general admission

Vertigo tour tickets can still be found

U2log.com has learned about ticket availability to some of the rescheduled Vertigo tour shows.

“Vertigo tour? What’s that?” you ask.

Well, it’s this thing where four guys stand on an elliptical stage and make a lot of noise. You want tickets to see it, right?

If you answered “yes” to that question, you may be wondering about where to find tickets, aside from vermin scalpers. U2log.com suggests that fans turn to each other first for tickets. Check for ticket trades and sales at fan forums. U2log.com has created a ticket trade group on Google. U2tours.com also has a popular ticket trading forum.

If you have no luck finding tickets from other fans, consider using OTX, the tour and travel operator designated by TNA, the promoter of the Vertigo tour. OTX has just announced that it has a new block of general admission floor tickets for the sold-out shows scheduled in Auckland, New Zealand. OTX has also recently put its packages for the shows in Japan on sale.

Speaking of Japan…our friends at U2japan.com tell us that general admission tickets to the three shows at Saitama Arena were not easy to obtain when they went on public sale in September. Fans had to compete with ticket brokers, which are numerous and very popular in Japan, to get the best tickets.


Image courtesy of U2japan.com

General admission will be handled differently in Japan than anywhere else on the tour. General admission at Saitama Arena will be divided into three blocks: Blocks A, BL, and BR. In addition to a block number, all GA tickets include a position number — from 1 to 4,000. Fans will be granted entrance into the blocks in numerical order. The system sounds a bit crazy, but it does work to keep fans from rushing and crushing.

We’d hate to be the schmuck who has to call out the numbers.

How to see U2 in Japan

Ticket PIA, Japan’s version of Ticketmaster, has arranged a ticket purchasing service for fans who are NOT residents of Japan. Beginning today, fans may sign up for a lottery to purchase up to four tickets to the U2 concert in Yokohama on April 4. The lottery application period ends on February 8. On February 14, those who have applied to the lottery will be informed if their ticket order will be processed.

Because of safety laws in Japan, the general admission area at Nissan Stadium will be divided into sections (see map above). Fans may only specify a request of general admission, lower-level stands, and upper-level stands in their ticket order, not a section number. Seating and section assignments will be specified with the confirmed order. U2japan.com reports that U2.com members ordering general admission tickets in the pre-sale last week were given section “SS” in front of the stage.

Fans who find a lottery system too complicated or risky should consider one of the ticket packages for the Yokohoma concert being offered by ETS, the official tour and travel operator.