The Statman’s Track Guides – Donington Park

I have only been to Donington Park a few times, but it is a great track to visit and has some of the best trackside views in the UK.

Entry/Exit:

Donington Park is quite well placed, it’s not particularly near anywhere other than the airport next door, so almost all traffic around is going to the track and there are several routes in, so traffic isn’t a major problem unlike some other tracks. There are several different entrances, but unless told otherwise you should use the Main Entrance off of Melbourne Road. You can pay extra to park at Starkey’s and view the track from your car, I haven’t done this yet, but if you’re attending on a day due to rain a lot, it’s probably a good idea.

Exiting the track you can have a few problems at major events as everyone tends to leave at the same time, but for smaller events you should have no issue.

 

Facilities/Food:

Food options for Donington are usually pretty decent, but not as good as Brands Hatch. There are a few options in/around the paddock, and usually some stands on the outside of Hollywood and Old Hairpin, and at bigger events a few on the inside of the circuit near the toilets. For smaller events it’s possible every open food stand is the same, and prices can be expensive, so it is advisable to bring food yourself if on a budget or a fussier eater.

Donington has a lot of toilets around the paddock area, but only one on the inside of the track. Some of the toilets are not particularly pleasant or in the best condition either; the ones in the paddock, Old Hairpin, Hollywood and the inside of the circuit are the nicest, biggest and most modern, the ones at McLeans and the Fogarty Esses are the opposite, small, old, and at times smelly.

 

Track Spots:

There are a lot of great spots to sit/stand at Donington, if you stand in the right spot on the inside you can face any direction and see some track. Around Old Hairpin and Starkey’s Bridge there are spots on both sides of the track and usually a good amount of action. Hollywood and Craner Curves are also great places to view cars from, but there is generally less overtaking and action. The Fogarty Esses are another favourite place of mine to watch, on the outside there is no fence so you can get an unobstructed view of the action close up.

 

Useful Information:

For the vast majority of events at Donington Park, the paddock is open, it’s well worth a walkaround. If there is a lot of rain due to fall, you really should bring proper footwear, the inside of the track is almost all grass and banked, some of which is steep, it will be very easy to slip and fall. However a lot of the outside of the track is paved or gravel, so if you don’t have any, just stick to the outside of the track.

 

Accommodation:

The track is right next to an airport, so there are several hotels about. I tend to stay slightly further away in Kegworth, where there is also a great chip shop called The Big Fish.