The Palace of Auburn Hills: Come See the Detroit Pistons Play, a Concert or a Bridal Show

Prior to this year I had been to the Palace on a few occasions but never for a basketball game. Once I was invited to a Suite for the Linkin Park concert by my sister who got invited from work. Another time I was there for a Bridal Show. In addition, I've been there for either a gymnastics thing or an ice skating thing (I can't remember which one was there). Finally, this year I got to go to 2 Piston's games at the Palace and I can certainly say it is worth a visit for any of the above reasons!

Let's start with the Suite... it was Sweet! We were in an upper level suite that was very well designed. The interior portion had comfy couches and seating, plenty for the group that was there. There was a counter set up for catered food but I don't know if that's included or not since we didn't have to pay for it. TVs are on so you can see the action when you are inside the suite. Each suite gets their own bathroom as well making it easy to take a potty break without missing much. Finally, there are a set of seats located right outside the suite windows for you to sit and watch the concert or game without anyone in front of you. It may be a little high up but it's worth it for the privacy, the ability to walk around, and the food! We enjoyed the concert just as much from up there as we would have from down below.

Next for the Bridal Show... The Palace is quite large and when I went with my mom and my sister for a bridal show it was quite fun actually. There were TONS of booths set around all over the concession area as well as even more booths set up on the floor inside. This was a huge event that took us hours to explore, and even had a bridal fashion show in the midst of it all. My sister ended up finding her photographer at this bridal show, and we also picked up quite a few ideas. It's definitely the place to go for a bridal show - especially if you like freebies!

On to the Pistons! First, there were great seats. The first game we went to this year was in the lower level, petty close to the bottom. My husband got them for free from someone who couldn't use them. I was surprised to see a note on the seats that said "your server is Diane" with a menu attached. It turned out that in those lower level seats you can order up whatever you want to eat or drink and they will bring it right to you. That was very nice and allowed us to enjoy our snacks without missing any of the game.

Then there were good seats. The second game was my treat, so I took my family to Friends and Family nights and we sat in the upper level, about half way back. It wasn't the highest seats possible so they were still pretty good seats. We could see the whole court nd I noticed right away that the seats were angled so that you could easily see over the heads of whoever sat in front of you. These seats did not have servers (of course not) but with only a few steps down you could get to the concessions area and the bathroom in seconds.

The game itself is fun to watch from the very beginning. They shoot off flames and boom loud music as the Pistons enter. Warning: if your little ones can't handle the noise, then a Pistons game might not be for them. Throughout the game the crowd gets to enjoy various antics by Hooper, the mascot, as well as the Automation Dancers (who don't really do much if you ask me) and the Cheerleaders (who only come out sometimes). Whenever there is a time out, they keep you entertained! Whether it be a group of overweight guys dancing under the name of "The Spare Tires", a quick and friendly dog race, or bowling with Hooper! A lot of these antics give the crowd a chance to win prizes, pizzas, or a lottery ticket. They try to keep the crowd excited from beginning to end....... even if we are about o lose in the very last second as we did today. At least I still enjoyed the game!

The concessions area is clean and pretty nice. All around the entire ring you'll find bathrooms that were cleaner than a lot of stadium bathrooms. There is plenty of food areas and you'd have a hard time not finding something you like. We usually get a pretzel with cheese dip and finish off with some dipping dots. The cost of food is pretty high so if you can feed your kids before hand that would be the best and then limit them to one food item once they get there. The best is to try for a Friend and Family package which includes $8 of food per person.

Parking is easy, but try to get there early! It is quite a drive from Metro Detroit to Auburn Hills, but it is worth it because in the end you aren't in Detroit! The parking lot is huge, so pay close attention to where you park! We usually try to park near 75 so we can get out easily and hop right on the expressway. Even when the parking lot was jammed, we still got out pretty quickly because they were directing traffic.

Overall... If you are visiting the Metro Detroit area, you should definitely check out the Palace. They have lots of concerts and lots of basketball games to keep you entertained! It is a nice looking venue that makes the games and concerts even more enjoyable. I would go to any concert there.... except Dane Cook because he's charging so dang much!! Enjoy!!