As soon as I moved to Arizona, I knew that I would finally be able to attend a Cactus League Spring Training game! Seeing a Chicago Cubs pre-season game has been on my bucket list forever, but I just never made it work with my schedule. Now, with Phoenix just 90 minutes from my home in Tucson, I had no excuses for missing another Cubs Spring training season! More recently, I met some of my hometown friends for a couple of Cactus League games and now we’re making it an annual tradition.

If you are a Chicago baseball fan, (you too, Sox fans!) I highly recommend a trip out to Arizona for Cactus League spring training. With proper planning, it doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg (in fact, Phoenix prices compared to Chicago are a nice surprise) and you’ll love the Arizona weather coming from the Midwest deep freeze! March is the perfect time to escape winter and enjoy some Arizona sunshine!

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Arizona Cactus League Spring Training

The Cactus League is now in its 77th year in Arizona, and brings nearly 2 million fans to Phoenix area ballparks each spring! Spring Training games start at the end of February and run through the end of March, just in time for the teams to head home for opening day.

There are 15 Cactus League teams playing across 10 ballparks in Maricopa County each spring. All 10 ballparks are within 1 hour of each other, making it easy to plan a visit to see your favorite team, at their park, or as a visiting team! This is a novel idea for most of us when an “away” game usually involves significant travel to another city. When I visited, the Cubs played San Diego at the Peoria Sports Complex in the afternoon and then headed across town to play San Francisco at their home field, Sloan Park, in the evening.

Check out this year’s Spring Training Schedule here!

The Grapefruit League in Florida is the other major MLB Spring Training hub, so if you don’t see your team above, you might want to head to Florida instead!

Chicago Cubs Spring Training Location

The Cubs moved from Hohokam Park in 2014 when Sloan Park opened. You have to experience it to believe it, but it’s like a mini-Wrigley Field! Sloan Park seats 14,156 fans, which is about 1/3 of the seating capacity at Wrigley Field. I’ve heard stories from Hohokam when Spring training was much smaller and laidback, but Sloan Park is on par with some of the larger minor league fields I’ve visited. That said, it still felt much more laid-back than a game at Wrigley Field. Everyone working at Sloan Park was super friendly, accommodating, and happy to be there.

It does feel like Sloan Park has gotten more crowded and expensive since my first visit in 2018. For one, parking fees have doubled, but are still less expensive than parking at Wrigley Field! The closest parking lots charge $20 and the $10 lots are quite a long walk on gravel, so be prepared. They are also card-only now, with no cash. Parking lots open up about four hours prior to game time. Unfortunately, we missed the first 3 innings because we got stuck in traffic.

Inside Sloan Park, you’ll find all your favorite Chicago foods from back home like Chicago dogs and Garrett’s popcorn, plus several MLB shops to stock up on Chicago Cubs merchandise. I tried not to go crazy, but did pick up a few new things! Sadly, we waited in a pretty long concession line only to find out they were sold out of most items, so if you have your heart set on a Chicago dog, get there early and get your food! I haven’t been to Wrigley in a few years, so I’m not sure what prices are like, but we paid around $15 for a 16oz domestic beer. (Prices are much lower at other parks!)

Chicago Cubs Spring Training Tickets

I ordered my Tuesday game ticket on the Saturday before, at which time only lawn seats were left. Those also happen to be the cheapest, at $27, so I was OK with that. The GA Lawn area is kinda like the bleachers, without the bleacher seats. Since I was solo, I would have been better off with a regular seat, as I wasn’t about to bring a blanket and spread out on the lawn by myself. I mostly walked around the stadium, pausing at various points to catch the game. The Sloan Park Budweiser rooftop also looks like a fun place to hang out. On our 2024 trip, we ordered tickets ahead of time and paid around $120 with fees for pretty good seats along the third baseline. I recommend getting your Cubs tickets as early as possible.

Check out my favorite Phoenix museums while you’re in town!

Other Cactus League Stadiums

I’m not going to lie, our experience at Sloan Park was somewhat frustrating as it was super crowded and they ran out of a lot of things. Even the merch shop was pretty picked over. I still think it’s worth attending at least one game at Sloan Park, though. We attended an “away” game at Goodyear Park and it felt more like what Spring Training used to be. Lowkey free parking, very reasonable tickets, and way fewer people. Food and drinks were much more affordable, too! It was a small bummer to not hear the Cubs song when they won, but given that we paid about $30 for 3rd-row seats, I’m ok with it. We’re planning to hit some away games next year and we’ll just swing through Sloan Park to buy Cubs merchandise with the money we save on tickets!

Where to Stay for Cactus League Spring Training

Phoenix has no shortage of hotels to host spring training visitors. We usually stayed at the Sheraton Phoenix Airport Hotel Tempe because it’s dog-friendly (no pet fee!) and is a really good points value for SPG members, however, it’s now a Wyndham hotel. There is also the Sheraton Mesa Hotel at  Wrigleyville West, right across the street from the stadium, which would be a great option, too, although much more expensive. I do find that hotels raise their rates pretty significantly during this time, so it’s a great time to build up your reward points and use them, as those rates don’t tend to fluctuate as much. Either way, traffic in Phoenix is nothing compared to Chicago, so don’t fret if you are staying 10-15 miles from the stadium. It may take you 30 minutes, but it may be worth it depending on what other Phoenix activities you plan to check out. Scottsdale is my favorite area to stay in Phoenix.

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There are lots of fun things to do in Tempe, too!

Where to Eat for Cactus League Spring Training

If you’re coming from Chicago for vacation, you may not care so much, but I was pretty excited to discover Portillo’s just down the street from Sloan Park! Here are some other fun spots for Chicago Cubs fans to grab a bite to eat when visiting Phoenix!

We had so much fun this year that we’ve already booked our Spring Training hotel in Scottsdale for 2025! Let’s go Cubs!!!