case, and you can explore the rest of the ballpark, including the museum and Monument Park. However, for under $20 apiece, it’s really not bad.

King George’s Crown – via Flickr user Dex(07)

You also get to participate in a Yankee tradition that starts in the right field bleachers known as “roll call”. Basically the fans chant every player’s name in the top of the first until they wave to the people in right.

The next best value in my opinion are the Grandstand seats behind home plate. In sections 420 A, B, and C you have an incredible view for a reasonable price. You will want to sit in the first 5 rows of the upper deck if possible, and if you have to sit in higher rows you need to avoid the aisle seat. The layout of the stairway is such to where people will be walking up the aisle in your sightline all game long.

The terrace level tickets, at mid-prices, are actually a worse view than lower priced seats. It’s better to jump to the 200-level seats, which in some sections come very close to higher priced seating sections. Section 226 (by third) and section 214B (by first) are sneaky steals.

There can also be value in premium seating, like the Jim Beam Suites. You have to find the right deal though, and here is my post on how.

Where to Stay While Visiting Yankee Stadium

My favorite way to travel to a baseball game is to stay as close to the stadium as possible and walk or take an Uber so I don’t have to fool with parking in a strange place. So many ballparks have great hotels within walking distance making it easy to stay nearby. 

I use Tripadvisor to find a hotel with good reviews near any ballpark. I prefer this option over any other because I actually search for the park I am visiting and Tripadvisor gives me hotels, restaurants, and other attractions near there. Yankee Stadium is located in the Bronx and the city is packed with stuff to do and see.

Obviously, there are a lot of hotels in NYC, but I can search for Yankee Stadium here and get the 10 closest hotels to Yankee Stadium and then pick what I want based on ratings and prices. This saved me a lot of time and I didn’t end up getting ripped off on the price or end up in a sketchy place where I didn’t feel safe. 

The Opera House Hotel – image via Operahousehotel.com

The closest hotels do not always come with the lowest cost but you get what you pay for when it comes to accommodations. Remember that you aren’t paying for parking or transportation. You can find some surprisingly good deals out in the Bronx. The Opera House Hotel, one mile from Yankee Stadium gets great reviews and you should be able to book a room for less than $200 a night, breakfast included The Best Western Plus Stadium Inn might not be known for its luxury but it is well-reviewed and the most conveniently located with the shortest walking distance to the Yankees. This hotel also has breakfast included.

Free Stuff at Yankee Stadium

1. The Yankee Stadium Museum is easily the most historically impressive team Hall of Fame in baseball, hosting a collection of artifacts from some of baseball’s greatest historical moments. Located near section 210, the museum highlights five important eras in Yankee history and displays World Series rings and autographed balls from some of the great teams.

The Yankee Stadium Museum – via Flickr user Adam Yoblon

2. Monument Park, situated behind center field, honors dozens of Yankees greats like Ruth, DiMaggio, and Mantle. Pose by the memorial plaques for each of the over 20 retired numbers. The park opens with the gates and closes 45 minutes before the start of the game. There can be a line during busy games.

Monument Park honors Yankee Greats from history – via Flickr user Matt McGee

3. There are a handful of fun photo ops throughout the park. Before entering, read the stands in Babe Ruth Plaza. Hear the cacophony of fans in the new cathedral’s nave: the banner-dressed Grand Hall. Play umpire behind Yogi Berra in the Museum. Sit in the two pale blue seats from the original park hiding near section 115. Check out Big Brother – the Boss, George Steinbrenner – peering over the right field bleachers.

4. If you are visiting with family, take your tiniest “bleacher creatures” out to the Kids Clubhouse on the 300 level in right field. Baseball games can be long and kids attention spans are short. They can play here for a little while on the tiny baseball diamond and Yankee themed playground.