We were greeted at the Rose Bowl parking lot by a small army of Rose Parade workers (known simply as “White Suitors” because of their pristine white suits and white straw hats which are a throwback to the Parade’s 100 history), that directed us with mechanical precision to an open field that quickly swelled into a tightly packed lot full of SUV’s and Minivans.
We arrived kinda early, so they lines moved faster than we could scoot our kids along and we were on our way to one of the many chartered school buses taking us across town to the floats. Knowing that three Park N’Ride locations were feeding bus-loads of us to the same neighborhood, things got pretty congested. The three parking locations are the Rose Bowl, Pasadena City College, and the Community Education Center in Pasadena.
If you are planning on going here are some parent tips to make the trip a little easier;
- Go Early! - The streets fill up late morning, if you can afford to get there when they open to the general public (9am), you will have a much easier experience. We got there around 10-10:30am and it was filling up quickly! When we were leaving (early afternoon), the ticket line was twice the length as it was for us!
- Bring your most nimble and lightest stroller – We have three kids and opted not for the double stroller and that was a wise decision.
- Pack drinks and snacks - They do have delicious kettle corn, funnel cake and other county fair favorites at a price. For families visiting on a budget, pack a bag of sandwiches and drinks (non-alcoholic).
- Wear comfortable shoes - It will be crowded and you will be moving at a leisurely pace. Skateboards, roller skates, bicycles, tricycles, Segways and wagons are not permitted.
- Bring cash - $7 for anyone over the age of 5 yrs. and $3 bucks for parking, but the ticket booth takes plastic, not to worry. Be warned though, if you’re yearning for some of that tasty funnel cake you best be packing some cash in your wallet. There are only two ATMs at the venue, sponsored by the Pasadena Federal Credit Union. ATMs are located near the West (Red) Gate and at the corner of Washington and Sierra Madre Boulevards.
- Download the free Audio Tour - The Tournament of Roses is currently offering a free audio tour of the floats featured in the 120th Rose Parade. The audio tour can be downloaded from the “podcast” area on iTunes. We did. Since we have small children, we listened to most of it on the car ride there, so it was a good primer for what we were about to see.
If you want to sit down and take a break, check out the 15 minute documentary about the making of a float for the Rose Parade at the 1600 theater at Pasadena High School. It puts some perspective on the massive effort put forth every year. I guarantee you won’t watch the parade the same way.
Some of the highlights of the showcase for me was being able to look into the underbelly of these homemade monstrosities. Many of the ones with heavy animatronics rigs looked like they had full server racks next to the driver’s seats! Sure that is probably on of the geeker fun facts, but it really is interesting to get up close to these works of art after seeing them on TV.
Float Detail | 2009 Rose Parade Float Showcase
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