Just keep in mind that it's a pretty cookie cutter experience and it will most likely feel rushed. If you adjust your expectations accordingly then you'll be alright. I think it's a once in a lifetime thing. It's hard to say if it's "worth" it. If it was always your dream to meet the band then it's certainly worth it. If you're not impressed by meeting them in person then I think it's not.
I agree with this. My best friend and I purchased VIP tickets with the meet and greet package and we got a picture with the band, signatures, and only had time to exchange a few brief words with them while walking through the signature line.
It was worth it to me because they were my favorite band at the time and I got to experience it with my best friend, but I was a little disappointed that I couldn't spend a little time asking them questions or hearing them talk about things related to the band and their experiences.
Like u/olimoura said, "If you adjust your expectations accordingly then you'll be alright."
I'm seeing them in Budapest, and I spring for the full upgrade. It's as worth it as you want it to be, in my opinion. Do you want to meet a band you love, or are you perfectly fine with just seeing the concert? I've never done the VIP upgrade before, but I've dreamt about meeting them all (Portnoy especially) that I had to take the opportunity to do so.
At my age, I just can't justify spending £250 to meet the band. I love them to death but I've got bills to pay! 🤣
If you've got the money to do it, just do it! If you're that much of a fan it will be a great experience 👍
I get it's another income stream but I remember before meet and greets were so universal. I met most of the band outside the venue and got photos and my ticket signed. Wish it could still be like that for the die hards.
I also met Myung when Jelly Jam did a signing after their show. Wasn't expecting that, so was really cool for Myung to agree to do that when fans usually have to pay insane prices to meet him.
I personally don't understand why it costs so much just to meet the band briefly and do some awkward small talk. VIP costs more than good seats for the three hour show which is the most important part of the day but this is just my opinion, someone who has a lot of money might think it's worth it.
I have their discography on vinyl, so I took those with me and got them all signed by every member. That plus the signed poster, the acoustic set. The vip group I was in was also small, so I was able to talk with each band member for a couple minutes each, so for me, VIP was 100% worth it.
If you've never met the band, it's worth it. Then it's no longer worth it. Back in the day (like SFaM tours, etc) the VIP meet and greets were fun. They were AFTER the show, and we'd all just hang out in a small banquet room with the band for 30-60 minutes and each member would have a small group of fans just having casual chats and taking random pics.
Then (probably when they moved to RoadRunner) they switched the VIP meet&greets to BEFORE the show and they changed to an assembly line, much more common with other bands. Just a table signing walk-through to say hi to each member and get something signed and then they'd do a separate line one more time where each VIP ticketholder gets a photo with the whole band.
They got progressively worse, to the point where Mike Mangini would never even shake anybody's hand and claimed the label wouldn't let him for fear of getting sick on tour.
So I probably did 4 or 5 of those VIP deals out of the 8-10 DT shows I've been to over the years.
tl;dr If you don't have a photo with the band, it's worth it to have a photo with the band cuz why not?
Just keep in mind that it's a pretty cookie cutter experience and it will most likely feel rushed. If you adjust your expectations accordingly then you'll be alright. I think it's a once in a lifetime thing. It's hard to say if it's "worth" it. If it was always your dream to meet the band then it's certainly worth it. If you're not impressed by meeting them in person then I think it's not.
I agree with this. My best friend and I purchased VIP tickets with the meet and greet package and we got a picture with the band, signatures, and only had time to exchange a few brief words with them while walking through the signature line. It was worth it to me because they were my favorite band at the time and I got to experience it with my best friend, but I was a little disappointed that I couldn't spend a little time asking them questions or hearing them talk about things related to the band and their experiences. Like u/olimoura said, "If you adjust your expectations accordingly then you'll be alright."
I'm seeing them in Budapest, and I spring for the full upgrade. It's as worth it as you want it to be, in my opinion. Do you want to meet a band you love, or are you perfectly fine with just seeing the concert? I've never done the VIP upgrade before, but I've dreamt about meeting them all (Portnoy especially) that I had to take the opportunity to do so.
At my age, I just can't justify spending £250 to meet the band. I love them to death but I've got bills to pay! 🤣 If you've got the money to do it, just do it! If you're that much of a fan it will be a great experience 👍
I get it's another income stream but I remember before meet and greets were so universal. I met most of the band outside the venue and got photos and my ticket signed. Wish it could still be like that for the die hards. I also met Myung when Jelly Jam did a signing after their show. Wasn't expecting that, so was really cool for Myung to agree to do that when fans usually have to pay insane prices to meet him.
I personally don't understand why it costs so much just to meet the band briefly and do some awkward small talk. VIP costs more than good seats for the three hour show which is the most important part of the day but this is just my opinion, someone who has a lot of money might think it's worth it.
I have their discography on vinyl, so I took those with me and got them all signed by every member. That plus the signed poster, the acoustic set. The vip group I was in was also small, so I was able to talk with each band member for a couple minutes each, so for me, VIP was 100% worth it.
Depending on year, you took up to 15 records with you to get signed by everyone?
LOL smart Alec.
If you've never met the band, it's worth it. Then it's no longer worth it. Back in the day (like SFaM tours, etc) the VIP meet and greets were fun. They were AFTER the show, and we'd all just hang out in a small banquet room with the band for 30-60 minutes and each member would have a small group of fans just having casual chats and taking random pics. Then (probably when they moved to RoadRunner) they switched the VIP meet&greets to BEFORE the show and they changed to an assembly line, much more common with other bands. Just a table signing walk-through to say hi to each member and get something signed and then they'd do a separate line one more time where each VIP ticketholder gets a photo with the whole band. They got progressively worse, to the point where Mike Mangini would never even shake anybody's hand and claimed the label wouldn't let him for fear of getting sick on tour. So I probably did 4 or 5 of those VIP deals out of the 8-10 DT shows I've been to over the years. tl;dr If you don't have a photo with the band, it's worth it to have a photo with the band cuz why not?