Petco Park Game Day Guide
San Diego Padres · San Diego, CA
Know Before You Go
- Bag policy
Petco Park permits single-compartment clear plastic bags up to 12 x 6 x 12 inches and clutches or purses up to 5 x 7 inches.
Infant and medical bags are also permitted, and all items are subject to search.
- Bag storage
Lock & Go lockers are available for $14 at four locations around Petco Park.
Locations are across from Home Plate Gate in Lexus Premier Lot, at Tony Gwynn Drive and L Street, at Balboa Gate, and at East Village Gate. Lockers open one hour before gates, and belongings must be collected within 30 minutes after the game.
- Gate opening
All Petco Park entry gates open 90 minutes before first pitch.
Season Ticket Members may enter through Park Boulevard Gate or Home Plate Gate two hours before first pitch; special-event gate times can vary.
- Mobile tickets
All Petco Park tickets are digital and are accessed in the MLB Ballpark app for scanning at entry.
Screenshots are not accepted; transfer tickets to each attendee's account before the event when possible.
- Re-entry
Petco Park permits re-entry when the digital ticket is scanned before exit and scanned again on return.
On some giveaway days, re-entry is unavailable until promotional items run out or the third inning ends; re-entry is prohibited after the event concludes.
- Prohibited items
Petco Park prohibits weapons, firearms, knives, fireworks, illegal drugs, aerosol cans, outside alcohol, glass containers, hard-sided coolers, drones, and laser pointers.
Bats, most sports equipment, inflatables, noisemakers, selfie sticks, large umbrellas, rigid chairs, and cameras with lenses longer than six inches are also prohibited; review the official list before arrival. Items left in gate amnesty boxes are not returned.
- First aid
First Aid stations are at Section 108 and between Sections 129 and 131 in Padres Power Alley.
Trained medical personnel are on duty for all events; locations may differ for concerts and other special events.
- Nursing and lactation
The Sharp Mary Birch Nursing Lounge is in Terrace Suite 32 for Padres baseball games.
The location may change for other events.
- Family restrooms
Family and all-gender restrooms are near Sections 109, 202, 219, 310, and 311.
- Tickets for children
Children under 36 inches tall may enter free with an adult who has a valid ticket.
The child must sit on the adult's lap and may not occupy another seat.
- Guest services
Guest Services assistance is available near Sections 108, 131, and 303 and in Gallagher Square.
For in-park help, text the issue and location to 619-279-5881 or report it through the MLB Ballpark app.
- Service animals
Individually trained service dogs and miniature horses are welcome when their work or tasks relate directly to the guest's disability.
Animals that provide only emotional support or companionship are not admitted.
- Smoking and vaping
Petco Park is smoke-free, including vaping and e-cigarettes.
Chewing and smokeless tobacco are also prohibited.
Game Day Timeline
What the day looks like at Petco Park, hour by hour.
Arrive in the Gaslamp Quarter
Walk 5th Avenue, restaurants, rooftop bars, and craft beer spots line the street.
Pregame in the Gaslamp or East Village
Grab a craft beer at Ballast Point, Stone, or one of many taprooms near the stadium.
Enter Petco Park
Walk through the gates and take in the Southern California sun. The 360-degree open concourse is stunning.
Explore and grab food
Fish tacos, carne asada fries, and craft beer are the essentials. Walk the full concourse.
Find your seat or Gallagher Square
Settle into your seat or grab a spot on the lawn beyond center field.
Play ball
Nine innings in near-perfect weather. Golden hour hits around the 3rd inning for 7:10 PM starts.
Stand up and stretch
Grab a final craft beer from the concourse under the San Diego sky.
Walk to the Gaslamp
Bars and restaurants stay open late, the Gaslamp is a 5-minute walk.
Tips & Fan Reports
You should have no problem getting a bobblehead if you are an hour early but there are spots to hang out in the park if you want to go earlier. If it is a day game consider shade - sun side gets brutal.
The Gaslamp Quarter is a 5-minute walk, one of the best pregame bar scenes in baseball.
Petco Park has the best weather of any MLB ballpark. It almost never rains.
The Park at the Park (beyond center field) is a grassy area where you can watch the game for cheap. Great for families.
San Diego weather means nearly every game is comfortable. No dome needed when it's 72°F and sunny 300 days a year.
Petco Park's Gaslamp Quarter location makes it one of the best-situated ballparks in MLB. Walk to 100+ restaurants postgame.
Gallagher Square beyond center field is lawn, big screens, and a social bar scene.
You do not choose your space. ACE Parking directs you, and you cannot buy a second one for the tailgate.
Gas only. Charcoal is not permitted anywhere on the premises, which rules out the usual kit.
Tailgate Park is the only lot where any of this is allowed; the Parkade and Premier Lot are parking.
Before the Game
Tailgating at Petco Park happens at one named place: Tailgate Park, the Padres Preferred Lot, entered and exited on 13th Street at K Street, or on Imperial Avenue between 12th Avenue and 14th Street. It runs on a limited basis: ACE Parking directs you into a space on arrival, you may not reserve additional spaces, and the tailgate goes directly behind your own vehicle. The fuel rule is absolute: only gas cooking grills are allowed on the premises and no charcoal is permitted at all. Tailgate Park, the Padres Parkade and the Lexus Premier Lot open within four hours of the event, and the Gaslamp Gate at K Street and 7th Avenue is the way in from the Gaslamp Quarter.
Where to Go Before the Game
Tailgate Park, the Padres Preferred Lot
Entrance and exit on 13th Street at K Street, or on Imperial Avenue between 12th Avenue and 14th Street. The only place tailgating is permitted, on a limited basis and directly behind your own vehicle.
Known for The only tailgate lot · 13th St at K St · Gas grills only
The Gaslamp Gate, K Street and 7th Avenue
The ballpark entrance from the Gaslamp Quarter, which is the pregame district for anyone not tailgating: bars and restaurants a short walk north of the park.
Known for From the Gaslamp Quarter · K Street and 7th Avenue
Padres Parkade and the Lexus Premier Lot
Club parking that opens within four hours of the event, alongside Tailgate Park. Parking rather than tailgating ground.
Known for Opens within 4 hours · Club-operated
Park 12 Valet, 12th Avenue
Opens 2.5 hours before a regular game, with its entrance on 12th Avenue adjacent to the MTS Trolley line, the option if you are arriving by trolley or want valet.
Known for Opens 2.5 hours before · Beside the MTS Trolley · Valet
Pregame Rules
What Petco Park allows before the game, and what it does not.
- Guests may tailgate at Tailgate Park, the Padres Preferred Lot, on a limited basis.
- Tailgate Park's entrance and exit are on 13th Street at K Street, or on Imperial Avenue between 12th Avenue and 14th Street.
- Guests must park in spaces as directed by ACE Parking on arrival, may not reserve additional spaces, and must tailgate directly behind their vehicle.
- Only gas cooking grills are allowed on the premises. No charcoal is permitted.
- Padres Parkade, Tailgate Park and the Lexus Premier Lot open within four hours of the event.
- For regular games, Park 12 Valet opens 2.5 hours before the game, with entrance on 12th Avenue adjacent to the MTS Trolley line.
- The Gaslamp Gate is at the intersection of K Street and 7th Avenue.
Weather
Petco Park is open air, so these are the conditions you sit in.
Across the MLB season the warmest month is August, with an average high of 77°F, and the coldest is April, when the average low is 57°F. April is the wettest month at 0.7 inches and August the driest at 0.0 inches.
That April low ranks 26th coldest of the 30 MLB venues, and April here ranks 29th wettest.
April
0.7 inchesMay
0.3 inchesJune
0.1 inchesJuly
0.1 inchesAugust
0.0 inchesSeptember
0.1 inchesOctober
0.5 inchesWhat to Bring
- Only the outside food and drink the rule allows
Guests may bring food for individual consumption when it is individually wrapped or in a single-serving, soft-sided container that follows the bag policy.
- A card or a phone wallet
Petco Park is cashless; concessions and retail accept credit cards, Padres Pay, Apple Pay, and other digital payments.
- A light layer for after sunset
April, the coolest month of the season here, still averages 57°F at night.
Tailgate Gear
Lots open within four hours of the event, at Tailgate Park.
- A gas cooking grill. Charcoal is prohibited on the premises entirely
- A setup that goes directly behind your own vehicle, in the space ACE Parking puts you in
- No expectation of a second space: reserving additional bays is not allowed
- A Tailgate Park pass specifically, since no other lot permits it
How We Checked This Page
Every section below names the source it was read from and the day it was read. Where we could not reach a published figure, the page says so rather than presenting an estimate as a checked fact.
- Game day timeline
Gate opening time checked against the venue's own gate-opening policy: All Petco Park entry gates open 90 minutes before first pitch.
- Pregame
San Diego Padres official site: Petco Park Tailgating, parking information, and Policies and Procedures
- Weather
NOAA 1991-2020 Climate Normals
- Venue policies
Current Padres information, accessibility, food, and digital-ticket guidance reviewed for entry, family, payment, food, parking, and accessibility rules.