Rose Bowl Stadium

The Rose Bowl is the oldest and perhaps the finest large stadium in California — an open bowl from 1922, set in a valley in Pasadena, roughly 15 kilometres north-west of downtown Los Angeles, with the San Gabriel Mountains behind it.

A century of sporting history

It was built for the Rose Bowl Game, the most famous college football fixture in the United States. Since then it has staged five Super Bowls, the football final of the 1984 Olympic Games, the 1994 World Cup final and the 1999 Women's World Cup final. It is a National Historic Landmark.

Capacity is around 88,000, which puts it among the largest stadiums in North America. Because it is open and shallow-sided, the crowd reads differently from a modern steep-tiered bowl: wider, further away, with sky over everything.

Concerts at the Rose Bowl

Concerts are rare here, because Pasadena caps the number of major events per year. That is exactly what makes a show here different from another stadium date — the list of acts who have played the Rose Bowl is short and correspondingly select.

Location and getting there

The Rose Bowl sits in a residential area with no direct rail link. The usual routes are shuttles from the Pasadena metro stations, rideshare, or driving — though parking on a sold-out night is notorious.

For accommodation Pasadena itself is the calmest choice: a manageable city with its own centre, short distances and good food. If you want to see Los Angeles, take Downtown or Santa Monica and accept the longer journey out.