Not a VIP Experience, Missed Expectations
by RC on 8/13/25The Pavilion at Star Lake - BurgettstownRating: 2 out of 5Purchased VIP Lounge Experience tickets for the Jason Aldean Burgettstown, PA show on 8/9/24. Typically, we sit in the VIP section of the venue which includes preferred, dedicated seating, VIP only bar/lounge area with dedicated restrooms. That being the case, we anticipated the same experience. We received an itinerary email a few days prior to the show indicating we would have priority access to enter the venue at 5 PM, one hour prior to general admission. This was due to the VIP Lounge Experience including priority merch shopping, along with a private pre-show event with Jason Aldean playing a few acoustic songs and hosting a Q&A session. Upon arrival at 4:30 PM, we were greeted with an extremely long line of folks waiting to get in as well. After waiting in line for nearly 1 1/2 hours, we made it to the entrance where we were given a small gift bag and two (2) drink chips for the pre-show event. Note - Our email itinerary indicated a few key times to be aware of for our experience. "If you arrive after 5:50 PM you will miss pre-show merch shopping". "If you arrive after 6:15 PM, you will miss the acoustic performance". We finally got through the entrance gate just after 6 PM as thousands of other people were also entering the venue. At this point, we were directed to an area that was setup for the pre-show event, included a small bar setup along with pulled chicken sandwiches, veggies and dip, watermelon (nicely done). In addition, there was a dedicated, air-conditioned restroom area only for the VIP Lounge Experience group. We went to get a drink at the small bar and were told the drink chips we had been given only allowed for "well"drinks and we would have to pay for anything beyond that, which didn't include much of anything else to choose from. After getting a small snack plate and a drink, we found ourselves in this area in very hot conditions and noticed there were old ceiling fans on, half of which were missing the paddles or didn't work at all. After waiting another hour (now 7 PM), Jason Aldean came out and did a great job talking to the crowd and having a Q&A session. Afterward at 7:30, as the main show was starting, we walked around to see what may be available for food and drinks, and found only pizza, fried chicken tenders with fries or burger with fries was about all that was available. In addition, the selection of beer and liquor was very limited to a few things. We decided to go back to the VIP Lounge Experience area to hang out, only to realize it was closed and torn down for the evening, while the restroom area we were told was specifically for our group had become overrun with young, drunk folks. At this point, we recalled our previous experiences in the usual venue VIP area, so we went there and were told our tickets didn't allow access, the VIP Lounge Experience was limited to the private pre-show event and didn't include access to the venue VIP area. By this time the second act had started and we found our seats which were very nice, four rows back from the Pit, which found us directly behind three people standing up directly in front of us the rest of the show. Nate Smith and Jason Aldean were terrific, venue is horrible, experience was not at all what we expected for two tickets over $1,000. Would like to give a shout out to the venue golf cart crew that was kind enough to ride us out from the venue to the main road where the Uber drop was located.