Cal Football Game-what to expect?

[texasbelle12]

My husband & I are making a trip to the DLR & then flying up to the Texas vs Cal game in a week and a half. Does anyone have recommendations for things to do on gameday, or what to expect around campus? Areas to avoid, places to eat, etc? We arrive in Oakland around 1 on gameday and will pick up the car before heading to the game. We can't wait!

 

[longboard55]

i would skip the car and take bart, parking is not easy. Its a bit of a walk but you will walk by places to eat. Cal has an impressive campus but the students can be a little strange

 

[usnuzuloose]

Game day, around the area driving will be terrible

 

[bcla]

Ah, right up my alley. First of all, where are you staying for the night? That might help with suggestions for how to get to the stadium.

I frankly haven't been to a game in years, but I was a season ticket holder for over a decade. The suggestions you've received to not drive are spot on. It's not so much that driving around Berkeley will be impossible, but parking will be hard to come by and/or expensive. Definitely take BART to the downtown Berkeley station. Find a station with parking and park there for free on a Saturday. There is a chance that a station parking lot might be full though. It's kind of a late start, but BART will probably run later because of the football game.

https://www.bart.gov

As for places to avoid, there really aren't if you're walking from downtown to the stadium. It's mostly residential neighborhoods or through the campus and not real bad parts of town unless you go well out of your way. There won't be a place where you'll be alone, so numbers also help with safety. The frats might heckle fans of visiting teams, but there's no real viciousness to it and safety is not a concern. It's going slightly uphill all the way, but it's not bad if you've got good knees. If you feel like walking there are plenty of places you can see the local dining scene. The places I used to visit as a student (and are still there) are Fat Slice Pizza, Top Dog, and La Burrita. There's going to be plenty of places to eat. In downtown my go-to was Arinell Pizza.

If you really don't feel like walking from downtown, there is a free bus shuttle that picks up right about where Bank of America is. The shuttle stop is actually in front of Arinell Pizza, so that can also be pretty convenient. After the game it gets pretty crazy with people walking down the street, so most people walk back to downtown. There is an ADA shuttle bus after the game picking up from in front of the business school.

http://pt.berkeley.edu/sites/default/files/Football Shuttle Information.pdf

 

[bcla]

If you want to walk, it's pretty easy. There's not necessarily any set path. You'll see plenty of people doing it, and you can just follow them.

https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Dow...8dbfb10ec!2m2!1d-122.2507729!2d37.8710434!3e2

 

[texasbelle12]

Ah, right up my alley. First of all, where are you staying for the night? That might help with suggestions for how to get to the stadium.

I frankly haven't been to a game in years, but I was a season ticket holder for over a decade. The suggestions you've received to not drive are spot on. It's not so much that driving around Berkeley will be impossible, but parking will be hard to come by and/or expensive. Definitely take BART to the downtown Berkeley station. Find a station with parking and park there for free on a Saturday. There is a chance that a station parking lot might be full though. It's kind of a late start, but BART will probably run later because of the football game.

https://www.bart.gov

As for places to avoid, there really aren't if you're walking from downtown to the stadium. It's mostly residential neighborhoods or through the campus and not real bad parts of town unless you go well out of your way. There won't be a place where you'll be alone, so numbers also help with safety. The frats might heckle fans of visiting teams, but there's no real viciousness to it and safety is not a concern. It's going slightly uphill all the way, but it's not bad if you've got good knees. If you feel like walking there are plenty of places you can see the local dining scene. The places I used to visit as a student (and are still there) are Fat Slice Pizza, Top Dog, and La Burrita. There's going to be plenty of places to eat. In downtown my go-to was Arinell Pizza.

If you really don't feel like walking from downtown, there is a free bus shuttle that picks up right about where Bank of America is. The shuttle stop is actually in front of Arinell Pizza, so that can also be pretty convenient. After the game it gets pretty crazy with people walking down the street, so most people walk back to downtown. There is an ADA shuttle bus after the game picking up from in front of the business school.

http://pt.berkeley.edu/sites/default/files/Football Shuttle Information.pdf

Thanks for this info! Since we don't have as expansive public transit where we live, I forget it is an option. We are staying at a house in Emeryville, which is an 11 minute drive to campus, or about an hour walk. We may use a combo of Lyft/Uber too. Our reasoning for having the rental car was we wanted to go into San Francisco the following morning to visit the Walt Disney Family Museum, and since we have a flight out later in the afternoon it would just be easier transportation for us (plus our suitcases). We will look at our options though, and see if a one-day rental makes sense. After dropping our bags off we plan on heading straight to downtown Berkley and walking around. As for the heckling-I was in the marching band while in college, plus recently lived in the town of a rival school - I can brush it off.

 

[bcla]

Thanks for this info! Since we don't have as expansive public transit where we live, I forget it is an option. We are staying at a house in Emeryville, which is an 11 minute drive to campus, or about an hour walk. We may use a combo of Lyft/Uber too. Our reasoning for having the rental car was we wanted to go into San Francisco the following morning to visit the Walt Disney Family Museum, and since we have a flight out later in the afternoon it would just be easier transportation for us (plus our suitcases). We will look at our options though, and see if a one-day rental makes sense. After dropping our bags off we plan on heading straight to downtown Berkley and walking around. As for the heckling-I was in the marching band while in college, plus recently lived in the town of a rival school - I can brush it off.

Driving around Berkeley isn't really all that bad before game time, but getting out onto the freeway after a game is going to be the real pain. Only a small number of people going to games actually park nearby, since parking is pretty limited. The perimeter (just the streets that border the campus) around campus is no parking on game days, and in any case they're all "metered" parking anyways with a two hour limit. It is a night game, so theoretically you could find a metered space a few blocks away from campus and pay up until the meter enforcement ends (6 PM), but it's still tough to find a space on game day.

There is limited parking on campus lots/garages for season ticket holders who purchase season parking passes. They won't allow public parking on game days, but those with certain campus passes can still park. Private lots/garages may have parking for $30 or so, but you're taking your chance on actually finding one.

Seriously I'd recommend BART. The main issue you might have is where. The Ashby station would be the most convenient, but much of their parking is taken up by a weekend flea market. Maybe North Berkeley or El Cerrito Plaza.

 

[texasbelle12]

Driving around Berkeley isn't really all that bad before game time, but getting out onto the freeway after a game is going to be the real pain. Only a small number of people going to games actually park nearby, since parking is pretty limited. The perimeter (just the streets that border the campus) around campus is no parking on game days, and in any case they're all "metered" parking anyways with a two hour limit. It is a night game, so theoretically you could find a metered space a few blocks away from campus and pay up until the meter enforcement ends (6 PM), but it's still tough to find a space on game day.

There is limited parking on campus lots/garages for season ticket holders who purchase season parking passes. They won't allow public parking on game days, but those with certain campus passes can still park. Private lots/garages may have parking for $30 or so, but you're taking your chance on actually finding one.

Seriously I'd recommend BART. The main issue you might have is where. The Ashby station would be the most convenient, but much of their parking is taken up by a weekend flea market. Maybe North Berkeley or El Cerrito Plaza.

Thanks! This is a big help, and we plan on looking into BART!

 

[SMD]

I've been to 6 Pac-10 (not Colorado or Utah) stadiums as a visiting fan. Cal was by far the worst experience. We took BART, and were harassed and actually chased all the way back to the shuttle. We had bottles thrown at us for blocks. I would bring extra neutral or navy shirts to put on over your Texas gear and remove any hats or identifiers. Inside the stadium make sure you have the number to call or text for security saved in your phone. Outside, you'll porbably be on your own.

 

[bcla]

Thanks! This is a big help, and we plan on looking into BART!

Have fun. You'll be fine. I mentioned the fraternities. Here's a map:

https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=1zQ4KBY_mRqLmm-bvTZp_OZDOWCk&hl=en_US

The frats aren't really in the commercial areas. The areas you'll want to check out are around Telegraph and Durant. Telegraph for about two blocks south of Bancroft are where the street vendors are as well as regular merchants and restaurants. The street vendors sell stuff like jewelry or tie-dye T-shirts. You can easily avoid the frats by staying on the north side of Bancroft walking to the stadium. Here's a picture:

 

[Disney Dad ADL]

There's usually a pre game rally at the Sproul Steps where the band and the cheerleaders perform if you have some time to kill. It's about 1.5 hours prior to game time. My wife likes to go, although maybe you might find it weird to go to the opposing teams rally, lol.

Fat slice, top dog, etc are popular with the students as bcla mentioned, at least the ones that my wife/friends talk about who went to Cal. The last time we went to Berkeley we went to Uji Time Dessert, which is sort of a Asian inspired soft serve place if you're into that sort of thing. I had the black sesame soft serve parfait which was pretty good:



(Picture stolen from Yelp, but it's the same thing i had). That fish thing is called a taiyaki. It's dough with a filling (usually red bean, Nutella, chocolate, or other sweet filling)

I've never been to Fat Slice, but top dog was pretty good. They have a variety of dogs / sausages you can order.

My wife also likes this place called Barneys, which is a burger joint, though I think it's more of a nostalgia thing rather than the food at this point.

Not sure about the parking situation, but if you're going to try to park there I would go really really early.

 

[bcla]

There's usually a pre game rally at the Sproul Steps where the band and the cheerleaders perform if you have some time to kill. It's about 1.5 hours prior to game time. My wife likes to go, although maybe you might find it weird to go to the opposing teams rally, lol.

Fat slice, top dog, etc are popular with the students as bcla mentioned, at least the ones that my wife/friends talk about who went to Cal. The last time we went to Berkeley we went to Uji Time Dessert, which is sort of a Asian inspired soft serve place if you're into that sort of thing. I had the black sesame soft serve parfait which was pretty good:

View attachment 194620

(Picture stolen from Yelp, but it's the same thing i had). That fish thing is called a taiyaki. It's dough with a filling (usually red bean, Nutella, chocolate, or other sweet filling)

I've never been to Fat Slice, but top dog was pretty good. They have a variety of dogs / sausages you can order.

My wife also likes this place called Barneys, which is a burger joint, though I think it's more of a nostalgia thing rather than the food at this point.

Not sure about the parking situation, but if you're going to try to park there I would go really really early.

I've been going to Fat Slice since I was in high school. Back then it was a dollar for a rather large cheese slice and remained that price while I was going to school there. A lot of my old hangouts have changed or gone away. No more northside Top Dog, although there's one downtown that's popular on game days. There's lots of off the wall places like Bongo Burger, which is a middle eastern inspired burger joint (the Persian burger made of ground lamb is the signature burger). Yogurt Park is still there. There are a lot of places that aren't, like the south side LaVal's Pizza. Just stay near Telegraph or the surrounding streets and something interesting can be found.

Barneys is a chain, and I don't think any are located near the campus. The Berkeley location is pretty far from campus, and I walked by it last weekend during the Solano Stroll street fair. It's just an expensive burger joint. Nothing wrong with it, but I wouldn't go out of my way to eat there.

 

[bcla]

You know, I'm kind of disappointed. I just went through Berkeley today outside the campus. I saw plenty of Texas fans, but none looked like they were in fear for their safety. Didn't see a single bottle thrown or anyone being chased/harassed. I guess what I saw must have been atypical.

 

[SMD]

You know, I'm kind of disappointed. I just went through Berkeley today outside the campus. I saw plenty of Texas fans, but none looked like they were in fear for their safety. Didn't see a single bottle thrown or anyone being chased/harassed. I guess what I saw must have been atypical.

According to my 2 co-workers who high 5-ed when I told that story, it is. They readily admit throwing bottles from balconies, and they went to Cal 15 years apart.

 

[bcla]

My husband & I are making a trip to the DLR & then flying up to the Texas vs Cal game in a week and a half. Does anyone have recommendations for things to do on gameday, or what to expect around campus? Areas to avoid, places to eat, etc? We arrive in Oakland around 1 on gameday and will pick up the car before heading to the game. We can't wait!

So other than the outcome of the game, how'd the trip go? So far Cal has played three games that started 7:30 PM Pacific time, and all three have gone over four hours. I'd be surprised if BART didn't run extended hours.