San Diego Padres Baseball Game – Petco Park
By: Paul Benevich
A great day/evening in San Diego is dinner or drinks in the Gaslamp Quarter of San Diego and then a baseball game at Petco Park. Or, start at the game and then head out for drinks or dinner after the game. Petco Park is one of these incredible stadiums that is an anchor within the city of San Diego, but not built to necessarily be a destination, but part of your day or evening experience in Downtown San Diego.
The stadium is situated directly adjacent to the Gaslamp Quarter, a phenomenal section of the city with wonderful shops, hotels, restaurants, and bars. In fact, Petco Park was designed to melt into the Gaslamp Quarter of the city so it never feels like you exited a stadium before arriving at the hotel, shops, restaurants, or bars. They just seem part of the whole experience. This is one of the many charms of attending a baseball game at the park.
Click on any of the links above for more information on the Gaslamp Quarters.
Not a baseball fan – not to worry
If you're visiting San Diego, you don’t have to be a Padres fan to truly enjoy the experience. I like baseball, but don’t love it, but I love the experience of Petco Park. I have taken my international friends to Petco Park and had a wonderful experience and they hardly watched the game.
When attending a Padres Baseball Game, it’s not about the game, but the experience. For my friends that are less interested in the game and more interested in the experience, I recommend we purchase standing-room-only tickets which allow you to casually watch the game in a section called “Park at the Park” beyond Center Field. Tickets are only $20. With those tickets, you can bring a blanket and hang out on a manicured elevated grass section and watch the game or leverage it as an inexpensive way to enter the park and explore the rest of the Stadium. The Park is very fan friendly and will allow you to explore many areas of the park once you are in.
Family-friendly experience
If you are traveling to San Diego and have kids, Petco Park is one of the most family-friendly baseball stadiums you will find. The lawn seats beyond center field allow for the kids to run around. There is a small kid-friendly baseball field next to the lawn seats where children can hit Wiffle balls, play catch, run bases, etc. They even have a large sandbox named “Toyota Beach,”
This outdoor area is designed with the idea that kids will be exposed to baseball early, but really only have attention to watch the game for 1, 2, or 3 innings before they get bored and need additional activities to occupy them. This also fits my baseball attention span as well. They designed the stadium with the idea that you make it a fun and affordable experience for a young family and as the kids get older they become lifelong diehard fans.
Walk the stadium
With the purchase of any type of ticket whether it is a purchased seat or standing-room-only tickets, you have access to walk the stadium. This is why I bring my visitors here when visiting San Diego. In each section of the stadium and on each level of the stadium you have wonderful terraces both inside the stadium to watch the game or on the backside of the stadium with fantastic elevated views of San Diego.
Make sure you take time to walk to each section of the baseball park and consume the different views such as Coronado Bridge, San Diego Bay, Downtown San Diego, and the beautiful convention center. This is why Petco Park is such an extraordinary park and differentiates itself from most of the other baseball parks around the country.
Buying tickets
If you are a diehard baseball fan, then purchasing premium seats close to the action will be ideal. But… if you are going for the stadium experience then I recommend standing-room-only tickets or buying seats in the upper levels of the stadium. If you purchase seats on the upper level, you may be farther away from the action, but you also get to experience beautiful vistas of the city while still enjoying the game. The ballpark was designed so one can enjoy the stadium from any seat.
Some stadium history
In 2003 Petco Animal Supplies purchased the naming rights for 22 years for $60M and revenues from the naming rights helped fund the completion of the park. The San Diego Padres had their first game in the stadium against the San Francisco Giants (arch rivals) on April 8th, 2004.
Before the San Diego Padres moved to Petco Park in downtown San Diego they played in Mission Valley at Jack Murphy Stadium and shared the stadium with the San Diego Chargers. Jack Murphy Stadium was later renamed Qualcomm Stadium. To say the least, the move to downtown San Diego and Petco Park was an absolute upgrade for the San Diego Padres.
- Cost to build: $449.4M
- Opened: April 8, 2004, against San Francisco Giants
- Owner: City of San Diego (70%), Padres (30%)
Must-see at Petco Park
If you are lucky enough to attend a game at Petco Park make sure you experience the following: Batting Practice from Left Field, Western Metal Supply Building, Tony Gwynn Plaza, Gallagher Square, Toyota Terrace, Beer Alley, Petco Park’s Craft Pier.
Click here for a great article that briefly describes each of these experiences.
Click
here for information on Parking at Petco Park and getting to the Stadium.
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