Dillon Amphitheater — Attraction in Dillon

Frustrating Experience and Problematic Venue Policies

We were turned back at the entrance because my wife’s small shoulder bag—no larger than a fanny pack—didn’t meet the venue’s strict clear bag policy. This is a bag we’ve never had an issue with at other venues. We followed the rules, returned it to our car, and later saw other guests inside with obviously non-compliant bags. It was clear the policy wasn’t being enforced consistently between entrances.

Beyond the inconsistent enforcement, the policies themselves are deeply flawed:

The clear bag policy serves little real security purpose and disproportionately inconveniences attendees, especially when not applied equally.

No exceptions are made for medical bags, potentially violating ADA requirements to accommodate guests with disabilities.

The prescription medication policy limits guests to the exact dose needed for the event, and allows staff to store or dispose of any “excess” — a legally and ethically questionable practice that could endanger people with chronic or emergency medical needs.

Diaper bags are prohibited, requiring parents to somehow fit all childcare necessities into a gallon Ziploc — an unrealistic and exclusionary approach.

No bag check is available, so guests arriving without a car are forced to choose between discarding belongings or skipping the event.

These policies feel arbitrary, outdated, and out of step with real-world needs. If the venue wants to enforce strict security, it must do so fairly, clearly, and in compliance with basic legal and accessibility standards. I’m only giving the 3 stars because the venue is beautiful. Otherwise,...

Our visit was chaotic and less than pleasant with multiple issues. We purchased resale tickets through their own site which didn’t work because they sold us tickets for Friday on Saturday which the system should never have allowed. At the box office they allowed us to convert those over to Saturday tickets and printed is hard copies which of course did not work when they scanned them at the door. After talking to them for a few minutes and a lot of confusion they just said whatever and let us in. Security staff was very rude and seems to pick and choose what rules they enforce. One of the women with us had a small purse which they say is allowed but the person said “that one looks too big” and wouldn’t let her in but let other women with similar sized bags in. It seems like they just pick and choose whatever they like. They say bags aren’t allowed but chairs and other things in large carrying cases (a bag) are allowed in and not checked. Having this person as the first representative of the venue we interacted with left a rather negative image of the venue and the organization disfunction of the ticketing office/system makes it appear that they don’t know what they are doing or are just incompetent. I don’t know if I will go back to this venue even though the location is beautiful. Having to go through that again doesn’t make me want to make the drive up and will probably just stick...

Be early or be sorry!

Obviously a beautiful venue and location, but if you want to enjoy the show, be early and find a spot in the middle. Our experience was less than pleasant, especially with how much we spent on reseller tickets. I’m okay with sitting on the side of the stage, but those seats are bad because a big tent is blocking the band(as pictured). I don’t mind a spot in the back, but there wasn’t even standing room to lean against the fence because it was so crowded. If you’re not super early, people will claim twice as much space as they need, people leave a lot of dead space in between each other, and the venue doesn’t police it. And of course, everyone stands the whole show so you really start to see all the wasted space once people aren’t sitting spread out. Also, for parking, I wouldn’t rely on the free city parking unless you get there very early. If you have to drive, prepare for $50 parking.

So we definitely learned a hard lesson of getting there as early as possible. However, as I said, I don’t mind less than ideal seating, but I would expect to be guaranteed to have a seat where I can see/hear the band. This is not that...