We have tickets for the F1 race July 7 at Silverstone, so excited! This is during a 2-week trip to England, but where should we stay before/after the race? the closest town is Milton Keynes. Other close by locations have hiked up prices for the weekend. We could consider staying in Oxford or somewhere in the Cotswolds? We are planning to have a car.
Posted by
Land of La
9263 posts
Depends I think on what you want to see and do.
From Milton Keyes you could see Bletchley Park.
If open visit the Althorp Estate to pay respects to Princess Diana. Its her final resting place.
Both Oxford and Cambridge are nice places to visit but parking will be a challenge. IMHO though worth the effort.
Fairly close by if you wish to see a large National Trust Property is Stowe.
Lastly, I’d be on the hunt for a pub to enjoy a meal and a pint.
Posted by
Freedonia
16411 posts
Of course hotels have hiked prices. If they are not already sold out, they will be.
The race is on 9 July (Sunday). You state you have tickets for the Friday practice (7 July). Is that correct?
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
33994 posts
If you will be there for the Free Practice on Friday then driving your car there might be doable. The A43 will be closed for through traffic for the weekend so be sure you are arriving from the right direction.
Silverstone have done a lot of work in the last few years to make the carparks less muddy on rainy days, calling for fewer tractors doing car retrieval.
I don't know if all the camping is sold out yet, but camping does get you up close.
Towcester is the closest town.
Northampton is also reasonably close, there are usually buses from the train station laid on for the weekend.
One year I was at a BTCC meeting and it took me about an hour to get out of the carpark. The crowds at F1 are much bigger. Although the actual race is only 2 hours, the expedience is an all day event.
The Friday will be much less crowded....
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
33994 posts
there are often less expensive chain hotels in Grange Park Northampton (Holiday Inn Express, Campanile), near the junction of the M1 motorway and the A45. Half a mile up the A45 is a Hilton and there is a Toby Carvery just beyond.
Posted by
OP
3 posts
Thanks all, yes that was a mistake, tickets are for the race on July 9th, we have reserved parking. They have awesome looking yurts but also quite pricey. Perhaps we'll plan to stay in Oxford then!
Posted by
Los Angeles
4871 posts
Nigel if it's any consolation, it takes longer to get out of the parking lot after a Dodgers baseball game than the game itself (and those games are long). It's a well known and sad phenom.
Instead of parking, should you look into chartered buses? Or Uber?