A Serious Tennis Fan’s Complete Guide to the 2026 US Open: Tickets, Tips & More

▸ Returning Visitors: Click Here for Latest Updates!
- June 28: Published fully restructured new version of this post to facilitate navigation, including this PDF 2026 US Open Ticket Options and Average Prices: How to Spot a Good Deal — day-by-day ticket options and direct links to check prices and comparison shop on Ticketmaster and Stubhub.
- July 3: Added FAQ: “Which seats in Promenade have obstructed views?”
- August 3: Updated details on shade patterns in Armstrong Stadium in FAQ: “Which seats get the most shade?”
- August 27: The NYT reported that the Open would offer limited $25 evening grounds passes for purchase on-site only through Sep 6: “However, they can be purchased only on-site the evening of entry and on nights that Louis Armstrong is sold out (not including resale tickets).” When I asked the US Open box office to provide more details, they wrote: “No unfortunately we cannot confirm availability beforehand, these specific passes are on a day-to-day basis. Evenings grounds passes are only made available day of based on the capacity of the events and the stadiums.”
- August 29: My new chart outlining how scheduling should work beginning in Round 2: “Who Plays on Which Dates After R1?”
- September 1: Fellow fan Carrie reported on the late-night taxi situation: “I had a great experience with getting a yellow cab at the rideshare area by the NY Hall of Science at around 11:30pm the first two nights. NYPD organized the taxis and the taxi line and I waited only a few minutes in line before I was able to get a cab and a fast ride back to the hotel at a very reasonable cost. There were plenty of taxis waiting to pick up folks. This was probably way faster than waiting for an uber, and the police officer organizing the taxi line even made the sure my driver had his meter on when he saw I was a woman traveling solo late at night!”
- September 3: I share observation on the new post-renovation Courtside and Loge sections in my updated FAQ “What’s different about Ashe after the big 2026 renovation to Ashe Stadium?“
By P.J. Simmons
If you’re a fellow tennis fan planning a trip to the US Open — whether it’s your first visit or your fifteenth — I built this guide for you. As a serious tennis player and fan living in NYC, I feel so lucky that the US Open is in my backyard. I absolutely love the tournament, and find nothing more educational and inspiring for my own game than seeing world-class live tennis.
2026 will mark my 18th time at the US Open, and I’ve learned a ton over the years through trial and error about how to maximize the opportunity, find the best tickets and seats on the Official US Open ticket site on Ticketmaster, StubHub, and other reseller sites, and generally get the biggest bang for the buck. Likewise, I’ve learned so much thanks to fellow fans around the world who have shared their own insights since I wrote the first version of this post over a decade ago.
Below are my top 10 recommendations and practical resources to help you sort through the complexity, understand all the ticket options, and make the best decisions for your own priorities and budget so you have an incredible experience. I’ll continue to update throughout the summer and the tournament. Don’t hesitate to reach out with a question below if you can’t find what you need – I’ll reply as soon as I can.
For my returning friends: Please let me know what you think of this newly restructured and updated version (June 28), which hopefully will make navigation easier and faster for you. Please let me know what you think – I’d really appreciate your feedback!
What Every First-Timer Should Know Before Buying Tickets
Whether it’s your first Open or you just haven’t been in a few years, here are a few things worth understanding before you spend a dollar or make final decisions on when to attend.
Consider taking advantage of incredible FREE opportunities to see world-class tennis and superstars the week before the main tournament (August 23–29)
Before the main tournament begins, there’s a packed week of events at the US Open grounds (“Fan Week”) that offers many opportunities to experience the magic of the Open without spending a dollar on a ticket.
The week kicks off Sunday August 23 with Arthur Ashe Kids’ Day. If you have kids, this is a great day to go with lots of interactive games, music, activities.
Then, the Qualifying Tournament (Monday August 24 – Thursday August 27) is an amazing opportunity for serious fans to see major rising players and incredible tennis up close. 128 of the world’s best male and female players (whose ATP and WTA rankings were just shy of qualifying automatically for the US Open) will compete for the final 32 spots (16 each for men and women) in the singles draws. In 2021, #150-ranked qualifier Emma Raducanu went on to win the US Open women’s singles title – the first Grand Slam champion in history to come through qualifiers. Maja Chwalinska came close to doing the same at the 2026 French Open. Read why Fan Week/Qualies are so special in this excellent piece by Steven Kutz.
Throughout the entire week, there are opportunities to see some of the top-seeded players and biggest stars in unofficial practice sessions (details posted on the practice schedule the morning of).
Note: Fan week also features four special events that require paid tickets: including Mixed Doubles Rounds 1&2 (Aug 25 10am); Exhibition play with Roger Federer (Aug 25 7pm); Mixed Doubles Semis and Finals (Aug 26 7pm); and a “Stars of the Open” exhibition (Aug 27 7pm).
IMPORTANT: TO GAIN ADMISSION DURING FAN WEEK, YOU MUST PRE-REGISTER FOR A FREE FAN ACCESS PASS.
The US Open is much bigger than Ashe Stadium. Get the lay of the land before you make your plan.
Most people think of Arthur Ashe Stadium when they think about the US Open—and understandably so. It’s the largest tennis stadium in the world (almost 24,000 seats) and home to many of the tournament’s biggest matches. But the US Open is so much more than Ashe. Think of it as a massive tennis festival spread across an entire campus. On a typical day during the first week, world-class matches take place simultaneously on Ashe plus 16 other courts.
In fact, some of the most exciting tennis during the tournament happens on Louis Armstrong Stadium (almost as big as the main show courts at Wimbledon, the French Open, and the Australian Open with around 14,000 seats plus a retractable roof in case of rain), Grandstand (with 8,100 seats), Court #17 (2,800 seats) and the smaller field Courts #4-16.
Some important basic rules about how entry and seating works:
- Any of the almost 80 ticket options gets you access to the entire US Open grounds — you’ll find every option laid out in the ticket chart below (2026 US Open Ticket Options and Average Prices).
- Once you’ve entered the US Open grounds, you can access unreserved seats (on a first-come basis) in Armstrong, Grandstand, and on every other court except Ashe stadium. Ashe Stadium has no unreserved seats, so you need to buy an Ashe-specific ticket if you want to get in. Armstrong and Grandstand have both reserved ticket options and unreserved seating. Courts #4-17 are entirely first-come, unreserved seating.
- Grounds entry times vary depending on your ticket: A grounds pass or “Day” session reserved ticket for either Ashe, Armstrong, or Grandstand allows entry when gates first open (usually 9:30am). If you only purchase an “Evening” session ticket for a particular day, you’ll have to wait until 6pm to enter the grounds. Once you’re in the US Open grounds, you can stay as late as you want until closing.
Learn how player and match scheduling works to raise the odds of seeing your favorite players.
Most fans coming to the Open dream of seeing their favorite players in action. But what many first-timers don’t realize is that it’s impossible to predict which players will play on which days, on which courts, or at what time until the detailed “Daily Schedule of Play” is released shortly before the actual match day. So if you buy a ticket to the Open prior to that – which most people do – you’re buying access to matches in a particular round of play, not a guarantee that you’ll see any specific player.
The good news is that having a clear understanding of how scheduling works can dramatically improve your odds of seeing the players and matches that matter most to you. Taking a few minutes now to review these things will put you ahead of the game:
1. Start by getting the big picture of the tournament’s schedule – here’s an overview:
>> You can find a comprehensive, day-by-day breakdown of the schedule and every ticket option here: 2026 US Open Ticket Options
2. Get a sense of what day-by-day match scheduling looks like by reviewing last year’s “Daily Schedules of Play” to get a feel for what types of matches are played on which courts during the various rounds. Keep in mind this is just illustrative: for instance, just because a player was scheduled for certain days or played on certain Ashe Day or Night sessions does not mean you can expect the same for this year!
3. Go deeper: see the FAQ “How can I predict when and where my favorite player will play?” below — it explains how to make educated guesses about who plays when and where.
How to Choose the Right Tickets and Spot Good Deals
One of the most common questions I get every year is some version of: “What’s the best ticket to buy?” The honest answer is that there are many “best” tickets — it simply depends on your priorities and what kind of experience you’re hoping to have. Some fans want the energy of being with 24,000 others in an Arthur Ashe night session. Others are happy spending an entire day roaming the grounds in the early rounds, hopping from court to court. Some want to treat someone special to courtside seats in a final round. Others want the most tennis possible for the lowest price. So the goal is simply to find the ticket that’s best for you.
Below are my top recommendations—followed by a time-saving chart I built to help you compare all the options, benchmark average prices and comparison shop, and make decisions with confidence.
Don’t miss the chance to see world-class players and great matches up close on the other courts beyond Ashe Stadium.

It was awesome seeing Ben Shelton up close for the first time in 2022 on Court #10 in Round 1 (v. Borges)
For my first US Open, I spent about $250 per ticket for a seat in the upper portion of Ashe Stadium for a night match so I’d be guaranteed to see at least one Top 10 player live. While it was certainly thrilling to experience the electricity of an evening Ashe match, I still felt somewhat distant from the action (it’s a mammoth 24,000-capacity venue) and spent much of the time watching the match on the huge video screen. Moreover, because the tournament prioritizes putting the biggest stars on Ashe over the best match-ups, the matches I saw weren’t terribly exciting.
Since then, I’ve become addicted to the unparalleled thrill of seeing many world-class competitors from a few feet away in epic duels on several of the smaller non-Ashe courts (Louis Armstrong Stadium, Grandstand Stadium, the very cool Court #17, and other outer courts #4-#16). Once you have this experience you’ll likely get addicted too. While it’s rare that you’ll see the Top 5 players on those courts, you WILL see other awe-inspiring players in very competitive matches –including seeing rising stars before they become household names, and feel the excitement of “discovering” new talent to cheer for. Over the years I’ve seen countless “next-gen” players up very close for the first time on outer courts before they were super famous — including Carlos Alcaraz, Coco Gauff, Ben Shelton, Frances Tiafoe, Madison Keys, Dominic Thiem, Sasha Zverev, Felix Auger-Aliassime, and many others.
While I recommend everyone experience Ashe Stadium at least once, I also can’t recommend more strongly that you make time to explore the opportunities to see thrilling tennis in more intimate settings on the other 16 courts.
On a tight budget but want to see a lot of tennis? Consider going during Rounds 1 and 2, and aim for an affordable Ashe Stadium (or Armstrong Stadium) DAY session ticket — often comparably priced to a Grounds Pass, but a much smarter buy.

Be sure to take in some Doubles action too. Here was Casper Ruud and his partner William Blumberg during Round 1 in 2024.
Rounds 1 and 2 (Sun–Thurs of the main tournament’s first week) are a great chance to get maximum bang for your buck. There’s so much action across the entire US Open grounds, with matches happening simultaneously on 17 courts all day — and some play stretching into the evening. Crowds are heavy but not as intense as Labor Day weekend. It’s one of my favorite times to be out there.
Many fans assume a Grounds Pass is automatically the cheapest way into the Open — but often it isn’t. Before you buy one, always compare it against Ashe and Armstrong DAY-session tickets. During Rounds 1 and 2 those are often available for a similar price (sometimes less!), and they give you everything a Grounds Pass does — early entry when the gates open in the morning, the run of the whole grounds — plus a reserved seat and rain protection (both stadiums have roofs). You may end up roaming the outer courts more than sitting in that seat — but it’s there when you want it, and it guarantees you a spot inside if one of your favorites gets scheduled in that stadium. And keep in mind: a Grounds Pass won’t get you into Ashe at all (every Ashe seat is reserved). So if having Ashe be part of your experience matters to you, a cheap Ashe day ticket in the early rounds is often the most affordable way to do it.
And because a DAY ticket lets you stay on the grounds into the evening, you’ll get hours of extra tennis on the outer courts well past 6pm — all for the price of one ticket.
If your budget can swing it, I strongly recommend getting a courtside reserved seat in Louis Armstrong stadium (especially between Sep 4 – Sep 7) and/or in Grandstand (especially on Sep 4 or Sep 5).

Me spotted on Netflix “Break Point” series cheering on Taylor Fritz and Brandon Holt at the 2022 US Open – front row during awesome match on Grandstand
As a general rule, I encourage fellow fans to budget their time and money in ways that maximize the possibility of a few magical experiences versus a ton of forgettable ones. For instance, if you’re opting between multiple days of cheap nosebleed seats in Ashe’s Upper Promenade versus applying the same budget towards excellent seats on Armstrong or Grandstand for a couple sessions, I generally recommend the latter.
Louis Armstrong (14,053 seats) and Grandstand (8,125 seats) are the other two main show courts after Ashe Stadium – and they offer a much more intimate experience. A reserved courtside ticket for either can give you access to thrilling matches and players up close that you’ll never forget.
The first time I did this in 2010 I saw an unforgettable marathon slugfest between David Ferrer and Fernando Verdasco from the first row of the old Armstrong stadium… It gave me a memory I will treasure forever. Ever since, I’ve made it an annual tradition to go with friends to get excellent courtside seats in Armstrong during the 3rd Round or Round of 16. In 2019, I got to see Matteo Berrettini crushing balls in the Round of 16 on Armstrong from the second row (and my phone exploded with texts when my friends and I were spotted on ESPN frequently cheering for him). I’ve had similar transporting experiences in Grandstand over the years – including sitting first row behind-the-server for a match between Auger-Aliassime and fellow Canadian Denis Shapovalov.
Both stadiums also feature general admission seating on a first-come basis, but getting good GA seats can be tough and involve long lines for the higher-profile matches — so having a reserved courtside ticket gives you the dual benefit of skipping long lines plus incredible proximity to the players.
If you’ve never done it, consider splurging once on a courtside Ashe seat.

Me caught on ESPN cheering very loudly for Carlitos from front row Ashe (lower left) during 2024 Round 2 (v Botic van de Zandschulp)
After dreaming for years of the possibility, I finally bit the bullet to invest in Arthur Ashe Stadium Courtside seats in 2011 for the first time. It was bliss. Ever since, I’ve made an annual pilgrimage to experience Ashe Courtside with a few close friends at least once.
What most people don’t understand about the mammoth Ashe stadium until they’ve been in person is that even Loge seating is fairly high up because (a) the stadium is very vertically oriented (seating is on a sharp incline) and (b) there are two levels of suites above Courtside before the first row of Loge even begins. So when you’re down in Courtside, you feel like you’re in another world. The feeling of being that close to greatness in Ashe’s electric atmosphere is pretty amazing.
Here’s a video I shot of Federer from the front row in 2011, the very first time I sat courtside at Ashe. I found a great deal on a resale ticket on Labor Day during the Round of 16 and got to witness Federer perfection from a few feet away. Best money I’ve ever spent.
Before you compare options, get clear on what matters most to you for this particular visit — seeing a favorite player, incredible proximity, atmosphere, the most tennis for your money, shade, flexibility, or certainty. The more familiar you become with the market, the easier it becomes to recognize real value when you see it.
Here are 4 steps to making sure you make your decision with confidence:
- Know the benefits/restrictions of each type of ticket – read “What Each US Open Ticket Type Gets You” below.
- Review the day-by-day ticket options and average prices in the chart below. It will give you valuable context for smart decisionmaking, including up-to-date price ranges of what to expect for every single ticket option plus benchmark ranges from last year’s Open.
- Comparison shop — best done on a computer. For my full step-by-step process — which sites, how to read the maps, what to avoid — see “Which ticket site should I use?” under Before You Buy below.
- Scan the topics below under “Before You Buy — Common Questions” to dive deeper into many important questions that may impact your final decision about what’s best for you.

Before You Buy — Common Questions
▸ Should I buy now or wait? Will prices go up or down?
The frustrating reality is: it depends — and it’s impossible to predict with certainty. Buying US Open tickets can be a bit like investing in the stock market: knowledge and good judgment dramatically improve your odds, but there are always surprises because so many variables are involved.
One thing many first-time buyers don’t realize is that the inventory they see today may look very different tomorrow, next week, or later in the summer. Much of the market is driven by resale, because the USTA typically makes relatively few Standard tickets (“blue dots” on Ticketmaster) available, with most inventory pre-allocated to subscribers — and even Standard tickets are dynamically priced rather than sold at a fixed “face value.” As a result, prices can move in unexpected ways.
Historically, some sessions get cheaper as more resale tickets hit the market and sellers compete, while other high-demand sessions rise substantially. Who gets scheduled on which days, courts, and sessions matters too. Last year (2025), schedulers surprised everyone by putting the blockbuster Djokovic–Alcaraz semifinal in the day session rather than at night — so day prices spiked and night prices dropped.
Resale tickets are almost always available until the last minute, so patient buyers sometimes find great deals — but waiting trades certainty for risk. The best advice I can give: familiarize yourself with typical prices for the sessions you’re considering so you can recognize a good opportunity when you see one. The chart above is built for exactly that — every option, this year’s average ranges, and last year’s day-of benchmarks (for context, not prediction). One clue: if you enlarge the Ticketmaster map and see few tickets, scarcity often signals prices may keep rising; abundant inventory often means more downward pressure.
▸ Will the tournament release more Standard tickets and Grounds Passes?
Sometimes yes — but in a completely unpredictable way. The USTA has historically released additional Standard (“blue dot”) tickets throughout the summer for some sessions, sometimes for surprisingly good seats. There has never been a reliable pattern for which sessions or ticket types get more inventory, and Grounds Pass inventory can fluctuate too. My advice: check periodically, especially in the mornings, but don’t count on it for any specific session.
▸ Will I still get good tickets if everything looks expensive right now?
Usually, yes. One of the biggest misconceptions among first-time buyers is that the inventory available when tickets first go on sale is all there will be. In reality, more resale inventory appears throughout the summer, and the USTA often releases additional standard tickets too. The market keeps evolving right up until the tournament begins — and sometimes even on the day of the matches.
▸ Which sessions are the best deals?
This varies year to year, and some of the best last-minute deals turn up when the lineups aren’t what people expected (last year, for example, a marquee semifinal landed in the day session instead of the night). Still, here are a few sessions that tend to be overlooked and have historically offered relatively good value:
- Armstrong evening courtside, week 1 — exciting under the lights in a big stadium, but demand is lower because many fans choose day-session tickets instead (understandably, since a day ticket lets you in as soon as gates open, so you can catch as much tennis as possible). The trade-off: an evening-only ticket won’t get you onto the grounds until 6pm. But it can be an affordable way to see bigger names from a far better vantage point than the upper tier of Ashe.
- Quarterfinal day sessions — the biggest-name lineups almost always go to the night sessions during the quarterfinals. With many tourists gone and locals leaning toward evenings, day tickets here are often cheaper than the Round of 16.
- Labor Day Ashe evening — historically cheaper than other Round-of-16 sessions, since many tourists have headed home and demand dips. You still get great matches, and it’s a great time to experience Ashe at night.
▸ How do I see the exact location of seats I might buy?
Use the “Map View” on Ticketmaster for any particular session provides the best reference for the exact location of specific seat(s). After you click on the session/stadium that interests you, choose Map View, then mouse over or click any of the dots to see the exact section, row, and seat number. This is also helpful if you’re comparison shopping with Stubhub or other resale sites, whose maps may only feature sections and zones and not individual seats.
KEY SEATING CHARTS AND SHADE MAPS
ARTHUR ASHE STADIUM
- NEW 2026 Arthur Ashe Seating Chart
- My NEW 2026 annotated Ashe Stadium SHADE map
- Ashe “Interactive Seat Viewer” (updated for 2026) to give you a sense of what view is like from specific seats – which from my experience tends to make seats look like they’re closer than they actually feel when you’re there, but helpful nonetheless.
Update on the Renovated Loge Section
In previous years, I recommended prioritizing the lower half of Loge when Courtside wasn’t in the budget, because even the front rows of Loge were already relatively high up. With the new design, the front rows of Loge now sit meaningfully farther from the court (only 5 of the original 13 rows of Loge remain) – so sitting in Loge is only marginally better than lower Promenade, making it hard to justify paying much of a premium.
A warning about the first row of the new Loge section: The roof of the luxury suites just below juts out like a sore thumb from the front row, both creating a visual and emotional barrier to the court. Here’s a photo I took from the new Section 231 Row A.
LOUIS ARMSTRONG STADIUM
- Louis Armstrong Stadium Seating Chart (Official)
- Louis Armstrong Chart (with my annotations)
- Armstrong Interactive “View from Seat” Map
- My annotated Armstrong Stadium SHADE map
GRANDSTAND
▸ What’s different about Ashe after the big 2026 renovation to Ashe Stadium?
A lot. 2026 brings a huge change to Ashe: a major renovation added 2,000 new Courtside seats and removed around 2,800 Loge seats to make room for the expanded courtside area and newly designed luxury suites between the Courtside and Loge levels. Promenade remains exactly the same.
My initial observations after spending a few days watching play from various sections of Ashe in 2026:
The New Courtside
- Courtside seats (even higher rows) remain qualitatively much, much better than Loge and Promenade, which now feel even more remote. Overall, though, courtside feels far less intimate. And more numbers create intense crowds in the “Club Level” corridors (where you get drinks and food).
- Noise levels are worse than ever in the stadium due to the larger numbers of people in courtside and folks in suites, many of whom are drinking heavily and carry on conversations at full voice. All it takes is a few loud conversations to spark a chain reaction: background conversations become white noise, and everyone feels permission to talk loudly.
- Gone are the days when you would be embarrassed for standing in an aisle except during changeovers. The longer stairways — coupled with the highly questionable elimination of the continuous walkway at the top of Courtside — means people take too long to get to their seats.
- The addition of two cordoned-off Courtside rows (“100A-100E”) with walkway behind the umpire chair feels, to be perfectly frank, obnoxious. One the one hand, I applaud the move to put Players’ Boxes into the first row on this side (section 100A) and directly opposite (105AA). And I understand the need to reserve parts of these rows (especially 100G) for VIPs like Billie Jean King and provide special security for them. But selling the rest of these seats to ultra-rich subscribers — many of whom skip matches in favor of hanging in suites or resell the seats at out-of-reach, exorbitant prices — is infuriating to someone like me who has spent hard-earned savings on those seats in the past and literally been moved to tears of joy and appreciation to be in them watching favorite players.
The New Loge
In previous years, I recommended prioritizing the lower half of Loge when Courtside wasn’t in the budget, because even the front rows of Loge were already relatively high up. With the new design, the front rows of Loge now sit meaningfully farther from the court (only 5 of the original 13 rows of Loge remain) – so sitting in Loge is only marginally better than lower Promenade, making it hard to justify paying much of a premium.
A warning about the first row of the new Loge section: The roof of the luxury suites just below juts out like a sore thumb from the front row, both creating a visual and emotional barrier to the court. Here’s a photo I took from the new Section 231 Row A.
I’ll update the FAQ on views from seats as soon as I can with a few more photos, but wanted to share this update in real time (Sep 3, 2026).
▸ Which seats get the most shade?
ASHE STADIUM
The roof creates a huge amount of natural shade all day for many seats. The most shade is in the South and West sections. Next-best is the North. The most sun (to avoid for Day sessions) is on the East side. See my Ashe shade map. I will update this with more details after I’ve experienced Ashe post-renovation in person during Fan Week this year.
GRANDSTAND
Much less shade overall, but South and West are again better because the sun is more at your back. GA seats higher under the overhang — especially the Southwest corner — get the most.
ARMSTRONG STADIUM
Sections 1–8 (South and West) are best overall for shade, with Section 2 the best (in shade all day). Sections 11-16 (East) are the worst and sit in direct afternoon sun (however the top couple of rows are shaded all day due to the overhang from the upper deck). See this basic overview of the Armstrong shade pattern – then see these additional photos showing how various sections are impacted throughout the day. Additional details:
- Section 1 is fully shaded until around 12:30pm, then some rows and some seats in the first 8-10 rows start getting some sun). See this photo.
- Sections 17-18: Fully shaded until around 12:30pm, then lower rows start getting sun. By about 2:15, many of the first 8-10 rows (rows E-O) are getting sun – see this photo and this photo. By 3pm a few more rows in 17 and 18 get sun – see this photo. By around 4pm (not sure exact time) all of 17 and 18 are shaded completely again
- Sections 3-8 (West side/Chair umpire side) is in full sun at 11am, but the shade gradually moves down to blanket more and more rows such that by 12:30pm the top 10 rows (appx) are in shade and by around 1pm all seats are fully shaded.
- The last 2 rows in the lower bowl around the entire stadium stay shaded (under the overhang from the upper bowl).
- Sections 8-11: Rows U and above are always shaded, most other seats always in direct sun.
▸ Which sections and seats have the best views?
Most people consider “behind the server” seats (the North or South ends of the court) the best — and prices reflect it. For first-timers, that’s my top recommendation. It’s the angle used for broadcast: you can follow point construction and see the court from the perspective of the player on your side of the net, without moving your head side to side. Here’s a photo of the same perspective (from higher up seats) in Armstrong. Here’s another photo from Ashe courtside front row.
Corner sections are also widely considered to be highly desirable — and for good reason. They carry many of the same advantages of the above, with the added benefit you can see the player on your side of the net from the front as their hitting the ball not just the back. Here’s a photo from the new Armstrong from that perspective.
As a serious player myself, I personally love sitting courtside as close as possible in lower rows of sections where seats are practically on the court, perpendicular and near to the actual baseline (e.g., section 120 in renovated Ashe) because it gets me physically even closer to the players and more on the same level. Sitting in the lower rows, I feel even more like I’m on the court with them. I feel the speed of the game. In these seats, I personally enjoy watching one player at a time sometimes to see their footwork, how they prepare for the next ball, etc. Here’s a photo from Ashe courtside from that perspective.
For Loge or Promenade in Ashe, I generally recommend the lowest rows you can get regardless of location, since Loge — and especially Promenade — are already quite high up.
For Day sessions, factor in shade (West, Southwest, and Northwest get the most relief; see the shade question above). The umpire chair is never a real obstruction, but in very low rows on that side it can be a minor annoyance.
▸ Which seats in Promenade have obstructed views?
There are a handful of specific seats worth avoiding in Promenade based on reader reports in the comments over the years and posts on “View from my Seat.” Two recommendations based on every obstruction complaint I’ve ever heard about the Promenade:
1. Avoid aisle seats in Promenade rows A-E (due to large glass safety panels at the bottom of aisle stairways).
At the bottom of every aisle staircase, there’s a clear safety panel (with a metal support bar) to keep people from stumbling over the ledge. These sit at the ends of the rows, all the way around the stadium. If you’re in one of the first several rows (roughly A through E) AND in the seat or two directly beside an aisle, that glass and bar can cut right across your view of the court. Fans report this year after year, always in the same spots: the aisle-adjacent seats in the low rows. A few rows up, or a few seats over, and the problem disappears. The added bonus of skipping these seats: you’ll avoid fans walking up and down the aisles (which they’re only allowed to do in Promenade).
2. Unless you are fairly tall, avoid Row A in Promenade due to the metal safety rail. The front row of the Promenade has a horizontal rail along it. For many adults it’s a non-issue — you see right over it. But if you’re on the shorter side, or bringing kids, the rail can sit annoyingly close to your sightline to the near baseline. My advice for most folks is to avoid the first row altogether. Rows B and C give you virtually the same view with zero rail, and Row A’s extra legroom probably isn’t worth the tradeoff.
Check out photos from other fans of particular seats in Promenade at “View from my Seat.”
Note: I am not able yet to address questions about structural obstructions in the newly renovated Courtside and Loge sections – I’ll update after I’m there this year.
▸ Day session or evening — which is the better value?
For most fans, day sessions offer better overall value. You’ll typically get more tennis, more scheduling flexibility, and grounds access from morning until late evening. Evening sessions often feature big names and a special atmosphere under the lights, but you’re usually paying for fewer matches. Which is “better” comes down to whether you care more about the quantity of tennis or the energy of a showcase night session.
▸ Is a Grounds Pass worth it?
Sometimes — but usually not. Many fans assume a Grounds Pass is automatically the best value; often it isn’t. Before buying one, always compare prices for Ashe and Armstrong day-session tickets. If they’re available for a similar price, you get all the same grounds-access privileges plus a reserved seat and valuable rain protection from the stadium roofs.
▸ Should I buy a subscription or multi-session plan?
For most serious fans, I don’t recommend it. Most multi-session and first-time subscription plans are only for Promenade seats — so high up in that huge stadium that you’ll watch much of the match on the Jumbotron or through binoculars. It can take years to upgrade to Loge (only available with the very expensive full-series plan). For the price of a full-series plan (well over $2,000 each) you could buy several amazing seats across the tournament — or two excellent seats for the Men’s Final. And there’s always a glut of Promenade Ashe seats on the resale market, so an entire series of Promenade seats can be hard to resell.
▸ Which ticket site should I use? How to comparison shop?
Start with Ticketmaster, then compare resale. My process:
- Consult 2026 US Open Ticket Options and Average Prices: How to Spot a Good Deal to learn the average price ranges for the sessions you care about.
- Always check the official Ticketmaster US Open site first — on a computer for the fastest navigation. Use “map view” (click any section), try different sortings, and use multiple tabs to compare sessions. Ticketmaster shows both Standard tickets (“blue dots” — face value, most often Promenade, occasionally Loge/Courtside) and resale tickets (“red dots”). Surprisingly, resale red dots are often the best value, because resellers undercut each other. Tickets stay on sale up to 59 minutes after a session starts if inventory remains, and both Ticketmaster and StubHub make it easy to relist if your plans change (you need a US bank account to re-list on Ticketmaster).
- Compare availability and prices with StubHub and any other preferred resellers to see if you can find an even better deal for comparable seats. Other sites I’ve never had any problems with include Viagogo, VividSeats, SeatGeek, or Ticket Liquidator. I personally no longer recommend TickPick after two very poor experiences. My “2026 US Open Ticket Options” chart linked above links directly to every specific Ticketmaster and StubHub session ticket option.
- Only buy resale tickets that specify the exact Section, Row, and Seat (or seat range) matching the stadium seat maps in this post. Double-check what you receive matches what was advertised; reputable resellers refund a misrepresented ticket (but then it’s on you to find another).
- Never buy off Craigslist or classified sites — too many scams, and NYC law bans “scalping” within 1,500 feet of the venue (effectively everywhere off the subway), with undercover police on site.
- Going with friends? Consider buying a mix of cheap and amazing seats and trading off time in the great one (Promenade vs. Courtside, or across stadiums) — I do this every year. All tickets are mobile-only; if you don’t have a smartphone, Ticketmaster customer service can move yours to Will Call.
- For package deals (tickets + hotel/transport/VIP), trusted options include Championship Tennis Tours, Grand Slam Tennis Tours, and Steve Furgal’s International Tennis Tours.
▸ Are resale ticket sites safe?
Generally, yes — provided you use reputable marketplaces. In some cases resale tickets are actually better values than standard tickets, because sellers compete on price. Before buying, always verify the section, row, and seat numbers, and make sure the ticket is clearly marked for mobile transfer.
▸ How can I predict when — and where — my favorite player will play?
While you can never be absolutely sure whether your favorite player will be scheduled for a Day or Night session (or on which court) until the Schedule of Play is released the day prior to matches, you CAN predict which DATE your favorite players will play if they advance after the Round 1 schedule is announced. Here’s a chart showing which players would play on which days after Round 1 if they advance (based on the pattern from the first two days of Round 1).
To be absolutely sure you see your favorite player, consider waiting until the schedule is published the day prior (start checking frequently early afternoon, usually out by 5:00pm), then immediately go to the official Ticketmaster US Open site or other resale sites like Stubhub to grab a resale ticket. This strategy requires, however, that you monitor the ticket situation closely in the days prior and are prepared to act immediately when the schedule is announced. Also, if you see tickets becoming scarce and prices going up in the days prior, you may conclude it’s worth taking a chance and purchasing based on an educated guess.
Another way to see your favorite player up close is to watch them when they’re scheduled for practice on the practice courts. See Tip #9
- Only the biggest superstars (like Carlos Alcaraz and Coco Gauff) are sure to be scheduled on Ashe – others might be scheduled on Armstrong, Grandstand, or field courts. Schedulers have been known to put even the #1-ranked player in the world on Armstrong or Grandstand, as they did in 2021 with then #1 Simona Halep during Round 1 (on Grandstand) and then #2 Aryna Sabalenka (Armstrong).
- There’s never any sure way to predict whether players will be scheduled for DAY or NIGHT sessions. Officials try to spread the wealth and be fair to players by alternating players between Day and Night sessions. Contrary to popular belief, they do not always schedule the biggest stars at night. The one exception to this is Quarterfinals, when biggest stars are almost always scheduled for the night sessions.
- For Men’s Semifinals, we learned last year (2025) never to assume that the biggest starpower matches would be put on the Night session: they shocked everyone and put the Alcaraz v Djokovic match on during the Day session, and Sinner v Auger-Aliassime at night.
How to Get the Most of Your Visit
The night before you go, check the Schedule of Play
1. Download the official US Open Everywhere App (search “2026 US Open Tennis”) for the latest schedule, scores, and live updates. I also recommend SI.com’s tennis page for terrific day-to-day coverage and analysis.
2. Be sure to check the Schedule of Play here (or on the App) to identify the matches that most interest you and build your plan around that.
3. If you are targeting the first match of the day on either Grandstand or Armstrong and if you don’t have a reserved seat, aim to get in line early at either the East Gate (for Armstrong) or South Gate (for Grandstand) so you can be among the first to enter when gates open at 9:30am. Then speed-walk over and grab the best seat you can.
4. If you’re a player, you might be interested in reading my ten ideas for watching a pro match to help improve your own game— some of the ways I challenge myself to watch live tennis more deliberately from the perspective of a player who wants to improve.
Check out the practice courts for close sightings of the superstars
Check the practice schedule here (or on the US Open App) the night before and the morning of your day at the Open. Note: the best time to see top players practice without fighting as many crowds is during the Fan Week (see Tip 1).
Don’t drive unless you really have to — here’s how to get there
My top recommendation is to take the Long Island Railroad (LIRR) to “Mets-Willets Point.”
It’s super fast (under 20 minutes from midtown Manhattan) and drops you literally steps from the US Open’s East Gate. You can take it from either Moynihan Train Hall (8th Avenue between West 31st-33rd) or Grand Central. Look for “Port Washington” train on the monitors (signage may say “GREAT NECK” or “PORT WASHINGTON” — double-check the train number.) See 2026 LIRR schedule here. Download the MTA TrainTime app to purchase tickets. Important: the Mets-Willets LIRR stop is NOT accessible for fans with disabilities — exit instead at Woodside/61st St and transfer to the 7 train (or just take the 7 to Mets-Willets Point).
The subway #7 train is also a convenient (and the least expensive) option.
Takes a bit longer, but runs 24 hours. Stops include Grand Central. Download the MTA App for train time and routes. If you must drive: See the US Open’s driving directions and parking details. Plan extra time when the Mets are home (Aug 24-30 and Sep 4-6); I recommend arriving no later than 8:30am on Mets’ dates to be on the safe side. A good alternate parking option is the Shops at Skyview – about a 10-minute walk to the East Gate (and you can reserve a spot in advance for a discounted rate here). Consider buying a resale parking pass on StubHub for a specific lots. Fellow fan Harry notes street parking under or south of Highway 495 is viable if you don’t mind a walk.
Thinking of using UBER/ LYFT/ TAXI? They’re great getting out to the Open – but can be a nightmare coming back after a night session.
To the Open, set the destination to “Billie Jean King National Tennis Center” (drops near the South Gate) or “Mets-Willets Point” (near the 7 train, then walk the footbridge to the East Gate). After a night session, be ready for long waits and heavy surge pricing — thousands of people will be trying to do the same. Alternatives: reserve a car service in advance (I’ve used Riverside), take the LIRR or 7 into Manhattan and hail a cab there, or hail under the 7 train on Roosevelt Ave (or use the Curb app).
Consider staying nearby in Queens and walking or biking.
Fellow fan Mark stayed at an Airbnb on Queens Boulevard about 2 miles away: flat terrain, good bike lanes, and bike racks across from the South Gate — “a fun and hassle-free way to make the commute.”
Coming directly from Laguardia?
It’s only a 9-minute cab ride — or take the Q48 public bus to the “Roosevelt Av/Willets Pt” stop (around 30 minutes). You can check your bag at the US Open before you enter the grounds.
More Common Questions - Good to Know Before You Go
▸ What can I bring — and what’s not allowed? (No backpacks!)
Be sure to review this official complete list of prohibited items before going! To help clarify some common confusions:
- You CAN bring a drawstring bag (click here for example) but NOT a backpack with two straps
- You CAN bring a digital camera with video capabilities (however they do NOT allow “Video cameras or recording devices”, which includes GoPros)
- You CAN bring a plastic or metal water bottle 24 oz or less to refill on site (but NOT anything glass!)
- You CAN bring a fanny pack: but if you do you’ll still need to go through the “with bag” security line
- You CAN bring sunscreen in lotion form only, NOT aerosol cans
- According to the US Open bot on the website: “Outside food or beverages (excluding alcohol) CAN be brought into the US Open grounds, but must fit into one sized bag. There are no exceptions.”
- There is storage outside both East and South Gate entrances if you need it: (in 2025 it was $10 per locker, $20 for large items including suitcases). Bag check for American Express cardholders is discounted (1 bag per card).
Be prepared to wait in a potentially long security line if you have any bag at all (i.e. an enclosed object that doesn’t fit in your clothes), whereas you can breeze through a separate express line for those without bags.
Before Leaving, Don’t Forget…
- Download your mobile tickets to your mobile wallet (e.g. Apple Wallet or something like WalletPasses on Android)
- Sunglasses and sunscreen (lotion not spray)! If you forget, La Roche offers free samples just inside the EAST gate entrance.
- A backup phone charger (e.g. a Mophie) if you have one – although there are Chase-sponsored free chargers on site.
- A lightweight white towel (and/or lightweight neck gaiter) to protect exposed skin from sun or to sit on when in unreserved seats, which can get hot and uncomfortable.
- Reusable plastic water bottle (to refill using any of the many water fountains).
- A small umbrella if rain may be in the forecast
- Dress in layers as it can get hot during the day and occasionally chilly at night
- Contacts wearers: A very small bottle of contact lens solution in case you get something in your eye
- FYI: There are two entrances to the grounds: (1) the main entrance, the “East Gate,” located near the Subway/LIRR; and (2) the “South Gate” entrance near the iconic World’s Fair “Unisphere” (globe) – see map above. While lines tend to be shorter by the South Gate, the wait may end up being about the same because there are fewer attendants and metal detectors.
▸ Can I exit and re-enter the US Open grounds?
DAY SESSION ENTRY TO US OPEN GROUNDS (Gates open usually 9:30 most days, 11:00am Finals weekend)
- With either a Grounds Pass (Day) or a DAY-session reserved ticket in Ashe, Armstrong, or Grandstand), you can enter the US Open grounds as soon as gates open (usually 9:30am, 11am on Finals weekend)
- Enter the US Open Grounds through security with your ticket scanned at the East Gate or South Gate; if you have a reserved stadium seat, your ticket is re-checked entering that stadium. Once you enter the US Open grounds with any ticket, you can stay as late as you want until closing.
- Note: DAY-session reserved tickets for Ashe or Armstrong only entitles you to that seat for the Day-session matches — after which you will have to leave your seat but can remain on the US Open grounds and access general unreserved seating on every court except Ashe (which has no unreserved seating).
- You can exit the grounds and re-enter as much as you’d like before 6:00pm (you can’t re-enter the Grounds after 6:00pm).
EVENING SESSION ENTRY (6:00pm)
- If you only have an Evening session ticket, you have to wait until 6:00pm to enter the grounds.
- If you are already in the grounds and also hold an Evening reserved tickets (for Ashe or Armstrong) for the same day, you do NOT need to exit and re-enter the grounds.
- If you’re in Armstrong for the Day session (courtside or GA), you’ll leave your seat between sessions while they clean, but you can stay in the Armstrong concourse.
▸ What if it rains?
The good news: since both Arthur Ashe and the new Louis Armstrong have roofs, far more fans can keep watching even
if it rains.
The bad news: if you’ve invested in Grandstand seats or just a Grounds Pass, there’s less consolation. Keep in mind weather forecasts are notoriously unreliable and change by the hour — there’s always hope showers pass quickly.
In the rare event of an all-day rainout (or under 60 minutes of play), the session may be rescheduled to the next day and your ticket honored then — or, if you bought directly from Ticketmaster, you may be able to trade tickets for another session this year or next (see the US Open’s somewhat complicated 2026 Inclement Weather Policy).
Worst case, look for the silver lining: you’ll be among thousands of fans you can grab a specialty cocktail with, huddle under shelter, and watch an Ashe match together on the big screen.
▸ Is grounds admission free on the second Thursday (Sep 10)?
One of the best-kept secrets: for years the US Open has quietly offered free grounds admission on the second Thursday of the main tournament (gates usually open 11am or noon; you must arrive before 5pm) — a chance to see the Men’s Doubles Semifinals plus all-star wheelchair players, the world’s top juniors, and standout collegiate players.
If you’re a serious fan — especially a doubles player — this is a day not to be missed.
▸ Food
FOOD: There are a bunch of options on site, but they aren’t cheap! See my chart outlining examples of the food stands by area on the grounds.
- This PDF includes several menus from past Food Village stands. Every year there are some new additions and substitutions, but many of these will still be around in 2026.
- Korilla BBQ is one of my favorites, but lines are usually among the longest.
- Poke Yachty is absolutely delicious and lines move quickly because they’ve nailed their system.
- Oyster Bar behind Grandstand has killer ceviches and lobster rolls.
- Hill Country BBQ, Curry Kitchen, Fish Shack and Fly Fish are also delicious.
- Restaurants in Queens not on the grounds
▸ What are perks for cardholders?
- AMERICAN EXPRESS CARDHOLDERS: Bring your Amex card if you have one! See full Amex Benefits at US Open here. Perks from 2025 likely to be repeated in 2026:
- (1) Amex Card Member Lounge on the 2d Level of the Amex “Fan Experience” (where anyone can also play a “Glow Tennis” mixed reality interactive game and get a complimentary manicure with tennis themed nail art).
- (2) Centurion Suite in Armstrong (Exclusive to Platinum and Centurion Members). Book in advance on Resy
- (3) Book complimentary court time in NYC area at over 500 tennis and pickleball courts and unlock special access to peak reservation times when using your Amex.
- (4) Check your bag for a reduced fee at East or South Gate
- (5) Get a one-time $20 statement credit when you spend $100 with your enrolled card at participating US Open merchants
- (6) Get a free earpiece/radio to hear ESPN match commentary
- (7) Skip lines and grab concession items quickly (checkout-free shopping) at the Amex Shop in South Plaza .
- CHASE CUSTOMERS? Check this Chase site for updates on perks for 2026.
- Click here to make a reservation to access the “Chase Lounge”
- Other past perks have included offering cool video+mobile “Chase Charge & Watch” chargers
▸ Recommended places to stay?
This is not an area of expertise for me, but I trust fellow tennis fanatic Melissa, who maintains a great list of hotels appealing to all budgets here.
Fellow fan Mark recommends staying in Queens and biking, based on his experience: “We packed our bikes and stayed at a nice AirB&B on Queens Boulevard, a little over 2 miles from the stadium. Queens has a great network of dedicated bike lanes and a friendly attitude toward bikers, and best of all – the terrain is flat! Once at the grounds, there are bike racks across from the South Gate entrance and in front of the security tent that handles baggage claim. It is a fun and hassle-free way to make the commute for anyone that so inclined!”
▸ Grounds access on Finals Weekend?
Grounds Admission tickets usually get issued at some point over the summer for Finals Weekend (Fri-Sun Sep 11-13) on Ticketmaster.
You can’t access Ashe with these tickets, but you can walk the grounds, see juniors and wheelchair finals, and watch Ashe matches on the big screens.
Final Tip: Pay It Forward When You Can
If you have the opportunity, consider a random act of kindness for fellow fans during the tournament. Our tennis community is big, but in a way it’s small — and our passion is infectious; do something kind for someone today, and they’re likely to pay it forward.
For instance, if you’re leaving your great Ashe (or Armstrong or Grandstand) seat for the day/night while matches are still going, as you exit consider consider gifting it to a fan who’s waiting outside the entrance hoping someone like you might offer. Giving someone on grounds your seat when you’re done isn’t as easy as it used to be, given tightened Ticketmaster restrictions preventing transferring after the ticket is scanned and preventing screenshots from within the Ticketmaster app… But with a little creativity and effort you can pretty easily make it happen, and the gesture might create a lifelong memory for someone else. Here’s how:
- Take a screenshot of your ticket in your phone’s WALLET (Ticketmaster will block screenshots from within the app).
- For Armstrong or Grandstand, simply text someone else the screenshot and it should hopefully suffice.
- For Ashe:
- If gifting to someone already IN the stadium, a screenshot from your wallet should suffice — including if you’re leaving the Courtside/Club level area entrance and you want someone already in Ashe to benefit from your seat (from Loge or Promenade.
- If gifting to someone already in the Open grounds but not in Ashe already: You’d need to walk with them to the Ashe entrance, re-scan your ticket (telling the ticket scanner that you’re letting your friend go to your seat) AND give them a screenshot (which they’ll need to show to ushers or for entry to Club level); OR you’d need to walk with the friend(s) as if you were going to re-enter with them, hand the friend your phone to get scanned, then have the friend discreetly pass the phone back after they are “in” (then just turn around as though you changed your mind about entering themselves at this time).
I’ve gifted a lot of tickets over the years, and it always feels wonderful.












PJ, thank you so much for this incredible resource. I am hoping to go to the Open for the first time this year. We are looking at Section 121, in Ashe, Row B, for a day session in Round 3 (Friday). Is $250 or so a reasonable price? We are really struggling to benchmark accurately, and I’m sure there is no perfect formula. I also wanted to ask if you would recommend a seat along the sidelines (courtside) one of the earlier days, vs. just getting a seat behind the baseline (but likely in Loge given price)? Thank you, we… Read more »
Hi Sachin, thank you for your kind words of appreciation – they mean a lot! That does seem to be a very good price based on what we’re seeing right now (I see other comparable seats for $400+. For comparison, I recommend clicking on the “seat map” view (click on the section number until it expands and you can see individual seats) then mouse over other comparable seats to see the going rate. For Ashe, I usually recommend first factoring in shade (during day sessions – see my Ashe shade map and FAQ#4) and prioritizing whichever seats are in the… Read more »
PJ! Blog has been awesome. Just trying to go the first two days of the tourny to get the most tennis. You think most likely tickets for Ashe will have better prices for those two days in the coming weeks?
Hi Korbyn, thanks! It’s always hard to predict – but when you look at the session map and see how many seats are currently up for sale, it helps make educated guesses. If you see a ton of blue-dot, face-value seats available– and resale tickets being offered for less than face-value price — chances are prices will stay low for that session or decline; in contrast, if you don’t see a lot of face-value tickets available, chances are resellers may try to keep prices high. Wish I could give more certainty! P.J.
Thanks PJ. Another question for you. Are you able to move down to empty seats at Ashe during the match? Or do they watch that pretty closely?
Hi Korbyn, it depends on the section and the personality of the individual usher responsible for that section 🙂 I’ve seen a few very vigilant ones, but most can’t monitor that carefully. It’s generally pretty easy to move down to empty seats within the same section you have tickets in – but not easy to move from one section to another or one level to another (e.g. from a Promenade section to a Loge seat) unless there are a ton of empty seats. It’s virtually impossible to access Courtside level without a Courtside level ticket. Fellow fan Courtney summed it… Read more »
Hi PJ. Do you know if the concrete barriers at the first rows of loge and promenade are hard to see over or around?
Hi Korbyn, not that I’ve experienced – and I’ve sat in first row of both sections. There are, in some cases (seats by stairways) plastic transparent barriers that can be a minor annoyance, but not a big deal. Anyone else have opinions on this? PJ
Any recommendations re daytime travel from Newark Liberty Airport to Midtown? Incidentally, the roadto45tennis blog is a tour de force. As well-written as it is comprehensive. Thanks, P.J.
Hey Dave, really appreciate the very kind words, thank you! “The Points Guy” website outlines the options from Newark (EWR) to Manhattan very well here; as does this site. I have to admit I always just cab it myself when I’m flying in and out of Newark for work, so I can’t offer any strong recs for other options. Other readers? P.J.
Very informative blog.
Do you think tickets will be very available because of the travel ban?
I just buy the grounds admission for 7 days and walk around and enjoy the atmosphere.
thanks
Seattle
Hi Chris, thank you. It’s hard to predict ticket demand relative to previous years, but looks like it will be very strong despite travel restrictions. P.J.
Hi ,PJ! Your blog is so informative and it helps me a lot when I chose the seats. Thank you! I have one question about the first round evening session at AA stadium. I found a ticket at Loge 134, row D with a price of 180 (tax and fees included). Do you think if it is a good price? I saw the face price for similar seats in 2019 is 135$, correct? I have bought ticket for men final and one semi-final. Now I am looking on the first round ticket to make sure I can see Roger on… Read more »
Hi Alex, that is a reasonable price (there are several others currently on resale that are just as good if not better, and likely to be more deals in weeks ahead) — However before you pull the trigger on a first-round ticket be sure to read carefully my “FAQ #1” above. There is no way to predict whether Federer will play on Day 1 or 2 yet, or whether they’ll schedule him for a Day or Night session. We’ll only know this after they release the Day 1 and 2 schedule on the Friday prior (Aug 27). P.J.
Hello. Do you know if you can upgrade a grounds pass (Ticketmaster, non-resale) to an Ashe ticket? I think I did at the physical box office years ago but I’m not sure. Can’t find that info online and there’s no one on chat/phone.
Hi Mary, yes, unless they change any policies for this year you can upgrade tickets at the box office on site (at the East Gate entrance to the left of the security lines) if tickets are available and pay the difference in value. P.J.
Thank you so much!
Hi
Thanks a lot for the amazing article. It’s incredibly helpful for first timers like me.
I will be flying in from SFO and would love to see a Federer’s match. Can you please recommend a ticket booking plan (how and when) considering that I have to make travel plans in advance?
Also, is 250$ decent enough for a good viewing of Federer’s match?
Thanks for all the help. You are the best!!!
Hi Virat, you’re most welcome! Check out my FAQ #1 for my thoughts on how I think about strategizing to see specific players like Federer. I do think you should target the first two days, when tickets are likely to be most affordable – but for reasons I outline, there’s no way to predict which of the 4 sessions he’ll play in. You’d need to buy Day and Night sessions on Day 1 and 2 to be sure… If you can wait until the Friday before and plan to keep refreshing the schedule page until when Day 1 and 2… Read more »
Always good information on this website. Have purchased tickets on the AmEx presale and avoided the overpriced resale tickets by using the desktop version of the ticketmaster seating selection not the mobile app version. Travel restrictions for foreign tennis fans will leave a larger supply of tickets for USA based fans and that will factor into the resale pricing. The USTA will have to advertise unsold tickets if many of the USA players don’t go past the 2nd or 3rd rounds. I usually go to 2 days of qualifiers and know that is when the fans can mingle the most… Read more »
Hey PJ!
Quick question re: Quarterfinals. Any idea how much you expect Loge tickets to be for Day/Night? (not re-sale but regular ticketmaster).
Thanks!!
Courtney
Hey Courtney! In 2019, standard prices were in the following range for the Tues-Wed of QF:
DAY: Loge $160-$300; Courtside $580-$730
EVENING: Loge $220-$500; Courtside $580-1950
I don’t expect them to raise prices much beyond the above if at all for this year. We should have a better sense tomorrow.
P.J.
Thanks, I guess we will see shortly. I’m always tempted to buy official tickets for sessions now without waiting to see who’s playing, but then I remind myself I could end up paying $200 for a session with players I wouldn’t even watch on TV at home!
Hi PJ,
I came across this blog and it is a huge help to me as a first timer. My friend and I have a relatively low budget under $200 and we plan to go for the day session in labor day weekend. I am wondering if it is possible to get courtside reserved seats in the Louis Armstrong stadium, even higher rows are good. If not possible, how about Grandstand? What are your suggestions to get best out of it under this budget limit? TIA
Hey Tom, great to hear it’s been helpful. In 2019, standards tickets for Armstrong on Sat and Sun started at $230 (top rows) and best seats started at $390; there were relatively few great resale seats available, many in upper $400 range. Grandstand: lowest resales in 2019 for those dates were around $150/160; resales were relatively few and steep prices for best seats. I would caution patience and keep monitoring (don’t rush tomorrow if you don’t see what you need) – you should be able to find something in either stadium as we get closer, especially Grandstand. If you go… Read more »
We will be flying in from Ca. Our first stay in the queens area, and first time at the US Open. Likely flying into LGA. Would you suggest a rental car, or is there enough public transportation to get around?
Hi Michelle, that’s actually kind of a tough question and I don’t have a firm recommendation… Getting from LGA to your hotel or the open will be a breeze. It’s getting back to your hotel in evenings that’s the question. Is your hotel near a 7 train subway stop (see 7 train)? If so, I’d recommend public transportation. Otherwise there’s no simple answer. Ubers from the Open at night are a nightmare. Parking isn’t a breeze either, but if the choice is parking lot over Uber I’d probably choose renting a car and parking. P.J.
Michelle,
Most of the hotels in the area of LGA pick up and drop off at LGA so you don’t need a car to get back and forth from the airport to your hotel. The hotels near LGA and Flushing near the site pick up and drop off several times a day and night to the tourney. The hotels we have stayed at even came out after midnight to pick us up after a late match.
Super helpful, Tamara, thank you!
Thank you this is awesome. Should we buy Sat or Sunday Sept 4 or 5 or Monday round of 16. Three of us. High school daughter plays tennis. Thanks so much h. Also evening or day tickets. Thanks so much.
Hi Liz, so many variables and depends a lot on your budget… But if I had to choose one single session on one single day to give a serious tennis player like your daughter a great experience, I’d choose courtside Louis Armstrong tickets for Monday Labor Day (consult my shade map and target lower 1/2 of seats): see the 2019 schedule Day 8 for example of what you would see. A lot of amazing tennis up very close. No, you won’t see Federer, Serena, Nole, Rafa, Naomi… But you will see other well-known players and some great matches. P.J.
Thank you so much. We had not thought of that. We are totally ok not seeing Federer etc. More interested in great tennis. You truly are great for doing this. My daughter and I appreciate it so much.
My pleasure! I hope you all have an incredible time! PJ
Hi P.J.! Thank you for the excellent blog. This year will be our first time buying our own tickets, but we’ve been to 5 opens before… just wanted to get your thoughts on our gameplan. We (2 people) are going to be in new york from thursday night to tuesday morning, and we wanted to attend 2 full days and 1 evening of play. Our idea was to go to grandstand courtside for the day/evening sessions on Friday, LA courtside for day/evening sessions on Sunday, and Ashe evening on Monday? Do you think those are the best days to go… Read more »
Hi there, that sounds like a fantastic approach given that you are both serious players! You’ll have a great day of 3d round matches on Friday at Grandstand (more reasonable pricing on Fri than Saturday); Sunday at Armstrong is just one session (no night session), so you get more bang for the buck during Round of 16 (albeit probably just one men’s R16 match); and Monday evening Ashe tends to have some of the best deals over the weekend. I would probably aim for around $175-200/ticket for Grandstand Friday; $275-300/ticket for Armstrong Sunday; and whatever remains towards best Loge seats… Read more »
Hi PJ,
thank you so much for this helpful article. There are 3 of us hoping to attend our first US open and will be flying in from Hawaii. What are your recommendations on threesome tickets? We are hoping for lower loge Arthur Ashe seats rounds 3 and 4 (we really just want to see the big 3). Would it be better to split up (buy 2 seats together and a single one separately)? Or are threesomes easy to come by? I have not seen a lot of options for 3 on Ticketmaster thus far. Thank you so much
Hey Krystal, you’re most welcome. Right now during pre-sale options are limited — I’m pretty sure you’ll see many more options to purchase 3 together in the weeks ahead – although I’d certainly keep open the possibility of doing 2+1 for some of the sessions in case that opens up lower-cost options (e.g. if a seller has priced a single ticket a bit lower, or if for instance a couple standard non-resale seats pop up and you can grab those plus one resale ticket near them). P.J.
Hi PJ,
I am confused whether session 17 9/8 12PM, will it include only Men’s/Women’s Quarter finals or Will it also include Men/Women’s doubles as well ?
Thanks a bunch for sharing the insights!
Hi Tanay, my pleasure. The Ashe sessions Day and Night will each include 1 Men’s QF and 1 Women’s QF. Doubles matches will be played on Armstrong. P.J.
Hey PJ thanks for the awesome guide. I am planning on doing the Day Session Saturday 9/3 and I am between the Amrstrong and Grandstand reserved courtside seats. I am going with my wife and 2 other couples… I am tempted to buy tickets now since we all want to sit together and don’t want seats to sell out but also don’t want to rush into anything based on your advice here.
Do you think I should wait for better options and pricing or would it be best to go ahead and buy now during the presale?
Hey Daniel, you’re so welcome. Personally, I would definitely hold out (which is what I’m doing myself). Right now, all that’s available for that day is resale tickets and there will absolutely be more resellers posting their tickets for resale in weeks ahead – meaning more competition among sellers and almost certainly some better deals appearing. In addition, there’s always a chance that the US Open will release some standard non-resale tickets this Thursday and/or in the weeks ahead. Every year I have to remind myself to be more patient – but that’s been the right call for me time… Read more »
Hi PJ, Like previous years, this year also I am visiting your page for all the required info on US open and THANK YOU SO MUCH for keeping this up to date every year. I have a question if you can help: I was planning to book men’s singles final tickets today in amex presale but ticket price is huge around $400 ea minimum. Do you know if it will go down in the following week maybe within $300? My next choice is men’s singles semifinal day session ticket since tickets are cheaper. My question is if I buy them… Read more »
Hey Sandipan, that’s amazing to hear- thank you very very much! On Men’s Final prices — with the caveat that it’s impossible to predict and I can only share my best guess — I would expect at least some upper promenade seats to become available closer to $300 in the weeks ahead. This is because more people will try to resell tickets in the weeks ahead, so competition among resellers will increase and better deals are likely to emerge. Which is why I generally suggest that folks don’t rush into buying decisions during the pre-sale or even on Thursday UNLESS… Read more »
Thanks PJ for your suggestions. I waited for the Individual ticket sale on July 15 and was able to secure 4 tickets for men’s singles semifinal/men’s doubles final day session tickets, I got Sec 323 Row F @$255 ea plus additional fees. Will keep monitoring the men’s singles final tickets until the last moment if prices drop below $300 😉
btw, are you planning to come to Boston for the Laver Cup
That’s awesome news, congrats and thanks for letting me know! I unfortunately can’t get to Laver Cup this year – planning a big conference in October so will be working round the clock in September. But I went when it was in Chicago and it was AWESOME. You will have a great time!! P.J.
I guess I should ask your advice on my previous thought — if you obviously would adore to watch the absolute top-tier players but genuinely would love to see 40 vs 50 go to 5, put a premium on proximity to the court, etc., what would you recommend? It’s true that if you get say a Grandstand ticket it doesn’t preclude you from going to the outer courts, but of course you can’t be two places at once. Separately — is there a definitive schedule of play for the various events? Love all forms of tennis but probably wouldn’t want… Read more »
Hey Jake, I’ve taken a stab to outline the overall tournament schedule at the bottom of my Box #1 above (a bit messy, I need to re-do this at some point!) – but my best recommendation is to look at the 2019 Daily Schedule of Play for whichever days you’re contemplating to have a good indication of what to expect on each court. P.J.
PJ, this is spectacular, thank you! A quick question — I know you recommended against Ground Passes but I am a pretty keen tennis watcher (e.g. I watch 500s, even some latter rounds of 250s) and I feel pretty confident I would love even ‘lesser’ matches, especially as close up as you get at the outer courts. Given that, would it still be unwise to buy the ground pass tickets during the presale for $65 for the earlier days/$75/$85 as the tournament progresses? I put somewhat of a value on risk aversion/not having to plan later, but if the tickets… Read more »
Hey Jake, thank you! I wouldn’t worry about grabbing grounds passes for Mon-Thurs right now – there should be plenty for weeks more (if 2019 is any guide). Grounds for Fri-Sun of Labor Day weekend is a different story – more pressure on those. I would keep looking in weeks ahead to see if you can score a resale ticket in Ashe for less: that way, you have all the benefits of grounds PLUS ability to go into Ashe if you want to see a particular player AND rain insurance. P.J.
Hi PJ, this is a great site. I have learned so much from it. So I bought tickets for September 7 at Armstrong. My mobile ticket says session 17 Men’s and Women’s quarterfinals. According to this site, it will be doubles. Does my ticket mean Men’s and women’s doubles quarterfinals? Thank you.
Hey Tim, thanks a million! The mobile ticket headline is deceptive: that Armstrong session will feature doubles quarterfinal matches only. P.J.
This is awesome and really helpful for a first timer like me. I read through everything, including Box 2, but I’m still not 100% sure when to buy for Monday – Thursday evening sessions in the first week. I can see promenade tickets on resale are overpriced, but I can’t tell with Loge because everything is resale. I’d love to see Novak up close if possible, but I also enjoy good matches vs seeing top stars I’ve already seen at a Masters. A few things threw me off between what you outlined and what I’m seeing on Ticketmaster and Seatgeek:… Read more »
Hey there, great to hear that, thank you! Great observations and questions. 1) Yes, they’ve included access to resale tickets during the pre-sale (I adjusted my blog text on this, hadn’t expected them to include resale options on the TM pre-sale site – sorry for the confusion there!). My general advice stands: to hold off on buying resale tickets now unless you are very familiar with average prices from previous years, know exactly what session you want, and feel very confident you have a great deal. 2) Resale prices for some sessions are within the range of 2018 standard prices,… Read more »
Your guide is THE BEST. Have been referring to it every year for a long time. You must be a 5.5 by now. 🙂 I got stuck on that same AMEX page with the best 4 seats behind the baseline in Louis at TM pricing) and just watched the clock run down. Major disappointment. Do you think they will release any more presale tix (not resale) before it goes public on Thursday? Thanks for your thoughts. Appreciate all you do!
Hi Doreen, THANK YOU!! Means so much to hear that. Unfortunately not a 5.5. yet but still enjoying the journey 🙂 Bummer to hear about your experience this morning – that kind of thing has happened to me so many times over the years. I doubt they will release anything more during the pre-sale, but certainly will on Thurs morning… And in 2019, they continued to release more in the weeks that followed at various times (no rhyme or reason) so I encourage you to just keep checking and don’t worry if on Thurs you have a similar experience –… Read more »
Hi there!
Thank’s for the great content you provide!
I will be visiting NY this summer but unfortunately I have to fly back on 29th of August! My only consolation was to be able to watch the practice sessions before the tournament starts and as you have mentioned practice sessions will not be open to public.
But hey, can I at least visit the grounds a few days before the tournament?
Hi Emra, you’re very welcome! I’m so sorry but it appears at the moment that they won’t be letting fans walk around the grounds on the weekend prior this year. I’ll post an update here if I find out differently. 🙁 P.J.
Hi! Do we know yet if the second Thursday will be free grounds access, per usual?
Hey Emily, not yet… Last year they didn’t make it official until quite close to the tournament, and this year there’s a risk they won’t forge ahead given that they aren’t allowing fans for qualies and cancelled Kid’s Day. I’ll keep my ears to the ground! P.J.
I think they will make it free, given that there are currently no tickets on sale for the 9th, except for evening tickets at Ashe. So it’s a good sign! 🙂
I remember taking a print out of your blog post and carrying it with me all the way to the stadium back in 2016. It was my first time going, and I couldn’t be more thankful to you. I am planning to visit this year again in the hope of watching Federer play. It has been my childhood dream (almost 20 years now !!) to watch him play close and he withdrew from the 2016 tournament because of an injury. I don’t think I can get many opportunities any more given his age and recent injuries, but I want to… Read more »
Sid, your comments totally warm my heart. Can’t thank you enough for letting me know the blog has been helpful to you and for your kind appreciation! Honestly, if it were me I’d wait until the Friday afternoon prior (Aug 27) and keep refreshing the schedule page until they release the Day 1 and 2 schedule (assuming they do that again this year as they did in 2018 and 2019), then act quickly and apply your max budget to the best seat you can get for the session Federer is playing in (rather than spreading your budget across multiple sessions… Read more »
P.J.
Thanks a lot for your reply to my questions 🙂 I will definitely wait for the Friday before to make my decision.
Do you think $250 would be good enough to get courtside seats for a Fed match (1st round) after it gets announced on a Friday? It would be my wife and I, so I’m looking at $500 as my budget for the seats. I’m hoping it would be enough to get those seats from where you shot the video (baseline section 58). Or am I undervaluing them 🙂
Hey Sid, my pleasure. $250 would be realistic for an excellent Loge seat for the first couple nights, but you’d need to budget more like $400-550 per ticket for courtside. Once the session with Fed is announced, the prices will quickly skyrocket far beyond that. In 2019, once Federer was announced to play the opening night session (along with Serena v Sharapova), ticket prices shot up and ALL available tickets (even resale) went fast, such that it was truly “sold out” — I’ve never seen anything quite like it. So again, just to reemphasize: my “wait until that Friday” strategy… Read more »
I understand, thank you for your insight and willingness to help me with the decision. I will keep an eye on the ticket trends and prices going forward. I will also talk to you once again before I head to NY. Stay safe 🙂
Hi this would be my first time taking my kids 13 and 17 yr olds , what would be the ideal to buy? I’m totally lost with so many options
Hey Alejandra, yes it can be really overwhelming. A few questions: are your kids players and/or serious fans? Or just kind of into tennis and you want them to have the experience? How much tennis would make you all happy — a few hours, a full day, a couple days? Would your kids be happy seeing any great players or are they dying to see one in particular? Finally, which day(s) are you considering and what’s your ideal max budget? P.J.
Hi PJ, I have been going to the Open for over 40 years but generally during the Labor Day weekend or second-week evenings. If I go Wednesday or Thursday night during the first week, are you pretty much stuck with the matches in the stadium of your tickets or are there other good matches going on in the unreserved courts where you could get closer seats? Promenade tickets are too far away so I guess I should target Louis Armstrong tickets unless I want to pay a bundle. From your link to the 2020 Schedule of Play, it looks like… Read more »
Hey Ted, Wed or Thurs (2d round) first week is a GREAT time to enjoy matches on a wide variety of courts well into the evening. You might consider getting a cheap Day session ticket so you have the option of entering the grounds earlier (you’ll only be able to enter with an evening session ticket at 6pm). But even if you enter at 6pm, there will still be lots of matches underway around the grounds. The only caveat, of course, is weather– which is why it’s always nice to have the insurance policy of a ticket for Ashe or… Read more »
PJ-
In the event of rain, how often is it that they will add matches to Ashe & Armstrong from other courts in order to get them finished?
In 2019, the first Wednesday was a wash-out, but no matches were added to the covered courts.
I honestly can’t remember prior years – obviously LA got the roof in 2018 and Ashe was a few years before.
Thanks!
Hey Tom (the man who brings an enormous wealth of knowledge on all this!), my member is a bit hazy too pre-2018. Since then, I don’t recall any instances of consecutive days of severe rain – so they’ve been able to make up for rain delays on outer courts pretty quickly, and only moved a handful of matches over to Ashe (don’t remember any examples of this with the new Armstrong, but I’m sure there must be at least one). Since they decided to schedule one fewer match on Ashe during Day sessions (in 2019 I think?), they have a… Read more »
Everything I know is thanks to you! 🙂
As an aside, I am sure glad the questions on your site have picked up! It’s nice to see a return to normalcy, somewhat. We are getting closer to my favourite time of year!
Well likewise have learned so much from you! Yeah, feeling so grateful that things are getting back on track. So awesome.
Thanks for your reply. My schedule changed so now I will be aiming for the Sunday afternoon before Labor day. In the past I bought Promenade tickets to Ashe but spent the majority of my time checking out the other courts. I am also considering tickets to LA or the Grandstand. However, I can’t find anything now showing the face-price of tickets. Do you know where to find them? Do you think they go back up on the TM site after the AMEX presale ends on Wednesday? Questions: What price level should I expect If I could get face-price tickets… Read more »
Hey Ted, yes it’s super frustrating that the US Open doesn’t have a chart or release clear information about the price of standard-price tickets for every session. The most comprehensive thing I can offer at the moment is this chart showing 2018 standard price ticket ranges (this year should be in the same ballpark). Yes, we should see a lot more standard price tickets released beginning tomorrow – I will try to update my chart based on what we see in the days ahead. Re: your questions: 1. LA Thurs standards should be around $250 (you will probably be able… Read more »
Thanks again. Grandstand on the Sunday of 2019 had 3 doubles and one singles match.
Do you think that I am better off pricewise grabbing a LA ticket for Sunday afternoon if I can get some ($300-340 as per your 2018 sheet) or waiting & keeping my eye on resales? Worst case, if I wait, I can always (?) get a Promenade ticket at the last minute and spend most of my time at unreserved seats.
Hey Ted! Just posted an answer to this one along with your more recent question…
Forgot to add this to my last questions, which are waiting for approval.
I’ve seen resale tickets, next to last row, section 6 (umpire side, baseline) in LA now for ~ $300+fees for Sunday afternoon. Good deal? Wait to see what’s available tomorrow when more inventory gets listed?
Also, what do you recommend, phone app (Android) vs web browser for Ticketmaster.
Again, you are doing a great job answering everybody’s questions.
Hey Ted, thanks! Responding to both questions here… It’s tough to say for sure. I go through this guessing game myself every year with Armstrong on Labor Day weekend… But if 2019 is a guide, we will likely see (but I can’t guarantee) more standard tickets released that are closer to $250 in those upper rows. In 2019, great resale tickets were not easy to come by for this sessions, with many commanding prices in upper $400s. If it were me, I would wait and target a seat in a lower row in the hopes that a better deal emerges… Read more »
So I bought tickets in Section 9 row K for $320, 6th row up behind server. I realized after I purchased them that I confused North with South (can’t do anything without Google Maps) so I am at the sunnier end. Will need to bring a baseball cap and sunblock. Anyway, thanks for all of your help.
Hey Ted, the sun won’t be that bad – and section 9 does get some shade fairly early in the afternoon. Those seats are GREAT, you will love them! P.J.
Hi Jeff, First of all, this guide is just a phenomenal service to tennis fans – thank you for all the work that goes into it, including updating it every year! My question here is about semis/finals weekend (I’ve looked at your chart so what I’m thinking about is based on that): My brother and I are considering a pretty serious splurge on courtside seats for at least one of the men’s semis/finals sessions. I’m currently seeing some corner section seats (e.g., 41) on StubHub in the $1,750 range for each men’s semi session and am considering jumping on that… Read more »
Hey Ben, thank you for your very very kind words and thanks! You will be living out one of my dreams if you do that… As always, I have to give the caveat that I’m guessing like everyone else– but yes, that does seem to be (absurdly, I know) a very good deal for the night Semis session (I expect day prices on resale market to be less stratospheric in weeks ahead). Let me know how it turns out, and if you go I will be living vicariously through you LOL! P.J.
Thanks very much, PJ – very helpful and I’ll let you know how it goes!
Also, I just realized I addressed you as “Jeff” in my initial question – no idea what I was thinking there except maybe I mixed you up with Jeff Sackmann, the Tennis Abstract author. Sorry about that!
Hey Ben, LOL no worries! Look forward to staying in touch. P.J.
Hey PJ, thanks for all of the wonderful advice! I was actually able to purchase courtside reserved seats for Sunday 9/5 in section 6 of Louis Armstrong this morning on AMEX presale (after multiple attempts getting stuck on USTA foundation page as John mentioned below). I was curious approximately what time matches will end on Armstrong to determine if I should be looking for Ashe night session seats as well. One other quick question, this will be my first time at US Open, in your opinion, would you purchase Reserved Grandstand or Ashe Day & Night Loge for Friday 9/3?… Read more »
Hey Steve, good to hear! A great day to go to Armstrong – I’ll probably be there that day myself. At least one of the matches will be a “not before 5:00pm” match (probably one of the Men’s) — and match duration can vary a lot depending on how competitive it is (e.g. a 3-setter with bagels or 5-setter with multiple tie-breaks or long games). Knowing you’ll have the courtside Armstrong experience, I’d probably go for the Friday evening Ashe seats. As for Sun night Ashe, you could decide day before when schedule is announced based on whether you’re dying… Read more »
Hi, PJ, I am curious what they’ll do with Armstrong on that Sunday of Labour Day Weekend. In 2018, they put 2 Men’s R16 matches there. But in 2019, they put one on Armstrong and they put Dimitrov-de Minaur on Grandstand. I suspect 2021 will be like 2019, but have you heard anything? Or do you have a hunch what they’ll do? For what it’s worth, the Open app “buy tickets” section (which is linked with Ticketmaster), says R16 matches on Grandstand Sunday, and Doubles on Monday. I don’t put much faith into what it says on the website, as… Read more »
Hey Tom, Yeah I’ve been wondering too. I remember being really surprised by that decision in 2019, thinking they may have done it to appease Grandstand season ticket subscribers (and to even out huge Labor Day Sunday crowds lining up for the unreserved seating in LA and G). Your guess is as good as mine for this year, but my hunch is they will follow the 2019 approach. P.J.
hello I would like to purchase ticket for the men quaterfinals but it wil be eather the 7th or the 8th or wich day specifically
Hi Lesbia, the four Men’s Quarterfinal matches will be played in 4 separately ticketed sessions on Ashe Stadium:
(1) Sep 7 Day
(2) Sep 7 Evening
(3) Sep 8 Day
(4) Sep 8 Evening
Each of those sessions will also feature one women’s quarterfinal match. P.J.
I will be curious to see what others experienced during the amex presale. It was a disaster for us. My wife and I have separate ticketmaster and amex accounts. We were both in the queue at opening. Found seats we liked for different sessions. Each of us experienced the exact same thing. We got stuck on the next page which was to contribute to the USTA foundation. No way to get around it. One of us stayed on the page to see what would happen when the clock ran out. The other of us gave up the seats and started… Read more »
Hey John, awful to hear that. As I mention in my post, I’m an Amex cardholder and have never been able to find what I want for during the Amex presale – but generally the disappointment has been a function of the limited availability, not due to technical glitched like you experienced 🙁 P.J.
Hi PJ- I am trying to buy amex presale tickets but noticed loge tickets aren’t available for amex presale, only ticket resellers. Should I wait until it opens to the public to buy so I can get loge seats? I guess i’m wondering it the prices will be lower on Thursday. Or is it that they are all sold and I won’t get loge and should get tickets today in 300’s section. (only a few left)
This is for Men’s semi finals on 9/10. Thanks!
Hi Lisa, this is unfortunately quite typical. As I mention in my post, I’m an Amex cardholder (Platinum) and have never once in all these years found anything worth buying during the Amex presale – just Ashe Promenade seats in sessions where there is always a glut of them, and outrageously priced package deals. The US Open does not release all seats for purchase during the Amex pre-sale. In fact, they don’t on the first day of the public sale either – they always hold some back and trickle them out over the summer… Mens Semis tix are always especially… Read more »
Thank you for this. Sorry I didn’t see the post about Amex. For the day session (session 22) on 9/10. What would be the average price for loge in the south (or west) section?
This blog has been a lifeline for me as this will be our first time. Thank you so much for this!
Hey Lisa, I’m sorry my note about the Amex pre-sale was buried! The post has gotten so long and I’m going to try this week making some updates to help make it more navigable… So this year it’s especially tricky guesstimating around Men’s Semis prices because it’s the first year that they’ve split Semis into two sessions (day and night) and they haven’t released any standard Loge seats yet… As I had hoped, it appears that they have lowered the base price of standard tickets for each individual session (compared to the previous years prices for the one single session… Read more »
Hey PJ, thank you for posting such useful article
In your opinion can I get US Open mens final promenade tickets for $250-300
Hi Soham, you’re most welcome. If trends mirror 2019, then you should be able to find a Promenade-level ticket for $280-300 ticket on the resale market at some point in the weeks ahead – always hard to say with assurance, but that’s what we saw in 2019. P.J.
Hey, thank you so much for replying, would the range you mentioned also include taxes and everything?
Hey Soham, no, apologies – was referring to the base price before taxes. I think budgeting around $350 for an upper promenade seat for Men’s Finals including taxes/fees is probably more realistic. Another strategy is to wait until very close to the Final and take a chance: if neither Federer, Nole, nor Rafa make the final, then average prices on the resale market may drop quite a bit. However, if Federer makes the final, they will probably go up substantially more. It’s really a lot like playing the stock market — you can make educated guesses but never know for… Read more »
Thank you so much man, also, also, since Djokovic is the first seed, he would be put in section 1, so technically shouldn’t he play SF 1 in day session if he makes it?
We also have a 50% chance of Nadal and Djokovic ending up in the same draw (3 and 1) for the semi-finals. This makes SF 1 more pricey but I see SF 2 having high prices, any reason for this?
Sure thing, Soham! Please see my FAQ #1 for a detailed outline of why knowing a player’s seed (or even once we know which half of draw they’re in) does not enable us to make any predictions about when they will play — either which dates or day vs night sessions. The only way to know which DATE is to wait until Day 1 schedule is released (there’s no rhyme or reason to whether they put the top or bottom half of the draw on day 1) and there’s no way to know for sure whether they will put a… Read more »
Do you feel $450 all inclusive is a good price for a lower promenade, something from A to E with 308-334 or 314-328?
Hi Soham, basing on where 2019 average prices were, yes that seems to be a pretty good price. I can’t guarantee you won’t find something better by waiting, though – always hard to say for sure! P.J.
Good evening P.J.
Thank you again for answering my questions several days ago. Could you give me an idea of the view from Ashe Loge seats? Is it much higher than the courtside level? I’ve looked on online ticket sites to get an idea but all seem to be the same view from the section regardless of the row. Thanks, Kathy
Hi Kathy, my pleasure. Here are a couple of photos I took from a couple different Loge locations that may help: — View from 3rd row in section 114 or 115 — Another view from same seats as above, different angle — View from second row is section 130 or 131 Bottom-line: Loge seating is generally very good, especially anything in lower 1/3 of each section. The last row of Loge isn’t that different from the front row of Promenade. There is a significant difference between Loge and Courtside, simply because there are two levels of suites sandwiched between Courtside… Read more »
Sorry but I have to take exception. It’s all relative, of course, but in an absolute is this a good view to watch tennis the loge flat out stinks. All the seats above the suites are really too far for good tennis viewing. Promenade is unwatchable. Loge stinks. Corp Suites are so-so. Courtside up to maybe Box D is good. From E and back you ain’t that close. What can I tell you. It’s not a good court for watching tennis. Take a match in on GS or Court 17 (the two smallest stadiums. Ct 17 I count as stadium… Read more »
Hey PJ! The updated blog looks great with even more helpful info! You are amazing! If I want to see guys ranked in Top 15 besides the “Big 3” in the first round, do you think most will be put on Armstrong? Or might they be Grandstand? Is there any rhyme or reason when it comes to those two stadiums? It looks like Armstrong got a lot of American players regardless of rank (Isner. Ugh). Or is it a popularity thing? I am thinking of buying Armstrong tickets for the first two days (day and night). Looking at your price… Read more »
Courtney, a very very big thank you for the kind words! I’m trying to keep it updated and well organized, but it’s gotten very long and I feel like there’s a lot more I can do to make it more readable/navigable… Going to try working on some more updates over the next couple weeks structurally, so would value your feedback as I do. As for scheduling on Armstrong and Grandstand, there are always surprises so I hesitate to make firm generalizations… That said, looking at 2018 and 2019 (probably more relevant since no fans in 2020) it does seem that… Read more »
As always a very thorough answer that has informed my decisions about tickets. I am such a planner, and the idea of waiting to see who is scheduled is antithetical to my very core! But your advice has once again helped me stay calm and reminds me that in 2019 I saw the matches that I wanted to playing it by ear. Just to triple-check: an Armstrong ticket includes entrance to the unreserved seats in Grandstand and vice versa? With the Amex presale, I’m inclined to buy Armstrong nights 1 and 2 because of their BOGO offer and see if… Read more »
Hey Courtney, that’s wonderful to hear – thanks for letting me know :). Yes, exactly right on Armstrong and Grandstand tix: once you’re in the grounds, you can enter unreserved stadium on a first-come basis in any stadium/court except Ashe (which is the only one that has no unreserved seating at all). Sounds like a smart strategy on the Amex presale for those night sessions. Note: if as in 2019 the only pre-sale seats available are in the upper 1/3 of Armstrong, I’d avoid upper 1/3 West side seats (it’s particularly loud up there due to a generator, which emits… Read more »
I don’t see the bogo offer
Hi Alejandra, the BOGO offer comes up automatically for certain sessions (see this page for which sessions). Note: the seats are generally upper rows. P.J.
Yeh I went to that one too. I couldn’t get anyone over to that match. I kept selling it as a big rematch because it was. From 2018. I was like “these guys may be playing each other for Majors one day you need to see this match.” But no takers. The match itself was a disappointment — Shapo won easy. They only put Medvedev on GS one time, R2. Medvedev court assignments : LA, GS, LA, LA, AA, AA, AA I’ll give you my Medvedev GS court assignment theory and I’ve been watching them schedule since Hester opened the… Read more »
Hi PJ,
would you recommend purchasing Armstrong courtside reserved or Ashe Loge seats? Also, how many games are played at Ashe vs Armstrong per session?
Thank you for all the information and tips on your website.
thanks,
J
Hey John, thanks for your thanks 🙂 My answer to that varies a lot based on the person asking and their plans… Is this your first time at the Open? Are you going for one day only? At what stage in the tournament are you thinking? Are you a serious player as well as a fan who would get excited seeing someone in the Top 20 up really close even if not Fed/Nadal/Nole? Let me know a bit more and I’m happy to weigh in with an option. Either of those options can be awesome. The number of matches on… Read more »
Thank you so much for this article. I’m a first-timer to attending US Open and I’m so so excited. I’m traveling alone as my husband wouldn’t be able to keep up with my obsessive watch habits! LOL So I’m watching solo which is awesome and yet a little intimidating. I have tickets to night matches during the early rounds on Ashe – both nights the Mets are home so it’ll be madness I’m sure. Oy! I’m concerned about getting back to my AirBNB at night being alone. How hard is parking if you go during the day and stay for… Read more »
Hi Pamm, you’re very welcome – excited you are so so excited for your first Open! The parking experience depends a lot on which lot you end up in (see map on this page) – but shouldn’t be terrible regardless. Over the summer, you may want to keep an eye out for parking passes up for sale (for some of the closer lots) on the various reseller sites I mention – I’ve gotten passes in the past for myself around $25 and they definitely make it easier than when directed to the public lots, especially when Mets are playing. That… Read more »
Pamm, When the Mets are not playing, the parking situation is a little bit easier. That’s because you can park in their car park, and then walk the boardwalk, over the subway and MTA train tracks, leading into the grounds. You can check out the car park maps here: https://www.usopen.org/en_US/visit/transportation_directions.html The Mets stadium parking is the yellow zone, general parking. When the Mets are playing, you’ll be routed to the Blue and Orange Zone car park areas. It also depends from which direction you arrive into the USTA complex. If you are taking the Grand Central Parkway, and you take… Read more »
Tom, thank you so much for this brilliant additional context — all spot-on with my experience too, and you’re reminding me of a miserable experience I had once when I parked in one of those faraway lots requiring the shuttle bus and long walk.
All this underscores my rationale for my Top Ten Tip #9: to not drive unless you really have to (esp when Mets are playing!) and to take public transportation whenever possible. P.J.
Thanks P.J. Now I have a better view of what I’m facing. 🙂
Thank you Tom. I really appreciate your input and your advice. Makes me better prepared for what I’m facing. Thanks a million!!!!
Pamm
Good advice. Again, P.J., thank you!!! I saw one reseller selling parking for Lot H for $90/day. Seems like Lot H is pretty far. Not sure if that’s worth it. What are your thoughts? None of the other resellers are selling parking yet. Where did you find your parking for $25? Another question. How do you find your Uber/Lyft/car service with that many people trying to get home? Is there a line to wait for a cab or Uber? Are there multiple places to find your pre-arranged car/Uber or find a cab? Final question – any experience with the hotels… Read more »
Hey Pamm, my pleasure. Definitely not worth $90 for parking! I’ve seen many people put up parking passes on StubHub in previous years – and particularly if you’re going during first 4 days I expect there will be many popping up at much lower prices later this month and in August. The official pick-up area for Ubers/Lyfts/car services is always a mob scene – and the couple times I tried calling an Uber from there it was a nightmare. I’ve only used a car service (pre-reserving a pickup and using the app to adjust the time if needed) on a… Read more »
Again thanks a million P.J.! This is such a big help. Puts my mind at ease and makes me even more excited to attend the Open!!!! (if that’s even possible. LOL!)
Would love to hear from others about the Corona hotel and other walkable hotels. Thank you in advance!
Pamm
hey Pamm, I too go to the Open alone- I live in NYC but I don’t have tennis friends – maybe if I am lucky I will convince one person to come to one match! If you want to meet for a hello, PJ may be able to connect us via email if you want. I’ve been following PJs blog since 2019 (he may have even used some info I gave him about food!), a great guy, a great blog. Safety-wise don’t sweat it, I’m a woman and travel alone at night to get there and back, once as late… Read more »
Hey PJ! Thanks for the tips! I booked a flight to New York and coming early Sep 2 and leaving Sep 8. Never been to NYC. How do you recommend me to set up my trip with the following factors: My favorite player is nadal and I need to see him at least somewhat up close. Definitely not worst seats in ashe. he is my number 1 priority. I want to see close up matches around the grounds. watching novak is my third priority if i can do it. Budget lets say is about $600 total for trip. I do… Read more »
Hey Zach! Thanks for laying all all these factors – super helpful. Here’s what I’d probably do in your shoes: 1. Courtside seats PLUS other sessions will be tough within your budget for the days in question. Your best bet for good seats within your budget to see Nadal will probably either be Thurs Sep 1 (day or even), evening Sunday Sep 5, or Day/eve of Monday Sep 6. 2. I know this may sound crazy… but if seeing Nadal up close is a top priority, I would personally wait to make ANY ticket purchases until the schedule for Thursday… Read more »
Thank you so much PJ . I think I will wait till schedule comes out and go that route. Thank you so much. Let’s even link up after some matches!
Sounds great, Zack, and you’re most welcome! Feel free to reach out then if you’re weighing options. P.J.
PJ Amazing site! It helped me a lot, thanks!
I would like to ask you, in loge (rows A – E), would you recommend corner (e.g. 133,134) or behind base line (e.g. 119,120,121)?
Hey Alberto, so good to hear that – you are most welcome! See my FAQ #7 for my thoughts on corner vs behind-the-server seats… For Ashe Loge seats, I generally recommend prioritizing seats that are in lowest rows you can get regardless of location— simply because Loge is already fairly high up to begin with (given the position of two stories of suites between Loge and Courtside seats). For Day sessions, I strongly urge you to factor in potential shade benefits (seats on West side, SouthWest, and Northwest tend to get the most shade relief). If you’re going during the… Read more »
Hi, I have been reading your blog since 2015 and I have found that your info is spot on. This year I am a bit confused as to the qualifying and practice matches the week before the Open. I understand that there won’t be FAN WEEK but on reading your blog, I see that you mentioned that there will be practice and qualifying matches to attend for free on Aug. 24,25,26 and 27. Do I rightly infer that there’s no fan week as we know it but that we may still enter the grounds during these days without tickets? Thank… Read more »
Hey there, THANK YOU so much for the kind words – and for pointing out the confusing section I should have deleted but inadvertently left in (now corrected)! To confirm, the US Open will NOT be opening up grounds to fans during the qualifying tournament. Sorry for the confusion and thanks again for pointing it out! P.J.
PJ,
Have you heard anything about the Chase Lounge for this year’s Open? In past years, the online reservation system became active starting mid-August.
But this is not a typical year, so I am wondering if they’ll even have it at all.
I can foresee them either not doing it this year, or if they do, changing the format to perhaps to-go goodie bags and drinks so that people don’t linger inside. Perhaps limiting capacity even more.
Wanted to know if you’ve heard anything.
Thanks,
Tom
Hey Tom, great question – I haven’t heard anything yet. Their site only says they “look forward to bringing more US Open experiences to you in 2021!” but no specifics. I’ll let you know if I hear anything, please do the same! P.J.
Hi, PJ! I really enjoy your blog. This will be my first year going to the US Open (and first time attending any Grand Slam in general) and your detailed information makes me feel more confident about going 🙂
I have a quick question, and please forgive me if you’ve mentioned this above already.
Are there opportunities to potentially meet some of the players or get a picture with them?
Hi Tatyannah, thank you – thrilled to hear that! In normal times, the best opportunity for photo ops would be the week/weekend during the qualifying tournament when main draw players are practicing and crowds are small… but this year they aren’t allowing spectators for that, and will be tough during the main tournament for the bigger names. In Ashe, the only chance to get a photo with a player (if you’re lucky) is if you’re seated Courtside and can make your way down to the front row of sections 46/47 or 42/43 where players exit (see my annotated map here).… Read more »
I suspect the players will be told to steer clear of close, personal interactions this year. You can see this at Wimbledon. The players would frequently sign autographs leaving Centre Court, especially right by the exit. I remember seeing John Isner and Kevin Anderson sign, even after their marathon a few years ago. This year I haven’t seen any players sign as they are leaving Centre Court. In most other sports leagues in the US, autographs and fan access have been greatly curtailed. There’s no easy access to players, as they’ve been instructed to not sign. This is the case… Read more »
Tom is absolutely right, Tatyannah – agree 100%. Thanks a million, Tom. P.J.
Hi PJ thanks for the tips. Wondering how much a 3rd round match Arthur Ashe courtside should cost? Thanks!
Hi Pat, In 2019, standard price (i.e. non-resale) courtside Ashe tickets for Fri and Sat round 3 started at around $500-600 each for Day and Night sessions – but they were hard to come. Friday was relatively easier to find resale tickets in that ballpark over the course of the summer. Saturday tends to be much harder – most resale tickets selling at upwards of $800 each (crazy). Amazingly, round of 16 Sunday evening and Monday evening Ashe has generally featured more tickets at lower prices on resale market or standard tickets released by USTA closer to the tournament (less… Read more »
completely new to this and feeling a bit overwhelmed. If I buy a day and night reserved ticket to Ashe or Armstrong, do I still need to purchase an actual seat for one of the matches?
Hi Aimee, all the options can definitely be overwhelming for first-timers! My Box #1 lays out all the different ticket options and what they get you (including when you can enter the grounds). If you buy a reserved seat in Ashe or Armstrong, you can stay for all the matches within the particular session on your ticket (e.g., a Day session will give you access to all the matches during the Day session – you’ll have to leave before the Evening session; an Evening session ticket will give you access to all matches in the evening session, and you can’t… Read more »
Wow! You deserve an award for writing such an informative article. And it’s is sooo helpful for me who will be buying first time us open tickets this year. Can you email me? I would like to get your opinion on how I’m thinking of going about things this year based on reading the article?
Hey Pat, thank you very much! Feel free to post your thinking/questions here and I’ll do my best to help. P.J.
What is the orientation of the Grandstand map on this site? I’m trying to figure out which are the south and west (shadier) sides of the court and I don’t see a compass guide.
Thanks again for maintaining this site – it’s awesome!
Hey Beth, thanks for your thanks! The official US Open maps are all with North at the top – with the umpire chair located on the the West side (for Grandstand as well as for Ashe and Armstrong maps). Note: it’s no accident that the chair umpires are positioned on the West side, such that their backs are facing away from the setting sun during the hot afternoon hours. I need to annotate these maps – will add to my to do list! P.J.
Thank you!
Hey PJ-Michael from Seattle again. We will be in New York August 29-September 2. They have a 5 session package that would be perfect. But the Ashe seats are completely nosebleed seats for $290 each. On the other hand this gives us access to everything else and Ashe seats only get more expensive. Shall. I buy the 5 session tickets now or wait till AMEX seats go on sale.
Hi again! I assume you’re referring to the 5-session package for Aug 30-Sep 1 (3 day sessions and first 2 nights)… My answer depends in part on your entire budget and goals. I personally wouldn’t do it: those $290 seats are, as you say, in the last row or rows of Promenade – I literally get a little vertigo up there and you will spend the majority of time watching on the Jumbotron screens because the players are so far away. You feel really disconnected. It’s one thing to do that for, say, Men’s Final, when you simply want to… Read more »
Hi PJ,
Planning a trip to NY with my wife to attend day 3, Sept 1st full day. The plan is to purchase 2 reserve seating for Arthur Ashe for both the sessions. Possibly one on the court side and the other on the Loge. Hoping to see a couple top players play.
Any recommendations? I am also waiting till July 15 to buy the tickets.
Hi Ash, sounds awesome. A couple thoughts: (1) Courtside will be cheaper for the Day session – if you go that route, please be sure to see my shade map and focus on seats that will get shade sooner; (2) I LOVE Courtside at night, and it always is such a treat to look forward to… If it were me, I’d do Loge for Day (and spend some time on outer courts too, just to have experience of seeing some world-class players up really really close, it’s amazing) then invest in Courtside at night. If history is any guide, you… Read more »
Thanks a ton for the good advise. I will do that. I see 120 loge row A available for $213. Is it worth grabbing it now?
Hey Ash, that’s a pretty good price – you may be able to find something comparable more around $150 if you wait… I just can never promise on these things as there are so many factors and this year it’s hard to know given all the pent-up demand among folks dying to get back to live tennis events! P.J.
Thanks. That gives me good reason to wait.
Where are you seeing those prices?
Hi P.J
We are looking to attend the mens semifinals on Sept 10.We are following your advice and wait until July 15th to get the loge seating ticket which we understand is in high demand
Greatly appreciate .Please let me know
Hi Raj, yes, my recommendation is: (1) TRY on the 15th (expect long wait times and inevitable frustrations) to get a standard price Loge seat on the main US Open Ticketmaster site — and if you see one, grab it… Not sure about pricing for this year given the new approach splitting Men’s Semis into two sessions; in previous years, standard prices for the single session for Men’s Semis started around $650 – I’m hoping the US Open sets prices for each of those Semi’s sessions (at least for the Semi’s Day session) at least a bit less this year,… Read more »
Thanks a lot P.J.
Will be patient and follow your advice!
Hey. Thank you so much for this article, extremely helpful. I just bought tickets on SeatGeek to the mens’ final for about $360 each (fees included).
Firstly, is this a good price?
Secondly, what are the chances I never get sent these tickets, considering it is third party site and tickets have not yet been released to the public, so it all seems a bit sketchy for me?
Finally, would I be able to resell tickets I bought on SeatGeek? I was told I will likely not receive them until the day before the final.
Thanks I’m advance!
Hey Eric, you’re so welcome, thanks for your thanks 🙂 Assume the tickets you got are in Promenade — and if they’re in the lower 50% of Promenade, yes those are a good price. See, e.g., this chart I prepared of average prices of standard (non-resale) tickets in 2018 (which held up in 2019 and I suspect it will for 2021 too); if you pay a resale price within the range of the standard prices, you know you’re likely to have a good deal. As for resale: Yes there are many resale sites, including SeatGeek, where you can resell tickets… Read more »