Riverbend Music Center — officially the J. Ralph Corbett Pavilion — opened on July 4, 1984, along the banks of the Ohio River in Cincinnati, Ohio. Designed by celebrated postmodern architect Michael Graves at a construction cost of roughly $9 million, the venue was built to give the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra a grand outdoor home for summer performances.
Its inaugural night featured Erich Kunzel and the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, with special guests Ella Fitzgerald and Neil Armstrong. Today the amphitheater is one of the busiest outdoor venues in the country, and this guide covers everything you need for a visit — capacity and seating, parking, bag policy, box office hours, and the rules the venue actually enforces at the gate.
Quick Answer
Riverbend Music Center is an outdoor amphitheater at 6295 Kellogg Ave in Cincinnati, Ohio, holding 20,500 guests total — 6,000 in a covered, reserved pavilion and 14,500 on an open-air general-admission lawn. Parking is complimentary with every ticket, small clear bags and low lawn chairs are allowed, and tickets are sold through the official Riverbend Music Center website as well as major resale and ticketing platforms.
Seating Chart and Capacity: Pavilion, Lawn & PNC Pavilion
Riverbend’s main amphitheater seats 20,500: 6,000 reserved seats sit under the covered pavilion roof, protected from sun and light rain, while 14,500 general-admission fans spread out on the sloped lawn behind and beside the covered section. Only the pavilion seats are covered — the lawn is fully open air, so lawn-goers should plan for sun, heat, or rain depending on the night.
A second, smaller stage on the same campus — PNC Pavilion — opened in May 2008 and seats 4,100. It hosts mid-size touring acts and lets the property run two different shows on the same evening. Reserved pavilion seats at Riverbend are numbered by section and row like a traditional theater; interactive, event-specific seating charts (which sections are covered, sightlines to the stage, and ADA-designated rows) are available through ticketing partners such as Ticketmaster, SeatGeek, and Vivid Seats, since exact chart layout can shift slightly by tour.
Planning Your Visit: Tickets, Parking & Getting There
Tickets for Riverbend Music Center shows are sold through the official Riverbend Music Center site, which links out to the primary ticketing platform for each show, plus standard resale marketplaces. Pricing follows the typical amphitheater tiering — reserved pavilion seats cost more than general-admission lawn tickets, and prices vary widely by artist and demand, so check the official site or box office for the current on-sale for any specific show rather than relying on a fixed number.
Parking is included with every ticket — there’s no separate parking fee. General parking is accessed through Gate 1, Gate 2, or Gate 4, and lots typically open about two hours before the show’s door time. Gate 2 offers the closest accessible parking, with staff on-site to direct guests. Rideshare pickup and drop-off (Uber/Lyft) uses a designated zone near the venue, buses and mid-size RVs park in the lot across from Gate 2, and large Class A RVs are directed to nearby East Fork State Park. The venue address is 6295 Kellogg Avenue, Cincinnati, OH 45230, and Go Metro public transit also serves the venue on show nights.
The box office keeps limited walk-up hours outside of showtimes — historically Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, late morning through early afternoon, closed Tuesday and Thursday — so it’s best to confirm same-day box office availability and hours directly on the official Riverbend Music Center website before making a special trip.
Bag Policy and Prohibited Items
Riverbend enforces a standard amphitheater bag policy: clear bags up to 12″ x 12″ x 6″ are allowed, and a small non-clear clutch or purse up to 6″ x 9″ is also permitted without needing to be transparent. Diaper bags and medically necessary bags are allowed but subject to search. Soft-sided, collapsible coolers no larger than 12″ x 12″ x 6″ are permitted if they contain only food, drinks, and loose ice — hard-sided coolers are not allowed.
Guests may also bring up to four factory-sealed, unfrozen non-alcoholic beverages in plastic bottles, or empty soft squeezable water bottles to fill inside. Commonly prohibited items include outside alcohol, glass or metal containers, canned beverages, aerosol cans, laser pointers, selfie sticks, chain wallets, inflatables, and pointed umbrellas. Skyline Chili, Graeter’s ice cream, and other Cincinnati concession staples are sold inside if you’d rather not pack food in.
Lawn Chairs, Cameras, Weather & Re-Entry Rules
On the lawn, only low beach-style chairs with a seat height of 12 inches or less are allowed; chairs with shade canopies or umbrellas attached are not permitted under any circumstances. Small point-and-shoot or disposable cameras that fit in a shirt pocket are fine, but professional cameras with detachable lenses, GoPro-style action cameras, and any audio or video recording devices are prohibited.
Riverbend operates rain-or-shine — shows are not cancelled for weather short of a serious safety threat, and no refunds are issued for rain, so plan accordingly for lawn seating. Severe-weather holds or evacuation instructions are posted to the venue’s social media pages in real time. Once inside, there is a strict no re-entry policy for every Riverbend and PNC Pavilion event, so make any trips to the car before heading in for the night.
A Summer Concert Landmark on the Ohio River
When Riverbend opened in 1984, it was one of only 16 outdoor music amphitheaters in the entire United States, and it quickly transformed Cincinnati’s live-entertainment landscape. Situated adjacent to Belterra Park along the Ohio River, the scenic setting became as much a draw as the performers themselves. Over the decades the venue hosted a remarkable range of artists — from The Grateful Dead and Pearl Jam to the Spice Girls, Dave Matthews Band, and Sting.
Few relationships at Riverbend matched the legendary run of Jimmy Buffett, who played the venue annually from 1988 to 2022 and, by 2008, had racked up 41 consecutive sold-out shows there, turning each summer date into a pilgrimage for his devoted ‘Parrot Head’ following across the Greater Cincinnati region.
The Venue Today
Riverbend Music Center is owned by the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and operated by Music and Event Management, Inc. (MEMI), which also manages The Andrew J. Brady Music Center, Taft Theatre, and Rose Music Center. The dual-stage campus — Riverbend for major tours and PNC Pavilion for mid-size acts — gives Cincinnati’s market programming flexibility across a full outdoor season.
With around 35 major concert events per season and hundreds of thousands of attendees annually, Riverbend consistently ranks among the busiest amphitheaters in North America and remains the anchor of Greater Cincinnati’s summer live-music calendar. Explore more: Live Music venues.
Riverbend Music Center visitor guide FAQs
Where is Riverbend Music Center located?
Riverbend Music Center sits at 6295 Kellogg Ave, Cincinnati, OH 45230, on the banks of the Ohio River near the former Coney Island amusement park site and Belterra Park.
What is the seating capacity of Riverbend Music Center?
The main amphitheater holds 20,500 guests — 6,000 in reserved covered pavilion seats and 14,500 on the general-admission lawn. The adjacent PNC Pavilion adds a 4,100-seat mid-size stage on the same campus, which opened in May 2008.
Is Riverbend Music Center covered?
Only the reserved pavilion seating (6,000 seats) is under a roof. The general-admission lawn area, which holds the majority of guests, is fully open air, so lawn tickets are subject to sun, heat, and rain.
Does Riverbend Music Center charge for parking?
No — parking is included with every ticket. General lots are accessed through Gate 1, Gate 2, or Gate 4 and typically open about two hours before door time; Gate 2 has the closest accessible parking.
What is the bag policy at Riverbend Music Center?
Clear bags up to 12″ x 12″ x 6″ and small non-clear clutches up to 6″ x 9″ are allowed. Soft-sided collapsible coolers up to the same size limit are permitted for food and drinks; hard-sided coolers and bags larger than the limits are not allowed.
Can you bring chairs or blankets to Riverbend Music Center?
Low beach-style lawn chairs with a seat height of 12 inches or less are allowed on the lawn. Chairs with shade canopies or attached umbrellas are never permitted.
Is there re-entry at Riverbend Music Center?
No. Riverbend and PNC Pavilion both enforce a strict no re-entry policy once you’ve entered the venue for an event.
Who designed Riverbend Music Center?
The venue was designed by renowned postmodern architect Michael Graves and opened on July 4, 1984, at a construction cost of approximately $9 million. Its official name is the J. Ralph Corbett Pavilion.
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