How To Do Cheltenham Festival In Style: The C&TH Guide

The most prestigious jump racing event of the year returns next month, running from Tuesday 10 to Friday 13 March 2026 and marking the bona fide beginning of the social season. Here’s everything you need to know about The Cheltenham Festival, plus how to get tickets.

Cheltenham Festival 2026: The C&TH Guide

Each year, more than 260,000 people flock to The Jockey Club’s Cheltenham Festival for four days of top-class horse racing, an annual affair that can trace its roots as far back as 1860. But the meeting as we know it today has returned annually since 1911 (with hiatuses for WWII and a particularly bad outbreak of foot-and-mouth in 2001).

It’s grown over these years into one of the UK’s most prestigious races, with prize money second only to The Grand National. Horses are made heroes and reputations of top jockeys are on the line. Champions return to retain their crown, while others battle to steal the limelight. Since 2005, the three-day festival has had an additional fourth day, meaning there is a championship race on each day of the festival, culminating with the Gold Cup on the Friday (which has been raced annually for more than a century – since 1924). This year taking place on Friday 13 March, jockeys will be hoping luck (and not superstition) is on their sides…

It’s a week of drama and high emotion, with moments of pure theatre thrown in for good measure – but there’s plenty going on off the track, too, including live music, food and drink, and shopping.

How Do The Races Work?

Cheltenham is a National Hunt meeting – and it was first called the National Hunt Chase. This means the horses don’t gallop on the flat but instead leap over hurdles or larger steeplechase fences, meaning clean jumps are just as vital as stamina. Races are broadly split between hurdles and chases, stretching from novice races to handicaps and Grade 1 contests (where you’ll find the elite talent).

Each day features seven races, concluding with the championship race. Each day also has a theme. Traditionally, Tuesday kicks off the week with Champion Day, followed by Ladies Day on Wednesday, St Patrick’s Thursday and the Gold Cup Day on Friday. The final day of racing typically sells out first, but everyday at Cheltenham is filled with action.

If you’re keen to see the very best of Cheltenham fashion, Ladies Day (Wednesday) is the day for you. Also known as Style Day, everyone arrives in their finest attire, and there’s even a Best Dressed competition, with awards totally £10,000 for the best dressed group, duo and individual. Seemingly effortless elegance is key. ‘The fashion at Cheltenham is on another level; it’s bold, considered and full of personality, which is what makes it so exciting year after year,’ stylist Jessica Rea summarises. You can read our full guide to Cheltenham Festival dressing here.

In 2026, the themes and races to know are as follows:

• Day One (Tues 10 March): Champion Day, featuring the Unibet Champion Hurdle
• Day Two (Wed 11 March): Ladies Day, featuring the BetMGM Queen Mother Champion Chase
• Day Three (Thurs 12 March): St Patrick’s Thursday, featuring the Ryanair Chase and the Paddy Power Stayers’ Hurdle
• Day Four (Fri 13 March): Gold Cup Day, featuring the JCB Triumph Hurdle, the Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle and the iconic Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup

Where To Eat

The dining options at Cheltenham Festival are world class, with more than 45,000 meals being plated up over the four days and a fantastic 3,500 catering team taking part each day. In true British style, more than 9,000 gallons of tea and coffee are consumed, with nine tons of locally produced potatoes and five tons of locally sourced salmon devoured throughout the week.

Local produce is in fact at the heart of the festival’s catering, with up to 70 percent of the fruit and vegetables coming from within the Cotswolds region and 100 percent of the cheese produced within 50 miles of Cheltenham. What’s more, the entirety of the afternoon tea selection is quintessentially ‘best of British’.

Excitingly, Michel Roux Jr’s Chez Roux is back for 2026, serving up an exquisite four-course menu and pouring plenty of Moët champagne. There’s also Panoramic Restaurant with its first class service and unparalleled views of Cleeve Hill. Elsewhere award-wining venues include The Horse and Groom Pub, a relaxed and informal spot which overlooks the final two fences of the racecourse.

‘A gem of Cheltenham is the Guinness Village,’ former jockey and racing broadcaster Alice Plunkett recommends. ‘That’s where to go if you want to feel the buzz of Cheltenham and hear live music and have fun!’

If you’re out and about in pretty Cheltenham, here are our favourite restaurants to stop by.

Jade Holland Cooper at Cheltenham

What To Wear

Cheltenham Festival may be a horse racing affair, but the sidelines are somewhat of a fashion show. ‘Cheltenham feels like the ultimate country catwalk,’ local fashion designer Jade Holland Cooper tells C&TH. ‘There’s such a buzz in the air, and everyone really leans into the occasion. It’s one of those rare events where heritage, fashion and community all come together, and you can truly feel it the moment you arrive.’

While there is no formal dress code in place, many guests naturally like to dress up for Cheltenham. It’s worth noting that two-thirds of the car parks are on grass, so suitable footwear is advised, and bear in mind the weather can be unpredictable. You can read our full guide to Cheltenham Festival dressing here.

Where & When?

The Cheltenham Festival returns to Cheltenham Racecourse (Evesham Road, Cheltenham GL50 4SH) from Tuesday 10 to Friday 13 March 2026.

Gates open at The Festival every day at 10.30am. The first race is at 1.30pm, and the last race at 5.30pm. Each day there is a feature race at 3.30pm.

The racecourse a five-minute drive from the town centre.

Ellenborough Park

Where To Stay

Just moments away from Cheltenham Racecourse, Ellenborough Park is one of the finest estates in the Cotswolds. It’s also just a stone’s throw from the pretty town centre, but still retains a countryside tranquility. A sandy-toned 15th century manor house, inside find 61 rooms and suites brimming with antique furniture and rich fabrics. There’s also a spa with a delightful spa garden, plus an on-theme converted horsebox of a bar.

In town, No. 131 is the place to be. Not only is it uber-cool, but it is owned and helmed by fashion designer and Cheltenham local Jade Holland Cooper. Spread across three handsome Georgian townhouses with just 31 rooms, it’s a home-from-home that still feels elevated thanks to stylish design, the two restaurants and the buzzy bar Gin & Juice.

No 131

How To Get Tickets

Tickets for Cheltenham Festival are on sale now at thejockeyclub.co.uk

Prices start from £60 for an adult day ticket, while there are discounts for groups of 25 or more and children up to the age of four go free (when accompanied by an adult, of course).

ITV Racing Presenters Chris Hughes and Alice Plunkett at Cheltenham Festival 2024. (© Hattie Austin)

Is Cheltenham Festival On TV?

ITV will broadcast the first six races of each day at Cheltenham Festival for free on ITV1 and ITVX, starting from race number one at 1.20pm. However, ITV’s coverage will begin at the slightly earlier time of 12.45pm with some introductory commentary. Each day, coverage will end at 5pm.

However the final race of each day (at 5.20pm) will not be broadcast on ITV but instead is hidden behind a paywall – meaning most championship races aren’t aired for free. If you’d like to watch them, you’ll need a Racing TV subscription; prices start from £14.99 per month. And as always, many bookmakers and gambling apps show the races when you place a bet.

However, the Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup – the biggest race of the week, boasting a £351,687 prize for the victor – thankfully is broadcast for free. It will air on ITV1 and ITVX at 4pm on Friday 13 March 2026.

If you are on the move, Cheltenham Festival will also be covered live by radio broadcasters for anyone without screen access. This includes BBC Radio 5 Live, which will pair live commentary with expert analysis and interviews with racing personalities, jockeys, trainers and pundits. talkSPORT will also cover every major race at Cheltenham, including live commentary and discussion of bookies’ favourites.

And if you fancy a bit of atmosphere, here are our favourite sports bars and pubs in London, many of which will be showing Cheltenham Festival broadcasts throughout the week.