Posts Tagged ‘section 315 at Yankee Stadium’

It isn’t a secret that the ticket market is ripe with great deals on Yankees tickets for the 2011 season, especially if you’re using valuable tools such as Fansnap’s Ticket Search. Earlier this week the Royals visited Yankee Stadium and we took the opportunity to snag tickets in section 315 of the Terrace for $25 – over 70% off the game day face value of $85. Similar to the in-depth reviews we’ve shared of Yankee Stadium’s Batter’s Eye Seats, Jim Beam Suite, Bleachers, Mohegan Sun Sports Bar/Audi Yankees Club and Standing Room Only sections, we’re here to spread some knowledge about Yankee Stadium’s Terrace section and share our personal experience in section 315.

For those who still haven’t been to the new Yankee Stadium, the “Terrace” section is what was formerly known as the “Tier Box” at the old Yankee Stadium . Yankees tickets in the terrace section are numbered from 305 – 334 and are located in the uppermost deck of Yankee Stadium, offering closer views (and higher prices) than the nearby seats in the “Grandstand” If potentially catching a foul ball is important to you, sitting in the Terrace offers a much higher chance to do so than the sitting in the Grandstand.

While some baseball purists have complaints about the new Yankee Stadium, one aspect of the new stadium nobody complains about is the elevators. Instead of trekking up numerous ramps or escalators, Yankee Stadium’s spacious and efficient elevators conveniently transport guests from the “Great Hall” to the Terrace level. Once on the Terrace level, there are plenty of concession and facility options, so you won’t have to go back downstairs until the game is over.

The individual sections of the Terrace level dip down from the concourse where the elevator leaves you off, so those with accessibility concerns only need to worry about walking down a few steps – not up. Terrace sections vary between 7 and 10 rows and have between 19 and 25 seats per row. From sections 305 – 320A, the higher the seat number, the closer to home plate you are. From sections 334 – 320C, the lower seat numbers are closer to home plate. For many of the Terrace sections closer to section 320 (home plate), there are additional rows tacked on to the highest row number with the designation “WC” (wheelchair) or “S” standing room.

As is the case in all baseball stadiums, the sections closer to home plate offer the most complete view of the field. Because of that, sections 317, 318, 319, 320a, 320b, 320c, 321, 322, 323 have been designated the Terrace (or Jim Beam) Suite and carry a higher price tag. Since we detailed those seats in a previous post here on the FanSnap.com blog, we’ll focus on the experience from a “regular” Terrace section – section 315 row 1.

Section 315 at Yankee Stadium

Section 315 is conveniently located on the first base side of Yankee Stadium, directly across from the elevator bank. Upon arrival, we were pleasantly surprised by a pop-up seasonal beer stand (cash only) on the concourse just outside of the section that hadn’t been there during previous seasons:

Two women’s bathrooms, one men’s room, an ATM and The Malibu Rum Terrace Deck are close by, as can be seen in the diagram below:

Note that the men’s room outside of section 317 had an extremely long line after the third inning, while the bathroom near section 305 (right-hand side of the diagram) was nearly empty. It is a bit of a walk, but if you don’t want to wait in line for the restroom, head toward the outfield sections.

We heard rumblings about obstructed views in row 1 of the terrace at Yankee Stadium due to the plexiglass shield the serves as a safety barrier for fans, but our ticket wasn’t labeled as such. This was definitely a concern going in, but from our experience, it was a bit overstated. You be the judge:

Yankee Stadium Section 315 Row 1 Seat 13

With the camera held at eye-level, you can see that the plexiglass clearly blocks the pitcher’s mound.

However, if you lean forward a few inches, the view is perfect:

Section 315, Row 1, Seat 13 When Leaning Forward

If you have a problem with leaning forward a bit during the game, you might want to avoid the first row of the Terrace. Otherwise, you can enjoy the benefits of slightly expanded leg room in front of your seat and not having to worry about a tall guy in front of you blocking your view.

Overall, the experience in section 315 at Yankee Stadium is a good one. Unlike the seats in the Grandstand, the Terrace seats make you feel like you’re a part of the action, and section 315 is just two sections removed from the expensive Jim Beam Suites. We can’t say we’d pay the game day face value of $85 unless it was a premium game, but anything less than $50 is a good value for these Yankees tickets, anything less than $40 is a great value and anything less than $30 is a no-brainer.

Ross Sheingold is a Yankees season ticket holder, the creator of the Yankee Stadium blog NYY Stadium Insider and a contributing writer at FanSnap’s blog. You can find him on Twitter @StadiumInsider.