Stadium Guides

Wrigley Field: Visitor guide for your trip to Wrigleyville

Wrigley Field visitor guide

Since opening in 1914, Wrigley Field has become one of the most iconic stadiums in American sports, famous for its hand-operated scoreboard, ivy-coated outfield walls, rooftop viewing platforms and… Bill Murray.

Here’s our guide for anyone who wants to make the journey to the home of the Chicago Cubs in Wrigleyville.

Wrigley Field traditional scoreboard
The traditional hand-operated scoreboard at Wrigley Field

First: Getting your ticket to Wrigley Field

The first step is to go to Sports Where I Am’s schedule of sports events for Wrigley Field to see the list of upcoming games. Ninety-nine percent of the time you’ll only see Chicago Cubs tickets listed, but there are times when other sporting codes hold special events at the iconic stadium.

Where to sit

Our fan-supplied tips for Wrigley Field seating pretty much match our overall guide for where to sit at Baseball games from a couple of years back: fans recommend sitting along the third or first base lines at Wrigley.

Where you should sit at baseball games

There are options for sitting in these areas to suit many budgets. For example, if you decided that you wanted to sit along the third base line, you have around six different sections to choose from (see screenshot below) – the Infield Club Boxes (numbered 10 – 17) all the way back to the Infield Upper Deck (numbered 509 – 526).

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Other options

The bleachers – particularly near the foul poles (301 or 315 in the image above) – are described as a great spot for some cheaper seats and a chance to get amongst “the real fans”. It depends on what kind of experience you’re after.

Another option is the Wrigley Rooftops. In the map above, you can see Sheffield and Waveland Avenues bordering Wrigley Field. Many of the buildings along these streets have great views of the field, so fans can buy tickets to watch the game from these rooftops – and then you have access to other levels of the building during the game, too. Amenities vary at different rooftop options, but most include access to a bar or lounge as well as catering options. Think a corporate suite, but cooler. The Wrigley Rooftop businesses share portions of their earnings with the Cubs, too.

Second: How to get to Wrigley Field

It’s not unique to hear that “traffic near [stadium] is a nightmare, so avoid driving to the game“, but our fan tips for Wrigley Field seem particularly adamant about it.

If you are planning to drive, Nick’s tip about using “Park For Wrigley” to pre-book your parking spot on game day seems like handy advice. You can also park a few blocks away in Wrigleyville and walk back to the game to save a few bucks.

Outside of that, you’re looking at Public Transport options from Downtown Chicago:

■ Train: The station located just outside of Wrigley Field is Addison, which is on the Red Line.

■ Bus: Either the Addison (#152) or Clark (#22) buses will get you to Wrigley.

For more detailed explanations of these options, see this page from the official Cubs website.

Third: Stadium tours at Wrigley Field

A stadium tour is a great way to get the most out of your game. Chances are, you’re only going to remember one out of every ten things you get told on these tours, but you’ll still have a much better appreciation for all of the game day goings-on once you know the backstories beforehand.

(Side-note: This is one of the main reasons Sports Where I Am was created)

Tickets for the daily stadium tour at Wrigley Field cost $25 (USD).

You have a decision to make when it comes to these tours. Do you:

a) Go to a tour on game day, so you can feel the buzz of the stadium as they prepare for the game you’re about to attend, OR

b) Go to a tour on a non-game day, which allows your tour to enter extra places that you can’t before a game, like the team dugouts, press boxes, etc.

It’s a tough call. But either way, a stadium tour certainly adds to your overall experience.

Fourth: What to do in Wrigleyville before or after your game

The area surrounding Wrigley Field is known as Wrigleyville. This neighbourhood contains a number of sports merchandise stores, casual eateries, and bars. Some of our tips recommend spending your merchandise & food money in Wrigleyville rather than in the stadium.

At night, Wrigleyville comes alive, particularly on game day. Options in Wrigleyville include a variety of sports bars and “everything from live music to sketch comedy”.

In terms of sports bars, Sluggers Bar has batting cages upstairs, which is very cool:

On the other hand, CubbyBear serves up these amazing Chicago Dogs paired with garlic fries:

Plenty to keep you busy before or after your game.

The game itself: What to know

Here are some other things to know during your game at Wrigley Field:

■ Wrigley Field is one of only a few remaining ballparks with a traditional, hand-operated scoreboard (pictured at the top of this article). Plan your instagrams accordingly.

■ The outfield walls of Wrigley Field are covered with Ivy. That’s cool enough on its own, but then consider this: At the start of the season, you can see all of the ivy vines where the leaves haven’t completely grown out yet, and then as the season progresses – and the weather changes – the Ivy-covered walls change with it.

■ Our SWIAM tips recommend some of the hot dog and pretzel options to buy at the game – a “seemingly endless amount of concessions” – but none of our tips seem too passionate about the food options in the stadium. Maybe we need more tips about what to eat at Wrigley Field – but it seems like most of our users are eating in Wrigleyville.

■ Learn the words to “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” before you go to Wrigley, so you can be part of this at the bottom of the 7th inning:

Anything we missed about Wrigley Field?

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