I started attending the 'Festival' with my Mum in the mid 1980's shortly after my Dad passed away. After my first trip I thought 'Cheltenham' would be like the Oktoberfest in that I could not foresee a time I would not make the annual pilgrimages to the two greatest parties in Europe.
Things however change. Despite our downsizing to what was then the Foster's Enclosure the prices became ridiculous. The mark up on all types of residences for the, then Monday to Friday, stays were becoming on the verge of robbery. Our final few years of staying in Cheltenham were spent at a great private hotel run by a beautiful couple. One September I received a call from the male partner who advised me that he had been contacted by the Tote to ask if they could make a block booking for 'their girls'. He was contacting me out of consideration to regular visitors as the Tote had offered him twice the minimal mark up he charged for the week of the Festival. I asked for a few hours to discuss the matter with my Mum and one of my friends who by that time had started to join us for our annual jaunt to the races. Let us say instead of a wee increase on £40 a night we would now have to cough up close to £100 each. We had no option but to call back, thank the guy for his kindness and tell him we would try to make alternative arrangements.
The above opened three years of enjoyment and shenanigans as we found a hotel close to Shrub Hill Station in Worcester with no mark ups, great Iranian owners who kept the bar open all night and who made us very welcome. The train to Cheltenham took less than thirty minutes and return journeys went up to pretty close to 23.00.
We finally gave up when my Mum found the fun'n'games a wee bit too much and entrance to the track became a joke!
We did however continue to visit race tracks in and around Paris and in many cities in Germany. Two things struck me; the very low prices for entrance even for days featuring Group 1 or Grade 1 races and the reasonable cost of food and drink at the tracks in both countries.
I now limit myself to one 'racing' trip a year. It is either the Grand Steeplechase de Paris in May or 'Le Week-End International de l'Obstacle' in November, both at Auteuil. Either costs me about the same for entrance that it does for the daily race card at the Festival. The standard of the racing, particularly during the November meeting, is on a par with a day at the Festival in that there are three Grade 1 races backed up by other Graded races and valuable handicaps. I f****n' love it!
To close, I have discovered that there are many other brilliant 'Volkfests' in Bavaria; the 'Fruhlingsfest' in Munich plus similar events in Regensburg and Nurnberg.
Times change but great memories remain!
. Joking aside just take it easier and don't drink as much and have an earlier night.
