Heinz Field

These directions are courtesy of Kimberly and Albrecht Powell, who have done a wonderful guide to Pittsburgh that should be checked out.

Driving Directions to Heinz Field

400 Art Rooney Avenue
Pittsburgh PA

From the East:
Take I-376, US-22 and go West for 14.2 miles. Take Exit 1 to North Shore and I-279 North. Bear left on ramp at sign reading Exit 11B - North Shore.

From the North:
Take I-79 and go South to I-279. Follow I-279 to Exit 21 I-279 South to Pittsburgh. Take Exit 12 to North Shore.

From the South:
Take I-79 North to Exit 14 for I-279 North towards Pittsburgh. Follow I-279 through the Fort Pitt Tunnel/Bridge (Left Lane) to the sign reading Exit 11A, 11B PA-65 North to North Shore/Ohio River Blvd and US-19. Take Exit 11B - North Shore.

From the West and Airport:
From the PA Turnpike (I-76 East), take Exit 1A Rt-60-South towards Pittsburgh (Portions Toll), or from the Pittsburgh Airport follow PA-Route-60-South towards Pittsburgh. Continue to Pittsburgh following signs for US-22, US-30 and I-279 through the Fort Pitt Tunnel/Bridge. Follow I-279 through the Fort Pitt Tunnel (Left Lane) to the sign reading Exit 11A, 11B PA-65 North to North Shore/Ohio River Blvd and US-19. Bear left on ramp at sign reading Exit 11B - North Shore.

Tailgating/Parking

This is a great place to start learning about Heinz Field.

This guide has laid out all your options and is the best source I found.  Bottom-line: If you don’t have connections forget about parking at Heinz Field proper. The Station Square Option is a very good option for out of town visitors. Another option is to hunt around the Northshore for private lots. More options are below. If you (the reader) know of any good tailgate spots in private lots pass them on. I’ll need an address, cost, charity if any they support, and how many cars it can park and when does it fill up. Email me.

Station Square (Tailgate Alternative)

If you don’t need to tailgate in the traditional way, this might be your best option.  It is going to cost you $8.00 for parking but it is a good deal if you plan to stay after the game.  There are a ton of things to do in Station Square.  You can even stay at the Sheraton during your visit.

The neatest thing is the ability to take a riverboat over to the game. It costs $8 roundtrip per person.  Here is a decent overview of the Station Square in map form.

Map of Station Square Area

More Parking Options

More Heinz Field Parking/Tailgating Options can be found here.

Lodging

For “out of towners” seeking convenience and don’t mind paying a higher price should check out the Sheraton at Station Square first, if you want an east way to use the Gateway Clipper. Be advised by the time you read this it is probably already too late to find a vacancy unless you get lucky.

 
Sheraton at Station Square

North Shore Lodging

The Priory Hotel is located on the Northshore near PNC Ballpark.  It draws rave reviews by almost all.  If you want a smaller boutique hotel, this is it.

 
The Priory Hotel

The Bridgestreet Lincoln at Northshore is also nearby. It might be worth a look.  100 Anderson St., phone: 412-665-2971

The SpringHill Suites by Marriott is located right next to the PNC stadium, and within walking distance to Heinz Field.  It looks to be a very good option.

Downtown

There are seven major hotels downtown I found using Yahoo.  Staying downtown over the weekend is often a good way to stretch your dollar.  Many downtown hotels have weekend rates since their business stays are low over the weekend.  The major hotel chains represented downtown were: Courtyard by Marriott, Hilton, Marriott, Omni, Ramada, Renaissance and Westin.

Staying a Few Miles Away Near Campus?

This website gives you directions to the Pitt campus.

The university recommends these places near the campus.

I see there is a Quality Inn nearly and also the University Club.

One thing must be noted about the Oakland area where the Pitt campus is located. This is an urban area with urban crime. When walking about, use common sense.

Restaurants/Entertainment:

I’d like to thank “PittFan7” and my future brother-in-law Don Lancaster for giving me the local insight as follows in this guide.

Pittfan7 lists five places that you should look into for hang outs, bars, food, etc…

2. The Strip District (on the Allegheny River near downtown) offers lots of produce/artist's markets in the day time and night life/restaurants at night for the “Club” people that enjoy dancing. Several neat, original, must do eating places are detailed below.

Strip District During the Day  

3. Oakland which is where the Pitt campus is located. They have quite an array of entertainment, including a 24hr Beer Distributor. Good food not as many bars but a good college environment.

4. Station Square (mentioned above) has bars, clubs, food, hotels and the Gateway Clipper Fleet for river tours and concerts etc.. You also have the option of taking the Monongahela Incline, which will take you to the outlooks of Mt. Washington, from which you and your main squeeze can have a romantic view of the city skyline. Also, awesome at night to take loved ones to. 

5. Homestead Waterfront This area isn't quite the bar scene atmosphere, but it has a huge variety of entertainment. They have a huge outdoor shopping plaza, movie theatre, a few bars here and there but a lot of bar/restaurants. Great food, comedy club, an overall great environment for fun.