Guns N’ Roses at McDonald Jones Stadium on 8 December: Gates 5:30pm, Show 6:15pm, and How to Get There (Newcastle, NSW)

Guns N’ Roses play McDonald Jones Stadium in Newcastle on Tuesday 8 December 2026, with gates opening at 5:30pm and the show starting at 6:15pm, according to the Ticketmaster event information for the show. The stadium shuttle timetable has not been published yet, so this guide sets out what the official sources say today and what is still to come.

Times on this page are Newcastle time, which is on daylight saving (AEDT, UTC+11) in December. The details come from the Ticketmaster event page, the band’s tour page, Visit Newcastle, the stadium’s own Getting Here page and Newcastle Transport’s stadium shuttle page.

What time does Guns N’ Roses start in Newcastle?

The Ticketmaster event information for the Newcastle show lists gates open at 5:30pm and show start at 6:15pm. The header of the same page gives the event time as 5:00pm, so use the event information times, which are listed separately as gates and show start. Airbourne is named as the special guest on the band’s tour page and on Ticketmaster, and no start time for Airbourne has been published, so the time Guns N’ Roses take the stage is not stated.

The band’s tour page lists Newcastle as one of the Australian dates, after Adelaide on 29 November, Townsville on 2 December and Brisbane on 5 December, and before Melbourne on 11 December and Sydney on 14 December. Each show has its own ticket page, and this guide covers Newcastle only.

How much are tickets and how do they work?

The pages we could read do not publish a price list for the Newcastle show. Visit Newcastle lists the show at $173 and does not say which ticket that is. Ticketmaster says a handling fee from $5.20 per transaction applies, with a delivery fee that may apply depending on how you choose to receive the tickets, and lists Live Nation VIP packages at $438.80 to $1,070.28 each. Prices are in Australian dollars. Check the ticket types and prices on the Ticketmaster page before you buy, because that page also lists resale tickets.

Item	What Ticketmaster says
Ticket limit	1 ticket per customer for the Nightrain Premium and Standard Membership presales; 10 tickets per customer for all other sales
Children	All patrons require a valid ticket, regardless of age
Accessible seating	Can be purchased online; Companion Cards must be presented on request
Ticket delivery	A ticket release delay is in place until further notice, and tickets cannot be downloaded or printed until it is lifted

Ticketmaster warns that anyone who exceeds the published limits may have orders and tickets cancelled without notice, including orders linked by name, email address, billing address or card number.

Can I park at McDonald Jones Stadium?

Possibly, but you need to book. The stadium’s Getting Here page says parking for other major events, meaning events that are not Newcastle Knights home games, is available through Ticketmaster, and that all parking is subject to availability. The page links to a Ticketmaster search for McDonald Jones parking and does not give a price, number of spaces or release date for the Guns N’ Roses show.

The stadium does not say whether parking for this show has gone on sale yet. Check the Ticketmaster link before you drive, and have a second plan in case no parking is offered. For the Foo Fighters concert on 12 November, Newcastle Transport published a shuttle timetable, which our Foo Fighters getting there guide sets out, and our Robbie Williams guide covers the 17 November show. Nothing like that has been published for 8 December, so do not assume the same rules apply.

Where is the drop-off point for concerts?

For concert events, the stadium says the nearest drop-off point is on Brown Road at the Newcastle Entertainment Centre. For sporting events the drop-off is a 10-minute loading zone in the stadium car park, but that is for a different type of event.

Will there be a free stadium shuttle?

Newcastle Transport’s stadium shuttle page lists “Guns n Roses – 8 December 2026” without a timetable, and it describes the shuttle in general as a free bus service for major events at McDonald Jones Stadium. The stadium’s own page says shuttle buses for concerts run every 5 minutes to and from the event and asks you to refer to the event-specific page for full details. That event-specific page does not exist yet for Guns N’ Roses, so the frequency and hours for 8 December are not confirmed.

The special events section of the shuttle page lists the pick-up points the shuttle uses for the events it covers:

Route	Stops listed
Shuttle 1: Newcastle CBD	Newcastle Interchange
Shuttle 2: Charlestown	Charlestown Square and Westfield Kotara
Shuttle 3: Glendale	Stockland Glendale and Cardiff Station
Shuttle 4: Wallsend	Wallsend Village and Newcastle Road at Blue Gum Road
Shuttle 5: Mayfield	Wests Mayfield and Waratah Station
Park & Ride	Broadmeadow Station and Newcastle Entertainment Centre

Whether the Guns N’ Roses shuttle uses the same stops, and which of them have services before the show, will be clear when the timetable and route map are published. We will update this guide when they are.

Can I take a regular bus, train or taxi?

Option	What the official pages say
Regular buses	Routes 13, 23, 25, 26 and 27 run to and from the stadium, with stops close by on Turton Road and Lambton Road. Nearest stop: Young and Turton Road, New Lambton (route 27). Route 27 runs down Turton Road; routes 13, 23, 25 and 26 run down Lambton Road
Train	Broadmeadow Station is the nearest, about 1.5 km from the stadium
Light rail	The shuttle page says services run every 7.5 minutes until 7pm, every 10 minutes from 7pm until midnight and every 30 minutes until 1am; it does not say these hours are confirmed for 8 December
Ferry	The shuttle page says additional ferry services to Stockton run until 1am for its listed events
Taxi and rideshare	Pick-up and drop-off is on Young Road, Broadmeadow; after events, follow signage to Young Road for taxis. Newcastle Taxis: 13 33 00

The stadium says regular trains run from Sydney, stopping at Central, Strathfield, Hornsby, Gosford, Wyong, Morisset and Cardiff on the way to Broadmeadow. It points to the Transport for NSW events page for detailed timetables, and no page exists there yet for the Newcastle show. Use the Transport for NSW events page and the Trip Planner for the latest plans, and check for additional trains once they are published.

What are the entry rules?

The stadium’s Conditions of Entry page says Venues NSW can refuse entry to anyone who is intoxicated, behaving in a disorderly manner, without a valid form of entry, or who will not go through security screening. Screening can include bag and clothing checks and metal detectors. Some of the other rules that apply at McDonald Jones Stadium:

• the recommended bag size is A3 (30 cm by 40 cm), and larger bags may be permitted at the venue’s discretion
• cloaking facilities may not be available
• smoking and vaping are allowed in designated smoking areas only
• portable scanning devices, or electronic devices set up to work as scanners, are prohibited
• you must not conceal your identity with a scarf, balaclava, mask or similar item, unless for a religious, medical or other justifiable reason
• you may be asked to show government-issued photo identification
• no alcohol may be taken out of the venue or its precinct
• patrons aged 14 and under must be accompanied and supervised by a parent, guardian or responsible adult
• vehicles not parked in allocated spaces can receive an infringement notice and may be towed at the owner’s cost

The page also says that facial recognition technology and body-worn video cameras operate in the venue precinct, and that event-specific conditions may be added by the venue hirer. Check the event page and your pre-event emails for anything extra for this show.

What about accessible seating?

The stadium says accessible seating requests for most events are managed directly by Ticketmaster, and asks you to confirm that on the event page. Ticketmaster’s accessible seating team can be reached on 1300 446 925, by live chat in the Ticketmaster app or through an online request form. The stadium notes that submitting a request does not guarantee a ticket, and all ticket types, including accessible tickets, are subject to availability.

When will the missing details be published?

We do not have a published date for the shuttle timetable, the Transport for NSW event page or Park & Ride hours. Newcastle Transport’s shuttle page already carries a timetable download for the Foo Fighters show on 12 November, which is the earlier event. We will re-check the official pages before 8 December and update this guide with any times, additional trains, road closures and parking details they publish.

Sources

• Ticketmaster — Guns N’ Roses: World Tour 2026, Newcastle (event information, ticket limits, fees; checked 8 November 2026)
• Guns N’ Roses — Tour
• Visit Newcastle — Guns N’ Roses World Tour 2026
• McDonald Jones Stadium — Getting here
• McDonald Jones Stadium — Conditions of entry
• McDonald Jones Stadium — Accessibility
• Newcastle Transport — Stadium shuttle (no Guns N’ Roses timetable as of 8 November 2026)

Featured image: Guns N’ Roses in concert, Paris, July 2023 (photo: ManoSolo13241324 / CC BY-SA 4.0) (text added)

OZ Local Updates is an independent local guide and is not affiliated with Guns N’ Roses, Live Nation, Ticketmaster or McDonald Jones Stadium. Times, prices and conditions can change; check the official pages and your ticket.