Goldstar Deals
UPDATE: We have selected a winning entry. The entry played up the "Buster Olney on Twitter" meme:
Heard this - I'd like to use this certificate for the Take Me To The Vino tour at the end of (more) #Contests
(2/2) September. Thanks!
And the winner is Dan Rodriguez. A representative from Goldstar will be contacting you with your prize shortly.
We realize that we haven't come through with much content lately, so we're hoping a little bribery will get you back in our corner. Thanks to a strong partnership with Goldstar.com, we are able to introduce the first ever NYY Stadium Insider contest and are offering a $50 gift certificate to the winner.
Goldstar.com is free to join, and they offer significantly discounted tickets to leisure activities such as live entertainment, theatre, concerts, dance, film screenings, sporting events, and spa services all over the country. Earlier this year, we discussed some great deals that Goldstar.com was offering on Audi Yankees Club tickets and batter's eye tickets at Yankee Stadium. We even snagged some of the batter's eye seats for the significantly discounted price and thoroughly enjoyed the experience.
Right now, there aren't any Yankees tickets left for the 2010 season, but they do have some other sports-related events that might be of interest to you such as New York Rangers preseason tickets, craft beer tours and even a Rocks Off booze cruise to Citi Field.
Today's contest is simple; head over to Goldstar.com, locate an event that you'd be interested in putting a $50 gift certificate toward (it can be any event in any city) and add your response in the comments section below. Pro tip: if you weave humor into your response, you'll have a MUCH higher chance of winning the prize. That being said, everyone isn't funny, so be sure to enter and give a good reason why you should win the certificate!
We can check IP addresses, so please, no shenanigans. Feel free to "like" this post, re-tweet it, digg it, do whatever you have to do.
Looking forward to reading your entries!
During the 2009 season, we never had the opportunity to watch a game from the unique "Batter's Eye Seats" at the new Yankee Stadium. Thanks to an awesome deal from Goldstar.com, that is about to change.
A couple of weeks back, we pointed out a pretty good deal on Audi Yankees Club seats through Goldstar.com and many of those dates sold out already. 2010 Yankees Tickets aren't even officially on sale, but today we're pointing you in the direction of a hot deal on "Batter's Eye Seats," as low as $45 per ticket for select dates. Even more exciting is that some pretty good games are available at the bargain-basement price, including a Memorial Day matinee against the Indians. Gameday face value for these seats is $125, so this is $80 off - considerable savings Service fees are fairly steep at around $15 per ticket, but you're still getting a decent deal.
Back in 2009, The Yankees quickly slashed prices on these seats when they realized the $125 price tag wasn't realistic. They offered regular "e-savers," lowering the price to around $75-$80. At the time, we cautioned our readers not to bite and to let the Yankees continue lowering prices. It took nearly a year, but it looks like the Yankees have finally taken our advice and placed the "Batter's Eye Seats" at a more reasonable pricepoint.
A quick note about Goldstar.com - it seems that they work with events and venues to purchase tickets at wholesale costs, and then they make money on their added service fees. Based on that understanding, it seems that the Yankees sold Goldstar these "Batter's Eye Seats" for no more than $45, and most likely even less. There is also an opt-in for MLBAM emails at checkout, so that is likely part of the deal for MLB. Regardless, it just goes to show what the true market value is for these seats, especially for non-premium games.
Even at $60 with fees, these seats aren't for everyone. For most non-premium games, seats directly to your left and right will be going for less than $20 each. For "Stadium Insiders" who want to check out some of the unique seating options at the new Yankee Stadium, its a no-brainer!
Update (1:50 PM): A spokesperson from Goldstar.com has reached out to us to clarify their relationship with the Yankees:
I hope you don't mind but I thought I would chime in about how Goldstar works with its venue partners. Our partners set aside an allotment of tickets to sell on their behalf. The venue then receives the cost of the ticket and we charge a small service fee to our members when they purchase the ticket. So, we don't actually purchase the tickets. Goldstar makes money on the service charge. The average service fee (factor in all 900-1200 events on the site) is roughly $4.50. And, it is free to join Goldstar as you may have seen. We are partnered with about 4,000 venues across the country. Our membership is significantly female and under the age of 40. We’re dedicated to reaching new audiences in all genres of live entertainment. So everybody wins.
Glad we cleared that up!
no commentsWe'll get this out of the way right from the start - the Yankees ticket office isn't even close to putting 2010 Yankees tickets on sale to the general public. Every year around this time, non-season ticket holders start getting anxious for tickets and we receive emails asking if we know anything about the public sale date. Unfortunately, we don't, but we can help you score some of the best value seats in the stadium - Audi Yankees Club all-inclusive tickets - before the public on-sale.
Waiting for us in our inbox yesterday morning was a gem of an email from Goldstar.com, offering Audi Yankees Club tickets for the discounted price of $100. There are only select dates, and the price is still pretty high, but we can vouch for this being a good deal. For $100, you get seats in a climate-controlled restaurant (great for the cold days in April) with decent views and an all-you-can-eat gourmet buffet. The Audi Yankees Club is membership only, so you can't just walk in. Even if you do somehow score a day pass, you'll have to pay $65 for the buffet, plus pay for your ticket into the stadium.
This deal definitely isn't for everyone. If you aren't a big eater, you aren't as likely to get a great deal out of the buffet, which typically costs $65. If you don't like being removed from the typical stadium atmosphere, you won't enjoy the fishbowl that is the Audi Yankees Club.
But for some, this is a good deal. The couple of times we visited the Audi Yankees Club, we cleaned up on the high-priced options (lobster, filet mignon), and it is nice to have the option of being protected from the elements. Plus, we ran into Lonn Trost eating his dinner at the Audi Yankees Club on one of our visits. If the COO of the team is eating there, it must be good.
