Parking for the Final Four at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis

Indianapolis is set to welcome an influx of college basketball fans this weekend. There's ample parking for all those going to the games, those who want to come downtown to take in the events or watch the games at a restaurant or nightclub. There are more than 50 garages and lots within just a six-block walk of Lucas Oil Stadium. A few tips from Indianapolis Downtown Inc.:

• Plan your driving and walking route into and through Downtown ahead of time.
• Use interstates to travel to and leave Downtown.
• Enter Downtown from the side on which you plan to park.
• Allow plenty of extra travel time to Downtown.
• Be aware that travel through Downtown will be limited to streets away from the core area due to large crowds and street closures near Lucas Oil Stadium
• Relax during peak exit times.
• Wear comfortable shoes, park once and enjoy the walk.
• Carpool or use IndyGo if possible.
• Downtown parking is abundant. There are more than 72,000 parking spaces Downtown.
• Plan to use a garage or lot. Most meters near the event sites are restricted during this time.
• Some parking facilities and lots may not be open to the public.
  

A list of downtown parking options is here, and more parking tips are here.

Where to Park for the Circle of Lights

The annual Circle of Lights is expected to draw a crowd of 100,000 people to Monument Circle in downtown Indianapolis on Friday. The event begins at 6 p.m., and the tree lighting is scheduled for 7:45 p.m. But where will everyone park? Here are a few tips:

• The Circle will be closed to vehicular traffic, so parking there will not be an option unless you arrive very early and are willing to wait a long time to get out. Avoid it.
  
• The best, and cheapest, bet is to find a metered spot a block or so away from the Circle, along one of the major arteries in and out of the city, including Pennsylvania or Delaware streets. Metered spots will be free for the event.
• Other options include nearby surface lots and garages. More than 66,000 total spaces are available. Your best option is finding a surface lots, again a few blocks away. The garages can get extremely congested during events when everyone is leaving at the same time. You can find a list of options here.
  
• If you park in a garage, don't go directly to your car. Why not spend a few more hours downtown to grab dinner or a drink? You can always find ideas of what to do here.
  

Indianapolis Cracks Down on Parking Abuse

The city of Indianapolis is attempting to put to an end the abuse of parking placards by public employees, politicians and business leaders, the Indianapolis Star reports. The city will no longer honor more than 3,000 placards that allowed free parking at metered spots.

INDIANAPOLIS - An era of widespread downtown Indianapolis parking perks came to an end Wednesday as the city confiscated hundreds of placards that allowed drivers to disregard meters and the county prepared to take that privilege away from another 1,500 people.
Officials said their actions, which will cut the number of parking placards in circulation by 70 percent, were a response to an investigation by The Star last month that showed some drivers used the dashboard permits to park all day without paying, clogging spots used for Downtown commerce.

Pacers Offering Parking Incentives

PLEASE NOTE: This is an archive post from 2008. Visit our Indiana Pacers Parking page for up-to-date information.
The Indiana Pacers are sweetening season-ticket packages by throwing in free parking. The team has been struggling of late, so now is a great time for fans to lock in great seats along with a great -- and in some cases free -- parking spot. Get all the details at the Pacers' box office.

List of Parking Lots and Garages for Indianapolis

Ready to reserve a spot now? Click here.

Denison Parking Inc
1615 Senate Blvd | Indianapolis, IN 46202
PH: (317) 920-8567

American United Life Parking Garage
1 American Sq | Indianapolis, IN 46282
PH: (317) 636-0215

One America Tower Parking Garage
1 American Sq | Indianapolis, IN 46282
PH: (317) 636-0215

Circle Block Garage
25 N Illinois St | Indianapolis, IN 46204
PH: (317) 974-0590

City Park Garage
120 E. Washington St. Indianapolis, IN 46204
PH: (317) 423-3315

Express Parking Inc
20 N Pennsylvania St | Indianapolis, IN 46204
PH: (317) 231-1385

Merchants Garage
31 S Meridian St | Indianapolis, IN 46204
PH: (317) 638-8062

Stenz Management Parking Garage
430 N Delaware St | Indianapolis, IN 46204
PH: (317) 634-0103

First Indiana Plaza Parking Garage
135 N Pennsylvania St Ste 200 | Indianapolis, IN 46204
PH: (317) 638-5805

Dennison Parking
241 E Ohio St | Indianapolis, IN 46204
PH: (317) 423-9618

Stuart's Parking Lot
127 E Wabash St | Indianapolis, IN 46204
PH: (317) 632-0010

Indiana Parking Garage
145 E Market St | Indianapolis, IN 46204
PH: (317) 488-7275

Express Parking Inc
145 E Market St | Indianapolis, IN 46204
PH: (317) 639-9825

Side Line Parking
121 E Maryland St | Indianapolis, IN 46204
PH: (317) 686-0486

Circle Building Valet Parking
111 Monument Cir | Indianapolis, IN 46204
PH: (317) 231-9896

Denison Parking Inc
1615 Senate Blvd | Indianapolis, IN 46202
PH: (317) 920-8567

American United Life Parking Garage
1 American Sq | Indianapolis, IN 46282
PH: (317) 636-0215

One America Tower Parking Garage
1 American Sq | Indianapolis, IN 46282
PH: (317) 636-0215

Plaza Park
109 S Capitol Ave | Indianapolis, IN 46225
PH: (317) 638-2171

Union Station Self Park
300 S Meridian St | Indianapolis, IN 46225
PH: (317) 266-8842

Indy Park Ride & Fly
1601 S High School Rd | Indianapolis, IN 46241
PH: (317) 486-8000

Alfa Airport Parking
5455 W Bradbury Ave | Indianapolis, IN 46241
PH: (317) 241-2424

Indy Airport Parking
1740 S High School Rd | Indianapolis, IN 46241
PH: (317) 247-7678

Metro Airport Parking
1501 S High School Rd | Indianapolis, IN 46241
PH: (317) 240-1111

Airport Rapid Park
1602 S High School Rd | Indianapolis, IN 46241
PH: (317) 241-7700