Tell us about your experiences of visiting Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium.
You may wish to include:
- When you visited the track
- Where you watched from
- How easy it was to get to
- How much of the track you could see
- What support races there were
- What you liked and didn’t like
- How much it cost and whether it was good value
Please use the reply box below to leave your comments.
Are you planning a trip to the 2010 Belgian Grand Prix? Chat with other F1 fans who are going to the race here: 2010 Belgian Grand Prix discussion
Hi Ken
great and welcome to the party! We also aim to get there about lunchtime Wednesday leaving Monday.And great to have a couple of Brawn fans! Adds to the tapestry! Think we got just about all teams covered so far except Williams, Toro Rosso and Force India……..
@ Nicholas
I am not too sure how far it is to the track for Aachen but i would leave a bit earlier if I were you because the entrances do get pretty chaotic and if you do get there a bt early then you can still watch the support races and drivers parade etc! Which Grandstand are you in? Hopefully not the one that overlooks the Eau Rouge backwards or you’ll have severe neckache at the end of it all!
Cheers
Carol
Hello, we are camping at the cmapingF1 campsite 9km from track but are wondering what to do re parking… do you know where we can park..I saw on the elephant website that they have parking and a shuttle? the campsite we are at have a shuttle but it seems quite expensive. Any help would be great. Or do you know if you can turn up at track to buy parking space? Thanks, Melanie
Thanks for the reply Carol. The grandstand is gold 2:gp2 , i believe it is the one that should have the winning ceremony directly in front. The one that overlooks Eau Rouge backwards is a bit further up i think.
Aachen is 50-60km from the circuit so it all depends on the amount of traffic on the E42(if I’m not wrong with the motorway number) I guess we’ll leave a bit earlier then just to be sure.
Thats my first GP and im quite excited, there will be team clothing/accessories for sale at the track right? Also i guess we shouldnt just bring Tshirts since the temperatures at Spa seem to be on the low side.
Tip: from Aachen don’ ist onto your GPS the quickes way – without E42 – use the smaller streets via Eupen.
Better you bring raining clothes with you
Hi Nicholas
Oh yes – there will be lots of team accessories and clothing for sale! take limited money or you’ll end up spending a fortune. Even my husband was encouraging me to buy stuff in the end!
And with regards to the weather, I would definately say take some more warm clothes. I stupidly said to my other half last year before Silverstone that even if it rained it wouldn’t be that cold, after all it was July. It was freezing! And there aren’t alot of places to warm up, so take clothes for all weather conditions would be my advice! Or it can give you an excuse to spend even more money buying new clothes to keep warm!
Cheers
Catherine
Hi Nicholas and Catherine
firstly Catherine is totally right- there are lots of goodies for sale there- had to buy ourselves fleeces last year it was so cold and miserable!For clothing its pretty good- but if you are looking for flags, gifts etc then take a walk around the track and go out the other entrance- they have a lot of stalls there selling other stuff like badges, bags, flags etc at reasonable prices!And its worth a look at the other poor campers crammed in in a huge load of chaos……
Nicholas- its not far from Aachen but you will do the right thing getting there in good time. Glad to hear you got great seats and not in the silly grandstand!
And AAAAGHHHHHH- I just got my camper sorted so we’re all set! Just need the food and drink nearer the time. I am getting as excited as a kid at Christmas……….
Hi all,
well that was a bit of a non event wasn’t it? The only bit of interest was Red Bull’s “tactics” late on. Looks like the title is all but over already, will there be anything left to decide by the time we all get to Spa I wonder?
Hey Tony, do you get F1 Racing magazine, there is a good article on Alonso in the latest issue?
Andy
Hi Guys, Planning my 1st trip to Spa for the 09 race. I am staying at the Spa Racing Hotel and was wondering what the accomadations are like? I am flying into Brussels and would like to know what the fastest way to the hotel would be, I am assuming train but wondered if anybody had any suggestions. Any help would be appreciated. Counting down the days!
from Brussels to Verviers by train is okay. Sometimes are busses from Verviers to Francorchamps. Sometimes. Or you take a Taxi.
The Racing Hotel you will find in FRANCORCHAMPS. Also the race you find in FRANCORCHAMPS. If you go to Spa you have to walk 9 km.
cu
Michael
Hi Andy
the only thing erm “exciting” in the race was Piquette overtaking Lewis……….can just imagine the team radio with Flav going wild yelling”hey boy you wanna drive in silverstone? Then overtake for God’s sake” or words to that effect!
@ Eric
great to see you want to go to a great race weekend- as I don’t know where your hotel is exactly I am afraid I can’t be much help- but hope someone else can give you a few tips and have a great weekend anyways!
Hi Carol,
That’s what makes it all the more depressing, the Silver Machines are so far out of it this season it’s scary, with no realistic hope of improvement on the horizon!
I was kind of hoping nobody saw that one
Eric,
as last year was my first year at Spa I can’t really help either. A little bit of advice though, as with all the others who have contributed on here, we know a great little campsite just down the road form the circuit, come join Elephantfest!!!
Andy
Hi
First F1 GP, staying in Spa D’Or campsite, general admission tickets. Any advice as to where to get best views from the cheap seats (grass)? Also any advice on getting to track each day?
Hi,
we tried a few different vantage points last year & found Blanchimont (overlooking the Bus Stop chicane) to be the best. One thing to remember though is that it gets really, really busy, really really early especially on the Sunday. Not exactly sure where Spa D’Or is in realtion to the circuit, is it Stavelot side or Francorchamps?
Andy
Hi Workie,
from the Spa D’Or campsite to the race you are around 15 km, means you have to use your car to go to Francorchamps. and there you pay for parking again 12,00 Euro/Day.
Or you go to my F1 Camping Nr. 112 (The Elepahnt). There you can walk to the main intrance and you will find a lot of friends … Please visit francorchamps-camping.com
or ask Carol
cu
Michael
hi all,
thanks for the head’s up andy, I’ll get it this week, been really busy at work.Seen some good racing last week-end, my nephew won two races( one the final!) and came forth in the other. Eddie Jordan was getting on my nerves a bit going on about the McLaren, Kers works against the car when it’s fully fuelled, so Hamilton had no chance with that strategy. Still nice to see him supporting the team more.
Looks like we’ll be on the same boat as you on the way Andy , the 8.00 norfolkline.
Carol,
I don’t know what they can do about piquette, Grojean is leading the gp2 so is unlikely to leave just now.. they could try an nick Sutil from Force India for a bit , he’s been impressive the last two meetings.Alonso made the best of a bad job I thought, as usual.
Deb’s worried about getting the bronse tickets on the thursday, but I there should be plenty , we’ll be O.K to do that you think?
Caroline.
Not long to the silverstone renault day!
Tony and Deb.
Hi Tony & Debs,
good news that we’ll be going over at the same time, have you worked out your route to the campsite yet? We were thinking of heading towards Lille then picking up the E42 & coming in towards Francorchamps from Liege.
Andy
Hi all,
My girlfriend and I are wanting to head upto Spa to grab some general admission tickets. I have a couple of questions:
1) I have read other camp sites have some form of entertainment in the evening, anything like this here?
2) IS there a car park? We would be coming up in an Audi A3 and don’t really want it to get stuck in a field (with Spa’s typical climate)
Only other option is Brussels however I don’t fancy driving to Spa at 4-5am on the Sunday.
Thanks,
Doug
Sorry I should have mentioned that I was referring to the elephant camp site.
Hi Doug,
welcome to the party. As you will have guessed, Carol is the font of all knowledge with regard to the Elephant & I’m sure she will fill you in but I don’t think there is any real entertainment arranged other than what we make ourselves & whaht happens in the local pub.
We were on a site where there was entertainment last year & I have to say it got a bit too rowdy (as mentioned earlier on this thread), which wasn’t a massive problem but when you have to be up at 5 to get a good place in GA you will be glad of a relatively quiet nights sleep. There are quite a few of us all heading for the Elephant now so I’m sure the atmosphere is going to be great without it becoming too noisy so that everyone has a fantastic weekend.
Where are you travelling from?
Andy
Hi all
jeez getting quite busy round here!
I’ll try and answer most of the questions- please forgive me if I missed one- just yell and remind me.
@ Tony and Deb- don’t worry- if you going GA then tickets fine at the gate. We done this a couple of times and no problems at all.
@ Doug- there is enterteinment eg Eddie Jordan concert etc between track and campsite (only 10-15 minute walk to your tent/van if you want to participate so doable at all costs) but otherwise on the campsite we usually make our own fun- there is always someone with daft music to entertain us and most of us barbecue (if we get around to it) or gang up together or visit the local pub- a must as it is a piece of racing history.And as Andy says- great if you want fun but also great if you want to opt out.
Up to you.
@ Workie
for the best place to watch it depends on what you want.
We always go for the top of long straight after Eau Rouge- but others prefer so be elsewhere. Best thing to do is on the Friday walk the track and see for yourself- ie watch practice from several different vantage points and decide what is best for you. But for all of those going GA like us- get to the track at 7am on raceday if you want a good place…….hey breakfast on track is also good fun! so many dazed frozen people its fun! And when the Massa fans pitch up en masse then you can’t help join in the Samba party…..(keeps you warm! Lol)
Carol,
brilliant news, we almost went to see Eddie & the Robbers last year but we were too far away (& nobody would volunteer to drive!). We might just take a walk to see them while we are close.
Andy
Thanks for your replies. Just what we would be after really as although we are young, we too would want an early night for a 5-6am start (with the option. How about the parking though? We live in Jersey therefore would get the ferry to St Malo and drive up Thurs overnight / Fri morning with a potential stop off in Caen / Le Havre on the way. How much would we save by buying the tickets on the door (with exchange rates and no booking fee?)
Hi Doug
depends what you want to do. Do you want to stay over/camp? In which case you do not need extra parking as its only 15-20 minutes (depending on age and speed) walk to the track. I think the GA tickets this year cost €135,00 for the weekend (same price as for Sunday so you might as well go for the weekend). Can’t you get off a day earlier and take in the pitlane walk on the Thursday afternoon?
And don’t worry about getting stuck in the mud or whatever…..Michael does have a deal with the neighbouring farmer who loves trundling around pulling people in and out with his tractor if the weather is extreme like it was last year…….so no worries there.
One word of advice to all though- most stands and ticket offices etc only take cash so have plenty with you cos finding a cash machine is not easy!
To all
I ahve been in contact with a few of you here and we are talking about how we can make ourselces know to each other so was thinking how about we put something on our dashboards along the lines of “F1 Fanatic’s Elephantenfest” or something? Anyone else got any ideas?
Cheers
Carol
Superb idea Carol!! I’m going to start constructing my sign now!! An added bonus is that we can spot people on the way towards the campsite too
.
Andy
Hi all
Well we’ve booked our spot at the elephant really looking forward to it, lets hope the brawns are going to have a bit of competition on the day eh? Nice idea on the banners Carol
Tony, I agree with you about Eddie but at least DC gives him a bit of stick, they dont really agree on much do they
We’re getting bronze tickets but i think we’ll get them beforehand just to be on the safe side
Simon & Nick
Hi all,
my daughter charlie is keen on the banner idea(she already complains that I don’t mention her!) so this should cheer her up.
carol,
We’re going to wait till we get there to get GA tickets winds deb up, Ha Ha.
Tony and Deb
Unfortunatly we are unable to get the Thursday off due to work committments and although I am sure the pit walk is amazing (looks it on TV) I dont think our bosses would let us have the day off!! Carol, do you have pictures of previous years of the camp site?
@ Tony
can Charlie do me something nice? I am useless at designing things ………
@ Doug
I really wanted to take some pics last year but it was so rainy I only got one or two of frozen people looking rather the worse for wear! You’re more than welcome to those but they are nothing special…..Lol
Hey peeps wake up!
You signed up here yet?
http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/wesupportfota/signatures.html
Hi Carol – I think there are a few of these petitions doing the rounds – lets hope they see sense soon and sort it out ….. I’m hoping all the politics doesn’t interfere with Silverstone this weekend – I’m very excited, just two more days at work, and then we go!
Our Spa tickets arrived as well this morning! Even more exciting. Your Banner idea sounds like an excellent plan.
Hi Catherine
have a FANTASTIC time in Silverstone and make loads of pics please……….
If we want to exchange pics all please bring an USB stick with you.We’ll have our laptop with us to share all our experiences!
Hi Guys
Have’t logged in for a few weeks. “Happy Days my tickets arrived this morning” Sounds like everyone is getting really excited about spa and the camping. andy did you say you were off to V this year? That’s just round the corner from me! Something tells me there will be a few of us on the grass this year along the lone straight. Has anyone thought of getting vinyl’s for there cars I don’t know how much it costs but I know a guy who gets it done every year for a Le-Mans run, just an idea
Hi all,
Charlie will set to work on logos the week-end and we’ll post the results for approval… I like the sound of vinyl’s (sun visors won’t really work- except in an ironic sense!) I have a printer I use locally so once we know how many we need i’ll get on to it.
Looking forward to silverstone this week-end,although next year it’ll be at Donnington which is about 10 miles from where I live and much better for watching, Silverstones’ looking a bit run down and i’ve always thought it was a bit flat for spectators to see the track well.
Tony and Deb.
Morning All
:Tony that sounds ace for you at Donnington, It’s a shame about Silvertsone I enjoyed going a couple of years ago but they just need to spend to much money and who is going to give the BRDC any money!
:Catherine, good to see the Ferrari’s moving forward, maybe not as much as we’d like but still moving.
Rich
Rich – it seems like two steps forward and one step back with Ferrari at the moment, hope this weekend they’ll at least be in the points. We’ll have to make the most of seeing them this year though, the way the FOTA/FIA fiasco is going on it might be the last chance for a while…….
Hi to all
just a thought for those going bronze and up on top straight……I want to make a huge banner so anyone got any ideas for a slogan? Got to include Elephantenfest somehow but my brain seems to have dried up a bit…………Any ideas very welcome!
@ Tony- fantastic news- tell Charlie from us we look forward to her efforts……sure they will be great!
I went to the Belgium Grand Prix in 2008. I stayed in Brussels and took the train and bus to Spa for the day. The train rans from Brussels to Verviers. From there, there are buses the run to the track. €5 return to stand for an hour and a half on a crowded bus as it slowly inches its way through traffic! Better than driving, though.
I had a general admission ticket, which was good for Belgium. I ended up grabbing a place by Fagnes chicane. I spent most of the time there at the corner, though headed a little ways away to see a big screen for the finish.
With about three laps to go, it started to rain, the first rain we’d seen during the entire race. Folks broke out their umbrellas, and I am sure that the drivers and teams were cursing the weather. With so few laps, and slick tires on the cars, it was sure to be a slippery finish.
Hamilton had caught up to Raikkonen, and tried to pass him at the chicane near the start finish line. Hamilton couldn’t pass, and Raikkonen cut off Hamilton’s path (a completely legal move on Raikkonen’s part). Hamilton was forced to go off the track and cut through the chicane. Despite being off the track, Lewis Hamilton came out of the chicane ahead of Raikkonen.
The rules of F1 say that you can’t gain an advantage by going off-track, so Lewis had to back off and give the race lead back to Raikkonen. As soon as Lewis slotted back in behind the Ferrari, he attacked again. Raikkonen tried to defend his position by weaving, but Hamilton got the inside line and passed Raikkonen to gain the lead.
The next lap, as the track got wetter, some teams decided to pull into the pits for wet tires. The top 3 stayed out, though with the order being Hamilton in first and the two Ferrari’s of Raikkonen and Massa. The order changed again quickly, though when Hamilton ran wide in a corner, giving Raikkonen the lead again.
Hamilton and Raikkonen, battling hard for the lead, came up on the slower car of Nakajima. Raikkonen had to run off track to avoid Nakajima, allowing Hamilton to take the lead again. Raikkonen trying to catch Hamilton again, slide off the track and into the barrier, having to retire.
Hamilton was far enough ahead of Massa to carefully drive around the track, avoiding skidding off in the rain to first place. Massa finished second, and Nick Heidfeld, who had switched to wet tires, was able to pass two cars and take third place.
A few hours later, on the bus back to the train station, a buzz went through the bus. Text messages were coming in, and phones were ringing. Lewis Hamilton had been penalized for cutting through the chicane, and had 25 seconds added to his race time. That dropped him from first to third, promoting Massa into the lead. The Hamilton fans at the front of the bus were depressed, but a bunch of Italians at the back broke out into cheers and song.
Very good experience, though cool and wet unfortunately. Check out my blog entry (linked above) for pictures and a video.
Greg
Hi all. I’m going to the Spa GP this year and I don’t really want to drive. I’m staying in Brussels Friday – Monday, so I wanted to know if anyone knew what the transport links were like i.e. train station nearby?
Thanks for any advice in advance.
Whooooo! Just got my GA tickets through for Spa. First time visiting a GP abroad and I’ve got a few questions.
1 – At the British GP everyone takes deck chairs and gets in at 5am. What time do the gates open? Every pic I’ve seen everyone sits on the grass, is this right?
2 – Parking. I’ve not booked anything. We’re renting a house and so we’ll be in the area for a week beforehand. Can I buy it then? Where is best to park?
Cheers
Hi all
Feeling quite chirpy as I’ve just invested in a couple of Bronze tickets for Spa ‘09
Driving over with my lovely girlfriend, planning to camp near the circuit. Getting the tunnel, but prob not going to get there until Friday night.
Previous GP visits have been Silverstone and Melbourne (all very civilised and dry), so a bit concerned that my MX5 might disappear into a muddy Belgian quagmire never to be retrieved…
Need to get cracking on booking my campsite I s’pose. This Michael fella and his elephant place has had enough plugs in this thread that he deserves a go.
Any wise words of do and don’t are welcomed.
Catch some of you there…?
Cheers all
DT
SW London
Hi, im thinking of going to spa in 2009 and i was wondering if i buy old 4 seats for the weekend will all grandstands be open on friday and saturday and will i be able to try out different stands on friday and saturday.
Hi Dave and Andy
welcome to you both- done the right thing to opt for Spa its a must!
As for the deck chairs- the fold up type is to be recommended as the grass can get pretty wet and a slide down the hill is not to be recommended!
Firstly to Andy- just whereabouts is the house you are renting? Is it near enough to walk or do you still have to drive to the track? Or do they offer a shuttle or bus or something? You can book parking if you need it but it is best to do this up front as the last thing you want is to find you get stuck in a jam for hours then get turned away because the roads are all closed and you don’t have a pass to get where you want to. If you’re not sure then drop me a mail with a few details and we’ll see if we can get you sorted.
Not to David- don’t worry about the quagmire…..the neighbouring farmer loves to help out with his tractor if anyone gets stuck (at no extra cost)……he is so funny and reminds me of someone out of last of the summer wine……. Join us all at the elephant….you’ll have a ball!
If anyone needs any help then my mail addy
carol.treurnicht@arcor.de
Now to Richard
also hi and welcome!
The grandstands used to be free access on Friday (they close them off Friday night) but last year they closed off a lot from the start so I don’t know what the situation will be this year………It can’t be as bad as Hockenheim though where with a top grandstand ticket you were not allowed to go in the bronze areas Friday……..got the whole of security up in arms on that one……….and won!
Hi Carol
I was wondering this as well – we’re also in gold 4 and I’d assumed it was like Silverstone where your grandstand seat is a roving one on friday and saturday and fixed on sunday. Even if the grandstands aren’t open access on friday/saturday, I assume you can still walk around the General admission areas? That was our plan for friday anyway to see as much of the track as possible……
Hi Jon
I only ever travel from the other side so am not too sure on that one. The nearest big town is Liege so you will definitely be able to get that far from Brussels but I am not sure how or what you can do from there. I am not sure if there is a train station in the area but there must be something.
I’ll ask around a bit and see what i can come up with.
Hey Jon
have a lok at Greg’s post above as he has a few details there…….
Hi Carol,
Thanks for that, this is great info.
Cheers Carol,
We’re either staying near Aachen or in Waimes. Unsure which to go for tbh. I know Waimes is a lot closer for the GP.
I arrive at Spa on the 24th. Will it be easy enough to go to the circuit to buy parking tickets on the days before the race? I’m mainly worried about Sunday as we’ll have to be there early for General Admission.
Andy-
why not just scrub the house thing and join us (I know I am being cheeky now!)
If it help there are the main car parks near to the entrances which you need to book beforehand——question is where if you going GA like us do you intend to want to be? If you want to be like us on top of long straight after Eau Rouge then you need to park at the la source end or you’ll just walk for miles. If you want to be near Bus Stop or down that end then you are better off parking down there. Think about it and then decide as if you want to be at the track early you certainly don’t need an extra trek on top.
If you want to be La Source end then you can park at our campsite……they also do parking and then its not far (15-20 mins depending on age and ability and/or number of beers previous evening)to the track. But think about it and decide where you want to be then we can sort you out properly!
We’re making a bit more of a holiday of it and spending 10 days in the area so a house is good for us. Booked one just outside Malmedy so easy to get to the circuit.
Not sure where we want to be tbh. I want a decent view and a view of a big screen. I’d wondered about Pouhon but could be tempted by the straight near Les Combes.
How much is parking at the elephant?
ne nee Carol – die Pakrplätze 1 und 2, 4, 5 und 6 sind sogg. VIP-Plätze. Da kommt man nicht rand.
Aber es gibt auch nen schönen und bewachten Pakrplatz auf 112. Und wenn der reserviert ist, bekommt man sogar nen speziellem Pass, mit dem man sonst gesperrte Strasse befahren darf und dadurch weniger im Stau steht.
cu
M
@ Catherine
if you got Gold tickets then you can go mostly where you like on Friday and Saturday. Its only the poors like us who go GA that get restricted—-up to Friday it used to be free roaming all around but as i say last year they were closed off from Thursday so hope its not like that this year……….but I really don’t know.
Hi Carol – fair enough – seems a shame if they close them off that early in the weekend – Silverstone was packed on saturday/sunday, but friday there was plenty of room for everyone in the stands, and they seemed quite happy to let most people in.
Talking about Silverstone – hats off to Piquet beating Alonso fair and square – maybe its a turning point for him!
Hi all,
got our first set of tickets today, fantastic!!
To Andy A, as mentioned above, we were on Blanchimont last year overlooking Bus Stop & it was brilliant on the Saturday but a bit too packed on the Sunday. If you make lot’s of friends where ever you choose to go you might get lucky & get some spaces saved. I’m sure some people stay at the circuit all night though as we were there before the sun rose & it was packed!!
Andy K
Hi,
Sorry if this question is already answered. This thread is too big to go through each post…
I am planning to attend the Spa Euro Race (27.-28. jun) and stay there with my tent. Is there a possibility to build a tent somewhere near the track? I was there for WSR weekend, the parking places in track territory were not suitable for erecting tents near the car…
Thanks,
Arturs
Hi Artur,
welcome to the gang!!
There is only one place to be this year at Spa & that is at Elephantfest – http://www.francorchamps-camping.com/.
Over the last few months we have built up a mini army of campers & caravanners who are all going to meet up & have a fantastic weekend together. Some people have been having trouble with the website in the past but I think that may have been resolved, so if you like what you see but have trouble booking give a big shout & our Commander in Chief(that’s Carol Treurnicht above) will be able to assist.
See you there
Andy
I am reading all your comments and getting excited for Spa 09, thank you! It is much welcome escape. My husband and I are coming from San Jose, CA, USA. This is our first GP and we are recent fans to the sport. We are staying at the Ramada in Liege. We are spoiling ourselves with Gold2 (hey Nicholas! Maybe we’ll see eachother?) It sounds like the Elephantfest is going to be lots of fun. Would we be able to join you for at least part of the festivities? Would it be feasible given we don’t have a car and will be getting around via shuttle/train/cab/foot?
Hi Nicole & Nathan,
welcome to Elephantfest!! Please do come & join us, it will be great to meet you. I’m sure that we can sort something out if you are already at the circuit, say on the Thursday or Friday when the roads are not so busy. I’m also sure we will be able to squeeze you in somewhere overnight too so you can make the most of it.
I spent some time in San Jose recently, I worked for a company called Calpine who were based in the city, I really enjoyed my time there.
Andy
Hi Andy,
Great, thank you very much. Elephantfest sounds like a blast. That’s very cool that you’ve been to San Jose, we recently moved there from Seattle, WA. We’ll enjoy hearing about your experience.
We are arriving in Liege on Thursday via train, from Brussels. We’re making a 2 week European vacation out of it, with Spa being the culmination. We will definitely spend as much time at Spa as our bodies and livers can take. Your camp is near the circuit, right? How do you recommend we get in touch? It’s going to be so much fun to be in Spa, see a GP, and have some fun with f1 fans.
Hi Nicole & Nathan,
yes our camp is very close the circuit main entrance in a village called Ster. As mentioned in the thread above I think it may be quite difficult actually getting in to the village with a vehicle during the weekend (Carol may be able to advise more on this)as I think the roads may be blocked but my email is andrew.kelly@saltend.co.uk so I can be contacted at all times on this & I can also give you my cell number so we can keep in touch either way.
Andy
Hi Nicole and Nathan,
great – again visitors frem the USA.
On the camp The Elephant are visiters from CT and CA!
But getting around by shuttle/train/cab/foot ist a bad idea!
Better you rent a car. To get a bus from Francorchamps to Liege will be difficult!
So you have to spend a lot of money for cabs.
Please go to my web site and you get more infomations araound Francorchamps and the tracke.
BTW: if you are going to SPA – it’s arounf 12 km from the track.
The name of the track ist Spa-Francorchamps and you will find it in FRANCORCHAMPS.
cu
Michael
cu
M
Hi Nicole and Nathan
great to hear you people are coming all this was to see a bit of Europe and take in Spa……its the best on the calendar so you won’t regret it!
I agree with Andy…..you can also mail me and i can give you my cellphone then you can decide which day(s) you want to stay over and join us.
You say you arrive Thursday…well I’ll be cheeky and make a suggestion……..you go off to the track as normal on Friday and come to us all Friday evening? We can arrange al that nearer the time but was just thinking then all you have to do is bring a toothbrush (I am sure the rest of us can sort you out with aything else) and if we meet up somewhere on track Friday then you don’t need to worry about transport or anything else! Of meet some of us Friday and decide if you can stand us and come back Saturday or whatever…..
My email
carol.treurnicht@arcor.de
Look forward to seeing you all!
Eek sorry about all the typos……..goes off to cut fingernails……….
Hi again
sorry to bombard the place today but been away for 11 days and have a few things to catch up on.
I need ideas please as am now the proud owner of 8 huge white sheets (cleaned out mum’s attic during my stay)and thought they’d be great for huge banners along the fence on the top straight………so got them and the spray paint now just need good ideas what to spray………..
Hi guys.
Been left with a dilemma – booked chunnel, gold 4, sorted insurance etc and then our camping company have just pulled out due to lack of demand (he done pre-erected tents and only has 4 takers for the race so not doing it – arrrgggh). Trying to find another co doing erected tents in the area is hard, only one found so far and they want £189 each for me and my bro
.
So have read all the posts here (well pages 1 & 2 skipped 3 as its getting on a bit this morning) and seems I would be better off buying a 3 man popup tent for £80 and camping at the elephant with you guys. What would space be like on Friday night as that is when we will be arriving (driving from somerset)? I will contact them to get a total price later today.
Anyone fancy a convy on the friday, we leave folkestone at 11.20 and then a blast all the way to spa?
Hi Daryl,
welcome to Elephantfest!!
Unfortunately we are travelling on the Wednesday to catch the Thursday pit walk etc but will be looking out for you & your brother when you arrive with a nice cold beer at the ready.
Andy
Cheers, as below just got booking confirmation from Michael so staying with all you guys – can almost taste that beer rolling down my throat as I type.
Due to family/work commitments wont arrive until Friday late afternoon, hopefully between 4-5 – and also depends on how heavy my right foot is
Nice one Daryl,
looking forward to meeting you, we should be back from the circuit by then so we should have the BBQ’s fired up too.
Andy
Hi Daryl,
the official camps sites in Francorchamps and around have the permit of the community of Francorchamps. And they fixed the prices to 40,00 Euro/DAY for a car/tent, car/caravan, Mobilhome. Parking they fixed to 12,00 Euro.
cu
Michael
Hello everyone! Officially 7 weeks away until the start of the GP weekend (the weekend starts on a Thursday if you ask me;) Starting to get pretty excited, had my warm-up at Silverstone, but looking forward immensely to SPA. Just thought I’d check in, haven’t posted in a few. We are still sorting out our flight details, but looks like we may be coming in early Wednesday instead of Thursday. How many people are staying at the Elephant overnight on Sunday? Does anyone know if SPA opens the pits on Thursday?
Hi Christopher,
we are staying Wednesday until Monday & yes the pits are open on the Thursday.
Andy
Hi everyone!
Went to ‘World Series of Renault’ last week-end. Had a great time, saw the R28 close up( running) and on the track driven by Adam Khan(got autograph of course), we were up by abbots so could see well, car had a bit of understeer on mid corner though. Also got Nigel Mansell to do doughnuts right in front of us in formula renault car,great day.
Can’t wait for spa now, couldn’t get any renault stuff last week-end as they’d sold out, so i’ll get some there.
Christopher,
We’ll be staying on sunday night , so you’ll have some company…
Tony and Deb
Me again, I am having problems getting hold of elephant for camping, the only mail not to bounce back was using the email of f1@the-elephant.com, F1_reservation@francorchamps-camping.com & F1_res@francorchamps-camping.com just bounces back each time. Any ideas?
Hi Darryl
I’m guessing you’re sending from a hotmail account? I had loads of problems, and in the end the only one which worked for me was:
mail@elephantnet.de
If you get an answer, Michael often replies using a different account – be careful not just to reply as you’ll end up with the same issues again, I always copied in the above address as well.
Good Luck!
Catherine
Thanks Catherine, just sent the email again using the email address you use hopefully will get through this time
Just spoken to my brother so will definately be staying on the campsite from Friday until Monday morning.
Many thanks for that email address, Michael has just booked me in, so all that is left is to pay and I am sorted.
Cant wait this is my first GP
arrrrgh – I don’t know, why sometimes it is difficult to contact me by e-mail. Every time, when I test it – all urls (and I have a lot of them) are working well. I will change the provider of francorchamps-camping.com end of the year and hope it will work better.
normaly:
f1_res@francorchamps-camping.com
or:
mail@elephantnet.de
or:
f1@the-elephant.de
Sorry for trouble.
cu
Michael
Michael, I can confirm the only one that worked for me was mail@elephantnet.de, the others just bounced back – and this was from a work email account not hotmail, gmail or the like.
Anyway you have confirmed my booking after paying and we look forward to staying at your site and meeting everyone on here during the weekend.
Daryl