A Visitor's Guide to Indianapolis for the DCI Fan: Part 1
Sharing some tips and tricks to your stay in Indy during DCI World Championships week from a local!
It’s crazy to think that we’re already less than two weeks away from the end of the 2022 DCI season! It seems just like yesterday that we were hyping the start of the season in Detroit and California.
Like many of you, World Championships is one of my favorite weeks of the year. It’s always amazing to see so many people from all around the country (and even some international tourists) flock to Indianapolis to celebrate the marching arts and witness the final performances of the top drum corps in the world. Personally, I also love the chance to catch up with friends who come to town for finals who I may only see a couple of times a year. And even better… the entire week happens right in my backyard!
After growing up on the east coast, I moved to the Indianapolis area about a decade ago to begin my professional career and have been in the area since. That also means I’ve humbly had the privilege to be at every DCI Finals since 2010 (and yes, I know there’s plenty of people who have me beat for consecutive years). I have absolutely loved my time living in Indy and even more so because of it being the self-proclaimed “Marching Arts Capital of the World.”
This year’s World Championships week will be one like DCI has never experienced before. DCI and Indianapolis will be welcoming back a number of people who maybe haven’t visited since the last competitive World Championships week in 2019, or people who recently became drum corps fans and have never visited before. That being said, and with finals week rapidly approaching, I thought it would be helpful to put together “A Visitor’s Guide to Indianapolis for the DCI Fan” to help answer some common questions and set expectations for everyone who will be visiting.
A little bit about Indianapolis
Indianapolis is a unique city, affectionately named the “Crossroads of America” given its location that makes it close to a number of other major midwestern cities such as Chicago, Detroit, Cincinnati, and St. Louis. Although the Indianapolis metro area is only the 33rd most populous area in the country by population, its geographic location combined with its downtown layout has turned it into a popular destination for large events and conferences.
A lot of this can be credited to Lucas Oil Stadium and its convenient location in the heart of downtown. Since its opening in late August 2008, beyond being the home stadium for the Indianapolis Colts, Lucas Oil has hosted a Super Bowl, three NCAA Men’s Basketball Final Four events, 11 Big Ten Football Championship games, and of course every DCI World Championship and Bands of America Grand National Championships event. As a city, Indianapolis also hosts major annual conferences such as the NFL Draft Combine, the Gen Con gaming convention, Future Farmers of America convention, and FDCI (a large conference for firefighters).
How has Indy changed since the pandemic and the last DCI World Championships?
If you’re a repeat visitor to Indy for World Championships, but haven’t visited since 2019, you’re probably wondering if and how the city has changed. Like a lot of major cities in the country, Indianapolis has gone through a bit of a transition since the start of the pandemic. Prior to 2020, downtown used to be a busy area during the workweek for the thousands of people working at offices and businesses in the area. Now with a lot of employers offering hybrid or work-from-home options, the area is a bit less busy than it once used to be. This has caused some restaurant and retail store closings from businesses that relied heavily on the workweek lunch crowds. And the Circle Center Mall, once the premier shopping spot for downtown, is suffering a similar fate as many other malls around the country with a number of store closures over the past few years.
As much as I wish I didn’t have to write this next bit, I think it’s important to share - crime and the homeless population have also increased in the downtown area since 2020, another trend shared by other major cities. Despite this unfortunate fact, I and many others still feel safe visiting and enjoying the area, and there haven’t been any major incidents since events started coming back around this time last year. Always be aware of your surroundings and follow common sense practices and you’ll be fine as a visitor during World Championships week.
Now that we got some of the bigger picture details out of the way, let’s get into the fun stuff. For the rest of today’s article, we’ll talk about how to get to Indianapolis, how to get around Indianapolis, and where to stay.
How to get to Indianapolis
Planes, Trains, and Automobiles (shoutout John Candy). As much as I wanted to use that reference, it’s only partially true. Don’t actually consider taking the train here, Amtrak service is nearly nonexistent.
Hopefully you’ve sorted out the “how you’re getting to Indianapolis” part already, especially if you’re flying. And if you haven’t…well, that’s a pretty penny you’ll probably be paying for a flight in today’s economy. If you are flying, fortunately for you (plane ticket bought already or not), the Indianapolis Airport is an ease to fly in and out of and has consistently been named one of the top airports in North America. Everyone loves a short TSA line.
If you’ve instead opted for driving to Indianapolis, boy are you in for a treat. No matter which direction you’re coming from, you’ll get to enjoy a most scenic drive with corn, corn, and more corn. Oh and probably a random construction zone, or traffic just coasting at a swift 55 mph because two semis decided to race on a two lane highway. But seriously, it’s unfortunately a pretty boring drive. Bring lots of snacks.
How to get around Indianapolis
Once you get to Indy, it’s relatively easy to get around the city by car. The majority of the city is laid out in a grid pattern making it fairly difficult to get too turned around. As for the interstates, there’s three you should be aware of: I-65 runs north/south, I-70 runs east/west, and I-465 is a giant loop around the perimeter of the city that some locals like to drive on as if they’re racing their own Indy 500. And unfortunately, here’s where I share some more bad news - a pretty significant portion of 65 and 70 is under construction near downtown making some routes impossible to use to get in and out of the downtown area. The construction has made some areas more congested during rush hours, though the city has been managing it fairly well. But even if you’ve visited Indy a number of times, it’s definitely recommended to use your phone’s GPS to make sure you’re using the best route to get through traffic.
If you are flying to Indy and don’t plan on renting a car, your options are basically a) use ride services like Uber and Lyft or b) walk everywhere if your hotel is downtown and close to the stadium. One upside to downtown is that it’s incredibly walkable and doesn’t take more than half an hour to get to major attractions or amenities from most downtown spots. And if you’re brave and daring, you also use one of those electric rent-a-scooters, but those are soooo out of style and pre-pandemic.
However, another pretty big downside of Indy is that public transportation is severely lacking here. Our bus system is fine, but it definitely takes longer than driving in nearly every instance. To help improve the bus system, a few years ago, the city built and launched the Red Line which is a route for special electric buses that travel in their own designated lane. Those routes are significantly faster than a normal bus, however the route is still very limited and only runs through a small portion of downtown - they won’t help you out a lot during World Championships. So really, stick to walking, driving, or Uber-ing.
Where to stay
Like your travel arrangements, hopefully you’ve also figured out where you’re staying. If you’re a more recent ageout still paying off debt from marching and/or poor life choices (no shame, we’ve all been there), it is absolutely understandable to get that $50 Airbnb and split it with 10 other friends. I won’t judge.
If you do prefer more traditional accommodations like a hotel, you shouldn’t have trouble finding one in any type of budget. Because the city has become so event and visitor friendly, there’s been no shortage of rooms in all areas of the city. In just a mile radius of Lucas Oil Stadium, there’s nearly 30 hotels, all that are not too difficult to walk to and from if you will not have access to a car. One location that is definitely worth looking into is the JW Marriott complex which is the home to four different Marriott properties. The complex is also a less than ten minute walk up the road from Lucas Oil Stadium, making it one of the closest complexes to the stadium.
If you want to save some money, it may be best to look outside of the downtown area. There are clusters of good hotels throughout the city and surrounding suburbs, all within a half hour drive of the stadium. Some of these locations include:
The north side of Indy by the Keystone Fashion Mall
North Indy/south Carmel along SR 31
The northwest side of Indy by 465 and 71st Street
The suburb of Greenwood (south of the city)
Hotels near the airport, which could be a good option if you’re flying in
Now that we got you to Indy, in part 2 we’ll focus on more of the fun stuff - what to do, what to see, and where to eat while you’re here. Of course your focus will be on one or more days of drum corps awesomeness, but there’s no shortage of other activities you can find to do to fill your time while you’re here. Keep an eye out for the next part later this week!
Marching Arts by the Numbers is a current staff writer and stats guru for General Effect Media. He has been involved in the marching arts activity for nearly two decades in a variety of roles. Marching Arts by the Numbers is his newest project with the vision of being the primary source of statistical information for the marching arts community. You can follow more of his work at @band_scores on Twitter.