Be a Part of the Field of Dreams: Yankees and White Sox to Play in Iowa Next Year
If you build it, they will come. Or, at least that's what Major League Baseball and a small town in Iowa are hoping for as a real-life Field of Dreams professional baseball game is coming to Dyersville, Iowa, one year from today on Aug. 13, 2020. Based on the social media buzz and the number of hotels that are already sold out, I'm betting they are right.
Dyersville isn't normally a tourism hotspot. It's a farming community in eastern Iowa with about 4,000 residents and a Super 8 hotel. A ballpark for this game will be constructed near the original Field of Dreams movie set. And yes, a real regular season game will be held between Chicago White Sox and New York Yankees in front of just 8,000 fans. Those lucky spectators will have to walk through a path among the corn to get to the new field (Aug. 14 is being held as a make-up date in case of rain).
Tickets for the game aren't yet on sale, but if you want to start planning now to be a part of the first regular season MLB game to be played in Iowa, here are some tips.
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Limited Hotels, But Use Those Points
If you can grab the Super 8 in Dyersville when it becomes available for the date of the big game in a few days, it will set you back 15,000 Wyndham points. About 30 miles away, in nearby Dubuque, you'll find more lodging options than in Dyersville in the form of a Holiday Inn, Best Western Plus, Hampton Inn, Fairfield and a Country Inn & Suites. The award prices are low as cash prices are usually low in this part of Iowa, though no doubt cash prices will spike for this game.
Not all chains have booking windows open that far in advance yet, but some do. For example, the Hampton Inn Dubuque is already showing as sold out for Aug. 12, but the Hilton Garden Inn Dubuque Downtown has availability for Aug. 12 and 13 for about $425 ... or just 30,000 Hilton points.
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Radisson Rewards often has a booking calendar that goes at least a full year out, but sadly the Country Inn & Suites by Radisson Dubuque is already full. If you are OK with a little more of a drive, the Country Inn & Suites by Radisson, Platteville, in Wisconsin has rooms from $125.
Marriott and IHG have not extended their calendars out until mid-August 2020 quite yet, but will in the coming weeks. (Some folks have called the hotels directly to reserve a room with cash.) Both the Fairfield Dubuque and the TownePlace Suites Dubuque are just 17,500 Marriott points per night, assuming you can get your hands on an award booking when the calendars open. IHG properties in the area range from 15,000 - 25,000 points per night.
Tips for Flying to the Field of Dreams
If you want to fly in for the special Field of Dreams game held among the cornfields, the closest airport is Dubuque Regional Airport that is serviced with American Airlines flights to/from Chicago. Cedar Rapids is a bit over an hour away and is served by United, American, Delta, Frontier and Allegiant. Other options include: Madison, which is about two hours away, Milwaukee is about three hours away, Des Moines is a little under three hours and Chicago is closer to four hours by car.
Bottom Line
The Field of Dreams movie is a 1989 heart-tugging classic (and one of my personal favorites). This unique game that is 30 years in the making is tempting, very tempting. But whether I make it to Iowa or not, there's little doubt about the crowds that will unquestionably descend on this small farming community next August, just as they did in the movie. They are building it, and fans will certainly come.
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