first Timer - Grandstand Worth It?

[Truckosaurus]

Definitely worth it if in a large group, then people can come and go at their leisure and so can just meetup at your seats rather than chasing people by phone.

[F18RSC]

Truckosaurus said:

Definitely worth it if in a large group, then people can come and go at their leisure and so can just meetup at your seats rather than chasing people by phone.

We save £60 a head and say meet at the bar in the village! Well save... we spend it there (Probably each night!)

[Porkieboy]

As the operator of Village on The Curves I would like to clarify a couple of points. We operate two free minibuses on a half hourly schedule, our drop of points are the Technopark roundabout so easy access to the village and most of the Grandstands, we also have a drop off point at the Tram station roundabout which gives access to Tetre Rouge and of course the tram station. So no walking required or car park passes.

The Village on the Curves also has trackside viewing from the Garden bar and the Porsche Curves viewing bank which was extended last year is only 50 metres from the entrance to the site.

Plenty of opportunities to experience the whole track whether you have Grandstand or not.

[24lemons]

I normally dont bother with grandstand seats but I will admit that they are useful at the start and finish as you can turn up much later and be guaranteed a seat.

My dad feels that he appreciates having a seat nearby as it can be a long walk back to the camp site if the weather turns or if you need to take the weight off your legs. Especially useful as it means you dont have to carry camping chairs with you.

[//j17]

One tip if you DO go for a grandstand seat, take an A4 sized cutoff of foam, such as a camping bedroll (c. £3.99 from Decathlon) with you to the stand. Those hard plastic seats aren't exactly comfy for long-term sitting

[stemll]

The Leaper said:

Only one grandstand has a bar and loos, and that is T18 the ACO members' grandstand. It is available to non members.

Not quite, T34 (the one above the pits) has loos. Everyone seems to say don't pick T34 but I quite liked that stand last year. No, you can't see the pits easily even if you are in the front row like we were as people stand in front (well, they do until they find out how pointy my elbows can be ) but it is up above the fences which are a pain pretty much everywhere else. It is a bit of a climb (there's a lift in the middle) and the stairs between the seats are bloody steep !

T22 Wolleck is uncovered and the seats are just rickety wooden benches with no backs.

Edited by stemll on Wednesday 27th January 23:19

[twocolours]

The Leaper said:

The GA ticket gives you access to all the public areas. In general, this means access to the circuit from the Porsche Curves up to Tetre Rouge, plus the two outside track viewing areas at Mulsanne Corner and Indianapolis to Arnage. However, this is the case on the outside of the track but not the inside. For the inside you get access only from the end of the pits straight to Tetre Rouge because of the pits/paddock area and the rest is taken over by hospitality marquees etc. Put another way, the area all the way from Tetre Rouge to the Porsche Curves (other than the two areas at Mulsanne and Indianapolis/Arnage) are closed to the public, hence the well-known "black ops" for that area.

R.

Thanks

[MadMacMcMad]

The 24hrs is becoming so popular that many of the viewing areas that used to be fairly accessible are now stacked full 2 hours before the start. There are still places left to stand and view, but if you are a newby or just don't like fighting for a place, then get a stand and enjoy the race without the grief.
Compared to many large sporting events, the seat prices are priced very low. It's once a year, so just do what you can to make sure you enjoy it.
If you don't mind standing in rain/baking sun with another 230,000 people trying to catch a decent view, then don't bother with a stand.

I recommend Sommer T16 (Pit exit).

[paulyv]

Worth highlighting that whilst the grandstands are about sold out now, when tickets become available on forums nearer the time, they are almost always resold at face value. A pleasant bunch these Le Mans people.

[Jimages]

I've now got ten Le Mans behind me and I've not bothered with a grandstand ticket once.

These are my reasons.

• it's an unnecessary extra cost, personally on my budget I prefer to hold that kind of money back in case I need to replace some bit of equipment midweek.

• roving access to grandstands in included in the general admission for Wednesday and Thursday, that's when I get my fix.

• I find a folding camping chair infinitely more comfortable (it even has a cup holder) than a hard grandstand seat and by and large you have more choice of where to put it. It's also significantly cheaper.

• for the most part it's not difficult finding a decent view in the public areas, of-course the start and finish get more crowded but overall the freedom to move outweighs a 'guaranteed' seat.