Can't miss
- Ice cream at the Berkey Creamery Penn State has made its own ice cream for more than a century, and the line is part of the trip.
- Zombie Nation When the stadium plays it, 100,000 people jump. Your seat will move.
- The White Out If you're there for the one game a year Penn State calls it, wear white. Everyone else will.
Quick answers
What time do the Beaver Stadium lots open?
7 a.m. for noon kickoffs and 8 a.m. for every other kickoff. Lining up on the street before then isn't allowed. The overnight RV lot opens at 6 p.m. Thursday before home games.
Can you grill at Penn State tailgates?
Charcoal and wood fires of any kind are banned, and so are tow-behind grills and smokers, fire pits and open-flame heaters. Gas and propane aren't on the banned list.
Can you drink at Penn State tailgates?
Not while the game is on: drinking in the lots during the game is prohibited. Kegs are banned, and so is glass in grass lots. You can't bring alcohol into the stadium.
Do you need a ticket to tailgate?
The lots run on parking passes: one pass per car, good only in its lot, and you can't buy an extra pass to hold tailgate space.
How do you buy parking?
Single-game passes for lots 11, 25, 33 and 34 sell online until 15 days out, then at the Bryce Jordan Center box office. On game day, if any are left, buy by card at Lot 25 or Lot 36.
The game-day timeline
- Thu 6 PMOvernight RV lot opens, until midnight
- Fri 6 AMOvernight RV lot reopens, until midnight
- 7 or 8 AMAll lots open: 7 a.m. for noon games, 8 a.m. for the rest
- 2.5 hrs beforeOne-way traffic starts, and the team arrival pep rally kicks off on Curtin Rd
- 2 hrs beforePublic gates open
- KickoffNo more drinking in the lots until the game ends
- PostgameThe one-way outbound pattern ends 60 to 90 minutes after the game
- Sun noonOvernight RVs out
Where to park
Every lot sits in a color zone, and you have to come in through your zone's entry point once one-way traffic starts. The stadium's full name is West Shore Home Field at Beaver Stadium.
- Zones
- North (Blue) via Fox Hollow Rd. East (Orange) via I-99/US 322 to Park Ave. South (Purple) via University Dr or Porter Rd. West (Green) via Atherton St to Park Ave.
- Day of game
- Lot 25 or Lot 36, by card, while passes last. Follow North zone signs to Park Ave.
- Advance
- Single-game passes for lots 11, 25, 33 and 34.
- Pass format
- General and preferred lots are mobile pass only in 2026. Reserved lots still use a paper pass on the dash.
- RV
- The overnight RV lot, with an RV pass and a designated RV space. Out by noon Sunday.
- Accessible
- Shields, Wagner, IM Building and softball park lots (overflow to Katz) with a placard. Single-game ADA parking is at East Deck, no tailgating.
- Decks
- The five campus decks are the overnight option for cars, but tailgating in them is strictly prohibited.
One-way traffic starts 2.5 hours before kickoff, and it can start earlier if traffic calls for it.
Too long for your space? You'll unhitch the trailer, and the tow vehicle parks in another lot at the car rate.
No car? Rideshare and public transit drop off and pick up at the North Transit Station (Park Ave and Fox Hollow Rd) or at Pegula Ice Arena off University Dr. CATA runs game-day shuttles for every home game.
The rules
Rules last verified Oct 29, 2026 against gopsusports.com, psu.edu, the Daily Collegian (July 18, 2025) and Bellisario Student Media (Sept. 5, 2024).
Penn State's lot rules are long and specific. These are the ones that change how you pack.
- Grills
- Charcoal and wood fires are banned, and so are tow-behind grills and smokers, fire pits and open-flame heaters.
- Alcohol
- No drinking in the lots while the game is on. No kegs, and no glass in grass lots. None into the stadium.
- Tents
- 10 x 10 max, over your vehicle's tailgate. No stakes, anchors or digging, and a tent can't save a space.
- Your space
- Car and tailgate fit in 8.5 x 15 feet. Keep the emergency lane down the middle of each aisle clear.
- Not allowed
- Amplified sound, saving spaces, drones, golf carts, motorized coolers, bikes and scooters, flag poles over 20 feet.
- Clean up
- Blue bags for empty bottles and cans, clear bags for everything else. Leave them at your spot.
- When it ends
- No overnight parking except the RV lot. The outbound one-way pattern ends 60 to 90 minutes after the game.
- Bags at the gate
- Clear, up to 12 x 6 x 12 inches, plus a clutch up to 5 x 8 x 1 inches.
- Gates open
- 2 hours before kickoff. No re-entry.
Before you go
Beaver Stadium A-Z guideFootball parking FAQParking zones map (PDF)Prohibited vehicle list (PDF)Official pages. Rules change; check them the week of the game.
Pack for University Park
What we'd bring.
-
Ultralight Tall-Back Camp Chair
$45
Ships free
-
Sampler, 8 Rubs
$47.99
Ships free
Eight rubs in one box, so the grill gets a new one every Saturday. It's the seasoning we use.
More for this lot
-
Taiga 55 qt Hard Cooler, 60 Cans$299 · Ships free
-
Monument G22 Tabletop Gas Grill, 2 Burners$199 · Ships free
-
Scorezit Cornhole Scorekeeper Set$140 · +$15 shipping
Gear for Penn State fans
In stock now.
Where the party is
Penn State rings the stadium with numbered lots in four color zones, and the RV crowd can roll in Thursday night. On Saturday, the Beaver Stadium Block Party fills Curtin Rd with live music, food trucks and free activities.
The pregame
Beaver Stadium Block Party
Curtin Rd between University Dr and Porter Rd, every home game. The team arrival walk and pep rally start there 2.5 hours before kickoff.
The long weekend
The overnight RV lot
Open from 6 p.m. Thursday before home games, out by noon Sunday, with an RV pass and a designated space.
No pass yet
Lots 25 and 36
The day-of-game sale lots, by card, while passes last.
What to eat
Breakfast first. Penn State student journalists wrote in 2024 that no one ever says no to a pork roll, egg and cheese sandwich, and the Daily Collegian's pick at the Berkey Creamery in 2025 was Death by Chocolate.
Cook thisKielbasa and peppersGetting out
Every road around the stadium runs one way out after the game. Your options:
- Ride the one-way pattern. It moves traffic away from the stadium and ends 60 to 90 minutes after the game. After that, any route is open.
- Rideshare or bus from a transit stop. The North Transit Station at Park Ave and Fox Hollow Rd, or Pegula Ice Arena off University Dr.
- Clean up and let the first wave go. Bag your recycling, pack the car and roll once the pattern lifts.
Skip this
Cut across zones against the cones. The one-way pattern wins that argument every time.
First time here?
- Download your tickets and your parking pass to your phone's wallet before you leave. A student guide in 2024 said to assume there is no service at Beaver Stadium or the tailgate lots.
- The walk from downtown or some dorms to your lot can run more than an hour, the same guide warned, so leave early.
Visiting? How to join a tailgate
Start at the Beaver Stadium Block Party on Curtin Rd, which is free and built for walk-ups, and stay for the team arrival pep rally, which kicks off on Curtin Rd 2.5 hours before kickoff. The Daily Collegian also sends visitors to the Nittany Lion Shrine for a photo and some good luck.
Free · one page · works offline
Your Beaver Stadium game-day sheet, by email
One page for the lot: where to park, when it opens, what you can bring.
We don't sell your email.
