So Cal experts....

[marcyinPA]

We will be driving from Anaheim to Pasadena for the Rose Parade. We have reserved tickets and prepaid parking. The parking reservation says the lot opens at 3 am. Not knowing anything at all about what traffic will be like, or how far away we are going, I thought maybe we ought to leave our hotel (Hilton Anaheim) at midnight to insure we actually arrive in time and not sit stuck on a freeway.

Can anyone tell me if this is a good plan or not? We are fine sleeping in our car somewhere. We just can NOT miss the parade. Our DS14 is marching in it!!!!

 

[goodeats]

Traffic isn't *that* bad!

What time does the parade start? Did the ticket vendor recommend what time you should arrive? I would expect there to be minimal traffic (barring accidents) until you get to Pasadena. Where is your parking lot?

 

[marcyinPA]

Traffic isn't *that* bad!

What time does the parade start? Did the ticket vendor recommend what time you should arrive? I would expect there to be minimal traffic (barring accidents) until you get to Pasadena. Where is your parking lot?

I think the parade starts at 8am. The parking pass says that the lots open at 3am and it is recommended that we arrive before 6am to avoid road closures and blockades. The parking lot is located at 100 West Walnut Street- Parsons Building.

Just trying to figure out what time to leave Anaheim in order to be in the parking lot for 3am. I really don't care about being that early. I just want to be sure we are there. I always imagined that there are a million people trying to get into Pasadena that morning....

 

[MillauFr]

Traffic on the freeway won't be bad. There will be traffic on the city streets in Pasadena with all of the people arriving for the parade.

 

[marcyinPA]

Traffic on the freeway won't be bad. There will be traffic on the city streets in Pasadena with all of the people arriving for the parade.

The ticket company suggests taking the 110 into Pasadena and I have directions for that. I also printed out Google directions. Maybe leaving at midnight is overkill. 2 am maybe?

 

[Epek]

You will fly at that time, for the most part. Since it's a holiday, I don't imagine there will be any road closures. It shouldn't take you more than 45min. If course, traffic getting into the parking could be heavy, but since you plan on getting there so early, you should be fine. I would think, the 45 min travel time would apply all the way up til 6am, if not later. Generally the freeways are open (free of traffic) from 10pm til 5 or 6am all the time. On non-holidays they occasionally close some areas of the freeways overnight, but like I said, I doubt that will happen on New Years. Have so much fun! I'm jealous. Going to the Rose Bowl Parade is on my bucket list.

 

[Disney Dreams]

We will be driving from Anaheim to Pasadena for the Rose Parade. We have reserved tickets and prepaid parking. The parking reservation says the lot opens at 3 am. Not knowing anything at all about what traffic will be like, or how far away we are going, I thought maybe we ought to leave our hotel (Hilton Anaheim) at midnight to insure we actually arrive in time and not sit stuck on a freeway.

Can anyone tell me if this is a good plan or not? We are fine sleeping in our car somewhere. We just can NOT miss the parade. Our DS14 is marching in it!!!!

Midnight is overkill. Getting to Pasadena on New Years Day might take you an hour. However, once you exit the freeway and get in range of the parade, closures will be your issue. You don't mention where your parking is so I don't know if it's right on the route (need more time to navigate) or further off the route. We have spent the night on the route and have also attended sitting in reserved seating. The "zoo" is once you get near the route.

I would think you'd be fine leaving at 4am. The other main question is, do you have guaranteed parking or is there the potential for that lot to full and you have to find your own at that point? If its not guaranteed, I'd be there a 3am - leave Anaheim around 2am.

Also know that they may not let you sleep in our car. You may want to bring some warm jackets, gloves, scarves, and be ready to have an early morning --- or sleep near your seats on the route. My guess is you won't be able to be IN your seats at that hour IF your seats are the grandstands.

HTH,
Dreams

 

[SMD]

Parsons is much farther down the route, but when I had grandstand seats at the beginning of the parade route a few years ago, we were given a time to be in the lot a be in our seats by, or we would be turned away. I would plan to be in your spot by 7am for an 8am parade start. it may take an hour to get to you, but that's always been how they do it. There will be road closures near the parade route, but they will direct you around them. Unless your parking pass says otherwise, I'd probably leave at 4am. Do you really want to wait for 5-6 hours for the parade to start? At 4am you'll be parked by 5:30 at the latest and still have several hours to wait in your seat.

BTW, sleeping in your car a anywhere but your own driveway is illegal in most CA cities, it is enforced for the Rose Parade. They want you freezing on the street where they can watch you all at once.

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

I agree with everyone who says leaving at 4am would be sufficient time, but if you really want to get there early, leaving at 2am/2:30am would be fine. Take cash with you for the street vendors selling hot chocolate, coffee, tamales, burritos, etc.

Part of the fun is seeing all that activity during the night as people arrive and go up & down the street until they completely shut it down for the parade.

 

[ImTooExcitedToSleep]

I agree with everyone who says leaving at 4am would be sufficient time, but if you really want to get there early, leaving at 2am/2:30am would be fine. Take cash with you for the street vendors selling hot chocolate, coffee, tamales, burritos, etc. Part of the fun is seeing all that activity during the night as people arrive and go up & down the street until they completely shut it down for the parade.

Listening to Mary Jo's podcast segment about the Rose Parade could help too.

 

[marcyinPA]

Listening to Mary Jo's podcast segment about the Rose Parade could help too.

Thank you! I had no idea about the podcast, so looked it up and listened with the family over dinner tonight. Lots of good info!!!

I appreciate all of the help and feedback. I am a worrier by nature, but getting to this parade is especially important to me and my family. It's not every day that you get to see your child and his high school marching band march in probably the worlds most famous parade!!

(One of the coolest things about this is that I also marched in the Rose Parade as a freshman in high school, 31 years ago, with the rival high school of my DS's school. It was such a cool experience- a real honor and privilege!!)

If any of you see the parade, my son is in the Liberty High School Grenadier Band. They are 23rd in position (I think 23rd is right....).

 

[momrek06]

Oh gosh, OP, I wish you had gotten yourself a hotel room for the night before.
Probably impossible now.

My son and his fiance live one block from Colorado Blvd.

Pasadena is crazy busy that day and leading up to it.

Parking is going to be very very tough before you are allowed into your
reserved spot at 3am.

My son does not have any parking at all (on any days) around his complex accepting inside his garage and those guest spots always seems to have guests parking in them. Ugh.

I wonder if you looked half way between Anaheim and Pasadena and secured like a Hilton Garden Inn or something along those lines so you would be closer to Pasadena on the early morn of the 1st than Anaheim.

GOOD LUCK TO YOUR SON!!! HOW EXCITING!!!

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

Moving this over to our So Cal board.

 

[bcla]

I've done this once. Was staying at a relative's house in San Gabriel Valley. Got there at about 6 AM because of worries that traffic might be bad. Got right in the garage which was less than a third full. Traffic was not a nightmare, since few people without grandstand tickets try to arrive last minute; most seem to arrive well in the morning or even the day before. So we walked out and looked for something to eat and took it back to our car well before the parade started. One McDonald's was open but the dining room was closed. I think they realized that they would have been swamped with people trying to avoid the cold. They took orders on special notepads, and the only options were maybe four different breakfast extra value meals.

And it can be cold. I was scouting the area the day before. Was bored and wanted to know how to get there ahead of time. By noon there were people setting up chairs along the route. I think the rules say that one person can save up to 10 spots, although commercial businesses aren't allowed to do this.

The grandstands are pretty strong but look kind of scary. Be careful with your belongings, because they can come falling down through the cracks. I wouldn't worry about personally falling through, but a purse put down could easily fall through.

 

[marcyinPA]

Thank you for posting your experience. I am feeling much better about timing and getting there. The last thing I want to do right now is book another hotel room. It sounds like 90% of the posters think we will be fine with getting to where we need to be from Anaheim on plenty of time.

We can't wait!!!

 

[bcla]

Thank you for posting your experience. I am feeling much better about timing and getting there. The last thing I want to do right now is book another hotel room. It sounds like 90% of the posters think we will be fine with getting to where we need to be from Anaheim on plenty of time.

We can't wait!!!

You'll be fine. You of course need to avoid the major streets like Colorado Blvd since they will be closed. You can always walk across the street but driving won't be possible. We came from the south across Alhambra and San Marino as a straight shot without hitting the freeway. You'll need to carefully map out your route to get to your parking spot.

What parking area though? Most are south of the parade route, where you won't be able to drive across Colorado Blvd. Ours was a Pasadena City College garage and our grandstand was on a lawn at PCC.

I would also think it would be too late to book a room, with all the parade and Rose Bowl Game attendees in town.

 

[marcyinPA]

You'll be fine. You of course need to avoid the major streets like Colorado Blvd since they will be closed. You can always walk across the street but driving won't be possible. We came from the south across Alhambra and San Marino as a straight shot without hitting the freeway. You'll need to carefully map out your route to get to your parking spot.

What parking area though? Most are south of the parade route, where you won't be able to drive across Colorado Blvd. Ours was a Pasadena City College garage and our grandstand was on a lawn at PCC.

I would also think it would be too late to book a room, with all the parade and Rose Bowl Game attendees in town.

We have reserved parking in the lot at the Parsons building at 100 W. Walnut St. The ticket company actually sent precise directions to get to the lot and will take us around closures. We paid $30 for parking, so I am going to assume we are guaranteed a spot. From the map they sent, it looks like our grandstand seats are about two blocks from our parking lot. I can't remember exactly which grandstand we are in, but I think it is in the first block of Colorado Blvd - we got the $90 a piece tickets. I figured we were going big or going home! Lol

 

[bcla]

We have reserved parking in the lot at the Parsons building at 100 W. Walnut St. The ticket company actually sent precise directions to get to the lot and will take us around closures. We paid $30 for parking, so I am going to assume we are guaranteed a spot. From the map they sent, it looks like our grandstand seats are about two blocks from our parking lot. I can't remember exactly which grandstand we are in, but I think it is in the first block of Colorado Blvd - we got the $90 a piece tickets. I figured we were going big or going home! Lol

Spots are guaranteed and they don't deliberately overbook. The parking location specific to the grandstand area.

I noted where we were. It was about the middle of the parade route. I'd also note that the sidewalk looked like a refugee camp. There were people huddled in blankets and sleeping bags, and some people had even set up outdoor propane heaters. Since it's New Year's Eve the night before there's tons of streamers and confetti that's been randomly tossed. On our block I noticed a lot of Silli String or its equivalent. When I was at the grandstands, one of my neighbors was a Pasadena resident with out of town guests. I asked if the residents thought it was worth the mess and traffic, and she said it's a tradition and something that brings money to the city. One day of this chaos was apparently a small price for the worldwide reputation and the tax dollars.

Here's an opinion piece published in the LA Times on the parade:

Rose Parade: Big crowd, but who's counting?*
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/readers/2009/01/rose-parade-big.html

Here's a "survival guide":

http://articles.glendalenewspress.c...rade-route-rose-parade-sierra-madre-boulevard

And of course the offiicial website of the "125th Rose Parade presented by Honda" (of course the whole parade has been commercialized since the beginning with prominent sponsor names on the floats):

http://www.tournamentofroses.com/Ev...07/ctl/Details/Mid/894/ItemID/21/Default.aspx

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

I always enjoy visiting the area a day or two before. I like to see how it changes as parade day arrives, and the crowds begin to form.

When I was younger, we would go to Colorado Blvd at midnight, and hang out with our blankets and pillows until the sun rose. There was so much activity on the street, and it was such a fun atmosphere. I think the third year we went, my dad went to the van and slept. Said he wasn't spending another night on the street. ha ha

The last time I went, we got there around 5am, but after the bridge on Sierra Madre. It's worth it to me to get there earlier and be on the right side.

One day I'll watch it from the grandstand.

 

[knewton64]

.....we happen to bump into each other???



T-minus 72 more hours!!





T.T.F.N.
&
Cheers