Can't miss
- The Cat Walk The team walks into the stadium through a corridor of fans, the band and the cheerleaders on Talbott Todd Way.
- "Grove Street Party" Kroger Field turned Waka Flocka Flame's song into its anthem, and when it drops, the whole stadium bounces.
- Keeneland in October If a home game falls during Keeneland's fall meet, which runs into late October, the racetrack is a short drive west of town, and Friday afternoon at the track is the Lexington weekend.
Quick answers
What time do the Kentucky lots open?
Kroger Field lots open to fans at 8 a.m. on game day. Cooper Drive, the non-permit tailgate area, opens for setups and parking at noon on the Friday before.
Can you grill at Kentucky tailgates?
Yes, with rules. Have at least one 5-pound all-purpose ABC fire extinguisher, get UK Athletics approval before game day for large industrial-size cookers, and put out charcoal fully before you dispose of it.
Can you drink at Kentucky tailgates?
UK's 2026 game-day page doesn't post an alcohol rule for the lots. Drinking under 21 is illegal. Outside alcohol isn't allowed in Kroger Field, where beer and seltzer are sold, 2 per ID, until the end of the 3rd quarter.
Do you need a ticket to tailgate at Kentucky?
UK doesn't post a ticket rule for the lots. Permit lots need a game-day permit, and Cooper Drive is the area set aside for fans without one. Everyone needs a ticket to get into Kroger Field.
How do you buy parking at Kentucky?
Most lots are season permits. Single-game reserved parking is at the William T. Young Library lots, card only, and Parking Structure 6 at Virginia and Press Avenues is the on-campus non-permit option. A few prepaid Orange lot permits are sold for select games.
The game-day timeline
- Fri noonCooper Drive opens for non-permit tailgate setups
- Fri 6 PMFree visitor RV lots open
- Fri 8 PMPermitted RVs can enter
- Game day 8 AMKroger Field lots open
- 3 hrs beforeLextran game-day shuttles start
- 2 hrs 15 min beforeThe Cat Walk at Gate 1
- 2 hrs beforeGates 4, 9 and 12 open
- 1 hr 30 min beforeThe other public gates open
- 4th quarterReturn shuttles start, running until 1 hour after the game
- Sun noonPermitted RVs out
Where to park
Most of the lots around Kroger Field are season permits. If you don't have one, here's what's open to you.
- Permit lots
- Blue, Green, Orange, Red, Purple, Arboretum and the rest. Permits are mobile and scanned at the lot entry.
- No permit
- Cooper Drive, the non-permit tailgate area, from noon Friday. Parking Structure 6 at Virginia and Press Avenues.
- Single game
- Reserved parking at the William T. Young Library lots, card only. A limited number of prepaid Orange lot permits for select games.
- RV
- Permitted RVs from 8 p.m. Friday, out by noon Sunday. Free visitor RV lots, first come with no hookups, at Virginia and Press from 6 p.m. Friday.
- Trailers
- Tow-behind trailers need their own permit on paved lots. Without one you may be sent to open grass lots, if there's room.
- Accessible
- A state disabled hang tag gets you into the Library lots, first come. When they fill, it's Parking Structure 6. A golf cart shuttle runs from Gate 6.
In the 2 hours before kickoff, lots fill by availability. If yours is full, you'll be sent somewhere else.
Parking Structure 1, the Yellow/Red lot and Farm Road are out for 2026.
No car? Lextran runs two game-day shuttles from 3 hours before kickoff: one from downtown (High Street by the arena and the Transit Center on E. Vine) and one along Virginia Avenue from Parking Structure 6. Fares are cash, exact change, and UK IDs aren't accepted.
The rules
Rules last verified Oct 29, 2026 against ukathletics.com, brand.uky.edu, WYMT (Aug. 8, 2026) and A Sea of Blue (Aug. 29, 2022).
UK keeps the lot rules practical. These are the ones that catch people.
- Your space
- Tailgate at the back of your vehicle. Lines are painted in the Blue, Green and Orange lots. Keep drive lanes open.
- Grills
- At least one 5-pound ABC fire extinguisher. Large industrial-size cookers need UK Athletics approval before game day.
- Charcoal
- Put it out fully and dispose of it properly.
- Tents
- 10 x 10 feet max on green space. Not in parking spaces without a permit. Stakes deeper than 4 inches need UK Athletics approval.
- Season setups
- Opened Aug. 8. Every tent and trailer needs a tag with your name, phone and email, or it can be removed.
- Smoking
- Tobacco and vapes are banned everywhere on campus, including the lots around Kroger Field.
- Not allowed
- Portable restrooms, golf carts, permanent structures, and generators louder than 60 dB or not approved by UK.
- Bags at the gate
- Clear, up to 12 x 6 x 12 inches, or a 1-gallon freezer bag, plus a clutch up to 4.5 x 6.5 inches. No backpacks.
- Gates open
- Gates 4, 9 and 12 at 2 hours before kickoff, the rest at 1.5 hours. No re-entry.
Before you go
Kentucky football gameday informationUK football tailgating guidelines2026 football parking permit map (PDF)2026 Cat Walk map (PDF)Official pages. Rules change; check them the week of the game.
Pack for Lexington
What we'd bring.
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Kentucky Wildcats Elite Chair, Style 12E
$49.99
Ships free
A team chair for the hours before kickoff: steel frame, cup holders, a 275 lb rating and its own carry bag.
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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
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Taiga 27 qt Hard Cooler, 24 Cans$199 · Ships free
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Monument G22 Tabletop Gas Grill, 2 Burners$199 · Ships free
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Tire Table Aluminum, Medium: Table That Mounts on Your Tire$199.95 · Ships free
Gear for Kentucky fans
In stock now.
Where the party is
Kentucky tailgates out of the back of the car. The lots open at 8 a.m., the tailgating lines are painted in Blue, Green and Orange, and the fans without a permit get Cooper Drive from Friday at noon. A Sea of Blue's 2022 guide, written by a fan who tailgates the RV lot every game, called the Gluck Equine Center by the pond the center of fun on gamedays, with pop-up tents, and described a family area, the Wildcat Refuge, with inflatables and face painting. We haven't confirmed either spot for 2026, so check the current gameday page.
The no-permit play
Cooper Drive
UK's non-permit tailgate area. Setups and cars from noon Friday, with 2 vehicles parallel-parked along the painted line in each marked area.
The moment
The Cat Walk
2 hours and 15 minutes before kickoff, from outside Gate 1 down Talbott Todd Way, between the stadium and the Nutter Field House, to Gate 12. Line up on both sides.
The pregame hub
Chevy Park
Outside Gate 4: food trucks and the live pregame show. Food truck food can't go into the stadium.
What to eat
Chevy Park outside Gate 4 has food trucks. Inside, the nachos are the Kroger Field order; CBS Sports built its Kentucky traditions piece around them. In 2022 A Sea of Blue's tailgate guide named Indi's wings and Penn Station sandwiches, and suggested grabbing some gator when the Cats play Florida.
Cook this3-2-1 ribsGetting out
Kroger Field lots empty onto the same few roads. Your options, best first:
- Ride Lextran back. Return shuttles to downtown and Virginia Avenue run from the start of the 4th quarter until 1 hour after the game.
- Hang at the tailgate. Let the first wave go. The Library lot shuttle also runs until 30 minutes to 1 hour after the game.
- Skip Gate 12. It closes after the game so the team can get to the locker room, and it backs up.
Skip this
Leave at the final whistle. You and everyone else in the Blue lot. Pack the extinguisher first.
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Your Kroger Field game-day sheet, by email
One page for the lot: where to park, when it opens, what you can bring.
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