There is plenty of parking bear Busch Stadium and it is bordered by I-64 (+1) and I-70 (+1). Parking is abundant (+1), but pretty expensive compared to most stadiums around the league. There is a Metro stop right outside the stadium (+1), so driving isn’t the only option.
Cardinals tickets, as of 2025, have a median price of $88 which is about in the middle when it comes to prices across the league. Cardinals tickets used to be among the most expensive in baseball so this is a positive trend (+1). About half of the seats in the stadium have fantastic views of the Gateway Arch (+1), which is one of the great backdrops in baseball. Most of the seats are oriented towards home plate (+1), but a significant number of seats are not (-1). This is offset by the fact that there aren’t really any bad seats in the stadium (+1). The upper deck is as close to the field of any major stadium I’ve seen (+1), which makes the view great from just about anywhere.
The exterior has some echoes of St. Louis with arches mimicking Eads Bridge (+1) and a red brick and black steel look that matches the team colors (+1). There are a lot of statues of Cardinals greats (+1) as well as commemorative bricks highlighting key moments in Cardinals history (+1) around the stadium. The Ballpark Village is similar to Gallagher Way at Wrigley Field (+1) with the added benefit of it being open to the public during games. There is a Hall of Fame in Ballpark Village, but I didn’t go in because it is one of the few I’ve been to that has an added charge to enter (-1). The stadium exterior is fine, but without the Cardinals logos (-1), you wouldn’t know what team it belongs to.
You can’t walk the concourse and still watch the game (-1), which is almost inexcusable for modern stadiums. The concourses are also incredibly dark (-1) as they aren’t even open to the outside of the stadium. There is also nothing inside the stadium that distinguishes it (-1) and apart from the great view of the Arch (+2) already mentioned, the stadium looks like it could be a part of any city. They do use red and black again inside the stadium for the seats (+1) to again match the team colors.
The main videoboard feels outdated (-1) as it doesn’t match the size or resolution of some newer boards in places like Progressive Field and Citizens Bank Park. The two main boards show the normal stats you would expect from modern scoreboards (+1) as well as replays (+1). However, there is no out-of-town scoreboard that I could see (-1) so I had to constantly check the score of the Cubs/White Sox game on my phone like a Neanderthal. A nice touch is they kept the old out-of-town scoreboard from the second Busch Stadium and put it in the main concourse (+1) with the results of all of the games from that last day.
While I gave the Ballpark Village some credit early for being accessible to people without a ticket, it does mean you can’t access it during the game since you would have to leave the stadium (-1). It’s a minor problem, though, (+1) since you can just scan out and then back in. There is a kids area called the Hi-Chew Family Pavilion that has a play area for kids (+1), but most of the activities in the area cost money (-1) and the area isn’t air-conditioned and has poor ventilation so it can get incredibly hot (-1). There is a Make-a-Fredbird shop that lets you build the Cardinals mascot just like a Build-a-Bear, which is a unique experience (+1) that I’m not sure exists in another stadium. As with most stadiums now, on getaway Sundays kids can run the bases after the game (+1), although you do have to stand in line for a long time after the game to do it.
In my review of the second Busch Stadium, I gave the Cardinals fans high marks. I don’t recall whether the Cardinals were calling their fans “The Best Fans in Baseball” back then, but they certainly seemed like great fans at the time. One thing that hasn’t changed from that review is the fans are knowledgeable about the game (+1) and seem interested in the actual game on the field (+1). However, I hate the “Best Fans in Baseball” moniker (-1) and it reflects poorly on the fanbase when the team is 1.5 games out of the Wild Card race and the stadium is half full (-1). To be fair, the team had been underperforming for years when I saw a game and a decent number of fans still show up (+1). The Cardinals also dropped a bunch of games not long after I saw them lose to the Padres to basically eliminate themselves from the Wild Card race.
The ushers I encountered are probably the most friendly I’ve encountered in the majors (+1) and many let me into lower bowl sections when they saw I was trying to get a picture (+1). Given how empty the stadium was and how friendly the ushers were I could have easily moved into better seats (+1). I was also surprised how easy it was to get into the suite area and the Redbird Club (+1). I didn’t try to do this, but I’m pretty sure I could have stayed in the Redbird Club for an extended period of time (+1) had I wanted to. It's also possible I could have gone into a suite if they were unlocked. I was too chicken to try, though.
There was an elementary school choir (+1) to sing the 7th inning stretch, and it seems pretty common that kids sing the stretch at Busch Stadium (+1). However, no one in the stadium who I could see was standing (-1), and few people were singing (-1). In fact, I heard more people say “Root for the Cubbies” than “Root for the Cardinals” (-1) in a game the Cubs weren’t even playing. There was no enthusiasm at all for the Stretch and nothing uniquely St. Louis about it (-1) at all.
There are restaurants (+1) and bars (+1) galore around Busch Stadium, although since the stadium is bordered by expressways on one side (-1) it does limit what is available in the area. The Ballpark Village is also a nice place to hang out (+1) before or after a game.