1) Getting into the stadium. Turnstiles will open ninety minutes 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. 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 emptying out the contents on a table.
3) There’s a pub that will welcome away supporters. It’s the Hercules, (in Holloway Road, N76JA) and about 20 minutes walk from the stadium. We’ve not used it on matchdays, but If you give it a try, please let us know if it’s a good experience. The old one, the Drayton, is now Arsenal supporters only.
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. We have new caterers this season, who are supposed to be better than the previous ones, but they offer only this as their menu:
Immediately outside, on the concourse around the stadium, there’s virtually nothing, aside from programmes and toilets. But there are loads of cafes and restaurants close to the stadium (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 there’s the usual quota of burger vans on the roads surrounding the stadium.
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). If drivers see a low flying motorbike over a car sign (left) don’t go past it. |
7) The club tells 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.
8) There are public toilets in the area immediately surrounding the outside of stadium. So no matter how desperate, please don’t use people’s gardens. (It’s hard to believe, but some fans do.)
Club information:
Disabled access:
https://www.arsenal.com/disabilityaccess
Full stadium guide:
https://www.arsenal.com/news/emirates-stadium-matchday-guide-aw6De3m9B6Ot
Safety and security:
https://www.arsenal.com/matchday-safety-and-security
General matchday information:
https://help.arsenal.com/support/solutions/articles/101000579323-at-the-stadium
