Cheltenham announce changes to further enhance customer experience

They are:

• The earliest sale price for The Festival has been held since 2024. Additional discount windows have also been introduced, giving racegoers the opportunity to buy tickets at a reduced price for longer. It means that ticket prices are the same or lower than the 2025 Festival for more than 10 months.
• The capacity for each day of the Festival will be reduced from 68,500 to 66,000
• The price of all draught beers and ciders will be reduced meaning a pint of Guinness is £7.50. This applies to all 16 racedays. There are some minor reductions to the price of spirits and Prosecco is being introduced at Cheltenham for the first time.
• All remaining drink restrictions in the Club Enclosure will be lifted meaning racegoers can move freely around with them.
• A new covered food court will be in the Tented Village while the Cottage Rake and Mill House bars in the Main Grandstand are being refurbished and will open at the Showcase in October as one new bar named Prestbury View.
• There will be additional food and beverage zones located around the racecourse, some of which will be under cover while the Vestey Food Court will be transformed into the Green Grazer, supporting local produce as part of the track's sustainability commitment.
• A major investment has been made into the PA system ready for the new season, allowing racegoers to hear the commentary more clearly.
• Upgraded Racecourse TV coverage is being provided by RaceTech in partnership with RaceIQ, giving racegoers more live information and data on screen during the day than ever before.
• For the first time since 2019, Wednesday of The Festival will be promoted as Ladies Day with the focus on growing the number of female racegoers.
• The Room To Race partnership with Venatour will continue with more hotel providers joining to offer reduced-rates for racegoers.

Guy Lavender, Chief Executive of Cheltenham Racecourse, said: “We were pleased with the changes which were implemented last season and were generally very well received, both in terms of the race programme and customer experience.

“We said when these changes were announced that this is a process of evolution and not revolution and that we would sit down at the end of the season to look at where we can continue to make improvements.

“We were always very clear that the success of the 2025 Festival would not be determined by attendance, but by the experience we provided for our racegoers. We received some incredibly positive feedback from this year’s event which demonstrated that the changes we had made had worked and we are hugely encouraged by the ticket sales we have seen for next year’s Festival already

“I have a clear view that the future should be built around a commitment to delivering world class racing at a world class venue and ensuring The Festival remains one of the standout events in the British sporting calendar.

“Cheltenham is the jewel in the crown of Jump racing, and we want racegoers to feel they are stepping into somewhere truly special from the moment that they arrive. That is why over the coming seasons we’ll explore everything from racecourse layout, our enclosure structure and membership offerings, to hospitality and food and beverage options

“The changes announced today mark another meaningful step forward, but it is always important to listen to your customers and evolve, and I can guarantee that there will be further changes for 2027.”

Lavender explained that, while Tuesday’s announcement relates solely to the experience off the track, the race programme for next year’s Cheltenham Festival remains under review.

He added: “Today is all about what we are doing for our racegoers this season and the changes being made to improve their experience and their enjoyment of our events.

“We made a number of changes to the race programme for this year’s Festival and we were really pleased with the results. While we won’t be making any significant changes to the racing itself next March, we are currently still reviewing certain elements and if any tweaks are made we will communicate those as soon as possible.”

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