These aren’t the cheap seats.
While commoner tennis fans pay $150 to $230 for ground passes for the privilege of waiting in hours-long lines for entrance, Honey Deuces and bathrooms, the rich, famous and connected are enjoying a very different US Open — with four- and five-digit price tags.
Many say the best experience is being up close to the action and sitting courtside, but it will cost you. Tickets are currently going for upwards of $21,000 on the United States Tennis Association (USTA) website.
Luca Mornet, 23, a full content-creator who lives in Manhattan, sat courtside last year after being invited by the shoe brand DSW. He gushes about the experience.
“It was so much fun to be so close to the players,” he told The Post. “You feel like you are about to get hit by the balls, but you aren’t. And [you see] the runners get the balls and the referee, it’s so cool.”
Courtside is also where you are likely to rub shoulders with celebrities. Hugh Jackman, Michelle Obama and Savannah Guthrie regularly sit in the front sections.
Some people sitting courtside also have access to a suite with private bathrooms. Others use the amenities — such as bathrooms and food stalls — on the stadium’s Club Level, which are much less crowded than on other floors. Club Level tickets also include a private entrance into Arthur Ashe and a dedicated security line at the entrance to the tennis center.
Last year, the Club Level concessions were the only place to get access to Cocodaq’s buzzy $100 “Golden Set” featuring six chicken nuggets, Petrossian caviar and creme fraiche. This year Cocodaq will also have a stall in the food village.
Some A-Listers prefer a suite experience — instead of, or in addition to, sitting courtside.
The President’s Suite is the closest thing Arthur Ashe Stadium has to the famed Royal Box at Wimbledon.
Then invite-only, two-story space has a private entrance, an elaborate candy bar, a top-shelf open bar and even a ballroom inside the space for private dinner parties. Those lucky enough to go inside also get access to courtside seats with the best views in the stadium.
At last year’s tournament, Alec Baldwin, Lin-Manuel MIranda, Anna Wintour, and Andy Roddick were among those who enjoyed the President’s Suite.
Another suite option is The Player Cafe, which is run by the USTA and includes courtside seats, a premium bar and a US Open gift. (Last year’s offering was a custom towel and hat).
Technically anyone willing to plunk down the cash can get access to The Player Cafe, but tickets — which start at $6,275 per person for early matches — have long been sold out.
American Express cardholders can buy tickets — costing from $1,600 to $10,300 — to the banking company’s suite, which features air conditioning and a full-bar.
A number of other companies have lavish suites available only to invitees.
In the Emirates suite, immaculately dressed flight attendants serve tennis fans food and drink in the same way they would in the airline’s famously luxurious first class cabin. This year, Emirates will debut a new caviar cart with Champagne and canapes.
In the Grey Goose suite a bartender makes specialty cocktails like the Big Foe (Grey Goose, St-Germain, fresh lime juice, mint leaves, and soda) while the Lavazza suite has a barista making expertly crafted espresso martinis.
The Moet and Rolex suites feature a unique amenity: potentially hanging out with Roger Federer, who is a brand ambassador for both companies and sometimes stops by.
Last year, Caroline Maggs, a 27-year-old MBA student and content creator, was lucky enough to be invited to the Ralph Lauren suite. Her parents had warned her about encountering terrible traffic and lines at the tournament, but her VIP experience didn’t feature any such inconveniences.
A private car dropped her off at a private, back entrance to the stadium. “We pulled right in, and as soon as we got there, an elevator took me to the suite,” she said. “There was no heavy lifting, no experience of not knowing where I am going or getting lost.”
The air conditioned suite, which was outfitted with wood paneling, white and navy furniture, and tennis memorabilia, had private bathrooms, a bartender serving Honey Deuce cocktails and Champagne. There was a lavish buffet, passed hors d’oeuvres and a whiskey tasting.
“Just when I thought it was over, they would come around with cookies shaped like tennis balls,” she recalled.
It was her first time at the Open, but now she can’t imaging doing it any other way.
“I feel like my experience is almost tainted forever,” she said. “I can never go as a normie.”
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
