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My First Home Dolphins Game

C l u t c H 385

C l u t c H 385

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So I got a little impulsive tonight and me and my girlfriend are now coming down for my first ever home Dolphins game this weekend! Be great to get out of cold ass WNY full of cruddy Bills fans! Only ever been to games in that cesspool in Orchard Park. I have a few questions and was hoping you guys could help with some recommendations.

We fly into MIA Airport Saturday morning around 11:00 am and are staying in Fort Lauderdale at the Pelican Grand Beach Resort. Plan is to hit the beach Saturday afternoon, game Sunday and maybe a little more beach on Monday before we depart around 4 pm.

First major decision is to rent a car or not. I'm thinking to pay for parking near/at the hotel and at the stadium could add up to hundreds? of dollars, so maybe it'd be easier to just uber/taxi everywhere? Then I wouldn't have to worry about knowing where I'm going and the effects of booze.

Next, tickets. Haven't bought 'em yet. Do they usually dip on game day on StubHub and the likes? Not opposed to scalpers either. What are some experiences you've had showing up and playing it by ear? Or should I just lock some in beforehand?

Restaurants/sports bars around Hard Rock Stadium? Are there good places to have a couple drinks with a ton of Dolphins fans in the area or what's the tailgating like? How early should I arrive? Does the team put on any sort of tailgate since I won't really be in the position to bring a grill of my own.

Restaurant recommendations in the Fort Lauderdale Beach/Hollywood Beach area? My girlfriend likes fancy restaurants.

Thanks in advance for the help on this stuff and any other things you guys can think of that you think I may have overlooked coming down!
 
If you can get a car for $100 I would do that if it was me. I just looked and at this moment it's about $55 each way with Uber and I guarantee it will go up on game day. You can park in the Calder lot and it's totally free plus they have a shuttle bus that drops you at the front gate without any walking.

I would get seats on the home side or at least no further than the goal posts or you'll have sun in your eyes the whole game. Any seat is still good in that stadium but if you're in the upper section as long as you're within the first 15 rows you won't be sorry.

I don't know anything about restaurants around the stadium. I do know that if you drive right down from your hotel to Las Olas you will have everything you could want. Definitely a hot spot for bars, clubs and restaurants. Gorgeous beach too.
 
Hey congrats, enjoy!. Great choice on Pelican Bay...beautiful. Near there is Shooters, Bokampers, you can walk or take the water taxi for a cheap site seeing tour. I also think you need to check out the Elbow room for a very popular dive bar vibe, people watching dream. Lastly, Los Olas blvd, Rocco's tacos, cool scene. Lastly, there is also a Bo's on the beach kinda near Los Olas Blvd, directly across from the ocean with fantastic views.

Just read fancy, if you want to inject fancy maybe check out Shula's steakhouse or Joes Crab Shack
 
I can read the excitment in your post and you should have a blast.

Renting a car in convienant but so is Uber, especially on gameday.

As far as game tickets go monitor the ticket sites. I got mine late Saturday for a Sunday game for a good price. Did not want to wait to late.

I browse Hotels.com and Opentable.com for good deals and great places to eat.

Never tailgated and always regret it but a few on here do so hopefully they chime in.

Enjoy the game and bring us a win.
 
Ps. There's always tailgating going on everywhere and most people will welcome you with open arms. Especially when you tell them it's your first home game ever. There were massive groups tailgating out in the free lots and it's a mile from the stadium.
I would get there no later than 10:30 so you can walk around. On the east side they typically have games set up and a stage with little concerts going on. Gotta get your pic with the Dan statue too 🙂
 
I have always lived in Miami Dade County and now live in the Keys. So I really don’t know much about Broward County. I do know that South Florida doesn’t have a great public transportation system. So if you are planning to travel around the area while you are in town, you will likely need to use Uber or rent a car. I think renting a car is probably your best option but that’s just my choice.
Someone who lives in Broward County will probably be able to give you better information about where to go and where the best places to eat are around where you are staying.

I was a season ticket holder for over 40 years but no longer attend games because of some health issues. So I always purchased my tickets and parking passes directly through the Dolphins. There are always tickets available at the stadium and I always saw individuals selling tickets outside the stadium. These tickets were usually being sold below the ticket price but since they are playing a New York team, I really don’t know how many of those tickets will be available. New York fans come down for those games and that might make getting tickets cheaper outside the stadium a bit harder.

Check at the hotel you are staying at to see if there might be a bus close by which might be taking fans to the game and back. If so, that will save you the cost of parking at the stadium if you decide to rent a car.

Have a great time at the game and in South Florida while you are here. The weather is suppose to be great this weekend. So be sure to make the time to visit one of the great beaches while you are here.
I have been to Hollywood beach in Broward County in the past and I found it to be a great beach to visit.
 
I saw on the website that if you uber to the game they want you to get dropped off south of walmart? How do they enforce that?
 
C l u t c H 385 said:
I saw on the website that if you uber to the game they want you to get dropped off south of walmart? How do they enforce that?
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It may have changed. The last time I went and used Uber they had a designated area inside the stadium grounds.

We rented a car for our time there and then used Uber for the game.

If you can find tickets with parking passes a car is best for the game and the rest of your time there.
 
My wife and I flew in from Dallas two years ago for our first (and only so far) game in Miami. We rented a car, but I think when we go back we would just uber everywhere because most of the beach resort hotels charge crazy rates to park your car during your stay. Your hotel may be different, but I would certainly check. We figured that the cost of hotel parking, car rental fees, cost of fuel, and the stress of driving somewhere you aren't familiar aren't worth it.

The tailgating scene at Hard Rock was pretty awesome pre-covid. I don't know if the pandemic has changed that or not. You could spend a great deal of time walking through the lot just meeting people. In fact, Finheaven used to have its own tailgate at the game, but the member who used to head it up no longer posts here, so I don't know if that's still a thing or not.

That's about all the useful info I think I have after having gone through a similar experience. We stayed in Hollywood, so I don't have a lot of feedback on the restaurant scene. I would say, though, if you get the time, take the girlfriend to Bayside Marketplace and go on one of the boat tours. If she is like my wife, she would enjoy seeing all the homes of all the rich and famous people.

Have fun!
 
C l u t c H 385 said:
So I got a little impulsive tonight and me and my girlfriend are now coming down for my first ever home Dolphins game this weekend! Be great to get out of cold *** WNY full of cruddy Bills fans! Only ever been to games in that cesspool in Orchard Park. I have a few questions and was hoping you guys could help with some recommendations.

We fly into MIA Airport Saturday morning around 11:00 am and are staying in Fort Lauderdale at the Pelican Grand Beach Resort. Plan is to hit the beach Saturday afternoon, game Sunday and maybe a little more beach on Monday before we depart around 4 pm.

First major decision is to rent a car or not. I'm thinking to pay for parking near/at the hotel and at the stadium could add up to hundreds? of dollars, so maybe it'd be easier to just uber/taxi everywhere? Then I wouldn't have to worry about knowing where I'm going and the effects of booze.

Next, tickets. Haven't bought 'em yet. Do they usually dip on game day on StubHub and the likes? Not opposed to scalpers either. What are some experiences you've had showing up and playing it by ear? Or should I just lock some in beforehand?

Restaurants/sports bars around Hard Rock Stadium? Are there good places to have a couple drinks with a ton of Dolphins fans in the area or what's the tailgating like? How early should I arrive? Does the team put on any sort of tailgate since I won't really be in the position to bring a grill of my own.

Restaurant recommendations in the Fort Lauderdale Beach/Hollywood Beach area? My girlfriend likes fancy restaurants.

Thanks in advance for the help on this stuff and any other things you guys can think of that you think I may have overlooked coming down!
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Neat. I don't know Pelican Grand. If you want a great restaurant with good scenery go to Scarpettas at Fountainebleau and then go enjoy yourself at Liv. I don't think I've ever had anything as good as their polenta which I would personally pair with their braised Short Rib. Another great spot for a drink is the bar at Smith & Wollenskys which is RIGHT on Governemnt cut in the south of fifth section of Miami Beach (southernmost point). The cruise ships literally go right by the tables and it's fantastic for people watching. I've personally met Sean Connery there many years ago (I was cool enough to not ask for an autograph just a handshake and didn't wash my hand for a month). Just down the way if you don't mind greasing the Mater D's palm, is of course the all-world legendary Joes Stone Crab (no, this has absolutely nothing to do with Joe's Crab Shack). At the very least go to the bar and have a couple drinks and order the best key lime pie in existence. If you are trying to stay in Ft Lauderdale/Hollywood there is a fantastic restaurant named Gigi's which is literally ON the intercoastal. LOVE that place.

I'd uber. Valet prices are nuts and so is seasonal traffic which pretty much kicked off last week. It also allows you to have a better time and a couple of ****tails. I'd just buy tickets online. Uber to the stadium then grab a cab after the game to Twin Peaks and wait for the rush to die down then snag an uber to wherever you're heading. Have fun. Phins up.
 
C l u t c H 385 said:
So I got a little impulsive tonight and me and my girlfriend are now coming down for my first ever home Dolphins game this weekend! Be great to get out of cold *** WNY full of cruddy Bills fans! Only ever been to games in that cesspool in Orchard Park. I have a few questions and was hoping you guys could help with some recommendations.

We fly into MIA Airport Saturday morning around 11:00 am and are staying in Fort Lauderdale at the Pelican Grand Beach Resort. Plan is to hit the beach Saturday afternoon, game Sunday and maybe a little more beach on Monday before we depart around 4 pm.

First major decision is to rent a car or not. I'm thinking to pay for parking near/at the hotel and at the stadium could add up to hundreds? of dollars, so maybe it'd be easier to just uber/taxi everywhere? Then I wouldn't have to worry about knowing where I'm going and the effects of booze.

Next, tickets. Haven't bought 'em yet. Do they usually dip on game day on StubHub and the likes? Not opposed to scalpers either. What are some experiences you've had showing up and playing it by ear? Or should I just lock some in beforehand?

Restaurants/sports bars around Hard Rock Stadium? Are there good places to have a couple drinks with a ton of Dolphins fans in the area or what's the tailgating like? How early should I arrive? Does the team put on any sort of tailgate since I won't really be in the position to bring a grill of my own.

Restaurant recommendations in the Fort Lauderdale Beach/Hollywood Beach area? My girlfriend likes fancy restaurants.

Thanks in advance for the help on this stuff and any other things you guys can think of that you think I may have overlooked coming down!
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1) welcome to town! hope you have a great experience at your first fins home game -- its a nice/fun/futuristic stadium.

2) I haven't been to a game in a couple of years and live much further south of the stadium so I can't really speak to hangout spots. Uber, on the other hand, was a nightmare but the caveat was I tried it out about 3 years ago and it was still relatively newly "organized" at the stadium.

Good luck, have fun and enjoy the game/weather!
 
Sarnics13 said:
Ps. There's always tailgating going on everywhere and most people will welcome you with open arms. Especially when you tell them it's your first home game ever. There were massive groups tailgating out in the free lots and it's a mile from the stadium.
I would get there no later than 10:30 so you can walk around. On the east side they typically have games set up and a stage with little concerts going on. Gotta get your pic with the Dan statue too 🙂
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I'll add that I find Giants fans to be on the better/more-likable side when it comes to tailgating down here so that's a bonus....
 
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