As mentioned below, the best cities I have been involved with the last 15 years or so were Kansas City, NYC / Madison Square Garden, and Pittsburgh. You could roll right out of the arena and find a bar/restaurant to watch NCAA hoops and hang with other collegiate sports fans. I have always stayed at the VT teams hotel, lots of fun. I actually called the Ritz in St. Louis yesterday and they have already locked down all the hotel rooms for teams and individuals as an example. Some folks VRBO it, that is a great way to go as well. I agree on emailing Tucker and trying to understand how much donation is needed to get on the tickets list. It is a GREAT time! The Fan Fest I thought wasn't as good as in the past this year. When it was in Cleveland back in 2018 or 2017 its was much bigger and brands like RUDIs had a much bigger footprint. Just plan ahead...the hotels and VRBO houses are almost all locked in right now.

--been going for 10 years, GREAT time!! --we always stay at the team hotel --Always get tickets through VT BUT there are allotment issues --Not a lot of site seeing time time until Saturday

You will likely have to donate at least $1500 next year or more to get tickets through the school. Even though we should get more next year than this year due to the larger arena size, the demand is going to be through the roof. I plan on upping my contribution again this year to ensure tickets.

1. Try to figure out how the SERTC donor level will be to get tickets. Email Tucker Davidson. Find a friend(s) and donate through the same account if needed. Nosebleeds are available through the NCAA site (AXS app) but you can't purchase a session book and have to purchase individually for each session. You also have to worry about additional fees that don't pop up until you are ready to check out. 2. Stay at the team hotel if you can. We did that in KC two years ago. We had a great time talking to fellow Hokies, the team, recruits, their families, and the staff. You felt like an extended part of the VT Wrestling family for a few days. It was worth the extra bucks. Plus, the social(s) was at the hotel which made it more convenient to attend. We weren't able to stay at the team hotel in Philly last year, and were disconnected from other Hokies. We did go to the social at the Linc and connect, but the KC experience was far better. Ironically, we stayed at the Pack hotel in Philly. Met Vince Robinson who is a nice guy and made it easier to root for him in the finals. 3. The NCAA has a fan fest. You should check that out. The NCAA usually has past NCAA All Americans or champions do clinics. RBY did one in KC and signed for the kids. Hopefully, the St. Louis arena is within walking distance of the hotels and nightlife. Kansas City was an excellent host as their arena was next to Power & Light District and numerous hotels. Philly was too far removed from the city and most hotels; although, Xfinity Live bar district was next door. I recommend spending time at the restaurants and bars near the arena in between and after sessions. There are so many friendly fans from other teams who you can strike up conversations. We had great times drinking beers with Little Rock and South Dakota State fans in KC. Hope this helps.

Nice to see good words about Vince Robinson too.