SOME TIPS FOR YOUR SUPPORTERS VISITING ARSENAL
Supplied by AISA (Arsenal Independent Supporters’ Association)
If you’re coming by car, as a result of a huge water main burst, main roads near the stadium are closed, so traffic is being diverted and congestion and confusion are likely. The roads affected are between Finsbury Park and Nags Head (Tollington Road/Hornsey Road) if your satnavs show those. Assuming it’s not all fixed by Saturday (it was a huge hole in the road, so it’s unlikely) there is nothing I can offer to avoid it. Just leave more time, and be very wary of the roads closed due to Low Traffic Neighbourhoods (see tip 6 below).
There are some other routines that have changed since you last visited Arsenal that
you may find helpful.
1) Getting into the stadium. Turnstiles will open two hours before kick-off. There is
a longer process to get into the Emirates these days, so the message is try to arrive
early (60+ minutes?). It can sometimes get very chaotic in the last 15 minutes before
kick off.
Holloway Road*, Finsbury Park and Arsenal (all Piccadilly line) and Highbury and
Islington (Victoria) are all close enough to walk to the ground within about ten
minutes or less. *If you come from Holloway Road, you’ll not be able to use it after.
It’s closed for two hours following the end of the game. Supporters coming by car,
see (6) below.
2) Bag size. There is a limit of nothing bigger than A4. So a small rucksack or
handbag. (AISA managed to get this increased from A5, can you believe!) But travel
with as little as possible. And usual rules on no bottles – there’s an official list of
prohibited items below. All bags are searched and tagged prior to entry. We suggest
using a clear or string bag – it speeds up entry as they can see what you have and
avoids their emptying out the contents on a table.
3) There’s no ‘away’ pub any more. The Drayton (the one people used to use) has
closed and there’s no alternative. Alcohol is not allowed to be sold in the nearest
shops, and it’s not allowed to be brought into the stadium. If you want alcohol, it
needs to be bought once inside the stadium . . . at Arsenal rates, I’m afraid. (The
official Arsenal guide still says there’s an ‘early bird’ pie and pint offer inside the
stadium but it needs updating – we’ve told the club! – as that’s no longer in
operation.) You can bring in snacks and soft drinks that are in small plastic bottles or
flasks (so long as they fit into that small bag!)
4) The Emirates is CASHLESS so if you want to buy anything inside, you’ll need
plastic or your mobile to pay.
5) Food is available inside the Emirates. It’s not bad but it’s not cheap.
Immediately outside, on the concourse around the stadium, there’s virtually nothing,
aside from programmes. But there are brilliant little cafes on the streets surrounding
the concourse where you can sit down to eat (a really good café is in line of sight of
the ‘away’ entrance – ‘Wagon Café’ – and it welcomes all supporters). Loads of other
cafes and restaurants are slightly further afield (left or right out of Holloway Road
tube, or left from Arsenal tube, along Gillespie Road, Blackstock Road, Finsbury Park,
if you have your mobile maps). Plus the usual quota of burger vans close by.
6) If you come by car.
The usual parking issues (generally, no parking available) have been exacerbated by Low Traffic Neighbourhoods. Roads around the stadium have been closed, but not physically – by
barely visible signs, with camera enforcement (and £130 fines). So if drivers see a low flying motorbike over a car sign (left) don’t go past it.
7) The club also tell us, ‘For any ticketing enquiries on matchday, the Box Office is
situated next to the Armoury Store on the west side of the Stadium.’ That’s the
Holloway Road Tube station side, not the Arsenal tube side, so if you come from the
latter, you have cross bridges to the pedestrianised exterior of the stadium and
down steps to the ‘west’ side.