Seeking Recommendations for Madison, WI

Go to the game. It’s a lot of fun.

Off a red-eye, so I'll do what I can

- Farmers Market around Capitol Square on Saturday
- Beer gardens along Regent on Gameday, and you'll see plenty of house parties in the neighborhoods around Camp Randall.
- Burger, curds and Spotted at Tipsy Cow. Best place for that trio, but can't go wrong with The Old Fashioned and sub the Spotted for their Wisconsin Old Fashioned. Worth a try, but I don't like Brandy, personally, and it's made a bit too sweet for my liking.
- Walk from the top of State Street (Capitol) to the bottom and through campus via Bascom. Fall colors should be fantastic.
- Hang at the Terrace, formerly Memorial Union Terrace and not to be confused with Monona Union Terrace, and have a pitcher on the lake. Madison is on an isthmus, so it sits along Lake Mendota and Lake Monona.
- Walk around Willy St. and get to know some of the quirky shops. Eat at Grampa's for best pizza in Madison. Otherwise, can't go wrong with Weary Traveler. If you prefer a brewery, Working Draft is there, but swing to State Line for a distillery.
- Best cocktail bar in Madison is at The Robin Room, but The Harvey House will be what you want for an excellent meal and cocktail.
- You won't have time on a weekend trip, but the arboretum is beautiful. Near downtown, but you don't feel it.

For a football weekend, I'd book soon, but there are a few hotels in downtown Madison left. It'll be expensive. I'd recommend Hampton Inn & Suites on Johnson. Bit more-immersed with undergraduates that live off-campus in the high rises apartment buildings, so it's a quick walk to campus, bars, Capitol Square, etc. Of course, there are still some hotels available up on the Square if you'd prefer something a little more on the quieter side. Plenty of bars around there, too.

Packers game will be on at every bar on Sunday. Sometimes going to a dive outside of downtown is fun, but maybe check out Brats if you'd prefer to stay in walking distance. Food is mediocre, but a ton of TVs and it's a popular place almost every day.

I went 3 years ago to the Homecoming game against Illinois in October. My stepdaughter was thinking about going to Wisconsin, so we took a trip there.

We stayed at the Hampton downtown that hoops mentioned. The Farmers Market is legit. Campus and downtown are very nice and we walked everywhere.

We ate at good restaurants but I can't remember shite. My wife really liked the Mac & Cheese pizza at Ian's on State Street.

Camp Randall is a cool stadium but I was a little disappointed in the atmosphere. Illinois was a bad match up but it was pretty dead and the student section didn't fill up until halftime so they could "Jump Around" then they haul arse.

My 2 cents anyway.

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Camp Randall is a cool stadium but I was a little disappointed in the atmosphere. Illinois was a bad match up but it was pretty dead and the student section didn't fill up until halftime so they could "Jump Around" then they haul arse.

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You won't see the student section fill early unless you get Michigan or Ohio State in Madison. You'll see an earlier crowd for the Iowa and Penn State's, too. Partying is a big part of the culture at Wisconsin - if the match-up isn't interesting, like Illinois, students would rather sit at house parties, swing in near halftime, Jump Around, then leave. Admittedly, I was the same way in college, but it's definitely a product of the home schedule, and it's as bad as it has ever been this year.