Busch Stadium

Busch Stadium seat picks at a glance

If you want the most baseball for your money at Busch Stadium, buy a 200-level loge seat behind the plate or along a baseline: close enough to feel involved, high enough to see the whole diamond. For a summer day game, favor the third-base side, which falls into shade sooner. For the classic postcard view of the Gateway Arch and the downtown skyline beyond the outfield, sit behind home plate or down the first-base line.

Busch Stadium is the open-air, natural-grass home of the St. Louis Cardinals, at 700 Clark Avenue downtown. It opened in April 2006 and lists 44,383 seats, including 3,706 club seats and 61 suites. A full home schedule is 81 games, starting in late March or the first days of April and ending in September, with postseason games in October when the team qualifies.

Beating the St. Louis sun

Summer in St. Louis brings heat and humidity, so for an afternoon start the sun can matter more than the section number. The outfield faces roughly northeast, toward the Arch, and the first-base side runs along Broadway on the east edge of the park. Based on that orientation, the afternoon sun tends to bake the seats from first base out to right field, and shade reaches the third-base side and the seats beneath an overhanging deck sooner.

• Most comfortable for a July afternoon: a third-base seat in the upper part of the 100 level, or any seat covered by the level above.
• Hottest: the outfield bleachers plus the lower rows from first base to the right-field corner, all exposed through the middle of the day.
• Night games: the sun is gone early in the evening, so pick purely on view.

Four levels and what each costs you

Section numbers tell you the level. The Cardinals' accessibility guide lays the park out like this:

• Level 1 (100s): field-level seats around the infield and outfield, along with the lower bleachers and pavilions. The main concourse runs here, and a Guest Services desk sits behind section 148. You pay for proximity, and in the lowest rows you also accept netting and aisle traffic in your line of sight.
• Level 2: premium, all-inclusive space, such as the party suites and the UMB Champions Club directly behind the plate. It is a hospitality purchase more than a seat purchase.
• Level 3 (200s): the loge rows, with the Redbird Club and the National Car Rental Club on the same level. This is the best balance of angle and price in the building.
• Level 4 (300s): the upper terrace and the least expensive tickets, plus the Budweiser Terrace, an upper-deck bar and standing-room space in right field sold as general admission.

For orientation, St. Louis occupies the first-base dugout, on the Broadway side, and the road team sits on the third-base side, toward 8th Street. Field-level seats from dugout to dugout are the prime infield. Within those sections, a seat halfway up often beats the front rows, where the netting and a steady stream of fans in the walkway both get in the way.

Seats that look better on paper

• 300-level outfield corners: the bottom of the price range, but the plate is distant and the corner angle hides a slice of the field. Lower infield rows on the same level are a far better use of a small budget.
• Front rows by the foul poles: these seats point toward the outfield, so you twist toward home plate for every pitch.
• Bleachers for a midsummer day game: a lively crowd, but there is no escape from the afternoon sun.
• The very first rows behind the dugouts: close, yes, but netting and aisle traffic interrupt the view more than people expect.

Demand jumps for Saturday and Sunday dates, rival series and October baseball, so those are the games to lock in early. Every Reserved Seat order carries a 100% guarantee.

Bags, coolers, outside food and gates

Busch Stadium does not require clear bags. For 2026 the team allows a purse, bag or soft cooler as long as it fits within 10 by 8 by 10 inches. Hard coolers, foam coolers and oversized items are turned away. Every bag is inspected, and guests pass through metal detectors.

• Bring your own food: outside food is allowed, and so are sealed, clear plastic bottles of water, soda or other non-alcoholic drinks up to 2 liters, a rarity in the majors.
• Gate times: an hour and a half ahead of first pitch on weeknights through Thursday and two hours ahead on weekends starting Friday; the team notes these can change.
• Leaving and returning: get a hand stamp at Gate 1 or Gate 4, and you can come back in until an hour and a half past the scheduled start.
• Payment: concessions are card-only; Market locations inside convert cash to a debit card without a fee.
• Smoking: only in the designated area at Gate 1.

The best-known entrance is Gate 3 on the west side, beneath an arch styled after the Eads Bridge, with the Stan Musial statue outside. Inside, the menu runs from standard ballpark food to local specialties such as toasted ravioli and the pork steak sandwich. Rules change between seasons, so read the Cardinals' ballpark guide before you go.

MetroLink first, parking second

Few big-league parks are as easy to reach by train. MetroLink's Stadium station, served by the Red and Blue lines, is on 8th Street beside the Westin hotel, steps from the gates. The Cardinals say trains generally run until about midnight and stay in service after late games until the crowd on the downtown platform is gone.

If you drive, the Cardinals run three lots as of the 2026 season:

• All-Star Lot: 611 S. 8th Street, with ADA parking under the I-64 bridge.
• One Cardinal Way Garage: 269 S. Broadway.
• Bus and oversized-vehicle lot: 1001 S. 6th Street.

You get the pass digitally in the MLB Ballpark app. Independent garages and lots fill nearby blocks, and rates rise for weekends, rivalry series and the playoffs, so buying ahead pays. Many downtown hotels are walkable. After the last out, rideshare backs up on Clark Avenue and Broadway; a few blocks of walking first usually gets you home sooner.

Accessible seating and the clubs

Accessible seats are available on all four levels and at all price points. The team's disability access guide points to sections close to ramps, elevators and escalators, including section 265 on Level 3 and sections 331, 334, 348 and 357 on Level 4. Two ramps serve all levels: the West Ramp on the 8th Street side and the East Ramp on the Broadway side. A second Guest Services desk sits on Level 4 near section 340.

For a premium night, the all-inclusive choices range from the club behind home plate to outfield patio areas aimed at families, such as the Scoreboard Patio in center field. Beyond the outfield and across Clark Avenue, Ballpark Village fills the old stadium's site with restaurants and bars.

Three ballparks, one name

The first ballpark called Busch was the old Sportsman's Park, which team owner August Busch Jr. renamed in 1953. Next came Busch Memorial Stadium in 1966, a round multipurpose bowl shared with the NFL's Cardinals before they left for Arizona. The third, a 365 million dollar design by Populous (known then as HOK Sport), staged a minor league exhibition on April 4, 2006, before the Cardinals played the first big-league game there six days later. Its brick-and-steel look and open concourses marked a sharp change from the closed concrete circle it replaced.

The new park paid off fast: St. Louis clinched the 2006 World Series in Game 5 on home turf that October, and won it here again in Game 7 in 2011. The stadium also staged the 2009 All-Star Game, the 2017 NHL Winter Classic between the St. Louis Blues and the Chicago Blackhawks, international soccer friendlies, college football and concerts. Its single-game baseball record is 48,581, set against the New York Yankees on August 6, 2022.

Sources

• Wikipedia – Busch Stadium
• St. Louis Cardinals – Busch Stadium A-Z Guide
• St. Louis Cardinals – Disability Access Guide
• Ballparks of Baseball – Busch Stadium