1.) I really enjoy the mezzanine seating. Its probably not the greatest in the ballpark, but for the price, I think its quite good. The lower section of the upper deck, in the infield, has excellent views as well. There really aren’t any bad views from my experience.

2.) Heritage Park is in centerfield and well worth a visit. It has the Indians Hall of Fame, the Ray Chapman plaque, and a walkway of memorable moments. The team shop also has a display of baseballs signed by the top 100 players as they were when it was celebrated. Nowhere near as good as Heritage Park, but its the only other thing that I could think of.

3.) Touristy stuff includes the Great Lakes Science Center and the Rock Hall. If you are looking for sports bar type places near the stadium there is the Thirsty Parrot, the Winking Lizard, and Paninis. None of them are spectacular, IMO, but none of them are horrible either.

4.) Depending on how much you want to spend there are plenty of hotels. The Hilton Garden Inn is directly across the intersection from Jac… err, Progressive Field. The Radisson isn’t a long walk at all either, for that matter. The Wyndham is about three blocks away, at Playhouse Square. The Comfort Inn is a little further away, but much more centrally located to the Flats, The Rock Hall, etc. The Holiday Inn is also down more toward Browns Stadium, but still well within walking distance. There are more, I’m sure, but those are the hotels near the park that I can think of off the top of my head.

you can’t go wrong with any seats between 1st and 3rd base. I have also had a great time in the left field bleachers, especially when sitting in the first couple rows (it’s like sitting in the Monster Seats).

1. For price versus atmosphere versus view, you can’t go wrong with a bleacher seat.

2. Go to Heritage Park in center field! Depending on whether or not you want to read each player’s plaque or just soak up the atmosphere, budget from 15 to 60 minutes.

In a related question, last season we had a diary on the subject of parking in the area of the stadium, which included a map keyed by cost and recommendations for the best places to park. Is it possible to retrieve that from the old site and repost it?

You MUST have a hot dog with stadium mustard and hand-cranked onions. I’ve been to a fair amount of parks, and it’s by far the best dog you can get.

1. There really isn’t a bad seat at the Jake, but staying out of the upper deck in RF or LF will let you leave your binoculars at home.

2. Fundamentals mentioned Heritage Park and the Team Shop. I’d say getting in the park an hour early would be plenty of time to see these things and get to your seat before pitch. Oh yeah, and plenty of time to get a hot dog with Stadium mustard.

3. Rock Hall is pretty cool. Just going down to the Lakefront and at least seeing the area around the Rock Hall, Browns Stadium, and the Science Center is worth a little walk from downtown or a short cab ride, depending on where you stay. I’d also recommend leaving downtown and visiting one of the close neighborhoods. A $6 cab ride can get you to any of these spots:

Ohio City is cool for the West Side Market and Great Lakes Brewery. If you like Great Lakes beer, this is a must see. Besides getting the freshest of their classic beers that you can find across the country, you also get some awesome special brews that you can’t get anywhere else, and the food is pretty solid too. There are a couple cool restaurants and bars around there, so you could make a night of it or an afternoon out of Ohio City. Tremont is similar.

I also am a big fan of Little Italy. Don’t know where you are coming from, but I really miss a good Little Italy here in Cincinnati. Cleveland’s Little Italy isn’t the greatest in the world, but there are some very good restaurants there ranging from the fancy to the quick pizza and spaghetti lunch place (e.g. Mama Santos). Cool art galleries, coffee shops and a great pastry place make it worth a few hours in the afternoon.

Sports Bars? I prefer Winking Lizard, about a block from the ballpark. Harry Buffalo is right across from the Q, and I like that place pretty good to, for a sports bar… great Bison burgers. Thirsty Parrot and whatever Alice Cooperstown is now called are also right there. But, my favorite strip in downtown is E. 4th St. It has been blocked off from cars and has become a mini entertainment district. Pickwick and Frolics is a really cool place. Pretty good food upstairs, a comedy club and martini bar downstairs. 4th St. Ally is a bowling ally/sports bar that is pretty cool. There are also a handfull of other bars and restaurants on the block, all this is about 2 blocks from the ballpark.

4. My choice for hotel is Residence Inn, downtown on Prospect. It is right between the E. 4th St. and the Winking Lizard. It is 2 blocks from the ballpark. Sometimes you can find some deals online that make it affordable. Oh, and there is a hole in the wall bar right across the street.. something I always find when I’m staying somewhere for more than a night.

Sorry for the long post, I really love Cleveland. Maybe if this law school thing doesn’t work out I can find a job at the Chamber of Commerce or something.

Enjoy!

It’s about time to get an LGT guide to Cleveland compiled. I might make a project out of this.

Four words:

Great. Lakes. Brewing. Company.

I think a guide is an interesting idea. Only issue I see is that (a) my favorite parking spot is a semi hidden group of meter spots within a 5 minute walk of the park that I try to keep a secret, and (b) I’d hate to reveal my two favorite places to grab a beer and a quick bite to eat before the game, because half the reason I like them is that they’re not overflowing with people like the Lizard or Paninis. Maybe I’m just a curmudgeon (maybe?). Just my $.02

You know actually, GLBC offers a shuttle to/from the games for like, $1. And it’s much easier (and cheaper) to find parking down there. I ALWAYS recommend parking at or around the closest Rapid station and taking that bad boy down to the game. It’s a good experience that I think a lot of folks in Cleveland neglect.

1. Bleachers
2. Heritage Park.
3. If you appreciate architecture and food culture, the West Side Market (Mon, Wed. Fri. & Sat. only) is a must.
As far as true Cleveland sports bars, my favortie (R.I.P. Mr Bills) is now the Rathskellar Tavern on the Bolivar side (1230 Bolivar Rd.) They don’t have air conditioning-which seems to keep the gooney frat boys types out-I think the elevated temperature would likely melt the copious amounts of product in their hair. The high light is a blown-up and framed print of the PD from the day after the Lenny Barker perfect game—the vibe inside is very 1981 although they do have flat screen tv’s these days. Other highlights include cold beer and less than a blocks walk to the park.
4. You can’t get closer to the park than the Hilton Garden Inn. The Lakeside Holiday Inn is where I usually send people though.

I am surprised that so few people mentioned the upper deck, as close to home plate as possible. These are practically the only seats in any ballpark where you can really follow the action of the game well, far better than the “good seats.” Some would even argue that the lower part (“mezzanine” I think) isn’t any better than the first 5-10 rows of the main upper deck.

I understand that there is a bleachers experience, and it’s cheap, but you can’t really watch the game from there. It’s very much like having the game onTV in the next room and ESPN GameCast running—except outside, with thousands of other people, and overpriced beer. Not that that isn’t a worthwhile way to see a game sometimes, but who recommends it?

By the same token, the “club” seats are closer to the action, which is exciting and part of why some folks go the ballpark, but you really can’t tell what the hell is going on from that angle.

The local Browns Backers put out this list on dining and bar spots in the Warehouse District, which is not adjacent to Progressive (closer to Browns Stadium) but is walkable.

Warehouse District (Johnny’s Downtown (best Italian), Cle Chophouse (best steaks), Mallorca’s (great Spanish & Portuguese), XO (stylish Brady Quinn fav), Tequila Ranch (Tex Mex), Fusion (Martini & tapas bar), Jac’s (French) among many other very fine dining places, before or after the game; plus night spots that are packed for action: Funky Buddha’s, Bar Flyy, Blind Pig, Velvet Dog, Traffic (House music), the Spy Bar, and more.

Although it’s not a 5-star hotel, you can stay at one of the
least expensive (if not THE least) Ritz-Carlton hotel in the world at Tower City.

Most of the visiting baseball teams stay at the Marriott-Key, some at the Hyatt and Ritz.