parking tips for penn state hockey vs. michigan state at beaver stadium - west shore home field (university park, pa 01/31)

figured i'd share some parking advice for the outdoor hockey game on saturday, 01/31, because this is going to be a massive event-over 67,000 tickets sold-and parking/traffic at beaver stadium on a game day is always a nightmare, even when it's not a major football saturday. you absolutely have to plan ahead or you will spend half your day sitting in traffic.

ok so, first thing-if you want to completely skip the crazy traffic getting in and out of the main stadium lots, check out an app like prked. you can rent someone's driveway or garage right next to beaver stadium. it's usually way cheaper than the official passes, you park in a normal neighborhood, and you just have a short walk to the venue. honestly, it's the best way to avoid the post-game gridlock that lasts 60-90 minutes after the game.

for the official stadium lots, it's going to be rough. this game is being treated like a big football game, so parking passes were expensive, ranging from $40 to $100, and day-of-event sales go up by $20. all paved parking and the dedicated ada spots are already sold out in advance. they will be directing overflow to surrounding areas like the paved lots and any gravel lots they can plow, but if the gravel lots are unusable from snow, everyone gets pushed to the decks and shuttles. lots open at 7 a.m.. you must have a mobile parking pass and pay with a credit card if buying day-of.

if you are parking on-site, you need to get there *early*. the one-way traffic pattern will likely start around 10:30 a.m. (2.5 hours before the 1:00 p.m. puck drop). once that starts, you are stuck following the specific directions for your lot, and trying to come in from the wrong direction is pointless; they'll just turn you around.

your best public alternatives are the campus parking decks. they are a bit of a walk, but they don't involve the immediate stadium traffic mess:

* **campus decks:** you can park at the east, eisenhower, hub, nittany, or west decks. the weekend event rate is typically $40 for the east, hub, and nittany decks if you are parked for more than two hours. the west deck is usually $25. expect about a 25-30 minute walk from the west deck.
* **downtown garages:** you can try the downtown state college garages-beaver, fraser, and pugh. special event parking rates are $2.25 per hour at the borough lots and meters. just be aware these can also fill up quickly, but getting out of downtown is generally less organized chaos than getting out of the stadium lots.

no matter where you park, get there way earlier than you think you need to. traffic will be heavy on i-99 and all major roads leading into state college. wear comfortable shoes because you will be walking a lot, and obviously, bundle up-it's going to be cold for the outdoor rink!

hope this helps and let's go state!