Greater Roanoke Home & Garden Show Review

I found the seats to be rather narrow for someone with wide hips, the leg room was very limited (I am 5"6"), and the handicapped options were less than adequate. There was limited seating on the flat level. Numerous people, including one in my group who has difficulty with steps and uses a cane, had to ascend steep steps with no rails to hold onto. I observed a number of people struggling to get to a seat.
The staff was pleasant but not well-informed as to the locations of elevators to get to the exhibit hall area. I could find no mention of them on the website.
This facility has been around for a while and I am sure that compliance with the ADA specifications is challenging. However, if you have difficulty navigating steps or need good seat width and leg room--BEWARE. Either pay extra to be in the ground floor chairs (if they are available; they are reached by a one-person-at-a-time lift) or get to your event early enough to find the few chairs that do not require stair climbing.
Concessions are, as expected, expensive ($4 for bottled water!).

Love the events they have here! Might need some tidying up sometimes but overall a wonderful place to host fun events for Roanoke!

Seats weren't super comfortable and the bathrooms were lackluster

Why can't ANYTHING be bought for the advertised price. There is fee for EVERY ticket for anything! $5 ticket costs 6.50, $35 ticket costs over 40. Facility decent, maybe a little better since Burglamd bought the naming rights. Just incredibly frustrated they can't advertise the REAL price for anything.

Terrible lines at the VT hockey games. Not prepared for number of people attending. More the case than the exception.

The Monster Outdoor Flea Market was Awesome! So many vendors there and plenty of space to move around. This should be held once a month with a rain date, Please!

The online convenience fee is robbery. Find a way to reduce the overhead costs for doing business.

Running out of water on a big promotional night was not cool

Went to the Kane Brown show, was directed to park else where and was towed! Will never see another show here again!

Dated venue. The seats inside leave a lot to be desired, basically a folding chair or stadium seat in the risers. Most of the concerts are country pop acts or aging bands who can't book real venues. The parking is a nightmare and lots of people are shuttled from a parking garage downtown. They also host one to two different circus shows a year, so that is another star off for assisting in well known animal cruelty. As others noted, everyone leaves town to go to real concerts, both larger and smaller. Roanoke deserves better.

I had a promo code to purchase tickets 1 day early. The website wouldn't let me purchase 2 tickets together. The box office told me to wait until the next day. 1 hour after the tickets went on sale they were sold out and now I'm not able to get tickets. I sent them an email and this is what they said: "Hello,

Sorry you were given the wrong information. When the promo code is sent out it states a date in which tickets can be purchased. It is in the email. Unfortunately, we do not have any cheaper tickets available to sell.

Thank you

They didn't even care about my problem. I will never purchase or try to purchase tickets from them again.

Didn't like the idea of paying for parking. Nice center. Large. Clean. Bathrooms are alittle dated but clean. Great signage too direct the crowds. Easily accessible in the heart of Roanoke right off 220.

No outside drinks were allowed into the
venue. The Berglund Center then turns around and charges four dollars for a water bottle and $4.50 for a 16 ounce soft drink.

This place definitely has some great events. Their marketing has improved dramatically over the past couple of years!
We've seen tons of events in the coliseum and the auditorium and have rarely been disappointed.

Harlem Globetrotters are always very entertaining with lots of interaction with kids. Sesame Street was a huge hit with families, too. I love their Broadway themed shows - Neverland was well done. Hockey is always fun in person and Berglund does a great job promoting their local team, the Roanoke Railyard Dawgs. Plenty of crowd engagement.

Concessions are typically overpriced but not unreasonable. Bonus is that there is a lot of varying food choices atypical of this type of venue.

The only reason I didn't give the center 5 stars is because of the parking. Several times buying tickets in person, additional information wasn't volunteered to me, like the option to purchase a parking pass, or the option to purchase magic passes for the Globetrotters show. It would be helpful to know parking passes guarantee a lot spot. Also to know that payment is cash only by parking attendants. They do provide shuttle service from a downtown garage so plan that time ahead or purchase the pass!

Paid for a parking pass told gates open at nine thirty. Arrived at nine thirty and told lots were full had to pay eight dollars in another lot to park. Last event I will ever go to at this place. Took grandkids to seme street but had nothing but problems with the place

The musical part of the entertainment is not attractive to the younger crowd. The staff can be rude. The concessions don't even stay opened for the entire shows. I prefer going out of town for good events.

Went to the Roanoke RailYard Dawgs hockey game and had a blast! Clean, well ran, and very accommodating facility

Was a nice outdoor event. Glad it had a rain date. Weather was perfect.

Meh. Good size event center. Went to Big Lick Comicon which was meh. Probably wont return to that again. Is it hockey season yet?

Horrible place. I was there for a magic tournament and they searched everyone for food on the way in, made us throw everything out. I even saw they made people give up empty Nalgene bottles - and of course water is $4 inside. Never seen this from a convention centre, terrible experience.

Amazing staff, venue is always clean, and the events and concerts that Berglund Center brings reach every person! They have great family shows, hockey, all genres of concerts, and Broadway! Best venue in Roanoke and the surrounding areas!

Angelia Adamson helped me out. I would def recommend coming here

Selection of events is nearly non existent and had been for years. People ate forced to drive out of town to see good concerts

It's a shame that profits on concessions are placed higher than respect to actos at plays and musicals. Popcorn and celophane should not be allowed in a theatre. Save it for the circus and sports events.

Parking is a joke not enough spots and they constantly overbook on hockey nights knowing they don't have enough parking

Went for a Nate Bargatze show. Funky dated building but everyone was super nice and the show was great.

Average center, dated but functional, limited elevators for mobility impaired and lots of stairs. It's very difficult to contact someone in the business office.

I have been here for several events. The facility has many options as a venue.

Arrived at noon for a 1:00 p.m., $100 show w/ my 4-yo. I get to the closed and almost empty parking lot at 12:45. We (w/a line of other disgruntled patrons) were all INDIVIDUALLY sent 7 blocks away to a different pay-to-park Berglund Center lot with shuttle service. At 1:15 we finally got to the other lot after wading through Berglund Center's traffic pandemonium, the shuttle service had ended. Paid a local hotel less and got a closer spot. I figured Berglund Center had gotten enough f/me.
I spoke w/the box office manager upon arrival (1:30), hoping to see the following show or be partially compensated for Berglund Center's inability to effectively serve guests. Instead, I was lied to. The box office manager said the show just started. Considering the ill managed parking situation, it stands to reason, the Berglund Center is incompetent with logistics and perhaps the show really was delayed 30 minutes. When I reached my front row seat, the folks sitting next to me said the show had been in progress for 40 minutes. Is the box office manager so inept that she doesn't know what's happening in her own arena, intentionally lied or does the Berglund Center habitually fail to deliver services as advertised so she presumed they'd follow suit?
Either way, it's unacceptable. The Berglund Center should be ashamed and embarrassed for creating an environment full of extremely disappointed children and charging for it. We drove for hours, spent hundreds of dollars and after weeks of anticipation to see Disney, we missed almost half of the show. Granted this unnecessary mess was no fault of Disney's and what we were able to see of the show was fantastic! But as for the Berglund Center, hire a new logistics manager, take some classes or find another career. People are paying for a service they aren't getting!

Tickets way overpriced make you pay for parking and then you just want to bring a simple water bottle into the event because you have a medical condition that requires you to drink and you're not allowed to that's ridiculous!

great place! Always clean and staff is very friendly!

thanks to the centre for barring Garden Bros. Circus from using animals when it comes to town next month! You are amazing thank you for caring.

Horrible place the management shouldn't be managing a kiddy lemonade stand.

Great place to go and attend events like musical concerts, musicals, Broadway shows, to see comedians, conventions, craft shows, sporting events, gun shows, and so much more. The food and drink concessions have improved greatly. Nice size parking lot and will have shuttle service for bigger events. Very nice and clean venue!

This was the 2nd year taking my child to Jurassic Quest at the Berglund Center. It is always a fun experience. They have many life sized dinosaur displays, a fossil area, kid excavation area, face painting, blue screen pics, bouncy houses, jeeps for kids, sand fossil digs, baby dinos, life size dinos to ride, baby dinos to ride, and more.They offered even more this year. And dont forget to stop by the gift shop as you leave. Although, be warned, much of the gift shop items are overpriced in my opinion. The balloons are a good investment for fun though. They last for weeks. Also,eat before going and pack a couple waters and a snack. You may not want to pay the price for the food/drinks there. Overall, my child had a wonderful time, as did I.

Excellent place for all kinds of events! Tonight, it's The Roanoke Rail Yard Dawgs vs The Birmingham Bulls.

We had a terrible experience at the Berglund Center last night. The parking was terrible !!! It took 15 minutes to get into the lot and then we had to park in a spot that wasn't even a real parking spot but there was no where else to park! Then we waited in line for 25 minutes to get a beverage and when we finally got to the front of the line, they were out of almost everything ( except popcorn and water). A can of wine was $16.00 !! Seriously. I understand that it was a busy night for them but I will not go back to the Berglund Center until they can streamline the parking and the beverage lines.

Public skating skates fit terrible and snack stand prices were rediculous.

Concert venue is great. Did not know there was a $5 parking fee.

If anybody else has a medical. Conditions and can not wear a mask aand they will not let you in please get intouch with me i have them on recording refuseing my entrance and i have lawyer that will file case against them. I will not give them no more of my money and will be lawsuit on way Monday. Anybody else get in contact and will sue them.

Love heading to the Berglund Center, usually to watch the Rail Yard Dawgs play some ice hockey. Cheap ticket prices, and usually pretty smooth getting in and out of events.

Love all the WWE Wrestling entertainment events that comes here can't ask for better but need to come more often though.

Paid for orchestra seating and ended up in 2nd level behind a row of chairs.. Couldn't see due to people in front of us, so we asked to move.. The ushers were very accommodating..pissed for the money we paid for orchestra seating.. Very misleading with very inflated prices..l can see a show at Red Rocks for cheaper

Buying tickets online is a flat out rip off...add an additional 30% to your ticket prices. No parking unless you pay extra and if you are over 5' tall expect very uncomfortable seats.

Absolutely terrible. Paid almost $200 for tickets, waited 30 minutes to get into the parking lot which was full so we were directed to the shuttle that took another 45 minutes to get on to. Missed the entire show. The rude, unhelpful staff refused a refund & refused to let us see the next show. Save your money, don't support this venue.

Is very easy to get to off of 460, and provides a great wide range of events etc

EVERY SINGLE TIME I get on right when ticket sales begin, all of the best seats you would hope for are completely blocked out. This time for WWE, I clicked buy tickets right at 10 AM and ALL of ring floor and Floor West/East front seats in front of ring were unavailable. In the past there were at least a couple of floor ring seats available right at first (but actual ring side seats have ALWAYS already been unavailable!) There is no way they sold out in 60 seconds! I'll be traveling next time to a venue that provides fair seat availability for the general public. The facilities are gross anyway.

In need of a facelift, but I've found the staff to be helpful and the experiences went smoothly.

On a Friday at 2pm before several large events coming to town, they have 1 person working the ticket window. Line of about 35 people waiting. All for different events, and 1 person.......ridiculous

Always clean, well organized, and great staff. Every event I've attended has been great!

Please hire some more people to man the ticket booths

I had a ice stating party and it was a nice event but it was very unorganized. I went to purchase the tickets for my guests in advance but the box office staff were uninformed about buying group tickets for ice stating. She did not know the ice stating schedule or that you could buy group tickets beforehand. She acted like she did not want to help. Luckily, one of her colleagues was knowledgeable about skating. The box office staff was not willing to help with giving out the tickets or telling people where to go. I had to personally stand outside and greet everyone with their tickets, while running back and forth checking on the kids skating. Thankfully a couple parents stayed and assisted me with keeping an eye on the kids while I ran back and forth. Unfortunately, one of the party guests paid for her ticket as well as a child that was not even skating because the staff. But the there were pros to the party. Koby Hearn was the Group Sales Director. He was very helpful, he gave me all the information about what was included in having a party and checked on us a couple times during. The kids enjoyed themselves and the room was very nice. Pizza and drinks were provided in the party cost and the kids loved the food.

I have visited the Roanoke Civic Center a number of time over the years, and seen Monster Trucks, Styx, REO Speedwagon, WWF Wrestling etc here.

Despite a recent upgrade to the seats its still a very outdated venue. There are too few bathrooms and the layout for concerts is not the greatest. Plus being an older venue its not acoustically great for loud rock and roll.

As of late, the only musical events they get are Pop Country. To see anything I like, it means a trip to Greensboro, NC at the very least.

They really need to no something about the parking. They now make you pay $5 for parking and there is a limited amount of spaces. If that sells out, there is a downtown shuttle bus nightmare to contend with. They should build a garage or something like that.

I should also say, in my best grumpy old man voice I will never embrace the 'Berglund' name. It has always been 'The Roanoke Civic Center' and always will be!

It gets crowded 2 much.
Like at the doors and the gates ... ::-(

Beautiful little venue. The place is clean and comfortable. I found the sound was clear throughout the venue.
The staff was courteous and helpful.

The Roanoke Civic Center continues to improve its selection of events, with Off-Broadway shows, big name live musical acts, and great other performers.

Worst dealership you can buy your car on please do not go to these dealership Don the manager it s very rude and doesn t care about people.

The so called remodeling. Was to replace padded chairs with hard plastic chairs. Good job.

Great place for any and all events great time Everytime!!!!

Excellent venue for live shows and entertainment events

Season's tickets mean plenty of experience with this horrible venue. I am disgusted. Inaduate bathrooms, then they locked out 50 women after intermission and no acknowledgement that we had paid to see the shows. Inadequate staffing means long entry lines cannot get in on time, and they never hold the show even though it is their fault for having only a few ticket takers. Never again. So angry and sad as I love shows, but not here. Will never do business with any Berglund cars or anything.

The place is horrible. Has declined quickly over the past few years. Parking is atrocious and now they want to charge you for it. Bathrooms are ignored. 4$ for a water. They will price themselves out of existence. Would give them a Zero star if it was possible

I have no idea what is wrong with the berglund center lately but we go to public skate only to hear that it s sold out and the previous night the ability to get into a hockey game was nearly impossible. They really need to straighten up with organization because this is ridiculous.

BE FOREWARNED! Do NOT buy advanced parking tickets on their website like they ask you to do for "convenience." You will be charged an extra $2.75 for the same type of parking spot as everyone else. We paid more than other people and still had to drive around the parking lot to find a spot. I was not happy and felt very ripped off! The events at this venue are great, but I was not happy with their online service. Hope I'm able to help others not be ripped off as well. If they are going to ask for people to pay in advance for parking and charge extra to help their chaos at the entrance of the parking lot, then I would expect a better parking spot or an assigned parking spot.

Comic con was really interesting and unique had fun

No good concerts anymore. Country or otherwise. No like when I grew up. Maybe it s the Burgland name. Pure sucks for years anymore.

Pretty terrible convention center with mandatory bag checks so they can force you to buy $4 bottles of water.