Fan Stay
Hampton Inn Boone
Well-appointed chain hotel on Blowing Rock Road with complimentary breakfast and parking. A dependable option for visiting fans who want comfort and convenience during App State football weekends.
stadium
Kidd Brewer Stadium
Boone, NC · Capacity: 30,000
About Kidd Brewer Stadium
Home of the Appalachian State Mountaineers at 3,333 feet elevation with a 30,000 capacity. Known as 'The Rock' for its stunning Blue Ridge Mountain setting.
- Opened: 1962
- Capacity: 30,000
- Home teams: Appalachian State Mountaineers football, Appalachian State Mountaineers
- Owner: Appalachian State University
Fan Guide · Appalachian State
The Rock: giant-killers in the mountains
Kidd Brewer Stadium — “the Rock” — is the home of the Appalachian State Mountaineers, the program whose 2007 win at Michigan remains the most famous upset in college football, set high in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Boone.
Boone is a small mountain college town, a gateway to hiking and the Blue Ridge Parkway.
Below are the Boone stays, restaurants and bars fans use for a Mountaineers game day.
Fan tip: The mountain setting is the draw — pair the game with the Blue Ridge Parkway and Boone's small-town charm.
Where Fans Stay, Eat & Drink near Kidd Brewer Stadium
All Boone hotspots →Hotels, bars, restaurants and things to do near Kidd Brewer Stadium in Boone — every pick web-researched and source-cited, closest to the stadium first.
Where to Stay
Fan Stay
Holiday Inn Express Boone
Modern hotel with mountain views and easy access to downtown Boone and App State campus. Free breakfast and reliable service make it a solid choice for gameday visitors.
Fan Stay
Lovill House Inn
Historic 1875 bed and breakfast on a wooded lot near downtown Boone. Offers a unique, intimate stay for fans seeking mountain charm over chain hotel convenience during App State gamedays.
Fan Stay
Meadowbrook Inn
Comfortable mountain inn minutes from App State campus offering clean rooms and Blue Ridge charm. A reliable gameday base for Mountaineer fans with easy access to Kidd Brewer Stadium.
Bars & Pubs
Appalachian Mountain Brewery
Boone's original craft brewery producing mountain-inspired ales in a lively taproom with live music. A gathering spot for App State fans pre- and post-game with a strong community vibe.
Boone's Saloon
Boone's Saloon is a beloved dive bar near Appalachian State University where Mountaineers fans have celebrated victories and commiserated losses for decades. The walls are plastered with App State memorabilia and the beer is cold and cheap, perfect for a postgame crowd. On football Saturdays the bar fills to capacity with black-and-gold faithful.
Booneshine Brewing Company
Rustic-chic brewpub combining craft beer with elevated Southern comfort food. Located near App State campus, it's a favorite pre-game gathering spot for Mountaineer faithful.
Lily's Snack Bar
Trendy cocktail spot in downtown Boone with creative drinks and shareable small plates. A lively stop for visiting fans looking to experience Boone's after-dark scene beyond the campus bars.
Lost Province Brewing Company
Award-winning craft brewery in downtown Boone with wood-fired pizza and mountain-inspired brews. The rooftop patio offers Blue Ridge views and buzzes with energy on Mountaineer football weekends.
Beech Mountain Brewing Company
Beech Mountain Brewing Company is the highest-elevation craft brewery on the East Coast — perched at over 5,000 feet on Beech Mountain near Boone — and a bucket-list destination for sports fans visiting App State who combine a Mountaineers game with mountain hiking and skiing. The mountain-inspired craft ales brewed here are specifically designed for high-altitude enjoyment, and the panoramic Blue Ridge views from the taproom deck make every pint feel like a reward. App State fans who discover this brewery on football weekends turn it into a non-negotiable part of every subsequent Boone visit.
Restaurants
Fan Eats
Gameday Coffee
Gameday Coffee is the pre-kickoff ritual spot for Appalachian State fans looking for a caffeine boost before heading to Kidd Brewer Stadium. The cozy shop sports Mountaineers colors and serves creative espresso drinks alongside pastries. It becomes a lively meeting point for fan groups on home game mornings.
Fan Eats
Melanie's Food Fantasy
A Boone institution for decades, Melanie's Food Fantasy is where Appalachian State fans and students fuel up with hearty breakfasts before big game days. The homestyle cooking and friendly atmosphere make it a cherished part of the Mountaineers fan experience. Lines form early on football Saturdays so come hungry and patient.
Fan Eats
Comeback Shack
A Boone favorite serving smash burgers and local craft brews in a laid-back mountain setting. App State fans pour in after Kidd Brewer Stadium victories, and the rotating selection of North Carolina craft beers pairs perfectly with their signature double-stack burger.
Fan Eats
Dan'l Boone Inn Restaurant
The Dan'l Boone Inn is an Appalachian institution serving family-style Southern country cooking since 1959, and a game-day pilgrimage here before an App State football game is one of the most authentic college football pregame traditions in the South. The legendary fried chicken, country ham, biscuits, and vegetables arrive at the table in enormous communal bowls, providing the carbohydrate loading that mountain air and stadium stairs demand. Alumni and opposing fans alike end up sharing tables and mountain town hospitality before kickoff.
Fan Eats
Stick Boy Kitchen
Stick Boy Kitchen is the morning gathering spot for Boone's sports community — coaches grabbing coffee before film sessions, visiting families fueling up on artisan pastries before App State games, and athletes stopping in after morning workouts. The wood-fired sourdough loaves and rotating pastry selection have made it a cult favorite, and the warm community atmosphere of a small-town artisan bakery makes it an essential stop for any visitor wanting to feel the texture of life in Boone beyond the football stadium. The cinnamon rolls on football Saturdays sell out by 9 AM.
Fan Eats
Our Daily Bread
Beloved Boone bakery serving scratch-made pastries, hearty breakfasts, and fresh sandwiches. A cozy mountain morning spot where App State students and visiting fans line up for homemade cinnamon rolls.
Things to Do
Things to Do
Appalachian State Fan Walk
On home football Saturdays, the App State Mountaineers team walks through a corridor of cheering fans on their way into Kidd Brewer Stadium in a pregame tradition that captures the tight-knit community spirit of this mountain campus. Fans line up early, kids reach out for high-fives from players, and the Black and Gold energy is infectious.
Things to Do
Blue Ridge Parkway Overlooks
The Blue Ridge Parkway runs just minutes from Boone and offers world-class mountain vistas from multiple pull-off overlooks that visiting fans can enjoy on the morning of a game or the day after. The stunning scenery is a natural extension of the mountain-sports culture that defines the Appalachian State fan experience.
Things to Do
Downtown Boone Game Day
Boone's compact downtown King Street transforms on App State football Saturdays into a lively sea of Black and Gold, with sports bars, outdoor patios, and restaurants all packed with Mountaineer fans. The walkable mountain town atmosphere makes the pregame crawl feel like a festival as much as a sports trip.
Attraction
Holmes Convocation Center
The intimate on-campus arena for App State Mountaineers basketball creates an up-close, rowdy atmosphere that benefits the home team enormously in Sun Belt Conference play. Fans sit close to the court and opposing teams consistently cite the noise level as one of the tougher road environments at the mid-major level.
Attraction
Kidd Brewer Stadium
Perched at over 3,000 feet elevation in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Kidd Brewer Stadium offers one of college football's most dramatic settings, with mountain ridges visible beyond the end zones. Appalachian State's electric fan base and consistent Sun Belt success make a game here a genuine bucket-list college football experience.
Things to Do
Appalachian Ski Mountain
Appalachian Ski Mountain is just minutes from downtown Boone and serves as the social hub for the Appalachian State sports community during winter months, drawing athletes, coaches, and fans for skiing and snowboarding on the Blue Ridge slopes. For visiting sports fans who arrive for an App State basketball game and want to maximize the mountain town experience, a morning on the slopes before a Mountaineers tip-off is a distinctly Boone-specific fan activity. The ski lodge bar after a day on the mountain and before an App State game is one of the more delightful sports-fan itineraries in the South.
Plan Your Trip to Kidd Brewer Stadium
Kidd Brewer Stadium in Boone is tracked across 0 events and seats 30,000 fans. Here's how fans build a trip around it:
- Anchor Event: Use the event cards below to select your next anchor date.
- Post-Event Path: Continue into Boone and Boone hotspots for food, bars, and stay options.
Sources & References
Structured facts on this page (capacity, opening year, architect, ownership) are compiled from public reference databases and verified against venue coordinates.
Frequently Asked Questions About Kidd Brewer Stadium
Check back for celebrity sighting reports from Kidd Brewer Stadium.
Kidd Brewer Stadium has a capacity of 30,000 people.
Kidd Brewer Stadium opened in 1962.
Appalachian State Mountaineers football, Appalachian State Mountaineers play home games at Kidd Brewer Stadium in Boone.
Check our events page for upcoming events at Kidd Brewer Stadium.