The Trooper VIP Pre Party or First to the Barrier ... " WHICH ONE IS BETTER"

notenoughcash said:
Wow, such hate for an option offered up. One can choose to not do it if it offends you that much. I'll state the obvious 1st to answer your ending question...I have the money to do this if I choose, and I did for Vegas. It was the 1st time seeing Maiden for my GF and I figured this would be a cool addition to the experience.

Benefits:
No waiting forever in line to get in, a BIG plus this time with the GF
Drinks and food
Cool bag-o-stuff all in one shot, no need to order online and wait
Rod and Andy showed up for the drawings for the signed drum head and headphones, as the ticket was drawn for the 'phones, I'm watching her ticket...she won em and got them handed over by Rod with picks. That was a highlight moment for her.
Get to hang out with other Maiden fans!
Finally, early access to almost no line merch shopping, again a really nice 'benefit'

So, is it worth the $205? yes, assuming one doesn't have a permanent 'the band has turned into a bunch of money grubbing assholes' chip on ones shoulder and takes it for what it is. Another option that one can choose to enjoy prior to a show
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Thanks for your post. I kinda look at it as you do. I'm getting a few bucks back from taxes. So thought why not? I'd rather not wait in a long line, and I've heard some people missed out on getting a shirt and or waiting outside for hours, to wait another hour to buy a shirt! So I'm going to L.A. pre party Friday and just enjoy myself. Not worry about who's making an extra buck or two. Cheers, and Up The Irons!
 
Just got back from the Denver show. The VIP party is totally worth it. You get cool merchandise, a concert shirt, a meal with 2 Trooper Beers, no waiting in line, and early entry to floor if you have floor tickets. I just strolled onto floor at about 4th or 5th row and then pushed my way to 3rd row once Maiden took the stage.

Come on guys, nobody is forcing the VIP on you. It is a choice. In my opinion, it was worth it.

The Denver show was great. The floor was absolutely crazy. I woke up this morning feeling like I had been in a fight.
It was utter pandemonium when they played Power Slave.

IRONS UP!!!!!!

Moderator action: Spoiler Tags added.
 
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L.A. VIP Party Friday April 15th, The Forum
Hello All! Just wanted to let you know how it went! I'm thinking Maiden will be back in the US in the fall, so might as well post how it went, for those that are thinking of doing the VIP. First off, the package comes with some cool free stuff. After you get into the VIP section, buying your shirt in MINUTES, is way better than 45-60 minute wait as others (Non VIP) were doing.
As you can imagine, chatted with other Maiden fans. In particular, two guys, both that went by themselves. Drank and chatted for a long time.
(One of two, Lee, won the headphones, but had a hard time collecting his prize, which kinda sucked, but he was cool bout it.)
Two free drink tickets and food a plus. Maiden Wall Flag, And Bar Mat, Sweet.

At one point, an hour plus into the party, a woman came up and asked how we were doing.

Me: Great! How about you? Are you a fan? Work here? What's your story?
Her: I actually work here.
Me: Really? Do you like Maiden's music? Or just a job? Or...
Her: I was hired to take care of The Trooper Party. You know, make sure everyone is having a good time.
Me: Is your name Kim?!
Her: Yes it is.
Me: What A Trip! BTW, I know Chad from Tulsa! You wouldn't happen to have any free stuff for me would you?!
Kim: OMG. No. And I'm not gonna let your friends come in after to eat the food either. Every stop on this tour, I hear, "I know Chad from Tulsa."

We hung out for awhile. She was fun and pretty. Good times, and will do again when they come back to the USA in the Fall...
 
Sorry for this, but now that I see what's in the bag, I can't resist doing the maths.

You purchase a VIP party upgrade for $205. For this you get the hard value of:
  • Two Trooper beers valued at $10 each - $20.
  • An all you can eat finger food buffet, perhaps worth another $20.
  • Trooper beer merchandise available on the Trooper website: A Bar Runner ($20), a flag ($14) and a bottle opener ($6)
    - all prices based on conversions of Euro prices
  • A tour shirt ($20 if not bought at the venue)
Total hard value: $100.

Plus you get unique items: A stress can, a koozie, a cinch bag and a wristband. If I'm generous, I would value these items together at $30 or 35. Makes for $145.

So for the remaining $60, you pay entry for an exclusive party, you can take part in a draw for earphones and a signed drum head, nearly get a selfie with Rod Smallwood, get to line up for half an hour to buy more merchandise and get to tell Kim that you know Chad from Tulsa.

Now I'm certain that the party is a great time and that you meet great people, but considering that you'll have to pay $10 for every beer beyond the first two, I think $60 as an entry fee is a bit steep. The tour shirt is probably nice, but for the rest, you pay $85 for Trooper merchandise. I suppose this is cool if you really want this stuff and would pay $85 for it anyway, but personally, I just don't see the value in it. On all the Maiden gigs I went to, I had a great time with my mates in front of the venue paying a few Euros for beer. And whenever I wanted a shirt, I had no problems getting one.
 
Perun said:
Sorry for this, but now that I see what's in the bag, I can't resist doing the maths.

You purchase a VIP party upgrade for $205. For this you get the hard value of:
  • Two Trooper beers valued at $10 each - $20.
  • An all you can eat finger food buffet, perhaps worth another $20.
  • Trooper beer merchandise available on the Trooper website: A Bar Runner ($20), a flag ($14) and a bottle opener ($6)
    - all prices based on conversions of Euro prices
  • A tour shirt ($20 if not bought at the venue)
Total hard value: $100.

Plus you get unique items: A stress can, a koozie, a cinch bag and a wristband. If I'm generous, I would value these items together at $30 or 35. Makes for $145.

So for the remaining $60, you pay entry for an exclusive party, you can take part in a draw for earphones and a signed drum head, nearly get a selfie with Rod Smallwood, get to line up for half an hour to buy more merchandise and get to tell Kim that you know Chad from Tulsa.

Now I'm certain that the party is a great time and that you meet great people, but considering that you'll have to pay $10 for every beer beyond the first two, I think $60 as an entry fee is a bit steep. The tour shirt is probably nice, but for the rest, you pay $85 for Trooper merchandise. I suppose this is cool if you really want this stuff and would pay $85 for it anyway, but personally, I just don't see the value in it. On all the Maiden gigs I went to, I had a great time with my mates in front of the venue paying a few Euros for beer. And whenever I wanted a shirt, I had no problems getting one.
Click to expand...

Your synopsis has actually convinced me it's worthwhile. :blush: I can only ever drink two beers anyway, and never underestimate how much I can eat at a buffet. I did a pretty good job on the smoked salmon and desserts front on the Bruce Air trip. I hate standing out in the cold/rain, too.
 
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