Venue Review – Dick’s Sporting Goods Park – Commerce City, Colorado (Denver)

If you have, then you might have heard of the Dick's Sporting Goods Park Park, or just "Dick's." If you are a fan of Phish, then there has been no doubt that you have heard people mention "Dick's." Built in 2007 this soccer stadium also plays host to some memorable events and concerts. Phish first started playing at this venue in 2011 and has become a regular summer tour closer for the band.

Parking is $15 for each night and paid in cash when you enter the complex.  

For taxi rates, please see hotel options below for some approximate taxi rates.

Dropping Off:

If you are using a conventional taxi, you should try to get dropped off on East 56th Avenue and walk into the venue. The lines are long and slow getting into the complex and waiting to get in will cost you significantly more.

Pick Up:

All Taxi services pick up from outside Gate H.  The venue has partnered with Lyft.

Lyft: You MUST be picked up from the designated spot outside of Gate H.  In fact, the Lyft program will not allow you to be picked up anywhere besides Gate H. We found that the Lyft rates were double what other taxi services were from Dick's.

Uber & Other Services (THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER POST CONCERT) You can be picked up anywhere.  We found it was easiest to be picked up on Valentia Street between Trenton Street and East 59th Place.  In particular, it was easy to drop a pin next to where the road was blocked and then a taxi would simply perform a U-Turn to leave the venue.  It worked for us and so many others, it will work for you too!

Best Entrance

If you want to come into the venue after exploring "Shakedown" / The Lot scene, we recommend coming in through gates F & G.  In particular, Gate G seems to be the fastest to enter through personal experience.

We have rarely ever witnessed a "Shakedown Street" as large, diverse and energetic as the one you will find at Dick's. You will see many familiar vendor faces and will not run out of choices between food, drinks, and hard goods (such as t-shirts, posters, pins). Seriously, give yourself time to check out the lot scene at Dick's both before and after the show.

It is wild beyond belief. This lot scene, in particular, has not only the expected vendors but also several tents set up with live bands. In 2017 none other than Tom Marshall was found sitting in and singing with a local band.

The parking lot opens at 3:00PM

We do not think we have been to a venue with as incredible of a tailgate as the one that occurs each day at Dick's Sporting Goods Park.  People definitely bring their A-Game.  You can expect people to have tables filled with delicious food and drinks.  You should expect to see many barbecue pits going and the smell of delicious grilled food amongst other things wafting through the air.  In addition to nearby supermarkets, you may want to go to Stanley's Marketplace or Denver Central Market, amongst other places, to pick up delicious food for your tailgate. 

One anecdote, on the last night of the 2017 Phish run, one tailgater was yelling "we got fresh bratwurst for sale here!"  When people asked how much it was to which the grill master would respond with a wry smile "The bratwursts are free, I only charge you for your time.  You just have to be patient and wait for these to be finished grilling!"

There is camping at Dick's Sporting Goods Park where you can be minutes away by foot from the venue. This camping is relatively inexpensive, clean, with showers, water, ATM's, and has their own general store. Most importantly, the venue is very secure (when you purchase camping, you will receive a camping wristband. There is a security checkpoint and only those with Camping wristbands are permitted in the camping area).

Both RV and car camping is available at Dick's Sporting Goods Park. In 2017, camping costs $90 per person for the three-day event. At an additional cost, RV's were required to have a $60 parking pass, while those coming in with cars parked their car separately from their campground in Section R.

Please read more about camping at Dick's Sporting Goods Park at the venue's website here .(Because the link is only around a few months before and after event we preserved it as a PDF in March of 2018). It is quite comprehensive and useful.

We recommend the following hotels for people attending concerts at this venue. We recommend them from personal experience and the experience of trusted friends. In some hotels, you will even find a delivered to your door in the morning instead of a local or national newspaper. (Bet you never thought that was even a possibility did you?)