UM-UF GAME WEEKEND - ALL INFO IN ONE LOCATION

TheOriginalCane

So say good night to the bad guy!
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I know we've had a bunch of different threads in the past, but now that we are in the final week, I thought it would be good to post all of the available information in one location. IF A MODERATOR CAN PIN THIS FOR THE WEEK, I WOULD APPRECIATE IT. I will update this throughout the week if anything changes. If you have any questions this week, send me a PM, I have already responded to several people who are going to the game. Some of you know that I am a VP with the Orlando Alumni Association, so I will mention an event (below) that we are doing that is open to EVERYONE, even if you are not a UM alum.

General Transportation - if you are driving/parking, the stadium is very close to the intersection of I-4 and the East-West Expressway (408). There is a lot of I-4 construction, but the traffic should not be too bad. Because Orlando has a lot of tourism, there should be plenty of Uber/Lyft drivers in the area. There will be a Lynx Bus shuttle running from near-downtown to the stadium. The departure point is on the WEST side of I-4, and will be on S. DIVISION AVENUE, in between W. Central Boulevard and W. Pine Street. This spot is just 2 blocks north of the Amway Arena (Orlando Magic). The drop-off point is on the EAST side of Camping World Stadium, at Lake Lorna Doone Park, on S. NASHVILLE STREET, in between W. Central Boulevard and W. Church Street. PLEASE NOTE, if you have tickets that you purchased from UM, we will be on the WEST SIDE of the stadium, so you will still need to walk a couple of blocks from the shuttle drop-off to your entry gate. There will also be an army of pedi-cabs running along the same route, and there are Lime Bikes as well.

Parking - The main parking within a 2-3 block radius of Camping World Stadium is already taken by Florida Citrus Sports and MOSTLY the UF crowd, UM did NOT negotiate for parking, and UM had to do a last minute deal to get Tinker Field for the "official" 2 hour tailgate. They have sold 1,200 tix, there are only 1,500 slots, just passing along the information. Then, this area around the Stadium will be cordoned off, and you will need a GAME ticket to get access. It's kinda like what we saw in Dallas last year, just without the fancy iron fences. This is the blue collar version.

Beyond the 2-3 block perimeter, to the NORTH and SOUTH and WEST of Camping World Stadium, you will be dealing with a situation similar to the OLD Orange Bowl. There will be lots of cash lots in front yards, apartment complexes, churches, and businesses. There will be plenty of cops and plenty of game day services (meat-on-a-stick), but it has historically been very safe in that area, even if it is not fancy. I have no idea how much the prices will be, so bring cash.

To the EAST of Camping World Stadium, and east of US 441, is where there will be more "traditional" parking lots, particularly downtown and around the Amway Arena and the Orlando City Soccer Stadium. I will post some links below, and I mentioned the Lynx Bus shuttle that will be running (above) in the General Transportation section.

Here is the City of Orlando website, they have both the GEICO garage (which is to the south of, and attached to, the Amway Arena), and a number of other garages and surface lots near downtown. The best one is the "Orange Lot" at 522 West Central, though when you print out your ticket, it usually says 521 West Pine Street. You can get into the lot from either street. This lot is city-owned, and I am not sure that it will allow for grilling/tailgating, but it is right next to the shuttle stop.


Here is the website for several privately-owned parking lots which DO allow grilling and tailgating. I have already spoken to the operator of these lots, and the ones near Central (there are 2 of them) will open at 1 pm (though he told me 11 am over the phone) and you can set up grills and pop-up tents. I have already purchased 3 spots at 521 W. Central Boulevard, this is the largest of the lots. They also have a smaller lot at 530 Grove Park Drive, which is one block north of the 521 W. Central Boulevard lot. Both of these lots are a block away from the Lynx Bus shuttle stop. They are also selling 777 W. Central Boulevard. This is directly north of the Orlando City Stadium. HOWEVER, full disclosure, the city has just torn up Parramore Street right there, so I'm not sure what the access will be. You would also have to walk a few blocks to catch the shuttle. Finally, the 99 N. Garland Avenue lot is on the EAST side of I-4. So you would have to walk a few blocks extra, but that lot is close to Tin & Taco, Planet Pizza, and Gringos Locos, which is a bonus.


FRIDAY NIGHT EVENTS - The Orlando Alumni Association is doing a free "Spirit Night" event at Ace Cafe on the SECOND floor (since the UM Alumni Association **** the bed on planning an event). Ace Cafe is at 100 W. Livingston Street. This is the location where the Orlando Alumni Association will be doing UM Game Watch parties during 2019. Ace Cafe is ENORMOUS, the food is great, the drinks are great, the decor is British motorcycles, and they have both indoor and outdoor bar areas. This event starts at 6:30 pm, and CANESWEAR will have a little pop-up store during the event. ALSO, IF YOU ORDER FROM CANESWEAR THIS WEEK, YOU CAN PICK UP YOUR ORDER AT THE FRIDAY NIGHT EVENT, just be sure to let them know when you check out. If you need more info, contact me or go to the Orlando Canes page on Facebook.


"AllCanes" (now owned by Follett, who also owns the UM campus bookstore) is also doing a Friday night event at Celine on North Magnolia (near Lake Eola). This is a ticketed event.

I JUST REALIZED, ON FRIDAY NIGHT ORLANDO CITY SOCCER WILL BE HOSTING ATLANTA UNITED AT 8 PM, SO SEVERAL OF THE DOWNTOWN BARS WILL HAVE PRE-GAME AND POST-GAME FOR SOCCER, PARTICULARLY AT THE CHURCH STREET AND WALL STREET BARS, AND ALONG ORANGE AVENUE BETWEEN CHURCH AND WALL.

I also think that NJCanetoFla is trying to do an event on Friday night, but it is in Sanford, at The Barn. Larry the Cable Guy used to hang out at The Barn all the time when he lived in Orlando (that's true, I'm not joking), so if you prefer this event over downtown, that's up to you.

SATURDAY EVENTS - As mentioned above, the UM Alumni Association is doing a $50 ticket tailgate event at Tinker Field (just west of Camping World Stadium). They have sold 1,200 tickets, and there are about 300 tickets left.

Canes United is doing their tailgate near Jones High School, south of Camping World Stadium, on the other side of the East-West Expressway. I believe that parking and food are now sold out. I know that parking is, without a doubt.

IF YOU DO NOT HAVE TICKETS, Ace Cafe is going to be doing a big watch party, with a huge screen. They have been running ads on Real Radio 104.1, so if anyone without tickets needs a place to go, this is the best spot.

SUNDAY EVENTS - Lots of great brunches around, Santiago's Bodega, Se7en Bites, BriarPatch (Park Avenue), East End Market, White Wolf, The Glass Knife, Maxine's on Shine, The Hammered Lamb, The Porch, The Boheme, SoCo Thornton Park, Stubborn Mule, Underground Public House, Avenue Gastrobar, Dexters, Ace Cafe (particularly if you slept there), Hamburger Mary's (particularly if your log-in name is NY State of Mind)

Hope that helps, PM me if you have any questions.
 
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The event at The Barn is legit. A bit pricey but a good value for the perks, live entertainment, open bar, free food.
 
Thanks. How far is a uber drop off to the stadium? Coming with children, can we walk? How long a walk?
What about post game, will it be difficult to get a uber?
Thanks
 
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The event at The Barn is legit. A bit pricey but a good value for the perks, live entertainment, open bar, free food.


The Barn is a dump. And, literally, in the middle of nothing. If they had gone to downtown Sanford, it might have been a little legit. But, no, The Barn is terrible, it's in a terrible neighborhood, and it has terrible clientele.

This happened last October:

 
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Thanks. How far is a uber drop off to the stadium? Coming with children, can we walk? How long a walk?
What about post game, will it be difficult to get a uber?
Thanks

If you Uber to the stadium, I would imagine that they will not let drivers go past Nashville Avenue if the Uber drives in from the east. You can get a little closer to the stadium if you come down Tampa Avenue in an Uber (as a bonus, you will be on the "Miami side" of the stadium).

After the game, I would imagine it is going to take a while to get an Uber. You have no idea how bad the roads are around the stadium when everyone is trying to drive at once in the dark. Your best bet is to pick a spot, maybe on a major road like US 441 (Orange Blossom Trail) or John Young Parkway, and then just walk to the spot.

Cops are going to give preference to the Lynx shuttle buses, so you may want to get an Uber to meet you closer to downtown. I have to be honest, I never Uber around there, so I'm not sure exactly where security is going to allow it, and the stadium does not have an "official" Uber/Lyft pickup/dropoff point.
 
Planning on walking from Church Street bars to Camping World. Doable correct?


It's...a bit far to walk the entire distance. It's about 1.2 miles. And once you pass Orlando City Stadium, it isn't the most walkable. US 441 (Orange Blossom Trail) is going to be crazy with traffic.

Best overall plan is to walk from Church Street to the Lynx Bus shuttle, at least going into the game. Coming out, depending on what things are like, you could possibly try to walk back, or take a pedi-cab, or take the Lynx shuttle back.
 
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Well there is a Back Street Boys concert the same night. All garages are sold out for months. The concert starts at 8pm and probably gets out at 11pm so much of transportation will also be staying downtown. This schedule before we changed date and has caused a major parking problem. I got my parking as I know the head of Stadium at gate 10..... yeah I know good for me but I’m bringing 12 people in my 15 passenger Van as I got approved by head of Bowl and parking company.
 
It's...a bit far to walk the entire distance. It's about 1.2 miles. And once you pass Orlando City Stadium, it isn't the most walkable. US 441 (Orange Blossom Trail) is going to be crazy with traffic.

Best overall plan is to walk from Church Street to the Lynx Bus shuttle, at least going into the game. Coming out, depending on what things are like, you could possibly try to walk back, or take a pedi-cab, or take the Lynx shuttle back.

Where is this and what is the cost?
 
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Well there is a Back Street Boys concert the same night. All garages are sold out for months. The concert starts at 8pm and probably gets out at 11pm so much of transportation will also be staying downtown. This schedule before we changed date and has caused a major parking problem. I got my parking as I know the head of Stadium at gate 10..... yeah I know good for me but I’m bringing 12 people in my 15 passenger Van as I got approved by head of Bowl and parking company.


Yeah, certain garages sold out, I had forgotten about that. Some people did buy in advance and got into GEICO, but some of the other city lots probably sold out too, like 55 West. Parking lots that do NOT pre-sell, which are large and likely to have space at the last minute, would be SunTrust Tower (entrance on South Street, by Boone), and City Commons (entrance on Boone Avenue, between South and Anderson). Both of these lots have good access to Church Street, just walk through the SunTrust parking garage and there is an exit out onto Church Street right by Grafitti Junktion.

Lynx Bus shuttle will definitely be running between football stadium and soccer stadium area, regardless of the Backstreet Boys concert, because Florida Citrus Sports has arranged it. Uber/Lyft might be heavily used by the concert crowd, and may not be as available to the football crowd (gonna have to pay those surge rates). Pedi-cabs will most likely be more available at the stadium, because Amway is not a very long walk to parking lots.

I hope Orlando gets smart and runs the SunRail on that Saturday.
 
Wow. There's soccer!


You can get all snide about it, but it means that there will be an extra 20 to 25 thousand people in the downtown area who are not there for any UM or UF parties. And it also means that there will be more outdoor vendors, and a bunch of bars will have DJs playing music in the streets. You can mock soccer, but it should be a very nice party atmosphere on Friday night.

It also might be easier to find parking at Ace Cafe on Friday night, since most of the soccer crowd will be closer to Church Street.
 
OC , I was told by Fl Sports parking was limited and they did not sell to either Canes or Gates. Not sure that is correct but parking was all gone in March when they gave me my one and only parking pass at Gate 10. I just got lucky knowing someone. As for downtown, when I checked all garages well full even the ones for Dr Phillips Center months ago. I still believe this is going to be a cluster F
 
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We have a Geico garage parking pass - and are either taking shuttle or walking to stadium. Any suggestions on restaurants for pregame drinks and snacks. We were thinking Church Street area?
 
Friday event to consider:
The Orange Bowl Boys are live-taping their podcast from 3-5pm.
 
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