“I have been coming to the Cheltenham Festival for 30 years and that is the quietest I have seen it”

It is over inflated prices that has adversely affected attendance figures at this year’s Cheltenham Festival, according to punters.

LISTEN to the noise for The New Lion 🦁

🔊😮@TurnersLtd Novices’ Hurdle winner 🙌 pic.twitter.com/mZJ7Nm9QhR

— CheltenhamRacecourse (@CheltenhamRaces) March 12, 2025

The Wednesday attendance was just over 41,000 this year, which was the lowest recorded crowd this century.

Two years ago, on the corresponding day, the racecourse recorded over 66,000 attendants.

The Cheltenham Festival crowd for Tuesday was 55,498, a drop of almost 5,000 from this day last year.

Organisers are quick to point out they will still top 200,000 spectators during the course of the week but things are on the slide and something needs to be done.

John Holden, who first attended the festival in 1995, says there is one overriding factor.

“It is cost!” he said. “Undoubtedly cost, hotel costs, bar costs. We are members, and our annual membership was £500 each this year. The daily ticket was £120 and £100 on different days. The Guinness at the track is £7.80 a pint.

CHELTENHAM FESTIVAL DRINKS PRICES 🍺

£7.80 for a pint of Guinness

Thoughts? pic.twitter.com/JsoNjrLs5P

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“I bought two drinks yesterday, and I did not get much change from a £20 pound note. It is far too expensive. My wife Angela had a look at a couple of rooms and they were £2,000 a night!”

The couple have not missed a year of the festival for 30 years. With the exception of (foot and mouth in 2001 and COVID in 2021).

“It used to cost a few quid, but only the normal cost of a long weekend away. It was three days, so it was the same amount of days as a long weekend away,” Holden said

“Now with the rising costs of everything we have mentioned, hotels, bars, food and the racing tickets it is the cost of a week’s holiday and an expensive one at that.

“Especially if you’re are as bad at betting as John is!” Angela added.

“I have been coming to the Cheltenham festival for 30 years, and this is the quietest I have ever seen it,” Mr Holden said

“It was a lot quieter for me, nicer than being rammed, but it can’t be good for the jump racing community.” Mrs Holden said

John and Angela both alluded to the standard of the race card being less impressive “a few years ago every race was competitive with lots of quality horses in the field.

“As soon as the price they are asking for a daily ticket does not get backed up by the standard of racing on the card your in trouble as punters will feel hard done by.”

“My horse Ladronne ran at Sedgefield on Tuesday, and it was a topic of discussion. There has been a bit of chat around the new padded hurdles and the painting of them white.

New padded hurdles are being used at the 2025 Cheltenham Festival to improve safety. The Jockey Club says they reduce fall rates by around 11%, while vets report fewer cuts and scrapes. Research also suggests the black padding may be easier for horses to see pic.twitter.com/RybnWp3yKJ

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“The amount of horses falling at this year’s meeting has started a few conversations that the old, more natural hurdles may have had a bit more give in them, and the new set-up might be causing the rise in unseated riders.”