FONTWELL RACECOURSE
Course: Fontwell Racecourse
🎫 Ticket & value: Premier £28 Boxing Day
👀 Track view: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🍔 Food: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
🍺 Guinness: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
⭕️ Parade Ring: ⭐️⭐️
🏇 Runners and riders: ⭐️⭐️
🎉 Atmosphere: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
⭐️ Overall Experience: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
👍🏻 Best for: Atmosphere 🎉
We had the absolute pleasure of visiting Fontwell racecourse for their Boxing Day fixture and what a terrific day of racing we were able to enjoy! The stands were packed, there was a real buzz around the racecourse and the competitive nature of the racing matched the locals enthusiasm. For £28, the premier ticket was great value providing excellent access to the winning post and quieter bars. It was a shame the car park couldn’t cater for the huge crowds arriving at the racecourse, taking almost 45 minutes to travel a mile into the racecourse…something for the course to look at ahead of next year.
If you haven’t been to Fontwell and you appreciate watching the whole race, then you need to get yourself track side immediately! One of the very few tracks that have a figure of 8 circuit, the tight 1 mile course means you sometimes see the horses come past the stand 2, 3 even 4 times during a race. You have a brilliant view of the horses travelling the whole way round the left-handed track as they swoop back down the hill after the winning post. From the premier stand, you have access right up to the winning post and beyond, where you can truly appreciate the rising hill towards the winning post. With the premier stand being so close to the track, it creates a unique experience where you really feel on top of the racing. You also get access to the horses heading back to the parade ring after the race, where they come down past the winning post. A wonderful experience watching horse racing!
Despite there not being as many food options as expected on a busy Boxing Day, the options available were of good quality and reasonably priced. There was an Italian option inside the premier stand, and outside included traditional fish and chips, burgers, hotdogs, and Greek gyros. We opted for the chicken and halloumi Gyros for £12.50, where the food was delicious, cooked to order and the gyros itself was filled to the brim with quality meat, halloumi and salad. It was a shame the queue was so long, as this meant missing one of the races trackside which has contributed to our score.
One of the perks to buying a premier ticket on Boxing Day is the access to a quieter, more efficient bar in the stand. As a result, this positively impacted the quality of Guinness on offer, which was crisp, creamy and poured superbly every time. The barman was clearly a Guinness drinker himself, as he took care of each pint he served us throughout the course of the fixture. At £7, the price point wasn’t bad for Boxing Day racing and the quality and care from the bar staff can’t be underestimated. It was marked down purely on the plastic cup quality, as well as the price compared to the likes of Wincanton at £6.80.
Moving to the parade ring, it is situated to the left of the entrance and is the first part of the racecourse you see. Although it looks quite large in size for the horses, as a spectator it feels compact and intimate where you gain close access to the horses parading as well as the stables. Where the horses enter and leave the ring is at the far end, meaning you don’t have full 360 access of the ring itself. Furthermore, you are unable to follow the horses the whole way out onto the track, however you get a good view of them as they finally exit onto the track after losing them behind the marquee. There’s a nice winning enclosure where the horses and owners pause for a photo post race, with a small amount of tiered standing.
Unfortunately, as it was Boxing Day many of the top jockeys and trainers were at Kempton for the King George and also spread across multiple other meetings. Despite this, we had some good local trainers in appearance including Gary Moore and Chris Gordon, alongside jockeys Rex Dingle, Jack Tudor, Alan Johns and Richard Patrick. This made for competitive racing across the card, with some gruelling handicaps in tacky ground.
Finally, we come to the most impressive part of the Boxing Day fixture and that is the incredible atmosphere. The stands were heaving from start to finish, with a real buzz of excitement around the parade ring, betting stalls and track side. Although the premier stand was a little quieter, which meant great access to bars and betting stalls, the layout and compact nature of the stand meant the atmosphere felt just as busy. There was constant noise from the thousands of racegoers each and every time the jockeys and horses came up the hill and completed a circuit of the unique, figure of 8 track. Away from the big racecourse festivals and meeting, this was by far the best atmosphere we have experienced so far!
Overall, Fontwell racecourse on Boxing Day is certainly a fixture we would highly recommend. With large crowds, electric atmosphere and superb Guinness on offer you are always guaranteed a good day out. The unique layout of the track benefits spectators as it allows racegoers incredibly close access to the horses at the winning post (premier ticket) and when they head back to the parade ring after. Another wonderful smaller racecourse that we would certainly suggest visiting when you have the chance.
