Spectrum Center Game Day Guide
Charlotte Hornets · Charlotte, NC
Know Before You Go
- Bag policy
Only small bags, clutches, crossbody bags, and wristlets no larger than 5 x 7 x 1.5 inches are permitted; the limit applies to clear and opaque bags alike.
Diaper bags accompanying an infant or young child, bags needed for medical or disability-related reasons, and breast pumps with their supplies are exceptions. All permitted bags, exceptions included, are subject to visual inspection, X-ray screening, and additional security screening.
- Gate opening
Spectrum Center door times vary by event; the arena publishes no standing opening time for Hornets games, so check the listing for the game you are attending.
- Mobile tickets
Spectrum Center tickets are mobile with limited exceptions and can be opened in the Hornets + Spectrum Center app or Ticketmaster app.
Add tickets to Apple Wallet or Google Wallet before arrival. Screenshots and screen recordings are not valid for entry.
- Re-entry
Spectrum Center does not permit re-entry during an event.
- Prohibited items
Prohibited items include weapons, noisemakers, lasers and flashlights, smoking products and lighters, laptops and tablets, aerosols, fireworks, frisbees, pepper spray, poles and selfie sticks, glass bottles, tripods, projectiles, bats and clubs, skateboards, hoverboards, and illegal substances.
Audio and video recording devices, smart glasses, and GoPros are prohibited. Still cameras with a detachable lens or a lens no longer than 4 inches are normally permitted, subject to event rules.
- First aid
First Aid stations are outside Sections 111 and 222.
- Nursing and lactation
The Novant Health Parents Room is on the Belk Concourse outside Section 108 for feeding, pumping, and changing.
- Family restrooms
Family restrooms are on the Main Level outside Sections 102 and 111 and the Upper Level outside Sections 212 and 228.
Every Spectrum Center restroom has a baby-changing station.
- Tickets for children
Every child age 2 or older needs a ticket unless a specific event states otherwise.
The public guide does not state a lap-seat condition for children younger than 2.
- Guest services
Guest Experience booths are outside Sections 102 and 208 during events.
For advance help, email arenainfo@hornets.com or call 704-688-8128. During a game, text the incident location, including section, row, and seat, to 845-HORNETS.
- Service animals
Service animals and service animals in training are permitted and must remain under the handler's control.
Animals should be leashed, harnessed, or tethered unless that interferes with their work or the handler's disability. Email arenainfo@hornets.com before the game with accommodation questions.
- Smoking and vaping
Spectrum Center prohibits using or bringing tobacco, cigarettes, e-cigarettes, cigars, vape pens, pipes, smokeless tobacco, and lighters inside.
Arena staff will not store a confiscated smoking product.
Game Day Timeline
What the day looks like at Spectrum Center, hour by hour.
Arrive in Uptown Charlotte
Park in a nearby garage or take the LYNX Blue Line. Explore the Uptown restaurant and brewery scene along Trade and Tryon streets.
Pregame dining
Grab dinner at Fahrenheit, Mert's Heart & Soul, or one of the many Uptown restaurants. Carolina BBQ is a must-try.
Doors open
Enter the arena and explore the concourse. Check out the Hornets team store and the interactive fan zones.
Find your seat
Settle in for the Hornets' teal-themed intro show and player introductions.
Game time
Hornets games have a fun, family-friendly atmosphere with Hugo the Hornet entertaining the crowd. Total game time is about 2-2.5 hours.
Halftime break
Hit the concourse for pulled pork or craft beer from local Charlotte breweries.
Post-game scene
Walk to nearby Uptown bars on College Street or East Boulevard for post-game drinks. Charlotte's nightlife is concentrated and walkable.
Tips & Fan Reports
After the game walk right past the Hornets Fam shop to catch the post-game show with Dell Curry and company. Great way to end the night especially after a win.
The Epicentre entertainment complex across the street has pregame dining and postgame nightlife.
Charlotte Uptown is compact, almost everything is within a 10-minute walk of the arena.
Uptown Charlotte's restaurant and bar scene has grown significantly. Dozens of options within 3 blocks of Spectrum Center.
LYNX Blue Line free park-and-ride at I-485 is the best budget hack - free parking, $2.20 train to the arena.
Halftime food lines are shorter at the upper-level concourse stands.
Hornets tickets are among the most affordable in the NBA, great value for families.
The Lynx Light Rail runs along the arena, so the train drops you at the door.
A 4 by 6 by 1.5 inch clutch is the entire allowance: anything else is refused unless it is a diaper or medical bag.
Those exception bags have their own entrances: the Hornets Fan Shop or Box Office by Trade Street Plaza.
Before the Game
Spectrum Center is at 333 East Trade Street in Uptown Charlotte, bordered by Trade, Fifth and Caldwell Streets and the Lynx Light Rail line, so the light rail runs along the building and there is no tailgating to arrange. The bag rule is now among the strictest in the league: only small clutches, wallets and wristlets up to 4 by 6 by 1.5 inches, with diaper and medical bags the sole exceptions, entering at the Hornets Fan Shop or the Hornets Box Office entrance near Trade Street Plaza for X-ray. Nearly 30,000 off-street spaces sit within a fifteen-minute walk.
Where to Go Before the Game
Trade Street Plaza
The plaza on the Trade Street side of the arena, and where guests with diaper or medical bags enter: either at the Hornets Fan Shop or the Hornets Box Office entrance, both beside it, for X-ray inspection.
Known for Medical bag entry · Fan Shop and Box Office · On Trade Street
The Lynx Light Rail line
The light rail runs along the arena's edge, one of the four boundaries of the site alongside Trade, Fifth and Caldwell Streets, the simplest arrival in Uptown Charlotte.
Known for Runs alongside the arena · Light rail · No parking needed
Uptown Charlotte parking
Nearly 30,000 off-street parking spaces sit within a fifteen-minute walk of the arena, which is what makes driving Uptown workable on a game night.
Known for ~30,000 spaces · 15-minute walk · Off-street
Pregame Rules
What Spectrum Center allows before the game, and what it does not.
- Only small clutches, wallets and wristlets not exceeding 4" x 6" x 1.5" are permitted at all arena events, including Hornets home games.
- Exceptions are made only for diaper and medical bags, including breast pumps. Guests with those bags must enter at either the Hornets Fan Shop or the Hornets Box Office entrance, both near Trade Street Plaza, for X-ray inspection.
- The arena is at 333 East Trade Street in Uptown Charlotte, bordered by Trade Street, Fifth Street, Caldwell Street and the Lynx Light Rail line.
- Nearly 30,000 off-street parking spaces are within a fifteen-minute walking distance.
- The arena can be contacted on (704) 688-9000, and door times for a specific event are on that event's page.
Weather
Spectrum Center is indoor, so these are the conditions for the parking lot and the walk in, not the seats.
Across the NBA season the warmest month is October, with an average high of 73°F, and the coldest is January, when the average low is 32°F. March is the wettest month at 4.0 inches and October the driest at 3.2 inches.
That January low ranks 16th coldest of the 30 NBA venues, and March here ranks 15th wettest.
October
3.2 inchesDecember
3.6 inchesJanuary
3.5 inchesMarch
4.0 inchesApril
3.8 inchesWhat to Bring
- Only the outside food and drink the rule allows
Outside food, beverages, coolers, bottles, and cans are prohibited, with limited exceptions for medical needs.
- A card or a phone wallet
Spectrum Center concession stands and retail locations are cashless.
- A coat for the walk in
January lows average 32°F between the lot and the door at Spectrum Center.
- A rain layer for the walk in
March averages 4.0 inches of rain outside Spectrum Center.
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
Official venue page / team game day guide
- Pregame
Spectrum Center Charlotte official site: A-Z Guide, Directions & Parking, and the arena bag policy announcement
- Weather
NOAA 1991-2020 Climate Normals
- Venue policies
Current Spectrum Center A-Z and dining guidance plus official Charlotte Hornets visitor, sensory, concessions, and parking pages reviewed for Hornets game-day policies; the bag policy re-read on 2026-09-23 from the Spectrum Center A-Z Guide after the Hornets' visiting page was retired.