Attention: late summer vacationers to StL.

StL_Dan · Post by **StL_Dan** » Fri Jul 25, 2003 3:38 pm

Here is some info via a post by someone on the stltoday.com "Eat at Joe's" Forum:

The post gives useful tips on doing things downtown with the family, how to enjoy a Cardinal game on the cheap and where to park for a minimum charge and/or free.

Check it out:

I posted this in response to a lengthy previous thread, but I know how people want to save money any way they can, so I took the liberty of repeating it under its own banner here. I think you'll find it worth the trouble, particularly if you're going to a Cardinals game soon:

HOW TO BEAT THE HIGH COST OF A CARDINALS BALLGAME:

Friends, I do this EVERY time I go....please take note:

First, the parking: Do NOT pay the $10 gouge at the parking garage, or the ridiculous extortion at the lots just south of the park. It will take you a half hour to get out of the garage, anyway. If you go on a Saturday or Sunday, park at any meter in the downtown area....it's free all day. If you arrive on a weeknight after 6 p.m., put enough money into the meter (2 quarters) to last you until 7 p.m., when the meters stop. Also,when you park at a meter, the moment you leave your parking spot, you're on your way home, instead of stuck in some garage gridlock. All those years I went to hockey games at The Arena, I always parked in front of the Humane Society on Macklind, saving money and breezing home, laughing at those poor souls stuck trying to get out of The Arena lots.
MONEY SAVED: At least $10.

Second, you CAN take a cooler of your own beverages and ice, like I do, but be sure to obey these rules: NO alcohol. No glass bottles or aluminum cans. The cooler must be soft-sided, and be able to fit under your seat (about 18 inches). Here's what I do: I buy those great, resealable 24-oz. plastic bottles of my favorite soda, buy a dollar bag of ice, load up the cooler with plastic soft drinks and a bit of food, and head for the ballpark. For a really hot day, you may want to include a couple of all-cotton towels in the cooler, which will come in handy when you need to mop your sweaty brow.

Now, the most important part: If you're carrying the cooler, or any large bag that should be inspected, you MUST go in Gate 7 (bleacher gate). The good news is, you can get there two full hours before the game, get in through that gate, go to the lower field box seats for the first hour, and see the entire batting practice, too. The ushers will not let you go to your loge or upper deck seats until one hour before game time.
MONEY SAVED: Since you paid about 30-40 cents each for the 24-oz. sodas instead of paying $3.50 for the 20-oz. ballpark edition, you're saving, including ice, about $3 PER drink! Also, don't forget that there ARE drinking fountains at the first base and third base exit tunnels, where I refill my empty, resealable plastic bottles.

Third: Make a "tourist" day of it. As long as you've gone to all this trouble, make it a point of walking the family, long before the game (so you've aced a great parking spot) to The Old Courthouse (if only to see that magnificent rotunda).....to Kiener Plaza's amphitheatre and fountain.....to the Plaza of Champions on the stadium grounds......to the Arch grounds......walking Laclede's Landing.....to a riverboat cruise......to the Cardinals' Hall of Fame......... If it's a Sunday, when there's no traffic downtown (except around ballgame time), pack the family bikes into the minivan and lead them on a great ride around the greater downtown area and along the Riverfront Trail, which starts on the northern edge of the Landing, just north of the Admiral. Every time I go downtown for a game alone, I take my bike and put 15-30 miles on it exploring downtown, Soulard, SLU campus, CWE, Riverfront Trail to the old Chain of Rocks Bridge, etc.

If you have the entire day off on a Sunday, and want to spend some real quality time with the family, try all of the above, and count your savings at the end of the day!

If you're bringing kids, these tips will save you the price of your ballgame tickets. Of course, I'm so cheap I always do the above even when attending alone.

Or.....if you don't have ballgame tickets, take the family downtown on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon with the game in progress, do the touristy things above, and then surprise the kids by taking them to the ballpark right at the start of the seventh inning......when all the gates open and you can enter absolutely FREE for the final three (or more) innings! Of course, you'll need to have your Walkman with you to know what inning they're in so you can plot your devious delight, but it's worth it just for the shock of the kids' glee when they see they can enter a ballgame in progress.

D. J. Fone, your penurious partner in pauperous partying.....

reference: http://forums.stltoday.com/viewtopic.php?t=73539

DiggityDawg · Post by **DiggityDawg** » Fri Jul 25, 2003 6:42 pm

Some great info there...I do it similarly when I go to the K. I don't think a lot of people realize you can bring your own grub.

tw · Post by tw » Sat Jul 26, 2003 8:06 am

stl. dan. you forgot to mention the city museum, worth a trip to stl. on its own. and you can also hop on the metro link (downtown) with your bike and go to the their "free" zoo.

StL_Dan · Post by **StL_Dan** » Sat Jul 26, 2003 8:51 am

tw wrote:stl. dan. you forgot to mention the city museum, worth a trip to stl. on its own. and you can also hop on the metro link (downtown) with your bike and go to the their "free" zoo.

Sorry tw, this wasn't an attempt to be all inclusive.

For those that want info on the City Museum, read my previous thread posted earlier this summer:

http://www.kcskyscrapers.com/kcforum/vi ... ight=#5277

For those wanting to visit the StL Zoo you will be rewarded with a great experience AND the opportunity to bike tour Forest Park's many pedestrian trails.

Happy vacationing.

KCN · Post by **KCN** » Sun Jul 27, 2003 1:06 am

Well hell, a month too late to do me any good

Awesome info, Dan. I'm keeping this stuff in mind next time I go to a Cards game!

KCPowercat · Post by **KCPowercat** » Sun Jul 27, 2003 9:01 pm

I'd rather stay in the city and watch a first place team

ShowME · Post by **ShowME** » Mon Jul 28, 2003 5:13 pm

If you really wanna do the cheap stay at a hotel near Lambert and take the hotel's shuttle to the Southwest Airline or American terminal and take Metrolink downtown.

KCRag Forum