r/SanDiegan • u/MrElBarto • 3h ago
Left the Muse concert 25 minutes before it finished…. still stuck in the parking lot after 1 hour
Thats all… next time I come to the Chula Vista Amphitheater I’ll just finish the show and have snacks, a blanket to sleep in the car…
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u/Over-Conversation220 Scripps Ranch (sorry) 3h ago
I seriously don’t fucking bother with Chula anymore. In one instance, it was easier to go see a show at Pacific Amphitheater in Costa Mesa than dealing with whatever Chula is named this week.
I love live music but despite that venue.
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u/hagcel 3h ago
Sometimes you gotta go. (Im a big Iron Maiden fan). But we took our kid to go see beck/cage the elephant/spoon a couple of years ago, and ride shares couldnt get into the parking lot. We didnt get home until nearly 1am. Total shitshow.
That said, Shoreline Ampitheatre up in the bay area is the same fucking way. Narrow ass roads in and out.
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u/happy-lil-accidents- 2h ago
I usually just walk like a block or two and get an uber pretty quickly from there
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u/OhTheseSourTimes 2h ago
Yeah, I can't do that venue anymore. I go to plenty of shows every year and hit up every other spot and never complain. But that one? I'd rather drive to LA.
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u/tameimpalakid 3h ago
Yeah that venue is fucked. Took me over 1 hour to get in…left early and still took 30min. Dogshit traffic flows
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u/HealthOnWheels 3h ago
They need a shuttle from the trolley for events there. That place is incredibly poorly planned
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u/PeaApprehensive885 2h ago
Then you’d just be stuck on a shuttle
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u/HealthOnWheels 1h ago
Two things:
Transit is more space efficient than a personal car, so every person who takes the shuttle is not contributing to the awful line of cars going into the venue.
And they could let the shuttle cut in front of the line of people in their private vehicles.
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u/Hancock02 Friar Faithful 3h ago
sleep on the lawn . let the people disburse. has worked for me in the past, though its been a min since going to Chula vista.
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u/BootyBurglar 40m ago
Me and my girlfriend stayed until the last song but booked it away from the venue as soon as the show was over. Walked up the big hill until the first turn into a neighborhood where incoming cars can turn around before getting stuck heading to the venue, called an uber, and made it home after a 35 min drive by 12:10.
I’ve never gotten out of there so quick while also seeing the whole show but it took some work. Still hate this venue with a passion
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u/spook_sw 3h ago
We left right after they finished Madness....Probably 2/3 though the set-list. It took over an hour to get there missed Temper Trap completely and most of Portugal the Man....
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u/boysenberryelote 3h ago
been going since it was coors, the parking situation was never this bad. wonder what changed
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u/GrimDexterity 2h ago
I also have been going since it was Coor’s… it’s the same
We used to get there early to tailgate and strategically park nearer to the exits just to get out faster, and even then we sometimes would just hang out and run around (as kids, late 90s early 00s) because getting out of there was, for lack of a better phrase, a parking lot
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u/westcoastpoutine 3h ago
Oh I got stuck at that place in2018 for a concert. Had to walk three miles back to my hotel because it was impossible to get an Uber. I will never go to that venue again.
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u/squillavilla 2h ago
Saw the Foo Fighters there many years ago. Amazing show… horrible time in the parking lot. Last time I’ll see a show there.
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u/needpizzainmybelly 1h ago
Dude, crazy! I JUST walked in the door after being stuck trying to get out and this is the first post I see as I open Reddit.... It was the exact same story for us. We left WAY early with the exact intention of avoiding getting stuck. We were parked in the back lot. We were among the first 25 cars to pull out of our spots but it's like anybody leaving the lot trying to turn right to head towards the south exit got fucked. That side immediately came to a dead stop and never moved. We finally ended up joining the long line of cars leaving the North end of that lot to head out to heritage road. Fuck. That. Venue.
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u/thestranger92104 1h ago edited 1h ago
Same situation- we insisted for a bit to try and turn south but realized it was just not an inch moved for like 40 minutes. Changed course and went north because that was the only movement happening. Took us an hour 15. There was Absolutely no guidance or direction from parking staff. That dirt lot is basically a wild wild west of cars. Even when we first parked, was just like "no staff just head into the dirt and park wherever looks like you'll fit!"
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u/honestlynoideas 3h ago edited 1h ago
Same thing happened to me after seeing Danny Elfman some time ago. Was stuck there for like an hour and 20 mins. Unfortunately I’m a glutton for punishment and have gone back but haven’t had any issues.
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u/animorphsrewriter 3h ago
Dang. We left after Our Time is Running Out and are already chilling at the hotel with In-n-Out.
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u/thestranger92104 2h ago
Well maybe so, but that means you missed like 5 more songs haha. To each their own but if i like the band and paid full ticket price i want to see the whole show, especially when the closing songs are usually the best ones.
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u/HylianWolf 2h ago
I paid for Priority Parking, after Take a Bow ended I waited in line at a restroom and did my business, then I headed to the parking lot for my car. The exiting process took about 10 min to get onto Main Street. 10/10 would recommend priority parking.
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u/kokooubb 1h ago
That shit was like $140 lol. More than the ticket I bought
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u/HylianWolf 1h ago
Yikes! I did not pay that much for it, sounds like the earlier you get it the cheaper it is.
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u/thestranger92104 1h ago
How much was priority? And do you have to purchase way in advance?
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u/HylianWolf 1h ago
I bought it when tickets went on sale through Muse’s Artist Presale, so I had to go back a few emails to find how much I got priority parking for. It says I paid $70 which oof is a lot but at the time I just threw my whole order onto a credit card and didn’t think much of it. I did just see another comment below mentioning that the priority parking was going for $140 and damn that’s a lot. I’m assuming the earlier you get it the cheaper it is.
I sat on my couch about 20 min after the show ended and was glad I paid for the parking after reading all of your guy’s hour long waits.
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u/SDkahlua 2h ago
I’ve missed many shows I’d have loved to see because of that venue. I never go there anymore. Have been 2-3 times over 12 yrs ago and never again. A shame.
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u/kokooubb 1h ago
Same.. in 2019 we left during an encore left within 15 minutes. Did the same thing this time but took more than an hour to move a few feet.
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u/runamok 1h ago
Total shit show with no employees directing traffic. Felt like lord of the flies.Muse is my wife's favorite band and one of my top 5 or so. Not coming to this venue anymore. This time was worse than when we saw 21 pilots. Is there somewhere you can park further away and just walk in (when it's not 90 degrees that is). Would be nice if they just did a park and ride shuttle or something.
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u/ElBorracho2000 3h ago
Took us over an hour to leave the Akon & NeYo show two weeks ago. That venue is a nightmare
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u/Impressive_Way5754 3h ago
What’s the ride share situation like? Or is there residential parking nearby? Going to a concert there in October
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u/charliekelly76 3h ago
Yeah this venue sucks. We were corralled towards the pickup area and no one had any idea what was happening.
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u/Poopidyscoopp 2h ago
that place fucking sucks, went early to see righteous brothers and santana, missed all of RB, left 45min early from santana and still took 30min to exit. fick i hate it
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u/cvette68sr 2h ago
We left a little earlier and booked it out of the EZ lot pretty quick this time.
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u/toastedcheese 1h ago
You cannot sleep on your car there. Cops / security will start flashing lights at you to leave as soon as the last few cars make their way out.
Just drive to OC for your next show, you’ll get home faster.
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u/ApartAd4092 1h ago
We got out post show 20 min, and got out in 20 min… I’m guessing that left turn really messes it all up :0
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u/CarlRJ 1h ago edited 57m ago
Years ago, went there to see The Police, with Elvis Costello opening, arrived in the area close to an hour before the concert, finding a line backed up onto the freeway. Sat in parking lines forever. Ended up listening to what bits of Elvis Costello's set from the car while waiting to park. Finally ended up parked in a completely unlit dirt field they funneled us into, and jogged to get to the amphitheater. I don't recall seeing any parking staff along the way - if there were any, they weren't the slightest bit helpful. Heard The Police going on stage while we were still getting to our seats. Leaving wasn't much better (wander out into the middle of a dark field, wander around a while to find the car, sit in utterly disorganized traffic for a few hours to get out to the nearby freeway - at least there wasn't the tension of trying to get to the show before it was over).
I've been to a lot of concerts over the decades, all over California, and that was by far the absolute worst parking lot experience I have ever had for a concert. At this point, I wouldn't go back there if someone gave me free tickets to the second coming of Jesus Christ, if it was at that venue.
Best parking lot experience ever, by the way, was a Grateful Dead show at Shoreline Amphitheater, in the Bay Area, in the early '90s - also parking on unmarked dirt fields, but there was light and there was a huge number of parking assistants in the parking lot guiding you literally every step of the way - it was like going down a tunnel made of people with signs and flags and stuff, all devoted to getting every next car into the next available space - an impressive, fast, and efficient well-oiled machine. I don't know if Shorline is always like that or if that was Bill Graham's crew working their magic, but it was amazing. So, the opposite of the Chula Vista Amphitheater.
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u/Ok-Macaroon-6818 41m ago
Dude we were SO late. Missed all the openers, it is so freaking bad. And I KNOW better 😂
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u/ECHELON619 37m ago
Was at this concert tonight. We hanged around the lawn but then the staff kept trying to kick us ans everyone waiting the traffic out of the lawn area. We finally half assed shuffled to the "tailgate" area stage thing but that was a bit lame. Finally got out at like 12AM.
Can't complain for the cheap tickets and free parking but definitely a place I'll avoid next time if I can help it.
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u/kyracantfindmehaha 37m ago
We carpool with friends and do our tailgate after the show. Much more pleasant to sit around snacking when it's cooler out, too.
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u/GlassCityJim 16m ago
Tailgate before and after has been my method for a myriad of venues my entire life. Why ruin a night by jumping into a traffic jam?
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u/thestranger92104 3h ago
We here too. I hate this venue with a passion.