Cheltenham Festival
Cheltenham Festival takes place Mar 16 - 19, 2027 in Cheltenham, United Kingdom. The dress code is No formal code. Tweed, country coats, boots and trilbies dominate; warmth beats elegance. Ladies Day (Wed) sees more dressed-up fashion but still with a coat over it. Restaurants and boxes expect jacket and collar. Typical cost ranges from 700 to 3500 EUR per person.
Four days that decide the National Hunt season, culminating in the Gold Cup on Friday afternoon over three and a quarter uphill miles. The Anglo-Irish rivalry gives it an edge no other British meeting has, and the noise that erupts as the tape rises on the opening race is a genuine phenomenon. Expect mud, tweed, Guinness and a crowd that knows the form book cold.
- When
- Mar 16 - 19, 2027
- Where
- Cheltenham, United Kingdom
- Dress code
- No formal code. Tweed, country coats, boots and trilbies dominate; warmth beats elegance. Ladies Day (Wed) sees more dressed-up fashion but still with a coat over it. Restaurants and boxes expect jacket and collar
- Cost
- Typical cost ranges from 700 to 3500 EUR per person.
- Weather
- 5 - 11C, often damp and windy in the Cotswolds
- When to book
- Tickets released roughly a year out; Gold Cup Day and Cotswold-area hotels go first, so book 8 - 12 months ahead
- Getting there
- BHX (Birmingham), 75 min to venue
- Where to stay
- Ellenborough Park, The Queens Hotel Cheltenham, No. 131 The Promenade
- Official site
- https://www.thejockeyclub.co.uk/cheltenham/
How to attend
Book through the Jockey Club Cheltenham site. Day tickets in the outer enclosures typically start around the equivalent of EUR 50 - 60, with the Club Enclosure higher and restaurant or box hospitality running into the hundreds. Fully public with no ballot, but Gold Cup Day sells out well in advance. Park-and-ride and shuttle buses run from Cheltenham Spa station; consider staying in Gloucester or Tewkesbury when Cheltenham itself is full.
Insider tip
Stand near the top of the hill by the third-last fence rather than the grandstand for the first race - that is where the Cheltenham roar actually hits you, and you can see the whole field jump.
Get inside Cheltenham Festival
Booking matters here: tickets released roughly a year out; Gold Cup Day and Cotswold-area hotels go first, so book 8 - 12 months ahead. Members track that window, what it really costs, and 573 more events across the season.
Free while in beta. One email when your invitation is ready, nothing else.