Gillette Stadium — Attraction in Foxborough

Going to summarize a few visits here now that I've experienced more of the stadium. My review is based on experiences at concert events.

Gillette Stadium is fine overall. Prices for concessions are excessive as they are at any arena, however some things seem to be okay in comparison to other arenas I've been to. On the standard concourse there's plenty of options to choose from and a combination of grab and go style "shop" locations as well as walk-up counters. Food on that level is okay, and prices are a bit high for the quality. Plenty of merch booths for concerts scattered in, outside and around the property so don't fret if you can't get your hands on something right away. You might even be able to grab something on the long walk back to your car.

On the club level, the dining is definitely elevated and the prices are okay for that elevation. Likely would've opted to dine in venue had I known that all services would be running and the menu would be so much better. I wish details were available for this level on the Gillette stadium website however there's very little details outside of booking information for private events. Private access to merch also meant shorter lines. Less people in the section and thus less people accessing services also meant clean bathrooms, which was a refreshing sight. Club level is temp controlled so no need to worry about sweating while waiting for a show.

Getting into the stadium has been challenging every time I've gone. The entry gates are poorly marked most of the time and when you get where you think you're supposed to go, turns out there's actually a different place and it's not marked anywhere in the ticket info or on the premises. Field access is only available at the lower level, loge and balcony at the main gate, and club through a special private doorway. Very confusing overall and some people are more helpful than others with helping get you where you need to be. For instance, in 2022 I had a ticketing issue where one ticket in a pair worked at one gate and the other did not for some reason. They forced both of us to another gate even though one ticket had been scanned and this created a hectic scene where they were prepared to deny entry to the used ticket and the other one having issues being processed by their system. It got resolved but feeling like a criminal due to issues with their system felt awful in the moment.

Crowd control at the field level is hit or miss. In one experience it was deplorable. People crowding into my row from the loge section, standing on chairs, shoving their way around. Security did the bare minimum to reduce it and after taking a few elbows to the sides and head I locked eyes with a member of staff who could understand my frustration. They attempted to fix the situation however the problems persisted. On another occasion it was perfectly fine however, so I guess it really just depends on the crowd and the teams willingness to intervene.

Parking is an absolute catastrophe, especially for concerts. If in general parking be ready to wait 1 to 2 hours to exit the lot if you don't plan on leaving early and being aggressive. Parking attendants at show end are basically useless at directing people. They're basically props to make sure you're going in the right direction once on the access paths. Even getting in they can be a bit of an issue. Most recently they were guiding with their light sticks but mostly just standing around and not actually guiding during the pre show parking. Very confusing especially in inclement weather. Paying to park does speed the process up a little bit but not too much if I'm being completely honest. Might cut the time in half but is that worth $50? That's for you to decide ultimately. It's well known how bad the traffic situation is and it's laughable that Foxborough and State Police can't seem to figure out a better traffic management system after so many years.

Overall, the stadium experience is good. It's not jaw droppingly amazing by any means, but it's not...

I've been to Gillette Stadium a few times over the years. The facility is nice without a doubt but there are things that take away from the experience...

The chief one being the parking and traffic... It's usually a cluster, despite giving the impression it's organized and orderly. For starters be prepared to pay at least $50+ for an event to park on the premises. Unless you park at private lots a mile walk from the stadium. This is of course after paying through the nose for event tickets which are also $50+ even for small potatoes events... A headline concert will be 3X times higher as you know (TicketMaster Monopoly & fees). Depending where you park, you have no choice as to where you exit, and which direction you will be forced to go on Rt1... We parked a little too far north, closer to the stadium and ended up getting on Rt 95 in Walpole, despite wanting to go Rt1 south. Friends who parked 100 yards away from us (on same side of Rt1) were allowed to go south on Rt 1 south, we had to go north... All the cross streets to Rt 1 are blocked by police for miles in either direction. If you lived nearby and needed to use a cross street, tough luck, go to Walpole and take a 2 hour detour home courtesy of Foxborough PD.

During events, all the restaurants at Patriot place only offer a bare bones menu. Unless it's a proper restaurant like Davio's.

If you are handicapped, or have mobility issues even a handicap placard won't save you a long walk and lots of standing (possibly a long detour home if forced to go the wrong way). If you have a cane or something and no handicapped placard tough luck for you.

Usually no pick up or drop off allowed, unless it's like a limo that will need to stay. Honestly not sure if Uber/Lyft are even allowed... Cuts into parking revenues.

Most staff are great, but some have a power trip. The day-glow vest and the flashlight causes that for some. There are strict size restrictions for lady's clutches (slightly larger than a "max" flagship cellphone) but dump the contents into a 5 gallon clear bag and add in random trash to make it harder to see contraband and that is allowed in because it's see-through, even though they only get a cursory glance at best. The staff have a laminated board to check sizes. The power trippers will send you to the rental lockers even if an 1/8th inch too big. They make the airline ticket staff seem reasonable by comparison.

Once inside, bring money and prepare to pay $16 for a beer and $7 for a soda... It's no wonder many tailgate and pregame... It's a business and they can charge what they want, but it seems literally everything is grossly overpriced, some might say price gouging, which seems accurate. The formula is a single bottle of beer costs what a 12pk costs at the package store...

Lastly, despite being Gillette, you still get whiffs of pot in the venue. Especially in the parking lot as cars smoking that drive right by the police on traffic detail. If we can smell it see it, it's amazing the Police don't and do something about it to prevent impaired driving... Perhaps being on traffic detail means they aren't there in an official capacity. Just something to be aware of as you try to get...

Literally the VERY BEST concert I have ever been to in my life. Of course... I've only been to like.. 4 concerts ever so.. but WOW!! I've never seen anything like it. We paid for an $85 parking pass so we could park right up close in the VIP parking and boy am I glad I did THAT!! VERY much suggested!! I will say that we bought floor seats right near the stage. When the first act came out, someone named... Playboi Cardi (I had no frickin CLUE who that was lmao), and the base started, e fuck, I was like "idk if I can handle this", Like literally rattling my organs hahahaa!! I was very grateful that I bought ear plugs 😂🤣 Anyways, someone had TAKEN OUR seats on that row. We were supposed to be Section A1 Row 23 Seats 24, 25, 26. Our seats were taken and the seats on the end of the row were empty so we just decided to sit there. Well about 20 minutes into the show The owners of THOSE seats showed up. They were like you're in our seats I said I apologize those people are in MY seats. Rightfully so, they grabbed security and tried to tell security "hey these people are in our seats because those people are in THEIR seats". Well instead of security making the people that were in OUR seats move, the guy brought me to the back of the section and was like, "I can move you over there (points to literally RIGHT next to the speakers and yes closest to the stage but the furthest from where the act would be)", then he sees my walking sticks (I'm crippled and walk with a limp), and he goes, " make that TWO options, I can put you over there (where he originally pointed) or I can put you over here (brings us to a high-rise for all the crippled people lol That's literally 20-30ft from the stage AND puts us ABOVE everyone on the floor so we had a far superior view!!). I chose the latter. It was INCREDIBLE. We now were not crowded at all, like, we literally had room to breathe, dance, etc there were like four or five seats for us three, so plenty of room and THEN some because we still had at least a foot or two all around us to move around!! PLUS, we had the very BEST view AND had the handicapped porta potty about 5ft from us. I guess there are some times where being crippled comes in handy even if it does ruin the REST of your life 🫤🤷🏽‍♀️ Anyways, I did think it was kind of strange that they didn't kick the people that stole our seats out of our seats but I guess it all worked out because I was very pleased with our...