The Joshua Tree Tour 2019 Questions and Answers

Original Story by Aaron J. Sams (2019-06-14)

LAST UPDATED: JUNE 14, 2019, 11:15pm Auckland Time

Recently added: Notes on Singapore, second shows for Sydney and Auckland.

On May 31 U2 announced a new tour, which will visit New Zealand, Australia, Singapore, South Korea and Japan. Dates were announced for one show in each city in New Zealand, Australia and South Korea. Two dates were announced for Japan. No dates were announced for Singapore but the show was announced. On June 11, a second show was announced for Auckland and Sydney. On June 13, the date for the show in Singapore was announced.

The tour is branded “The Joshua Tree Tour 2019” and the logo is the same as the 2017 tour, with a red shadow instead of a grey. The band took to Twitter to announce the tour, in their first live use of that platform, responding to fans who have been asking about a tour of these areas for years. Below are some links for the announcement of the tour.

• The Full Announcement on U2.Com
• The dates on the Tour Page at U2.Com
• A promotional video for the tour. (Also embedded below.)

The tour will use the same stage and layout as the 2017 tour of a similar name, but this is U2, always expect there will be some new surprises and upgrades. A Live Nation press release has stated that The Joshua Tree album will be played in sequence again like it was in 2017. “The Joshua Tree Tour is a celebration of the original album and tour of the same name undertaken by U2 in 1987 and features the complete album played in sequence along with a selection of highlights from U2’s extensive catalogue of songs.” Below you will find a series of answers to questions we know you will have about the tour in the days ahead.

WHERE DO I GO TO GET INFORMATION?

It’s an odd question to start with, but we do recommend you look at a number of other sites first. These are the places set up to help you out. While we can provide some answers and discussions the team over at U2.Com are the ones who can help you out the most if you do experience an issue.

• U2.Com should be your first source for official information (U2.com help page). The team there will update tour FAQS and dates are now listed there as well, and they will be your gateway to presales.
• U2.Com list the tour dates on a page here: http://www.u2.com/tour
• If you have difficulties finding your presales when announced you should use. http://www.u2.com/tour which will have all of the links. If you try to go through TM or other sites you may struggle. Best to find the proper link at u2.com.

WHERE ARE U2 PLAYING?

For the full list of announced dates you can view our The Joshua Tree Tour 2019 graphic below. The tour will visit nine cities, including cities in New Zealand, Australia, Singapore, Japan and South Korea. It is the first time the band will have ever performed in Singapore or South Korea. The date for Singapore has now been announced, and second shows are announced for Saitama, Auckland and Sydney. The graphic below is up to date as of June 14.

IMAGE: Announced Cities and Dates for The Joshua Tree Tour 2019 (Click to enlarge)

WILL MORE SHOWS BE ADDED?

• Only one show per city was initially announced, except in Japan where two were announced due to the way tickets will be sold.
• Some cities will get additional dates, a second show for Sydney and Auckland were both announced already. Both have been announced as the second and final show in those cities.
• See our rumour information about which cities are expected to possibly get more than one show.
• All of the expected cities that this tour will visit have been announced, it is not expected they will add on additional shows in other cities.
• The tour is expected to visit New Zealand, Australia and Asia only. It is not expected that this tour will continue into 2020, or that it will visit any other region. We do not have any information about a continuation of the tour after these dates, and we have been told the band will start work on a new album after this tour.
• Our sources have confirmed that there is no intention for this tour to add any more cities. The cities announced are the same cities that have been listed since the itinerary was finalized in March.

WHAT VENUES ARE THE BAND PLAYING

In the below table you will find information about the 9 different venues that The Joshua Tree Tour 2019 will visit. This includes the capacity of each venue, the name of the ticketing agency, and even the closest rail station to the venue if you want to start looking at what might get you closest to the venue. The smallest venue is the 32,000 capacity venue in Seoul, and the largest is the 60,000 venue in Perth. Click on the name of each venue to bring up the seating map for that venue (we will be replacing these with maps specific to the U2 tour when they are available.)

Planning for the Seoul venue has allowed an increase in the amount of tickets to be sold from the expected capacity of 25,000 to about 32,000. In Singapore the stage will be oriented on the longest side of the venue which will reduce the capacity of that venue. This was done in Brussels as well for the second leg of the tour in 2017.

• The seat map for Japan including pricing can be seen below:
  
  
  IMAGE: Japan Seating Map from u2japan2019.com

• The VIP seat map for Australia and New Zealand including package information can be seen below:
  
  
  IMAGE: VIP Packages and Seating from Live Nation

WHAT WILL MY VIEW BE LIKE?

The band is expected to use a stage similar to the 2017 Joshua Tree stage, and seat maps show that this appears to be the case. We have some 360 photos from the GA pitch in various locations on the 2017 tour which may help you to figure out where you might want to see the tour from.

• Dublin 2017 (Photo from between the tree stage and the main stage)
• Amsterdam 2017 (Photo from the right of the stage, near the front)
• Paris 2017 (Photo from the left of the stage, behind Red Zone area)
• Paris 2017 (Photo from mid-field, to the right of the stage)

WHEN DO TICKETS GO ON SALE?

NOTE: General onsale will happen at local times (When we say local time of 1pm in Auckland, that means when it is 1pm in Auckland, not when it is 1pm in your own time unless you live in those time zones.)

• The general sale started on June 11, 2019 for shows in Australia and New Zealand. The general sale for the show in Seoul, South Korea started on June 12, 2019.
• The general sale for Singapore starts on June 20, 2019. The presales for Singapore start on June 17, 2019.
• The general sale for Saitama, Japan starts on July 20, 2019. Presales have already started for these shows.
• The general sale for second shows in Auckland and Sydney start on Monday, June 17. Presales have started for these shows.
• There will be ticket limits enforced during the sales, please ensure you pay attention to these limits and do not exceed them. The ticket limit for general onsales will be different than those for presales listed below.
• There will be other sales in advance of the general sale. Look for offers for local residents, through credit card companies, and through U2.Com. These will also have ticket limits. A Live Nation presale for Australia and New Zealand has been available.

WHAT IS THE U2.COM PRESALE?

• There are two groups for the presale through U2.Com. It allows registered subscribers a chance to buy tickets early ahead of the general sale.
• The Red Hill Group is for subscribers who have been subscribed for a longer time to U2.Com and they will start in presales first for each city.
• The Wires Group is for newer subscribers who haven’t been subscribed as long to U2.Com and they will start presales later on the first day of presales, or the following day.
• Start times for the presales do vary for different cities, so please check U2.Com for the most recent updates before your presale. We list the presale times in our Presale Time Zone Conversion page, but if these differ, the date and time at U2.Com is the one that should be used.
• The subscription date cut off to be considered a long time member of U2.com for this tour’s presales was May 31, 2019 at 8am NZST. If you subscribed or renewed an expired subscription after that date, you will be in the Wires group. (If you subscribed before the tour announcement you will be in the first group.)
• There is a four ticket limit when using your U2.Com presale code. Using it for more than four tickets can result in cancellation of your tickets.
• U2.Com lists the following at U2.com/help in regards to splitting tickets across multiple shows: “As a paid-up U2.com Subscriber you are eligible to purchase up to FOUR (4) tickets for any show or combination of shows (for example you can purchase 2 tickets for a show in Brisbane and 2 tickets for a show in Adelaide, or 1 ticket for Brisbane, 1 ticket for Adelaide, 1 ticket for Melbourne and 1 ticket for Sydney.) All ticketing presale code use is audited, and anyone found to be abusing presale privileges risks cancellation of ticket purchases and U2.com subscription.” This answer is specific to Australia and New Zealand. It is not known if the same answer will apply to the Asian countries, where ticket sales are handled differently.
• There have been presales for second shows that have been announced, and U2.Com presale codes have been able to be used in these sales.

WHEN WILL THE U2.COM PRESALES HAPPEN?

• Presales started on June 4, 2019 for all cities except for Seoul, where the presale started on June 10.

Presales are currently listed as follows on U2.Com – although please check at the link to see if there have been any updates:

• Tue 4 Jun, 10am – Thu 6 Jun, 5pm NZST – AUCKLAND – Mt Smart Stadium
• Tue 4 Jun, 9am – Thu 6 Jun, 5pm AEST – MELBOURNE – Marvel Stadium
• Tue 4 Jun, 9am – Thu 6 Jun, 5pm ACST – ADELAIDE – Adelaide Oval
• Tue 4 Jun, 10am – Thu 6 Jun, 5pm AEST – BRISBANE – Suncorp Stadium
• Tue 4 Jun, 11am – Thu 6 Jun, 5pm AEST – SYDNEY – Sydney Cricket Ground
• Tue 4 Jun, 10am – Thu 6 Jun, 5pm AWST – PERTH – Optus Stadium
• Mon 10 Jun, 12pm – Tues 11 Jun, 6pm KST – SEOUL – Gocheok Sky Dome
• Tue 4 Jun, 12pm – Thu 6 Jun, 5pm JST – TOYKO – Saitama Super Arena

Presales for later added shows are as follows:

• Thu June 13, 12pm NZST – AUCKLAND – Mt Smart Stadium
• Thu June 13, 11am AEST – SYDNEY – Sydney Cricket Ground
• Mon June 17, 10am SGT – SINGAPORE – National Stadium

If you are trying to figure out when these presales start, in your own time zone, we do have a page which allows you to look at all of these in your own time. But we do ask that you double check these. If there is any discrepancy between that page and U2.Com/help, the time and date on U2.Com are the correct ones.

CAN I USE MY PRESALE CODE FOR OTHER SHOWS?

• If you stay below your overall limit of four tickets it is known that you can participate in more than one sale in Australia and New Zealand. If you go over four tickets for one code, you risk the cancellation of all tickets purchased with that code.

HOW DO I FIND MY U2.COM PRESALE CODE

• Traditionally you go to the http://www.u2.com/tour page. Right before the dates start, you will see a “YOUR UNIQUE PRESALE ACCESS CODE IS:” followed by a string of numbers and letters.
• Codes are now appearing on the site for most registered subscribers.
• You can also often find your code on the http://www.u2.com/profile page. It also usually lists on that page what group you belong to. “Red Hill” or “Wires”.
• An email was sent out to many subscribers the night before presales were due to start. The information in the email was reflected on U2.Com/tour.

ARE ALL THE TICKETS GONE WHEN A PRESALE IS OVER?

• A presale is an opportunity to buy a ticket before the general onsale.
• Not all tickets are available in a presale, limited quantities are made available in advance of the main sale. There will still be tickets available for the main sale.
• Japan does operate differently, and in that case, if a presale through retailers ePlus and PIA proves to be popular, tickets may be sold out before the general sale.

WHAT OTHER PRESALES WILL HAPPEN?

• There will also be Live Nation, Local resident and Stadium Presales. These will start after the U2.Com presales.
• For Perth, Melbourne and Auckland, there is a Live Nation presale happening on June 6. Check the event pages at Ticketmaster for information on the individual times, or at Live Nation Australia directly.
• For Adelaide, Brisbane and Sydney, there will also be a Live Nation presale happening on June 6. These are not listed at Ticketek. See Live Nation Australia for information.
• For Brisbane general sale is June 11 at 2pm. Tickets will be sold through Ticketek.
• For Adelaide general sale is on June 11 at 12 noon. Tickets will be sold through Ticketek.
• For Sydney general sale is on June 11 at 3pm. Tickets will be sold through Ticketek.

The local resident presale for Brisbane happens on June 6. This is for locals who are inconvenienced by traffic around the venue. Those able to take part have already been notified.

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO RESERVE TICKETS FOR JAPAN?

• Japan operates on a different ticketing model than most. In Japan you apply for a ticket, the system takes the requests, and fills as many as possible and lets you know at a later date if you have been successful. (Usually a couple of days)
• The presale through U2Com is not using the system mentioned above, but the vendor presales, and the regular onsale will.
• The U2Com presale is functioning like other presales sales, and gives immediate confirmation that you have been successful buying tickets.
• The reservations for Japan presale for U2.com subscriber tickets beings on Tuesday June 4, for both shows in that country.
• The pre-orders for PIA and ePLUS members begin Friday 14 June, after the U2.com subscribers tickets are sorted, with final tickets for both performances on sale Saturday 20 July.
• To sign up for a PIA or ePLUS presale you must be a resident of Japan, and you must be able to receive a text message at a Japanese phone number.
• Japan has a microsite set up for the U2 tour, which can be viewed here for more information.
• The seat map diagram for Japan can be seen below, which includes pricing.

IMAGE: Japan Seating Map from u2japan2019.com

HOW DOES THE SOUTH KOREA PRESALE WORK?

• For the South Korea presale you must preregister on the site Yes24.
• Preregistration of your U2.Com presale code will have to be done before 10am on the morning the presale opens.
• From U2.com/help: “If you do not complete the registration process first on YES24, you will be UNABLE to participate in the presale.”
• You can start to register for the presale starting on June 7, 2019 at 10am KST. Registration is open until June 10, 2019 at 9:59am KST.
• The presale for South Korea starts June 10 at 12 noon, KST for Red Hill subscribers, and 8pm KST for Wires subscribers.

HOW DOES THE SINGAPORE SALE WORK?

• The Singapore presale for U2.Com members will start on June 17, 2019 at a variety of “Channels”.
• The channels listed as available for the presale are online, by phone, at SingPost Outlets and at the Scotts Square Concierge Desk. We recommend using the links found at U2.com/tour on the day of the sale to quickly access the presale. It is not known how well these other avenues will work but they are currently listed as available on the ticketing site.
• Starting at noon, another channel opens at the Scotts Square Concierge Desk. This is two hours after the U2.Com presale starts, and is listed in information provided about the presale.
• On June 20 only tickets will be available at the Sports Hub Tix Box Office at Kallang Wave Mall This is the first day of the general sale.
• On June 21 onwards, tickets will also be available at the Singapore Indoor Stadium Box Office if any are available. This is the second day of the general sale onwards.
• U2.Com presales are limited to four tickets in total across the tour. In the general sale, tickets are limited to 8 tickets per transaction.

WILL TICKETS BE ISSUED?

Australia and New Zealand:

• All General Admission tickets for Australia and New Zealand will be mobile ticket only.
• A mobile ticket is a ticket on your mobile device which is scanned when entering the venue.
• (RED) Zone tickets are picked up a the venue on the day of the concert. VIP Party Experiences are the same.
• Tickets will be printed for seats, but Ticketmaster is listing that these will not be issued until the day of the General Onsale
• Collectors tickets will be dispatched a month prior to the event. (Collectors tickets are not available for General Admission tickets)
• Print at home tickets, and Mobile tickets will not be distributed until 72 hours prior to the event.

Japan:

• Tickets will be issued through 7-Eleven stores in Japan for those participating in the foreign presales.
• You print your order confirmation and take it into a store in Japan, where the cashier will give you your ticket.
• For those who don’t speak Japanese, and wonder about the note in that language on your confirmation? It’s instructions for the cashier at the store to help the foreigner pick up their ticket, and gives them instruction to process the request.
• Tickets cannot be picked up at the venue and must be picked up at the 7-Eleven stores.
• Tickets will be available starting on November 20, at 10:00am. Your purchase confirmation will be required.

Korea:

• All presale tickets bought on the English booking page should be picked up at ticket booth on the show day.

WHAT ARE TICKET PRICES?

Prices below are listed in local currency. These are from early communications from Live Nation, and in the event of a discrepancy, whatever is printed on the ticket site at the time of the sale is the correct price. These prices may have additional transaction fees.

Tickets for Auckland appear to be 63.28 – 370.18:

• GA for this show is listed at $125.38
• Collectors tickets will add about $10.00 to the ticket price, but do not have to be purchased.
• The two middle prices are $195.76 and $267.37
• Red Zones are listed at $512.38

Tickets for Brisbane appear to be 66.20 – 372.05 with five price ranges:

• GA for this show is listed at $130.35, there will also be seats at this price
• Collectors tickets will add about $11.00 to the ticket price, but do not have to be purchased.
• The two middle prices are $198.20 and $269.60
• Red Zones are listed at $513.75

Tickets for Sydney appear to be 61.20 – 367.05 with five price ranges:

• GA for this show is listed at $126.35, there should also be seats at this price
• Collectors tickets will add about $11.00 to the ticket price, but do not have to be purchased.
• The two middle prices are $193.80 and $264.60
• Red Zones are listed at $508.75

Tickets for Adelaide appear to be 64.75 – 370.60 with five price ranges:

• GA for this show is listed at $128.80, there will also be seats at this price
• Collectors tickets will add about $11.00 to the ticket price, but do not have to be purchased.
• The two middle prices are $196.80 and $268.15
• Red Zones are listed at $510.55

Tickets for Melbourne appear to be 60.96 – 366.88 with five price ranges:

• GA for this show is listed at $131.53, there will also be seats at this price
• Collectors tickets will add about $11.00 to the ticket price, but do not have to be purchased.
• The two middle prices are $192.98 and $264.34
• Red Zones are listed at $508.51

Tickets for Perth appear to be 66.07 – 371.88:

• GA for this show is listed at $131.64.
• Collectors tickets will add about $11.00 to the ticket price, but do not have to be purchased.
• The two middle prices are $198.06 and $269.43
• Red Zones are listed at $513.59

For Japan pricing ranges from Y16800 – 38800:

• GA for this show is split into two with prices of Y19800 and Y15800
• Red Zone is listed at Y60000
• The priciest seats at Y38800 say they come with a gift.

Tickets in Seoul range from 99,000KRW – 242,000KRW:

• GA for this show is listed at 143,000KRW and 154,000KRW with a front and rear section expected.
• Red Zone is listed at 454,000KRW
• Pricing for seats is listed at 99,000KRW, 121,000KRW, 176,000KRW, and 242,000KRW.

Tickets for Singapore range from S$98 – S$368 (Singapore Dollars)

• GA for the show is listed as S$188
• Red Zone for the show is listed at $588
• Pricing for seats is listed at S$98, S$138, S$188, S$238, S$288, S$368.
• VIP packages range from S$588 – S$1228
• Booking fees are not included in the prices listed above in Singapore.

VIP Party packages are also available, and pricing of those will be higher than those prices listed above. Seat maps showing the location of most of these seats were NOT available during the presales.

WHAT WILL THE TOUR LOOK LIKE?

• The tour will be configured similar to the 2017 Joshua Tree tour.
• The floor of each venue will be set up as general admission.
• In Japan and South Korea, two types of GA tickets are being sold, one near the stage and one further back, so the floor is split at these venues, with different pricing by area.

WHAT ARE THE VIP PACKAGES?

• Ticketmaster listed shows have four VIP listings.
• (RED) Zone: Barricaded area immediately adjacent to the stage, limited capacity. VIP Entrance to the venue. Collectors souvenir ticket. Access to pre-show refreshments, and an opportunity to be selected for a pre-show backstage tour. A portion of the proceeds will support the (RED) campaign.
• VIP Party Experience: One premium price category 1 seat, access to a 90 minute pre-show VIP cocktail party, A chance to win a backstage tour, a U2 VIP tour gift, laminate and lanyard. Dedicated VIP merch stand, and priority entry into the venue.
• VIP Hot Seat Gold: One premium category 1 seat in a prime location. A U2 VIP tour gift, laminate and lanyard.
• VIP Hot Seat Silver: One premium category 2 seat. A U2 VIP tour gift, laminate and lanyard.
• The VIP Packages that come with a VIP tour gift, all come with the same gift.

• The VIP seat map for Australia and New Zealand including package information can be seen below:
  
  
  IMAGE: VIP Packages and Seating from Live Nation

WHAT IS A FAN CLUB BUNDLE?

• It appears that as in past years, Ticketmaster will allow you to purchase a fan club membership on the second day of the presale and immediately enter into the presale.
• This is being listed as a Fan Club Bundle as you buy your fan club membership (yearly subscription to u2.com) and your tickets all at one time.

WHAT IS A COLLECTOR TICKET?

• A collector ticket is something that has been introduced over the past few tours. They appear to be available only in Australia and New Zealand.
• This is an add on when you buy your ticket. For an additional fee you can add on a special “Collector Ticket” which will allow you access through the barcode on the ticket.
• The information on the 2019 collector ticket says it is a 3D Card.
• Collector tickets are not available for the general admission floor.
• The collector ticket as pictured today on the Ticketmaster site is shown below:
  

WHO ARE THE OPENING ACTS?

• In Australia and New Zealand the opening act for all current listed shows is Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds.
• The opening act(s) for the Asian shows have not been announced.

WHAT IF I HAVE PHYSICAL DEMANDS THAT MAY LIMIT ACCESS?

• Most venues do have some area set aside for these sorts of things, but often the area is not the best in the house.
• You should check with each venue individually about any restrictions or concerns. Most venues have this information published on their websites, and most are happy to take questions by email or phone.
• Ticketmaster in Australia has an accessible seating line at 1 300 446 925 (This number is reserved for patrons with accessibility requirements and cannot be used to answer general questions.)
• Ticketek in Australia has an Accessible seating booking line at 1 300 665 915 (This number is reserved for patrons with accessibility requirements and cannot be used to answer general questions.)
• Ticketmaster in New Zealand has an accessible seating line at 09 970 9711 (This number is reserved for patrons with accessibility requirements and cannot be used to answer general questions.)

CAN EVERYONE BE ON THE GA FLOOR / AT THE SHOW?

• GA access and show access is restricted by age at some venues.
• Children under the age of six are not allowed entry in Japan.
• The age is listed at 13+ for the show in South Korea.
• Children under the age of 12 are not allowed into the standing areas in Singapore. Children below 6 years old will not be admitted.
• In Australia / NZ promoters are recommending that any child under the age of 12 be accompanied by an adult.

WHEN WILL SECOND SHOWS BE ANNOUNCED?

• When a show sells well, U2 will often add a second show. These shows are already planned as venues have to be booked, staff prepared etc., and are ready to be announced if sales are good.
• We were previously able to share with you that second shows were being planned if sales were good for Auckland, Melbourne, Sydney, Saitama and Seoul. Second shows for Saitama, Sydney and Auckland have already been announced.
• Second shows will be announced only after the first shows are put on sale (general sale not the presales) and generally not until a show is announced as being sold out.

CAN I SHARE MY PRESALE CODE? CAN I USE SOMEONE ELSE’S CODE?

• The email sent with the presale codes clearly stated that no you cannot transfer codes.
• If found misusing codes, one can find their U2.Com subscription cancelled, and any tickets bought with the code also cancelled.
• The email stated: “Take care of this email and don’t let anyone access this code who might use it against your wishes. It is for your personal use only and cannot be transferred/used by anyone else. All ticketing code use is audited and anyone found to be abusing presale privileges risks cancellation of ticket purchases and U2.com subscription.”

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