Raymond James Stadium

As a Bucs season ticket holder, I am frequently at the stadium. I had always liked the stadium since I started living in Tampa and always like taking friends and family who have never been. The pirate ship in one of the end zones and the pirate themes throughout the stadium really add to the game day experience and the pirate ship seems to be a must see kodak moment (or selfie moment these days?) for anyone visiting for the first time.
In terms of concessions, they have really come a long way from what I remember as a kid visiting the sports stadiums. Instead of your basic hot dogs, popcorn, chicken fingers and nachos, they have a larger variety of items such as Philly Cheese Steaks, Cuban sandwiches and other more premium options. They have some standards selling your standard draft beers (bud light, etc.) and also other premium beer stands (I think on the corners) containing more premium beers (Stella) and ciders and other options.
They announced late in 2015 that they would be adding much needed enhancements to the stadium including a dramatically better replay video board at each end zone as well as other enhancements to the stadium. Definitely something to look forward too.

Was here for the Outback bowl and it was alot of fun! Thanks for hosting… But a huge need it upgrading the Jumbotron! Way to small to host any bowl game!
The concession were good but too many not open which created long lines!
Clean restrooms and plenty so not much waiting in line here!
Love the pirate ship! Would loved to have heard it shoot the cannon… Maybe next time!
Go Vols!

The stadium itself is very well designed, even up in the corners and end zone, the view is okay. Seats are roomy and comfortable, the scoreboard is easily visible, the sound system is clear though set a tad too loud. It’s outdoors in the Florida Sun, it should go without saying, but the sunblock needs to be on before arrival. Compared to Green Bay, this stadium is more comfortable (though not as historic) and compared to Chicago’s Soldier Field this place has better pricing. The concourse and ramp areas are generously wide and well labeled, it’s easy to get around and even in a well attended event there’s little claustrophobic pressure from fan density. If your team is in the Outback Bowl, do not hesitate to come, Tampa is a great place for a New Year’s Day game. There are some drawbacks, none fatal, some should be fixable.
A problem shared by many college bowl venues is the dismal efficiency of the concessions crews. Experience is everything when it comes to the quality and speed of sports arena concessions service, it was like the whole crew was working for the first time ever. Given the nature pro football stadiums, I’m not sure how they could collect and place an experienced crew for single events but that would be a sensible goal — keeping the same gang that works the pro games plus concerts intact. Concessions service at baseball games is always poor the first homestand, but by mid June things start humming along. Here, at the Outback Bowl, it was painful to watch and wait for the three-​man process of preparing and serving a single overpriced hot dog, the wrapping alone was like a comedy skit. It was like they were working underwater. It would be more amusing and entertaining if the concessions prices weren’t so high, it was one of our most expensive meals for our trip, actually worse than eating at the airport.
A preliminary problem is accessibility. Traffic on game days is dismal, made worse by perennial road construction and the peculiar decision to cut off public transportation. On non-​even days, the stadium is well served by the county bus system, there’s a transit station right by the North Entrance. Inexplicably, they encourage more day of game car traffic by shutting down that transit station and rerouting public buses away from the stadium until well after the end of the game. You can’t count on Lyft or Über drivers to know how to handle a drop off, but you can make it work with a little geographic knowledge. Look at your ticket, identify the closest gate. Lyft drivers rely on GPS, which directs them to the South Entrance, the official address of the Stadium. This means too many people try to get in through Gate C, which has the longest slowest line. Gates A and D often have shorter faster lines, so if that’s closest to your seats, that’s what you should aim for. Don’t expect the Lyft driver to know north from south, if you know ahead of time, you could save a lot of time, it’s faster to walk around the stadium than to drive around the stadium.
Parking around the stadium is expensive ($ 20 or so for a bowl game) and quite a distance. Our solution was to walk west and south (over half a mile, and yet many people had to park this far) to La Teresita Restaurant on Columbus, stuff ourselves with really good Cuban food for surprisingly little money, refuel on sweets and café con leche at La Teresita Café — allowing time for the route 7 bus service to be restored, one easy transfer and we were back downtown.

My family and I came for the Outback Bowl. Go VOLS!!! Everything was great. We had club level seats. Everything was clean and food was good. (For stadium food). We enjoyed our time there.

Sometimes life just pays you back in a great way. While visiting family in Tampa, a great friend offered me FOUR club level tickets to a Tampa Bay Buccaneers football game against my home town team, Da’ CHICAGO Bears!!! I have never been to a live Bears game before, so I was stoked out of my mind for the opportunity!
Not only were the seats awesome, but we were also on the shady side of the stadium and avoided the Tampa sun! But but the icing on the cake was the free parking pass also provided by our friend and about $ 60 remaining on the season passes. The tickets belong to her boss who couldn’t make the final game. He gave her full authorization to use the remaining money on the passes since stadium rules are you must use all your prepaid money or loose it! So not only did we have free tickets and parking, but we were also able to purchase lunch and drinks for four people with about $ 10 to spare.
THE STADIUM
I loved the megatron sized stadium TV on both ends for replays as well as the Pirate ship that looked as if it had shipwrecked into the stadium. Tampa fans are super energetic and every touchdown for the Buccaneers lead to the pirate ships cannons exploding! Scared the stank out of me the first time it happened!
The indoor air-​conditioned Club level was awesome! It was so cool to have a selection of restaurants and bars only for us so we didn’t have to fight the stadium crowds of the general population. There was a large open lounge area with TV’s galore so we didn’t miss any of the game and a huge 25′ wall of windows that gives it an outdoors feeling. We used the concierge desk to help us determine how much money was still remaining on the cards.
Also on the Club Level was a great Team Store with all kinds of souvenirs. But again, being that it was the last game of the season, the stores were PACKED with people looking to use the remaining money on their cards.
COMPLAINTS
Getting to our seats was a nightmare. Every way we tried to go was blocked and we missed opening kickoff. We were not aware there is a specific entrance to the club seating and should be much better marked. It was particularly frustrating because we were following the directional signs inside the stadium based on our seat locations. We could actually see our seats from the steps leading to our section, but a stadium employee blocking that entrance said we had to go to the Club level entrance door, which was quite a ways away. He instructed us to go up a level, but when we arrived at another door, there was a stadium employee AGAIN blocking that door and redirected us. I seriously almost lost it!
FINAL THOUGHTS
Awesome day of football… AND BONUS, the Chicago Bears won! I couldn’t have asked for a more perfect way to enjoy my first hometown NFL game ever! I even scored several souvenir cups! I’ve only been to three NFL stadiums in my lifetime: Atlanta’s Georgia Dome, Chicago’s Soldiers Field (high school game) & now Tampa’s Raymond James. I have little to compare it to, but for me, it was a GREAT stadium experience.

Ever since college at USF, I’ve been a fan of Ray Jay. They have definitely improved it over the years too. The stadium is a great place to watch football games as well as concerts and other events. If you come to Tampa you have to make a stop here. Also home to 2 Super Bowls.
Ray Jay has good food, good drinks (open bar in the club level and better food) but the regular admission does well too. The stair cases and walkways are large enough for all the spectators. The only thing I don’t like is how the 300 top level is separated based on the sides of the stadium. I can’t visit friends if they are on the other side without going all the way down then back up the other side (a real pain in the butt).
Being in other stadiums, I prefer Ray Jay… it is easily marked for easy access to your seats, bathrooms, food, exits.

I always have a great time here… Bucs games, concerts, other events. Even though this Stadium is older now, it’s still looks good, although I haven’t been in any other contemporary stadiums to compare. I’m usually in the Club level, where there’s plenty of climate-​controlled seating & food/​beverage options, plus a huge wall monitor & TVs everywhere so I never miss a thing. The pirate ship in the end zone is fun, too, especially when the Bucs score & cannons fire! The staff is always friendly, and the bathrooms are clean (except for that broken paper towel dispenser in the West Club that hasn’t been fixed for at least 2 events).
The food is average… Nothing spectacular. Not even in the Galley buffet downstairs. For $ 28, it should be better. I could’ve eaten before I came, or spent half that on food inside the stadium — the quality is the same, just average.

We took in a game here and loved it. We had seats up in the club level and the view was outstanding. No matter where you sit, you have a great view. The parking lot is well set-​up for tailgating (and we did!). It was absolutely a great afternoon and a plus that the bucs beat the cowgirls.
As you expect from a large stadium, there is a good variety of food types and each concourse is supremely easy to access.
Oh, and for Raymond James Stadium, gotta love the Bucs’ Pirate Ship in the endzone! It’s neat to see and watch the guns fire when the Bucs score (didn’t happen much last season). Really a great experience!
The only downside was the traffic when the game was over – wow, it was so bad we just broke-​out the tailgating supplies again and re-​started the party until the traffic thinned out. (That was an extra hour and a half after the game!)

I’m in the strange place of being a Bucs fan from Illinois, so naturally when vacationing I had to jump at the chance to attend. The stadium didn’t disappoint!
While the weather helped out a ton, the setting was beautiful. I’m used to St. Louis events, where parking is a nightmare, it’s typically cold, and you kinda worry about getting mugged on the way in/​out of the stadium. No such thing here as the day was beautiful and my spirits were high!
Admittedly, these were two of the worst teams in the league I witnessed when they played Jacksonville, but maybe that’s why I was so into the game too. And everyone else was having the same reaction! The atmosphere was surprisingly more lively than I expected and even for my first game I found myself getting into cheers I’d never experienced.
Food was ok, I had a pulled pork sandwich I could take or leave, but the girlfriend had some good nachos. I think it was pretty typical stadium fare.
The only part I really didn’t enjoy was there are only two ways of getting from one side of the stadium to the other, so everyone was there! And it was a hot, sweaty mess. Aside from that though, it was a great time!
And one last thing, basically the topper to the experience, there’s a PIRATE SHIP! I thoroughly enjoyed when they fired the cannons all the way to a Bucs win!

I have only had the pleasure of attending an event at Raymond James a few times in my 10 years in Tampa, but I have always enjoyed myself. Raymond James is a typical NFL stadium. Located conveniently off of Dale Mabry and MLK, there are many parking options near the stadium.
Raymond James has a fun atmosphere on game days. Cannons go off whenever the Bucs score and there is pirate décor all over the place. The concession stands offer a variety of food and drinks and the lines aren’t too long.
All in all, a good spot to catch a game. I’m happy to live in a town with such an easily accessible NFL stadium!

I have been to a lot of NFL stadiums and this is one of my favorites! It is always clean, has plenty of refreshment/​food areas, and plenty of restrooms. This is an awesome venue whether you are here for a sporting event or a concert!
One of the most appealing aspects of this stadium is the ample parking. There is always plenty of parking and multiple exits. Decreasing traffic jams is a win for everyone!
Came here for the Bucs game on Sunday and had a great day. We also participated in the treasure chests 5k which benefitted breast cancer research and survivors. The race had 4 waves and went all around the stadium.

Very nice & clean stadium in this experience. The staff were very nice. Have no complaints. But the game itself — the first game of the season — Bucs vs Titans was horrible :-)

My first visit to the stadium was for the preseason game in which my Brownies spanked the Buccaneers. GO DAWGS!
As far as stadiums go, this one is about like most of them EXCEPT FOR THE GIANT PIRATE SHIP!!! The stadium earned 3 dozen stars for just the pirate ship and the amazing artist making the Philly cheesesteaks but then unfortunately lost all but 4 for the following 4 reasons:
Terrible beer selection.
Tampa Bay is known nationwide for its craft beer, yet do you think ANY is served here? No. There is one IPA and maybe one more IPA and that is it. Oh… the «craft beer» cart sells Blue Moon, Shock Top, and a few other faux-​craft beers made by AB/​InBev. We had to SEARCH just to find Miller Lite!
Fancy «gourmet» soft pretzels with cheese are $ 10. The cheese is cold and the pretzel is nothing special, it just has a knot that’s twisted twice and it’s slightly larger than the other soft pretzels.
The instant replay screens are crappy. This isn’t 1994… get with the program.
PAINTED CONCRETE.
When the concrete gets wet… you know, from how it rains all the time… or from how people spill beer all the time… people fall down. Painting concrete is dumb anyway, but to put a slick paint without any traction at all down in a wet environment where people are drinking is just ignorant. I saw multiple people fall, and only one of them was drunk. The others looked like really sad 40-​something moms who felt bad not just about tearing their ACLs but also ruining their family’s football outing.
The stadium is 8 minutes from home. I look forward to returning, most likely by bike, to enjoy another cheesesteak and gaze upon the pirate ship. I plan to wear a pirate wench outfit. How do I become one of the privileged few who gets to board the pirate ship?
I really like that none of the parking is paved and that someone had the foresight to build the baseball and football stadiums next to each other so they can share parking.
If you are a season ticket holder, you get discounts on all the food and beer which makes the prices slightly more normal. It seemed like most of the people at this preseason game were season ticket holders because they were paying with cards that weren’t credit cards. Season tickets start at $ 300 which seems pretty affordable, honestly.
I LOVE YOU BELIEVELAND!!!

Raymond James Stadium is both well built and offers a variety of decent eateries. Having club access is particularly nice, as it is incredibly hot in early autumn. The air conditioning alone is worth the ticket up-​charge, plus there is comfortable seating throughout.
During USF Bulls games, the Treasure Café in the East Clubhouse is particularly accommodating and customer service oriented. Their pico de gallo for their loaded nachos is fresh and delicious.
My only complaint is that the TVs are delayed, so you can hear the commentary from the sound system, but the televisions are at least two minutes behind. It’s really frustrating to hear the commentators call a touchdown or the roar of the crowd, when the TV is showing commercial. Maybe it’s their way of ensuring fans don’t relax in the climate controlled area for the whole game.

Sorry, but I laugh when people locally here in Tampa Bay call Raymond James Stadium one of the «Best stadiums in the NFL» when most of them have never been to even 20% of the other 30 NFL stadiums in use across the country to compare.
I’ve attended events at all 30 permanent stadiums currently in use by NFL teams (The Vikings new stadium opens in 2016) and while Raymond James Stadium hasn’t aged poorly and is still comfortable for most fans, it runs middle of the pack on the current list.
The NFL stadiums that are home to the Cowboys, Giants/​Jets, Lions, Colts and Cardinals are the best in the league because they didn’t follow the same blueprint that produced nearly identically designed stadiums in Tampa Bay, Tennessee and New England.
Renovated older stadiums that are home to the Packers, Bears, Saints, Dolphins and Chiefs also have plenty of features that clearly set them above RJS as well.
Seriously, if you’ve been to a Titans or Patriots home game, you’ve basically been inside the same stadium as the Bucs… only the Patriots win more than both those other teams and the Pats have a bridge and lighthouse where the Bucs placed a pirate ship.
The lack of a unique design certainly hurts Raymond James Stadium’s reputation as well as the current state of the 20^th century audio and video equipment. Virtually every NFL stadium not in Oakland or San Diego has a larger, clearer video board while the TSA drags its feet on those upgrades until hosting the college football title game in January 2017.
Also, the original design of the suites and club level seating was flawed and removes the premium customer further from the playing field instead of putting them closer to it because there is no «second deck» to that level as was properly done in Tennessee and New England to compliment this particular stadium blueprint.
The huge atrium in both club lounges is a huge waste of space that could have been better utilized on the actual club and suite level to create more dining options, tables and chairs for indoor seating and even additional restroom facilities. And the TV walls at either end of both the West and East club lounges are simply too small for the NFL fan in 2015 who wants to keep an eye on other action for Fantasy Football, Survivor Pool or Las Vegas betting line purposes.
I will credit the Buccaneers however for rolling out a very reasonable pricing plan on beer, wine and alcohol that is the best of the major sports in Tampa Bay AND offers a nice additional discount to season pass members. If you have a season pass, you can drink domestic draft beer for just $ 6.50 every game. THAT is about as good a price as you’ll find anywhere in the league.
Trust me, it isn’t the quality of the stadium that brings Super Bowls and next season’s College Football Playoff National Championship Game to Tampa Bay… it is the city and the efforts of Rob Higgins and the Tampa Bay Sports Commission. The stadium is just «okay» relatively speaking and may even cost Tampa Bay upcoming Super Bowls now that South Florida has been doing major renovations and Atlanta is building a ridiculously modern facility to replace the Georgia Dome.

Once Nicknamed «crown jewel of the NFL» and rated «second best turf by NFL players.» I have been coming for years and always love coming here whether it’s for a Buccaneers or USF Bulls game. The service is pretty well staffed and hospitable. Other than that there could be improvements to the stadium now in the age of larger and high-​def boards. They are in desperate need to a new video boards and some seat upgrades.
Prices are not that outrages for a Buccaneers games but you can grab a better deal for the losing USF Bulls games for club seats. Would recommend for a visit at least once.

I think Dustin Hoffman and James Franco should buy this stadium and change its named to the «Rain Man James Stadium». It would be way easier to fill.
As it happens, I do have to give props to the peeps of the TBA (not to be announced… but Tampa Bay Area), for continuing to come out and create an excellent pirate ship atmosphere despite consistently being one of the worst teams in global history for 79 years now. I remember the Gruden year. A real shame he didn’t stick around and repeat the magic. But you’ll always have that year, you sentimental Sapps.
First-​Hand Experience: Info on my personal visit to this stadium — watching a game in Tampa was a real highlight of my stadium experiences. It wasn’t full and the crowd wasn’t as loud as I expected but the whole place is a sea of deep red and speaking of sea, the ship is so cool! And I love the tropical weather here. So I’m giving this stadium, all things considered, a very solid 4. I haven’t been for a few years though so I’m due another trip.
Now that I’ve been to every NFL stadium (current and former) and seen all 32 teams play live in the flesh, time to review them on Unilocal!I love stadia! I’ve been to every cool sports arena in the UK & North America, it’s an obsession I have with travel & sport. I’ve roamed America as a musician for years. In that time, I’ve seen sports games at (or toured when empty, or both) almost every major stadium in US/​Canada. Many pictures taken which I’ll upload eventually. On future travels, I’ll new pix, and add more stadiums! Watch this space!
***back to regular review***
It’s a nice and original stadium… it’s got the whole «pirate ship» thing going on and the atmosphere is great. It loses a point for being one of my least fave teams, but you have to give credit to the awesome original concept and the fact that it sounds so much like the St. Louis stadium name that it confuses people on trivia quizzes.
Oh and their cheerleaders are hotties.
I’d recommend some good food in Tampa but I can’t think of anything I ever really loved in this region. I’m sure there is some good Cuban food somewhere in there. If you head down to Sarasota check out Siesta Key. It’s amazing.
And inevitably, when The King really misses Florida but can’t return to Miami for fear of death threats, he will move here, and buy this stadium, and rename it the Lebron James Stadium. Word.

Sombrero no more, but an update would be nice. I remember coming here when it first opened and how proud I was that we finally got a state of the art facility. Now it’s feels and looks like the old sombrero’s cousin.
The concession stands are much better this season with new additions such as Cuban sandwiches.
Got Bucs season passes, but it’s been utterly depressing watching games. However, the season pass holders around us are fun and love to have a good time win or lose.

Raymond James opened in the late ’90’s and it was state-​of-​the-​art, but that was over 10 years ago. That was before the likes of a MetLife Stadium or an AT&T Stadium.
It’s in much need of an upgrade, especially the monitor screens, can’t even call them «jumbo screens.» They are really small. There are no grandstand at either end zone, they need to fill that space with some awesome HD jumbo screens.
The pirate ship is really cool. The Bucs needed a stadium upgrade, not new jerseys.

Decided back in July it was time to attend this Bucs-​Ravens game here. Pops and I had seats in the opposite end zone from the Pirate ship, 3 rows from the field. What a great stadium for football! Warning: if you come here on a hot day, stay hydrated. Field reaches 100 degrees or more easily.
This stadium no different from any other, they pretty much rob you for beers ($ 9 to $ 11) and food ($ 9 bbq burger, $ 7 sail dogs). If you can believe this, I actually bought a Coke and they ran out of ice. Ice? WTH? Concession owners you should NEVER run out of ice on a hot day. Almost unforgivable! For the most part, Buc fans were cool even though my Ravens were up 38 – 0 by halftime. I will definitely return again, hopefully Bucs will be more competitive next time!