I'll take the anti-A hole approach to your question
What is the status of this? I know it was being hotly debated for a while and now some bars are asking for outdoor beer gardens. Would that be the best bet for pre-game festivities?
Congrats on the new stadium (I was one of the few who remember playing the Gophers outdoors in the old days) and see you October 3!
This link will provide most of what you need to know:
http://stadium.gophersports.com/prk_tailgating.html
As a visitor though you will not be able get yourself a day of game parking pass that allows entrance into a University owned lot that allows tailgating near the stadium (east bank). You can park over at the St. Paul campus where tailgating is also allowed.
If I had a relative that I didn't want hanging around where I plan to tailgate but wanted to make sure they had a good time and fondly remembered their game day experience I would:
1) Have them park over in St. Paul (much less traffic to fight anyway)
2) Take a shuttle over to the stadium. Shuttles begin 4 hours prior to kickoff.
3) Hit up the bars in Stadium Village - Stub & Herbs, Sally's or Campus Pizza. The first two are the safest bet.
or
1) Stay downtown Mpls (priceline.com and name your price works great. If you bid for 4 star hotel you'll either stay at the Hyatt, Hilton or the Marquette. I've got bids as low as $52 per night)
2) take a taxi to the East Bank and get dropped off at the Metrodome Radisson.
3) Hit the bars previously mentioned or meander over to the Dinkytown area (~ 4 blocks to the west of the stadium). If you walk up 4th street from Dinkytown to the stadium its a great view of the open end of the stadium.
I would only consider tailgating if you know someone who has a reserved spot near the stadium.
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