Rose Parade Transportation and Parking (Pasadena, Highland: 2015, live in, law)

[escapedturkey]

Hello,

We live in the South Bay area. We want to drive as close as possible to the Rose Parade, park our car, and take the metro and/or bus to get there and back. Do you recommend any good places to park our car?

Thank you.

[saybanana]

I took the Gold Line last year from Highland Park. The metered lots were full as well as local streets. It is probably worse around Pasadena and South Pasadena. Look south like starting from Heritage Square going south into Downtown or along the Red Line, too. I dont recommend taking any buses into Pasadena, because they are full and too many detours and major traffic before, during and after the parade. The parade starts at 8am, but doesnt start after 9am or later from Allen station near end of the parade. It's crowded on the train but not that bad and most people get off at old town pasadena where youll probably get a bad view anyways. Best to go to the end of it at Lake Station or Allen and maybe Sierra Madre but that station is a quite a walk, but closer to the float viewing that happens after the parade. I remember watching the parade on Tv for 40 minutes, then walked to the Gold Line got off Allen, walked 6 minutes down and the parade hasnt even started at that part of the route. It was after 9am. I was able to see the parade despite 2-3 rows in standing in front of me.

[TimTheEnchanter]

Union Station has the most parking, or you could park at a lot in Chinatown and walk over to Union Station for the Gold Line.

If you don't have grandstand seating, I'd go to the Sierra Madre Villa Station of the Gold Line and look for spots on Colorado Blvd.

[nickdahammer]

I strongly recommend getting on the Gold Line as well. I know Del Amo Station has a lot of parking spots: Blue Line to Red Line to Gold Line.

[HarryKerryJr]

Closest parking to Rose Bowl shuttle busses is at Parsons Engineering parking lot/structure. Busses are adjacent to lot. Parsons is the official parking for the shuttle. If you take Gold Line you still have to walk about 3-4 blocks to the shuttle busses next to Parsons. To others: is the parking garage at the end of the gold line on Sierra Madre Villa in east Pasadena an option or will it already be packed? Otherwise Union Station offers no hassle no time wasting parking.

To the OP: Go to MTA dot NET website for detailed info.

[True Freedom]

The two best stations on the Gold Line to exit are the "Del Mar" and "Memorial Park" stations. Sierra Madre Villa stop is OK, but you'll be a minimum of 1.7 miles to reach the end of the parade route. The stations are crazy packed, especially after the parade, so be prepared.

[SOON2BNSURPRISE]

You need to be on the route early in the morning to get a good seat. A couple years back we were there by 5AM and still could not get a great seat. The best thing to do is either spend the night or show up around 2AM.

[munchitup]

Originally Posted by SOON2BNSURPRISE

You need to be on the route early in the morning to get a good seat. A couple years back we were there by 5AM and still could not get a great seat. The best thing to do is either spend the night or show up around 2AM.

Yeah the one time we went we spent the night near Hill Street. This year we are hoping to just walk up to the parade since we live 3 blocks from Colorado. I'll keep an eye on this thread though because I may have a friend come visit from the South Bay like the OP!

[CA4Now]

Increased security at the Rose Parade this year.
What law enforcement officials are doing to keep the Rose Parade and Rose Bowl safe - LA Times

[CA4Now]

Ken Burns is the Grand Marshall this year. It's also Bob Eubanks and Stephanie Edwards' last year as KTLA's commentators for the parade.
Filmmaker and grand marshal Ken Burns sees Rose Parade from a good angle - LA Times