Ball park trip advice...

[billyhallfan]

Hello all,

 

My Dad, sister and I have started going on mini ballpark trips in the last three years, after this year we will have been to 14. We are going to Kansas City and St. Louis, and also making a stop in Iowa. The problem is that we have the New York area left, California, and Texas Florida. Not only would that be more than we afford, I have heard that there are travel agenecies that take people on such tours. Does anyone know of any that go out of Madison, Milwaukee, or Chicago, or somewhere around the area? And has anyone used them?

 

Any advice is appreciatted.

[JimH5]

Jay Buckley Tours is an operation with a base in Wisconsin. I think he's from LaCrosse, but I'm not sure. He runs a number of ballpark trips each year. They use bus transportation.

 

I haven't been on a Buckley trip, but he's a very nice guy. I've spoken with him a couple of times at card shows, and once I was at a Spring Training game in Kissimmee (Astros) and there was a Buckley tour group seated behind me.

 

They seemed like a nice enough group of guys.

 

The only problem I would see with a tour like that is if you happened to get a questionable group of people, where you're basically stuck with them for the duration.

 

Other than that, it could be a fun time.

[bball123h2]

Seriously, you can do this WAY cheaper if you do it yourself. I'm down to 10 stadiums left (11 with the new DC in 200http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/glasses.gif , and did it during college on a tight budget. A couple pointers:

 

1. Stay outside town when possible. We usually booked a hotel that was 30-40 miles in the direction of our next stop, further if it was a day game.

 

2. Pack a cooler for the car. While not luxurious, sandwiches and bottles of water/soda in a cooler will save you a ton of dough.

 

3. A couple suggested NY routes (if schedules work, 1 game/day):

A. Detroit, Toronto, Hall of Fame, NYC, NYC, Philly, Pittsburgh, home

B. Cincinnati, DC, Baltimore, Philly, NYC, NYC, HOF, Toronto, Det

 

 

What cities do you have left?

[billyhallfan]

these are what we have done:

 

Milwaukee

Chicago

Chicago

St. Louis

Kansas City

Minnessota

Cincinatti

Pittsburgh

Philadelphia

Washington

Baltimore

Los Angeles

Anaheim

 

any suggestions?

[JimH5]

I would save your money to the point where you can incorporate a Yankee Stadium/ Fenway Park/ Hall of Fame visit. You could throw Shea in there, too, but frankly, if you miss it, you're not missing much.

 

It would be a shame for you to miss Yankee Stadium before they take it down.

[OutoftheBallpark]

In research for our web site, I came across www.bigleaguetours.com

 

They seem to take out the possible 'stuck with people you don't like' factor by just focusing on the game and the event. So... travel/the cost is on you... but that also means you can drive there, fly there, take a bus, whatever. Once you get to the area, they have the hotel set up, tix to the game, tour of the stadium and a meet and greet with a player. Seems like a nice alternative to most packages.

[billyhallfan]

Quote:

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I would save your money to the point where you can incorporate a Yankee Stadium/ Fenway Park/ Hall of Fame visit. You could throw Shea in there, too, but frankly, if you miss it, you're not missing much.

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i thought they were going to leave Yankee up as a museum and build the new one next to it? Am I wrong?

[JimH5]

i thought they were going to leave Yankee up as a museum and build the new one next to it? Am I wrong?

 

I'm 80 percent sure they are planning to demolish the old one. I believe that whole area is part of an urban renewal project with Yankee Stadium (new) being the cornerstone. I think the old one is coming down. . .but I'm not absolutely sure.

 

I live in NJ and listen to NY radio pretty much all day every day, and this surprisingly gets almost no talk at all.

[TerraceReserved]

I'd suggest going to Cleveland. The city reminds me a bit of Milwaukee. I would tell you how cool the ballpark is, but I've only seen the outside. You see, I went there in early April, and was met with a foot of snow. It's ironic becuase when we came back to Milwaukee I went to the same game I was going to go to there at Miller.

[berniebrewer4life]

Quote:

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I would save your money to the point where you can incorporate a Yankee Stadium/ Fenway Park/ Hall of Fame visit. You could throw Shea in there, too, but frankly, if you miss it, you're not missing much.

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Doing it next year. I can't wait.

[JimH5]

Good for you, Bernie. . .

 

If you can at all work it where your HOF days are weekdays (vs. weekends), I think you'll like it that much more. They can handle pretty good crowds, so weekends aren't bad, but there's nothing like walking through that place when its nearly empty. Very cool. . .

[tnweill]

Ok, not trying to hijack this thread.... but my Dad and I decided to take a road trip down to St. Louis next month for the Brewers/Cards series. We've never been there, and are planning on staying downtown somewhere within walking distance of Busch Stadium.

 

For those of you who have been to STL, do you have any recommendations in terms of what to do, or where to eat? Obviously there's the Arch, the brewery tour, and the zoo could also be appealing as well. Anything else?

[owbc]

Union Station in St. Louis was a fun stop. The Fudgery was very entertaining, and they also have a Cardinals clubhouse store that dwarfs anything the Brewers have to offer.

[Principessa21]

Quote:

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i thought they were going to leave Yankee up as a museum and build the new one next to it? Am I wrong?

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Last I heard they were tearing down the upper decks, moving Monument Park to the new stadium, and turning the current Yankee Stadium into a community softball field. And the new is being built next to the old. There are progress pictures online if you're interested.

 

Just to reiterate, you're missing a lot if you don't see Fenway or YS, and missing nothing for passing up that dump Shea. Colombian food should be the only reason you have to go to Queens.

[Jimbo]

For those of you who have been to STL, do you have any recommendations in terms of what to do

 

There's a Lewis and Clark museum on the IL side which was a neat way to kill a couple of hours. Otherwise, that's about it.

[adamb100]

They should keep the field in tact when Yankee Stadium goes down. I cant count how many hall of famers played on that field.

[billyhallfan]

Quote:

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For those of you who have been to STL, do you have any recommendations in terms of what to do,

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just don't cross into East St. Louis, we may not ever hear from you again, seriously though, the arch isn't really worth it, it is an uncomfortable ride or walk up whichever you chose, and it really isn't that great for the price, but I guess you have to do it once, and I have also been to the zoo, I would highly reccomend that.