Can't miss
- Rubbing Testudo's nose The bronze terrapin outside McKeldin Library has a shiny nose from a century of students rubbing it for luck. Do it before the game.
Quick answers
What time do the Maryland lots open?
6 hours before kickoff, and tailgating can start then too. Your pass color matches your campus entrance: Red at Stadium Drive off MD 193, Gold at Campus Drive via Adelphi Road, Blue at Paint Branch Drive off MD 193, Green at the Route 1 main gate.
Can you grill at Maryland tailgates?
Maryland's tailgating guide rules out open flames in the parking garages. It doesn't ban grills in the surface lots, so that's where the cooking happens.
Can you drink at Maryland tailgates?
Maryland draws a line between a tailgate and a party. Kegs, party balls, beer tubs and big containers of mixed drinks are banned on campus, and drinking games, underage drinkers or a huge crowd can get a gathering broken up. A tailgate has food and non-alcoholic drinks for everyone there.
Do you need a ticket to tailgate at Maryland?
Maryland's guide doesn't say, but your parking permit is single use: leave and you can't come back in. Terpsville Fan Fest in Jones-Hill House is free for all ages, and you need a ticket for the stadium.
How do you buy parking at Maryland?
Season permits go to season ticket holders, with the best lots tied to Terrapin Club giving. Single-game permits are sold ahead of time by UMD Transportation Services. On game day you can buy a spot at meters or in lots while space lasts.
Where to park
Purple Line construction still shapes game day: the color on your pass is the color of your campus entrance.
- Red zone
- Stadium Drive Garage, YC and Z, next to the stadium. Enter at Stadium Drive off MD 193.
- Gold zone
- Lots 1b, 1c, 1d, 1f, 3, A, JJ2, MV, O1 and O3. Enter at Campus Drive via Adelphi Road; Presidential Drive is open again for 1c, 1d, 1f and 3.
- Blue zone
- Lots 4b, 9b, 11b, P1, P2, UU, CC1, FF2, XX1 and the Terrapin Trail Garage. Enter at Paint Branch Drive off MD 193.
- Green zone
- Lots C1, GG1 and L and the Regents Drive and Union Lane garages. Enter at the Route 1 main gate.
- RV / bus
- No RV or bus parking on campus. Buses drop off at the Regents Drive Garage depot and stage off campus in Lot V.
- Accessible
- North entrance of the Stadium Drive Garage, with any football permit plus a placard or plate.
Stadium Drive and Fieldhouse Drive by the stadium close from 4 hours before kickoff until 2 hours after the game.
Download your parking pass before you leave, and use the entrance that matches its color.
No pass? Ride Metro to College Park and take the free Quickbus to Cumberland Hall, a 7-minute walk from the stadium. Rideshare drops off and picks up at Lot P2 and the Mowatt Lane Garage.
The rules
Rules last verified Oct 14, 2026 against umterps.com and transportation.umd.edu.
Maryland's guide separates a tailgate from a party. Stay on the tailgate side.
- Grills
- No open flames in the parking garages.
- Tents
- 10 x 10 feet or smaller, and never staked.
- Your space
- Your parking space or the landscape area behind it. Nothing in roadways, drive lanes, walkways or other spaces.
- Alcohol
- No kegs, party balls, beer tubs, trash cans of beer or big containers of mixed drinks on campus. No drinking games.
- Music
- Keep it inside your tailgate.
- Re-entry
- Permits are single use. Leave and you can't come back in.
- Not allowed
- Underage drinking. Parties get disbanded and people removed from the lots.
- Bags at the gate
- Clear, up to 12 x 6 x 12 inches, or a 1-gallon clear bag, plus a clutch up to 4.5 x 6.5 inches.
- Water
- 1 sealed bottle, or 1 empty plastic or metal bottle to refill inside.
Before you go
2026 Maryland football parking informationMaryland Athletics tailgating guideUMD Transportation Services football parking2026 Football Parking and Quickbus Map (PDF)Official pages. Rules change; check them the week of the game.
Pack for College Park
What we'd bring.
-
Ultralight Tall-Back Camp Chair
$45
Ships free
-
27 qt Hard Cooler, 24 Cans
$199
Ships free
A hard cooler that fits the trunk and the tight space behind the car.
More for this lot
-
Scorezit Cornhole Scorekeeper Set$140 · +$15 shipping
September in College Park can be hot and humid; November turns raw. Check the forecast.
Where the party is
College Park tailgates in a permit space and the grass strip behind it, and Maryland is clear that it wants tailgates, not parties. The team now walks in from University House toward Jones-Hill House and the free Terpsville Fan Fest.
The grass
Lot 1 landscape spaces
Lots 1b, 1c and 1d have landscape spaces, and permit holders backed up to the grass get first use of it.
The open door
Terpsville Fan Fest
Free and for all ages, inside Jones-Hill House, with seating, games and a host running contests.
The moment
Team arrival and band parade
The team arrives on Presidential Drive and walks from University House toward Jones-Hill House. The band plays Legacy Plaza and reaches the Fan Fest about 1 hour before kickoff.
What to eat
Maryland wants a tailgate to have real food and non-alcoholic drinks for everyone there, so feed the crew.
Getting out
Roads by the stadium stay closed until 2 hours after the game. Your options, best first:
- Ride the Quickbus. It runs again from halftime until 1 hour after the game, from Cumberland Hall to the lots and the Metro.
- Take Metro. The Quickbus has a College Park Metro loop.
- Rideshare from the zone. Lot P2 or the Mowatt Lane Garage.
Skip this
Leave by any entrance. Use the one that matches your pass, and expect the closures.
First time here?
- Lots open 6 hours before kickoff. Use the entrance that matches your pass color.
- Tent 10 x 10 or smaller, with weights. Stakes aren't allowed.
- No kegs, beer tubs or drinking games. Bring food and non-alcoholic drinks.
- Your permit is single use. Leave the lot and you can't get back in.
- No RV or bus parking on campus.
- Clear bag only, plus a sealed or empty water bottle.
Visiting? How to join a tailgate
Terpsville Fan Fest in Jones-Hill House is free and open to all ages, so it's an easy first stop. Then walk the lots, bring something to share and keep it friendly.
Free · one page · works offline
Your SECU Stadium game-day sheet, by email
One page for the lot: where to park, when it opens, what you can bring.
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