Advice on trips to European WTCC races

[Winchester]

Hi all,

Just wondering if any seasoned travelling vets can give me any advice about travelling from the UK to European WTCC rounds.
My mate Rich and myself are drawing up a shortlist of events - sadly Pau and Valencia aren't possible and Brno clashes with the British GP. So I think the options are one from Oschersleben, Imola or Porto.
If anyone has travelled to any of the above and would recommend hotels, travel arrangements etc then please pop your responses below. Also the other side of the coin, if you wouldn't recommend one or all please let me know!

Thanks very much
Ian

[bella]

don't go to oschersleben unless you find a complete barren wilderness near no big cities an interesting concept. nothing wrong with the spectators and the facility itself is ok, but there's nothing of charm in the local area.

the other two i've never been to, but it's a shame you can't get to valencia, that's a great little circuit for spectating near a fantastic city

[Eddy V]

Agree with Bella.
If you decide to do Oschersleben: there are hardly any decent facilities, hotels are far and few and nothing much is going on in the area.
Bland, boring and either boiling hot or icecold as there is nowhere to hide.
Hotels or b&b book them VERY early or travel far on the day.

[GORDON STREETER]

I would go to Imola. Although there have been a lot of changes made in the last few years at least it has made it more like the old flowing track that it once was. Also its different as its run anti clockwise.

[MikeHoyer]

I'd go to Brno instead of the British GP any day of the week.

[graememac]

I went to Oschersleben for the wtcc in 2006. it is correct that there isn't much in the way of hotels or towns nearby but if you're prepared to camp there you shouldn't have a problem. there are plenty of bars within the paddock and its very open with no restrictions on access. it was a fairly quiet meeting when i went although the dtm was there 2 weeks previously which was a sell out so i presume that was something to do with it. spectating there is good as at several points you can see up to 50% of the circuit.

hope this helps

[Winchester]

Thanks for the advice folks! I think we are set on Imola.
Graeme - I think Germany would have been the preferred one but we weren't convinced on driving a long way from the airport on foreign roads. How did you get there?
Has anyone on here been to Imola before? I think we've found suitable flights, B&B etc but can anyone recommend one?
Also are the trains reliable enough to get to Imola from Bologna airport?
Thanks again for any help.

[bella]

honestly, foreign roads are nothing to be afraid of, especially if you're a reasonably confident driver here. german roads are excellent, and italian ones are fine. the general standard of driving is a little more aggressive there than here but that's easy to get used to. you may find that hiring a car at bologna airport is less hassle and cheaper than using trains and taxis for hotel -> circuit trips.

try searching online for your chosen hotel. i personally always choose a hotel with customer reviews (sites like booking.com provide these and good rates), and plenty of online pictures. i check the location on google earth and make sure the parking is suitable.

[GORDON STREETER]

Winchester. If you hire a car when you get there as it will be a left hooker you will automatically drive on the right as you wont be used to the car, and it will make you think.
We all had to do it for the first time so give it a go !
Like Bella I drive about as much abroad as in the UK and don't have to think about it as I have been doing it for the best part of 40 years.
Saying that I have recently brought a left hooker Smart Car in the UK and turned right out of my drive and automatically carried on going down the right hand side of the road ! I'll put that down to senile dementia

[GeoffH]

Originally Posted by Winchester

Hi all,

Just wondering if any seasoned travelling vets can give me any advice about travelling from the UK to European WTCC rounds.
My mate Rich and myself are drawing up a shortlist of events - sadly Pau and Valencia aren't possible and Brno clashes with the British GP. So I think the options are one from Oschersleben, Imola or Porto.
If anyone has travelled to any of the above and would recommend hotels, travel arrangements etc then please pop your responses below. Also the other side of the coin, if you wouldn't recommend one or all please let me know!

Thanks very much
Ian

If it were me i'd forget the GP and go to Brno.

I've been twice. DTM was on last time i was there but i was in no condition to make it to the Circuit after a night out in the town.

Fantastic city (and country in general) great people and steaming hot if the weather plays nicely.

[graememac]

Originally Posted by Winchester

Thanks for the advice folks! I think we are set on Imola.
Graeme - I think Germany would have been the preferred one but we weren't convinced on driving a long way from the airport on foreign roads. How did you get there?
Has anyone on here been to Imola before? I think we've found suitable flights, B&B etc but can anyone recommend one?
Also are the trains reliable enough to get to Imola from Bologna airport?
Thanks again for any help.

I was living about an hour away from Oschersleben at the time so it wasn't a problem driving there. you can fly to berlin and drive there in about an hour and a half, its a straight forward route to get there.
I've never been to Imola but i did attend the FIA GT's last year at Monza which is well worth a visit, shame the WTCC doesn't go there this season!

[PTs Bro]

Originally Posted by Winchester

Hi all,

Just wondering if any seasoned travelling vets can give me any advice about travelling from the UK to European WTCC rounds.
My mate Rich and myself are drawing up a shortlist of events - sadly Pau and Valencia aren't possible and Brno clashes with the British GP. So I think the options are one from Oschersleben, Imola or Porto.
If anyone has travelled to any of the above and would recommend hotels, travel arrangements etc then please pop your responses below. Also the other side of the coin, if you wouldn't recommend one or all please let me know!

Thanks very much
Ian

Hi Winchester

I know you appear to have chosen Imola but personally I would give Porto a go if I were you!

The track is fantastic and through the streets of the city. Its suprisingly fast and best of all, unless you want to get a grandstand seat (I would recommend the stands at Castell do Quejo!) its completely free.

You can make a week of it because the weekend following the WTCC there is the bi-annual Porto Historic GP and that is fantastic.

Porto is a great city and as far as Euro zone cities are concerned the prices are lower than anywhere else in Europe.

There are regular (2hr max) flights from Bristol and Stansted with Ryanair, which are consistently cheap. You don't need a car, there is a fantastic and cheap metro system from the airport to and throughout the city (including to stops very close to the circuit (which is by the sea!).Taxis are also cheap!

I would recommend staying at the Eurostars Hotel Des Artes on Rua do Rosa,which is very near the hospital, central squares, the old city proper and trams etc.

I would recommend eating at the Asador Tipico (nr the Hospital) or Cafe Guarany on Plaza Alliados.

If you do decide to go PM me and I can provide you with some more details.

Chris


The older I get the better short oval racing gets - BRISCA ROOLS - I'm getting old!!

[Beckz0308]

Hi All,

Sorry to reopen a thread that hasn't had a reply for ages!
Chris, I've booked flights to Porto for the WTCC this year and am hoping you can give me as much information as possible!
It's the first time for watching WTCC abroad so want to make sure we have the best time.
I know that you've said it's best to stay in the town, but do you know of any camp sites etc.. outside town?

Sorry for all the questions!
Anyone's knowledge would be helpful!

Also we're off to Spa Froncorchamp so would be grateful for any info there too!!

Thanks
Becky

[PTs Bro]

Originally Posted by Beckz0308

Hi All,

Sorry to reopen a thread that hasn't had a reply for ages!
Chris, I've booked flights to Porto for the WTCC this year and am hoping you can give me as much information as possible!
It's the first time for watching WTCC abroad so want to make sure we have the best time.
I know that you've said it's best to stay in the town, but do you know of any camp sites etc.. outside town?

Sorry for all the questions!
Anyone's knowledge would be helpful!

Also we're off to Spa Froncorchamp so would be grateful for any info there too!!

Thanks
Becky

Hi Becky,

I had no idea that I had become the source of info for Porto, so sorry for the delay in the posting!!

The only campsites near Porto I'm aware of are in the Gaia area (National Park) and are far too far to the south of the river and the circuit - even anything in the Vila nova da gaia area of the city is to the south and too far away. The circuit is to the north around the Matosinhos, Vilamarta and Boavista part of the city, so ideally you need to be in the centre of the older part of the city or in the Avenida da Boavista area, infact if you are staying in the region of the Avenida da Boavista you will be almost walking distance from the track.

I use trip advisor ( www.tripadvisor.co.uk ) and have had a look through the hotels and would suggest one of these (no particular order):

Tryp Porto Centro
Residencial Pao de Acucar
Tiara Park Atlantic
HF Ipanema
HF Tuela
Mercure Porto Centro
HF Ipanema Park
Hotel Dom Henrique
HF Fenix Porto
Best Western Hotel Inca

Most of these are in the Boavista area and therefore quite close to the circuit. You can get some good bargains with early booking through some of the Tripadvisor partner agencies ie expedia etc, just use the links on the tripadvisor site (and don't forget to try the hotels direct if they have a website). Since the Eurostars Das Artes, the hotel we usually use, has leapt in price my wife and I will probably book at the Tiara Park.

The tickets for the grandstands vary depending on where you sit and whether you book one with paddock access (paddock was about 10 Euros per day last time). I bought an all in ticket for the stand on the outside of Castel do Queijo (2nd corner after fast curve) for the raceday proper (sunday) for 50 Euros - about £35 at the time, but more like £46.

All of the grandstands are close to the edge of the track and allow you to get good views and photos over the top of the fences - if you are a photographer the secret is to scout the circuit on the friday and saturday and then get to the stands very early on the sunday morning so you can chose your spot - the seats are not allocated!

The tickets/prices/circuit maps/reservation details will be available on the circuit website when it is updated, hopefully very shortly! the site is:

www.circuitodaboavista.com

There were a number of decent deals for weekend tickets last time!

The main opps for photos and viewing avoiding the fences is from the grandstands, although there are a number of spots around the track that you can get decent glimpses of the cars for photos, primarily the chicane half way down the main straight from Castel do Queijo. At this spot (on the petrol station side of the track) you can get straight on shots of the cars under breaking for the corner by hanging over the crowd fencing at the side of the escape road (be careful though in case one of the cars runs out of brakes - a mate who can pull you out of the way is useful!). Alternatively from the same spot you can get a view mid corner and (side on profile) pics or you can cross to the exit side of the corner and stand on the wooded bank to look down on the cars as they come through. If you like I will PM you some of the pictures I took from both the stand and the chicane so you get a better idea.

The best plan for the week end is to walk the circuit on the Friday (practice and qualifying) and sus the best spots out, go to the spots and take photos/view on the saturday (qualifying and racing) and then go to the stands on Sunday for the racing. The racing on saturday last time was excellent and went on until 8pm so don't miss it!!

Also don't miss the food outlets and more importantly the bars - Last time they had a bar positioned at the entrance to each of the stands and numerous dotted around the paddock and the circuit! Food and beer is still cheap in Portugal in comparison to the rest of the Eurozone and the standard brew - Superbock - is excellent and at 5.6% alcohol is a bit of a "head cracker" if you drink a tad too much (easily done in the heat of the day!)

Finally you have the option of hitting the beach at the Western end of the track (Matosinhos and Castel do Queijo) if you are that way inclined - some decent cafes on the beach at Matosinhos and good Seafood gaffs at Matosinhos Sul (where the nearest metro tram stops).

Another useful site to go to for info about Porto is the municipal city website:

www.cm-porto.pt
(click on the Union flag for english version)

Have a good time and you never know I might bump into you during the weekend.

Chris

PS: I would also purchase one of the all inclusive Andante travel passes from the porto transport airport desk which entitles you to unlimited travel on public transport for a number of days - excellent value for money!