What’s up with Fresno?

JZ280705

There’s a ton of tickets including pit at prices that are a fraction of what they are at other venues.  If I lived in California I’d make the drive.  I’ve flown to Europe because I couldn’t get tickets here.

pistol3

Problem is the price of flying into Fresno is pretty high. 

darthvedder

1. Pearl Jam is Dad Rock and not that popular anymore (doubtful)

2. It's on a Monday night which for a lot of people is a school/work night (more likely)

3. With 5 shows in the three largest population centers and a sixth in Sacramento, there's not much incentive for people who live in California to go to that show (most likely)

TA243471

I'm flying in to sacramento, and getting a $33/day rental car to get to Fresno, then back to Sac for both shows.  Coming from Washington though, so possibly cheaper.

Weston1283

- Events/Concerts/Sports are trending down as a whole as people are saving money where they can as we exit the pandemic

- One way flights into Fresno that day are starting around $600 (One way) for most people.
- Announcement was not far out enough for people to plan
- Not sure how many people consider Fresno a nice “2-3 day getaway” city 
- They under estimated how much they do need to rely on their traveling fan base, especially for the smaller markets.  

F Me In The Brain

People are underestimating the experience that is a visit to Yosemite.   Driving to Pearl Jam will be a small part of the awesomeness that is a getaway to Yosemite.
Make the trek if you have not, folks.  It is special

Weston1283

F Me In The Brain said:

People are underestimating the experience that is a visit to Yosemite.   Driving to Pearl Jam will be a small part of the awesomeness that is a getaway to Yosemite.
Make the trek if you have not, folks.  It is special

Can this be done in one day?

100 Pacer

Curious about Yosemite as well. Website suggests arriving early, before 9am, to avoid traffic? With little to no cell reception/poor GPS reception how would I plan to navigate for the day? Would I need to consider packing a cooler with food and drink? Would love to spend the hours driving through and taking it all in just unsure of feasibility since in flying in and can’t plan properly.

F Me In The Brain

I would say it is worthwhile to even drive in to see parts for a day....but that it would be worth an extra day at the sacrifice of pretty much anything else
(Stay day before show and day after, something like that.)

I'm sure there must be locals here who can share specifics.  I only went one time after years of wanting to go and spent an amazing week hiking all around and taking it in.  So amazing.

huntersthompson

It's 1 1/2 hours (without any delays) from Fresno to Yosemite....if people are planning this (which you should if you haven't been there) you want to get to Yosemite early, spend the whole day there and either stay in/nearby the park or head back to Fresno late...

100 Pacer

huntersthompson said:

It's 1 1/2 hours (without any delays) from Fresno to Yosemite....if people are planning this (which you should if you haven't been there) you want to get to Yosemite early, spend the whole day there and either stay in/nearby the park or head back to Fresno late...

I don’t mind arriving before 9am as I’m traveling solo. Would I be able to make a day of it driving in one direction before turning around and driving back out? I assume great spots along the way to stop for pics? What should I be packaging?

1ThoughtKnown

TA243471 said:

I'm flying in to sacramento, and getting a $33/day rental car to get to Fresno, then back to Sac for both shows.  Coming from Washington though, so possibly cheaper.

I’m seriously considering this and adding in Yosemite. I’d fly out of Spokane or just drive from 15 min north of the 49th parallel and make a real adventure out of it. Decisions… decisions 

TA243471

1ThoughtKnown said:

TA243471 said:

I'm flying in to sacramento, and getting a $33/day rental car to get to Fresno, then back to Sac for both shows.  Coming from Washington though, so possibly cheaper.

I’m seriously considering this and adding in Yosemite. I’d fly out of Spokane or just drive from 15 min north of the 49th parallel and make a real adventure out of it. Decisions… decisions 

Yep, prices were just too good for me not to do it.  Then my wife got sent to Hawaii for work for 2 months, so I decided to add Las Vegas to my West Coast tour.  I should still have time to add Yosemite in there too.

huntersthompson

100 Pacer said:

huntersthompson said:

It's 1 1/2 hours (without any delays) from Fresno to Yosemite....if people are planning this (which you should if you haven't been there) you want to get to Yosemite early, spend the whole day there and either stay in/nearby the park or head back to Fresno late...

I don’t mind arriving before 9am as I’m traveling solo. Would I be able to make a day of it driving in one direction before turning around and driving back out? I assume great spots along the way to stop for pics? What should I be packaging?

The park is geographically large with lots of hikes that can take days to complete.  If you are just going for a day, I would essentially stay in the valley...see Half Dome and El Capitan (hike over to see where some badass climbers begin their climbs up El Cap).  There are plenty of waterfalls and relatively easy/flat hikes that you do.  They have food inside the park-  
By the way, with our recent snow/rains, the waterfalls will likely be pretty spectacular.  I suspect that one day will be enough to get a feel of the park but will more likley leave you thinking about planning another trip.  

RatherStarved

Thx for the Yosemite info.  It’s on my itinerary for sure.  Question for anyone who knows:  better to go during the week in terms of crowds?

Meanwhile, I’m surprised nobody has taken my Fresno floor seat with special bonus I am offering of two free beers or one MSG ticket at face! See Given to Fly thread for details.  

100 Pacer

huntersthompson said:

100 Pacer said:

huntersthompson said:

It's 1 1/2 hours (without any delays) from Fresno to Yosemite....if people are planning this (which you should if you haven't been there) you want to get to Yosemite early, spend the whole day there and either stay in/nearby the park or head back to Fresno late...

I don’t mind arriving before 9am as I’m traveling solo. Would I be able to make a day of it driving in one direction before turning around and driving back out? I assume great spots along the way to stop for pics? What should I be packaging?

The park is geographically large with lots of hikes that can take days to complete.  If you are just going for a day, I would essentially stay in the valley...see Half Dome and El Capitan (hike over to see where some badass climbers begin their climbs up El Cap).  There are plenty of waterfalls and relatively easy/flat hikes that you do.  They have food inside the park-  
By the way, with our recent snow/rains, the waterfalls will likely be pretty spectacular.  I suspect that one day will be enough to get a feel of the park but will more likley leave you thinking about planning another trip.  

Really appreciate that as a starting point. Thank you. Definitely going to make the effort and drive over.

100 Pacer

RatherStarved said:

Thx for the Yosemite info.  It’s on my itinerary for sure.  Question for anyone who knows:  better to go during the week in terms of crowds?

Meanwhile, I’m surprised nobody has taken my Fresno floor seat with special bonus I am offering of two free beers or one MSG ticket at face! See Given to Fly thread for details.  

Website mentions ideally early morning or late afternoon to avoid traffic/crowds.

given2fly23

Gonna look into this as well.  Thanks for the suggestion.  Unfortunately we're staying in Oakland for that whole week, so depending on the drive/direction, we may have to do it the day of Fresno.

100 Pacer

given2fly23 said:

Gonna look into this as well.  Thanks for the suggestion.  Unfortunately we're staying in Oakland for that whole week, so depending on the drive/direction, we may have to do it the day of Fresno.

Come with the day after.

given2fly23

100 Pacer said:

given2fly23 said:

Gonna look into this as well.  Thanks for the suggestion.  Unfortunately we're staying in Oakland for that whole week, so depending on the drive/direction, we may have to do it the day of Fresno.

Come with the day after.

Would love to, but it's 5+ hours from OAK.  Where are you staying?  We're doing Joshua Tree on the drive from LA>PHX, so this would've been great if we hadn't decided to just get one place in OAK for the 9 day stretch from May 10 - 19.

F Me In The Brain

Awesome to have local input.  Trust that any inconvenience around driving will be worth it.  💯 

I love seeing pearl jam in concert but seeing Yosemite is way more impressive.

100 Pacer

given2fly23 said:

100 Pacer said:

given2fly23 said:

Gonna look into this as well.  Thanks for the suggestion.  Unfortunately we're staying in Oakland for that whole week, so depending on the drive/direction, we may have to do it the day of Fresno.

Come with the day after.

Would love to, but it's 5+ hours from OAK.  Where are you staying?  We're doing Joshua Tree on the drive from LA>PHX, so this would've been great if we hadn't decided to just get one place in OAK for the 9 day stretch from May 10 - 19.

I land at LAX closer to 11pm on the 15th so will be driving overnight to Fresno. Haven’t looked for a place yet but somewhere within a reasonable drive to/from the venue. 

D-Rod

given2fly23 said:

100 Pacer said:

given2fly23 said:

Gonna look into this as well.  Thanks for the suggestion.  Unfortunately we're staying in Oakland for that whole week, so depending on the drive/direction, we may have to do it the day of Fresno.

Come with the day after.

Would love to, but it's 5+ hours from OAK.  Where are you staying?  We're doing Joshua Tree on the drive from LA>PHX, so this would've been great if we hadn't decided to just get one place in OAK for the 9 day stretch from May 10 - 19.

We are also stopping at Joshua Tree National Park on the way to Phoenix.   

given2fly23

100 Pacer said:

given2fly23 said:

100 Pacer said:

given2fly23 said:

Gonna look into this as well.  Thanks for the suggestion.  Unfortunately we're staying in Oakland for that whole week, so depending on the drive/direction, we may have to do it the day of Fresno.

Come with the day after.

Would love to, but it's 5+ hours from OAK.  Where are you staying?  We're doing Joshua Tree on the drive from LA>PHX, so this would've been great if we hadn't decided to just get one place in OAK for the 9 day stretch from May 10 - 19.

I land at LAX closer to 11pm on the 15th so will be driving overnight to Fresno. Haven’t looked for a place yet but somewhere within a reasonable drive to/from the venue. 

Gotcha. I think if we end up driving alone from OAK, we may grab a cheap hotel in Fresno, spend the night and hit Yosemite the next day, but if we drive with some friends who live in the Bay area, then that won't be an option. Def say hi if you see us at any of the shows!

rrivers

darthvedder said:

1. Pearl Jam is Dad Rock and not that popular anymore (doubtful)

2. It's on a Monday night which for a lot of people is a school/work night (more likely)

3. With 5 shows in the three largest population centers and a sixth in Sacramento, there's not much incentive for people who live in California to go to that show (most likely)

Well said.  I'm going to both Oakland shows that I've had tickets for (like many) since early 2020 and when they added a Sacramento show it was too hard to pass up a show a half hour from my house.  With those 3 already and Fresno not a short drive away I passed on the Fresno show.  That said, I bet the Fresno show is a great show for those who make it!

Poncier

amlee

It's going to be crazy and I think maybe the most unique show of the tour. Fresno, for those who haven't been on the West Coast is VERY isolated in the state...geographically and I'd say culturally. I lived up and down CA for over a decade and never even came close to going there. Also consider that the Save-Mart Center is 16k capacity but they have blocked out all the seats to the side of and behind the stage...so maybe they're actually selling, what...12-13k? Now look at how many tickets have been sold...

If someone is willing to manually count them (LOL), I think maybe it's a few thousand people in that building as of now...should be wild!

given2fly23

Show of the tour for die-hards. No doubt in my mind.

pistol3

given2fly23 said:

Show of the tour for die-hards. No doubt in my mind.

For sure. If the damn flight prices would drop, I’d roll to it solo.

dr122931

I think another interesting question would be why are they playing in Fresno? They do limited touring. Why not play Portland, Seattle, or somewhere else they could guarantee a sellout? It’s only been 19 years since they’ve  played Houston…

ClownofThorns

pistol3 said:

given2fly23 said:

Show of the tour for die-hards. No doubt in my mind.

For sure. If the damn flight prices would drop, I’d roll to it solo.

Fly to LA, then catch the 5/16 morning flight to Fresno on Alaska Airlines (which is less than $100). Still not super cheap, but cheaper than flying direct into Fresno.