The official verdict is in - which courses in Britain offer the best raceday experience?

Ludlow and Chelmsford City have forced their way into the top ten courses in England and Wales judged on the raceday experience they offer.

They have joined Grade 1 tracks such as Aintree, Newbury and York with a place in the highest echelon according to the results of the 2023 Quality Assured Racecourse Scheme.

In Scotland, Ayr, Hamilton and Musselburgh retained their five-star visitor attraction ratings, meaning they are considered "exceptional" venues. 

Under the scheme, which was established in 2013, trained assessors from VisitEngland or VisitScotland attend each course to make an objective assessment of the customer experience they offer.

Ludlow was the most improved course in 2023, increasing its score by 19 percentage points, and general manager Simon Sherwood said: “This is great news and it comes just after we finished as top track for getting races off to time in the Racing Post last week.

“We’re very chuffed to have the rosette on our window and on our website. The bigger tracks have a different budget to us so we have to make sure we are hopefully a little more personal.

“The team realise the importance of all the little details which go a long way, small things like greeting people in the car park. We get a lot of compliments for our front of house staff having smiles on their faces — I always say, ‘If in doubt, smile!’”

Chelmsford racecourse director Neil Graham agreed that a welcoming attitude among staff was important and said: “We try to make sure everyone is friendly and we get a lot of positive feedback that the staff are friendly — a smile goes a long way and it doesn’t cost a lot!

Chelmsford City has also made the top tenCredit: Justin Setterfield

“We make a lot of effort and it’s terrific that it’s been recognised. We’ve refurbished both our restaurants in the last couple of years and we try to make our food offering good value and good quality.“

Beverley, Chester, Haydock, Newmarket (Rowley Mile) and Salisbury completed the top ten in England and Wales and the average scores achieved by every course was up by five percentage points.

Simon Numphud, managing director of AA Media Limited, which facilitates the racecourse assessments under licence from VisitEngland, said: “The professional assessments undertaken by VisitEngland Assessment Services once again demonstrated a high level of consistency in the raceday experience.

“It reflects the hard work of teams across racecourses and the focus they place on customer experience and delivering a fantastic day out.

“It was a pleasure to see so many of these courses recognised at the annual showcase event at Aintree in November and our congratulations to the top ten courses.”

Rob Dickson, director of industry and destination development at VisitScotland, added: “Congratulations to the Scottish racecourses for their RCA Excellence accolades and continuing to deliver exceptional standards in tourism.

“Staff should be proud of their commitment to providing a high-quality experience, which supports our national strategy to deliver a world-class visitor destination for all.”

VisitEngland Assessment Services top ten courses in England and Wales: Aintree, Beverley, Chelmsford City, Chester, Haydock, Ludlow, Newbury, Newmarket (Rowley Mile), Salisbury, York.

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