Charlotte Bank of America Stadium: Visitors guide

Charlotte's Bank of America Stadium, home of the NFL's Carolina Panthers, opened in summer 1996. The open-air stadium is built for football. It boasts 75,525 seats, has natural grass and boasts building materials that showcases the Panthers' black, silver and blue team colors.

After a renovation in 2014, the stadium also qualifies as a high-tech fan's dream, with four escalator bays, high-def video boards above each end zone, a high-octave distributed sound system throughout the bowl and cellular and Wi-Fi service throughout the stadium.

For fans planning to catch a home game, tour the facility or perhaps enjoy some of the other sporting events and concerts that Bank of America Stadium is known for, here's a quick guide to all the stadium has to offer:

Location: Bank of America Stadium, 800 S. Mint St.

The stadium and adjacent practice fields are located on 33 acres of land in uptown Charlotte, bordered by Interstate 277, Mint, Graham and Morehead streets.

Parking: The stadium site has access to 30,000 parking spaces throughout the uptown Charlotte area. Immediate interstate highway access allows a parking "dump time" under an hour. There are numerous restaurants and hotels in many price ranges in the immediate vicinity of Charlotte Bank of America Stadium.

Calendar: In addition to Panthers games, the stadium hosts the annual Belk Bowl featuring college football teams from the ACC and the SEC, and the annual ACC Championship Game through 2019. To keep up with other happenings hosted at the Bank of America stadium, check out the Eventful Charlotte website.

Get tickets: Tickets are sold online and also at the stadium box office. It is open weekdays from 8:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. and two hours prior to game time at the southeast corner between the South and East gates. A diagram of the stadium and different tiers of seating is available on the Panthers website.

Directions to the stadium: 

I-85 from the south: Look for signs to exit at Billy Graham Parkway, Freedom Drive or Brookshire Freeway (I-277 East) or at I-77 South.

I-85 from the north: Look for signs to exit at Sugar Creek Road, Graham Street, Statesville Avenue or at I-77 South.

I-77 from the south: Look for exit signs indicating either John Belk Freeway (I-277) or Trade Street.

I-77 from the north: Look for exit signs for Brookshire Freeway (I-277 East), Fifth Street, Trade Street, Morehead Street or John Belk Freeway (I-277).

Wilkinson Boulevard (U.S. 74) from the west: Follow signs to John Belk Freeway (I-277) and then exit at either Carson Boulevard, College Street, South Boulevard or Brevard Street.
Independence Boulevard (U.S. 74) from the east: Follow signs to John Belk Freeway (I-277) and then take the Sixth Street, Fourth Street, Stonewall Street or South Boulevard exit.

Brookshire Freeway (I-277) from the west: Look for exit signs for I-77 South, Graham Street, Church Street or Brevard Street.

NC 49/U.S. 29 from the northeast: Take Tryon Street to Church Street.

From the airport: Follow Josh Birmingham Parkway 1.5 miles and then take Billy Graham Parkway South to I-77 North. Look for exit signs indicating either John Belk Freeway (I-277) or Trade Street.

More must-know info about the Charlotte Bank of America Stadium:

• The Bank of America Stadium fully complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act and provides seating, a parking shuttle and drop-off zone for fans with disabilities.

• The stadium is a smoke-free facility, which includes vapor cigarettes and electronic devices. The ban extends to all concourses, seating areas, suites and club areas.

For more information:

Panthers games: panthers.com/stadium/
Carolina Panthers box office: 704-358-7800 
Bank of America Stadium: bankofamericastadium.org/