mikeyboy954@yahoo.com

Forum Replies Created

Viewing 6 posts - 1 through 6 (of 6 total)
  • Author
    Posts
  • #318271

    I hate to piggyback your thread but the price you pay for the a couple of nights hotel is more than I pay for the entire weekend. Here is the experience from an F1 Fanatic on a budget (you can call me a cheapskate, I won’t take offense), it doesn’t have to be that expensive.

    I travel solo because my Wife isn’t into F1 and my son is still a bit too young. I went to the GP in 2011 (longest GP in history) and 2013. Both of those times I drove up from Boston but this year I’m actually flying from Boston to Plattsburg NY ($140RT) and renting a car ($160) and driving the 50 miles up to Montreal.

    I enjoy the crowds and the energy of the track all three days but after being crammed in all day for 3 days I like to have quiet evenings so I tend to stay on the Longueuil (east) side of the river, away from the hustle and bustle. H/Motels range from $59 to dumpy no-name places up to $300 for nicer places. I typically split the difference and find a place in the $120-$150 range. This year I’m staying at a well reviewed Holiday Inn Express about 20 miles away from the Longueuil Station for about $110 a night. Please note that lots of the hotels won’t rent you a room (or else they will gouge you badly) for a night or two, they are looking for people who book 3+ nights for GP weekend. I have also stayed in Boucherville (Comfort Inn and Welcominns) which is closer to the Station and both of these places are decent.

    I park on the street within a couple of blocks of the Longueuil Metro for free although I’m probably parking illegally since the signs are in French. Maybe I’m lucky to never have gotten a ticket but i don’t plan to pay to park this year either. I believe parking at the station is about $20 a day. They offer a full weekend metro pass for $18. Well worth it. From Longueuil it is one stop and then probably a 20 minute walk to the track. On Saturday after qualifying I usually go into Montreal to hit the street party. It is a wild scene and Blazer is spot on, amazing chix (his word, not mine). After a couple of hours of being jammed in like sardines and listening to pumping techno I’m glad to get back to my hotel. If you enjoy partying you could probably stay all night. In fact on Sunday you can usually pick out the faces of the folks who did party all night.

    Tickets are another expense that really depends on what you require for an experience. Tickets are expensive, there is no way around it. The cheapest tickets are GA ($140) which doesn’t get you a seat, just access to the grounds. You get to take in the atmosphere, visit the vendors and catch glimpses of the cars usually in high speed stretches so glimpses is not an exaggeration. I would not recommend GA since the track is almost flat. It isn’t like European tracks where you can spread your blanket on a hill and see several corners. While Blazer swears by Grandstand 1 and I’m sure it’s awesome seeing the pit action is it $300 or more than (2x) better than Grandstand 31 where I sit? #31 is the last kink before the hairpin (turns 8-9) where the cars are standing on the brakes from 180mph to about 70mph trying not to run wide and setting themselves up the run to the hairpin. It is a great spot with a jumbotron right across to follow the action on the rest of the circuit. I have also sat in the hairpin and while the action on track there is very exciting the atmosphere seemed more like a drunken party (NASCARish). #31 seemed to have more true face fans plus it is a smaller seating section so you don’t feel as packed in. I’ve also walked down to #33 which is a decent sport (a quick right/left kink) but it is in more of an isolated spot on the circuit away from the on-track happenings. Blazer is correct that you can’t get down to the Senna S area unless your seats are there, they check tickets. In fact you really can’t go much past the casino.

    Food at the track is expensive and not that great, just like any concert, sporting event or amusement park. They’ve got you and they know they’ve got you so they can pretty much charge you whatever they want for poor quality food. The difference here is you can bring in food and drink including booze. My suggestion is bring in lunch maybe even breakfast if you get to the track that early. Knowing what you’re getting and what it will cost always makes me feel better. I always bring in a backpack with lunch, drinks (soda/water/rum/whiskey), sunblock, raincoat etc. They give it a quick glance when entering the track and that’s it.

    After the race on Sunday they open up the fences and allow everyone on the track. I like to stroll the track and take pictures. Walk by the pits, Senna S, Wall of Champions, hairpin etc. By the time you’ve walked around the 2.7 miles the crowd has thinned considerably. Staying in Longueuil means that 90% of the folks leaving the track will be going the opposite way (towards Montreal) so it is a breeze getting back.

    Don’t get me wrong, I am not criticizing Blazer. It’s just clear that he and I are in very different places disposable income wise. Spending $1100 on a weekend trip is very expensive for me but it is F1 so you know it’s not going to be cheap. I can say that the experience of going to an F1 race can’t be beat. I’ve been to an Indycar event and it was fun but it isn’t F1. They’ve had the GP in Montreal so long that they have it down to a science. You will not find a better organized event. I challenge you to go and not have fun!

    #318227

    You travel 3000 miles, spend $1000s of dollars and you’ve never been to Friday practice? To me, Friday might be the best day because the cars are on the track the longest. You are getting the most exposure to the cars and the stands aren’t packed so there is more of a relaxed atmosphere. I’m not sure how any true F1 fan could miss Friday.

    #315156

    I went in 2011, 2013 and I’ll be going again this year. I always stay on the East side (Longueuil, Boucherville area) and I typically park my car on the street a couple of blocks away from the Longueuil Metro station and take the subway. It is very simple and only one stop. The unlimited 3-day metro pass for the race weekend is $18 ($CAN). One of the bigger advantages is going back to your car at the end of each day 95%+ of the folks will be going into Montreal where you’ll be going away from the city so your train will be half empty opposed to having to wait for several packed trains before you can board.

    #204300

    Has anyone seen the full schedule of events with the times of the support races etc? I could have sworn I saw it a while back because I remember being disappointed that the historic GP cars weren’t on the schedule. I’d appreciate a copy and paste or a link to the event schedule.

    #204290

    I’ve only been to the race once (2011 year of the rain) so I may not be as expertish as others but here is my take. Unless I was broke and still desperate to go to the race I wouldn’t consider buying GA tickets. If you are serious about racing and want to actually watch the race the GA areas would be very disappointing. The track is relatively flat so you can’t sit up on a hill, spread out your blanket and have great views of the track like you can at many European/Asian tracks. You are pretty much limited to high speed sections and you’ll be level with the track so you’ll literally see the cars going by so fast that it isn’t worth it. Plus the GA spots where you can actually see stuff fill up almost immediately so you’d need to be at the gates an hour before they open. If you only plan to go on Sunday and you’re more of a casual fan, GA would suit you fine otherwise spring for the Grandstand. I sat in Bronze 34 in 2011 and thought it was great. You get a view of the full hairpin and you get to see the cars brake hard from 185MPH down to 35MPH, then hard on the throttle for the fastest straight on the circuit. It is awesome to watch and hear. They advertise this section as a “mechanical symphony” and it truly is. Apparently the atmosphere is a bit more “festive” at this end of the track (drinking and pot smoking) but I didn’t see anyone being rowdy. If you’re a racing fan I really don’t think the prices are unreasonable considering there is so much going on all 3 days, there is more than just F1.

    As far as Crescent St , I’m not a real party guy plus I go to the race solo so I’m not someone who gets totally into the street party but I did go on Saturday evening in 2011. It was pretty cool to see cars up close, they had lots of vendor booths, there was a DJ spinning records, it was a very fun atmosphere. That being said, I stayed for about 90 minutes and then went to the movies. I didn’t go to any bars or restaurants but they all looked packed from the outside. The city really does embrace racing, even the drivers have rated the atmosphere very high.

    As far as lodging I stayed off the island in Boucherville and drove to the Longueuil train station each day. To me this was the perfect plan but if you prefer to stay in the action, staying in Montreal would better suit you. Another advantage of coming in from the Longueuil station earlier in the day was at the end of the day 99% the 120,000 people flooding into the train station at the circuit are heading into Montreal whereas 1% are going towards Longueuil which is the last stop on the line. It was relatively painless leaving. My hotel on the mainland was about half of what you’d pay in Montreal.

    I will be attending again this year and I’m really looking forward to it. Less than 6 weeks to go.

    #169263

    Something has to give because Austin is coming in. I think Istanbul will be dropped.

Viewing 6 posts - 1 through 6 (of 6 total)