Surf Ballroom & Museum

Many great performers have and still continue to perform here. There is a fair amount of history displayed along with memorabilia from various musicians. Lastly, if gift shops are your thing....they have one here, and while it is small they do have a good range of merchandise and a good range of sizes in their t-shirts and hoodies...plus everything was very reasonably priced, at least in my opinion. Any music lover who happens to be in Clear Lake, Iowa would be remiss if they did not take an hour or so to check out the Surf Ballroom.
5 7 years ago (04-06-2018)

What kind of historical place closes at 4PM?!?!?! And closed on weekends?? Seriously?? Not ideal for long haul road trippers. I would also NOT recommend this place for families with children. I was very glad I was not traveling with my wife and children when I stopped to visit the Surf Ballroom, for reasons I will explain. A friend and I arrived after a 14 Hour road trip at 3:55PM. A very kind man let us come in and take a quick look “only at the hallway” and purchase items in the gift shop. I have to take away stars because a very hostile security guard was rude, impolite, and was trying way too hard to intimidate us. At first I laughed, but then very quickly became annoyed at the way he was treating guests who were more than happy to spend money at the gift shop. We were instructed by said guard that we were not allowed to look at the ballroom under any circumstances. Huh?!?!??! Isn’t that the only reason travelers would even set foot in Clear Lake, IA? For all the money we spent in the gift shop, you would have thought that a quick glance at the ballroom would have been OK. Apparently not. It added a cold chill to the experience, which is already sad enough when you think about what was lost on that tragic day in 1959. My favorite part was when I asked the security guard for directions to the memorial site where the plane crashed. He told me he had no idea how to get there. Either he’s the only person in Clear Lake that doesn’t know where the site is, or he was being intentionally rude to us. I seem to think he was being intentionally rude. If the employees of my company behaved so rudely and spoke to visitors or customers like that, they would be looking for a new place to work. For those of us East Coasters who hear so much about Midwest friendliness, we certainly did not encounter it at the Surf Ballroom during our visit. I never imagined in a million years that there would be someone so rude and hostile to out of town visitors that have traveled great distances, who want nothing more than to pay their respects and make a pilgrimage to honor Holly, Valens, and Richardson. For road trippers, especially families, I would NOT recommend adjusting a road trip to stop in Clear Lake to visit the Surf Ballroom. If it’s on your way, fine, just make sure you’re there WAY before the 4PM close. If it’s not directly on your route, or if you’re going to arrive between 3:30-4PM, just keep moving and skip it. It’s not worth the rude treatment. Maybe just limit it to just taking pictures outside, and then go see the crash site, which is way more powerful.
1 7 years ago (20-04-2018)

We went just because we had some extra time and were passing by. A ton (or two) of musical greats have been to the Surf and a huge display of pictures and signed guitars. No fee to go in and see this gem - we spent an hour just looking and reading all the displays. Either buy something at the gift shop or donate a few bucks - it's a good cause.
5 7 years ago (04-06-2018)

I attended the Building Community Conference here and was thrilled with the WiFi, lighting, computer access for presentations and location for food. The bathrooms are unique and a throwback to days gone by. Giant mirrors, afoot in and a door out, perfect colors for the Surf. The signed photos by every artist who sang here, cafe seating along the north wall, separate bar and room for smaller venues and tons of free parking made everything even more special.
5 7 years ago (09-05-2018)

Went to see a show here, after a two plus hour drive. And “Doors open at 8pm” we did not get the All Access treatment even though we were given badges that said that. We worked for the band and were treated poorly the whole night. This was an all ages event and there was a father and Daughter at the show. The daughter who was 5 years of age and due to some health issues was not expected to be with us after age two. Her dad spoke with me and asked if we could get her a guitar pick and the other and I made sure she got that and so much more. Security was rude to people including those who were working for the band as guests. One of the security would yell at people for no apparent reason telling stories of things that happened in the past, that were irrelevant to this night. So I had a guitar strap signed by the band, gave her my VIP badge that was useless even though these issues were discussed with the venue owner. They had several security standing in the same circle all the while leaving the stage door unattended so anybody could walk in... leaving very expensive music gear unattended. When the band was paying tribute to the fans by meet and greet, autograph session. The security staff acted like enemies. Also the entry was treated like an airport. You had to empty everything in your pockets into plastic trays, even if it was not metal. The venue was other wise nice, just the security staff needs a lesson on manners.
1 7 years ago (11-03-2018)