- Attending Super Bowl 60 in Santa Clara, California, will be more expensive than a typical weekend in the Bay Area.
- Travel costs for this year’s game are more affordable compared to previous Super Bowls.
- Travelers can save money by staying farther from the stadium and being flexible with their travel dates.
The big game is almost here, and those hoping to experience the energy of Super Bowl 60 in person will be paying a premium.
This year, Super Bowl 60 will take place on Feb. 8 at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, located about an hour’s drive from San Francisco. Football fanatics are already gearing up to make the trip for the game, with Priceline searches for flights to the Bay Area up by 51% and hotels by a whopping 98% as of Jan. 23, according to Priceline.
While attending the Super Bowl is often associated with skyrocketing prices, this year’s fans are in luck. Travel for this year’s big game is more affordable than in previous years, though people should still expect to pay a markup, according to KAYAK.
‘Major events like the Super Bowl always drive prices up, but Santa Clara is a relative bargain,’ Sarah Kennedy, KAYAK travel trends expert, told USA TODAY in an email. Airfare for Super Bowl 60 is 19% cheaper than what it cost to go to New Orleans for last year’s event.
A budget traveler, on average, can manage a two-day trip with about $1,000, but it can reach over $3,000 for a bigger spender for a two-day trip. And that’s not counting event tickets, meals and other miscellaneous costs.
Here’s what travelers should know about how much it’ll cost to attend Super Bowl 60, according to popular travel platforms.
The big costs
Heading to the Bay Area during the Super Bowl 60 weekend is going to be more expensive than usual with the biggest spike being hotel rates, according to Priceline data. Expedia agrees, with even budget hotels surging in price – two-star hotels are charging up to 10 times their normal rates during Super Bowl weekend. The week after, prices drop back down by almost 90%.
Here are the average price increases people can expect for their Super Bowl trip, according to Priceline:
- Airfare: Average roundtrip flights across the U.S. to the Bay Area at $267, a 26% increase
- Hotels: Average nightly rates in the Bay Area at $310, an 88% increase
- Car rentals: Average daily rates for pickup in the Bay Area at $95, a 54% increase
Travel budgets for the Super Bowl
With a little bit of savviness, fans can still make their Super Bowl travel budget work for them. Here’s how.
- Budget traveler: Travelers can fly into San Francisco International Airport, where domestic airfare is averaging $328, and rent a car for $57 a day, on average, according to KAYAK. They can also score a two-star hotel for $279 a night, but it may not be in Santa Clara.
- Midrange traveler: If you’re willing to pay a bit more, travelers can fly into Oakland International Airport. Average domestic airfare to Oakland clocks in at $331 with car rentals at $61 a day, on average, according to KAYAK. Three-star hotels in the Bay Area are averaging at $299 a night, although you may be staying in San Francisco or San Jose.
- ‘Once-in-a-lifetime’ splurge traveler: For people ready to dish out for the Super Bowl, you can fly into San José Mineta International Airport – the closest major airport to Santa Clara – with an average domestic airfare of $348 and rent a car for $66 a day on average, KAYAK found. Then you can book a four-star hotel in the Bay Area for an average nightly rate of $323. If you’re hoping to stay as close as possible to the game, Expedia found some hotels within three miles of Levi’s Stadium to cost as much as $2,286 for a two-night booking from Feb. 7 to 9.
How travelers cut costs
- Stay farther away from the game. Where you’re flying into or staying in the Bay Area can impact how much you’ll spend, with San Francisco International Airport offering the lowest average airfare and car rental rates.
- Flexible arrival/departure dates. Traveling during the event weekend means you’ll also pay peak pricing, like everyone else. If you can be flexible with your travel dates, like extending your trip to explore the Bay Area before or after the game, you could score some savings.
- Monitor costs. According to Expedia, the peak booking window for hotels is about 2 weeks out, so travelers should move quickly or set up a price tracker to see when it’s best to book.