5 Pro Wrestling Destinations You Must Visit This Year

Watching professional wrestling on television is one thing, but seeing an event in person is a memorable experience. There are several events throughout the year that die-hard wrestling fans shouldn’t miss, especially:

WrestleMania 33: Ask anyone what the Super Bowl of WWE is, and they’ll likely tell you that it is WrestleMania. This year’s event will be held on Sunday, April 2 in Orlando, Florida. Even though the tickets have been on sale for about a month, there are still a good number of seats available, but the ticket prices are hefty. Single seats high up in the stadium start at almost $200 and up.

There are WWE travel packages available too that include this event, the Hall of Fame as well as accommodations and more. The greatest rivalries of the wrestling year come to a head at this Pay-Per-View event. For example, past matches have included John Cena vs. The Rock, and the Undertaker famously defending his streak until he lost to Brock Lesnar. There’s a reason they call this event The Grandest Stage of Them All.

Hall of Fame: Part of the week leading up to Wrestlemania includes Axxess Week, which is full of events for fans, from creating your own entrance to signings with WWE Superstars. While that is worth checking out in its own right, the cherry at the top of it all is the Hall of Fame induction ceremony.

Taking place the evening of April 1, the evening is filled with fun and emotional speeches honoring the best and brightest of WWE’s history. Past inductees have included The Ultimate Warrior, Lita and Sting. If you’re a lifelong wrestling fan, this is a chance to see history come together in one emotional evening.

SummerSlam: If you can’t make it to WrestleMania, SummerSlam is the next best thing for you. It’s taking place on Sunday, Aug. 20 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York for the second year in a row. You can also come one day in advance to enjoy NXT, the developmental show for the WWE up-and-comers, also at the Barclays Center. At this year’s SummerSlam, there were such stars as Jon Stewart and Stephen Amell of “Arrow” making an appearance, and matches such as Finn Balor defeating Seth Rollins to become the first WWE Universal Champion. It’s an end-of-the-summer event you won’t want to miss.

Wrestle Kingdom 11: If you’re looking to travel a little further, you might want to consider this annual event held by New Japan Pro Wrestling. You just missed this year’s event, but there’s always next year. It is essentially the WrestleMania of NJPW. They often include other companies in their show as well, and sometimes even American wrestlers from companies such as Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA). It’s a great chance to see championship matches from the highest wrestling promotion in Japan.

Lucha Underground: Lucha Underground is a fast-growing indie company that combines American indie wrestlers with wrestlers from the Asistencia Asesoría y Administración (AAA), which is the one of the biggest Mexican wrestling promoters. Unlike the WWE, Lucha Underground airs weekly in “seasons.” When it is on, it’s high-intensity matches and dramatic storylines, combined with technical wrestling you can’t see anywhere else, make it something to check out. The schedule for their 2017 Pay-Per-Views is not available yet, but it’s something to keep an eye out for in the future. 

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