Silverstone Circuit is a motor racing circuit in England, near the Northamptonshire villages of Silverstone and Whittlebury. It is the current home of the British Grand Prix, which it first hosted as the 1948 British Grand Prix.
Accommodation:
There are a number of campsites available, most of which have a really festival atmosphere. It's also worth checking out hotels and Bed and Breakfasts in the local area, around places like Banbury. Most charge extra for a GP weekend and sell out fast, but many pubs in the region have rooms available, and it can be a more comfortable and quiet alternative to camping, especially if you're taking children.
The circuit partnered with "Woodlands" campsite in recent years and this is now the official campsite of the track. It has good facilities including a permanant shower (with hot water) and toilet block. There is a tractor-train that regularly shuttles to the circuit each day, though it is only a 15-20 minute walk if desired, depending on where your tent is. The closest entrance is at Vale, so if you have a ticket for the other side of the track it is worth considering another campsite, or being prepared for walking many miles each day.
Getting to the track:
If you don't drive, the easiest way to get there is to get a train to Milton Keynes central. They run a special bus service from the station to the circuit. However, the bus service is extremely expensive (£36 for a weekend pass) and only runs every half an hour. You do not need to book this online, you simply show up and pay the driver. This journey from Milton Keynes to Silverstone normally takes around 30-35 minutes, but with traffic it can be over an hour.
The nearest international airport is London Luton. Unfortunately, there is no direct train from Luton to MK Central. There is however a bus (number 99) which runs every hour to Milton Keynes and takes an hour.
For those driving, there are a few choices for parking: - There are two Park & Rides offered; one from just off the M1 (Junction 15a) and another just off the M40 (Junction 10 and 11). It is not free to park in the designated car parks (around £10 when booked with race ticket), but the shuttle itself is free. - The circuit itself has parking, albeit quite limited and very popular. A parking pass is required to do so and you must have two tickets per car to be eligible for this. Again, this is not free (around £40) and, although convenient, is more expensive than the Park & Rides. It is also very busy and difficult to leave the car parks after the event has finished. Car parks also rapidly become waterlogged if it rains, and there's a large possibility you'll be caught in a jam behind someone who has got stuck in the mud. - The village of Silverstone offers Silverstone Schools Parking, where you pay to park in the grounds of the school in Silverstone and the money you pay for parking goes to the school. In 2017, parking for the race weekend cost £28 (Friday, Saturday, and Sunday parking). There is a short (15 minute) walk to the circuit from the school. Their website can be found here.
An extra tip: If you're heading up from/returning to the South, the road queue time can be considerably shorter.
Seating:
On Thursday and Friday you can sit where you like. On Saturday, you can sit in any grandstand so long as you have a grandstand ticket (be on the lookout for grandstands without security. It is relatively easy to sneak into these and find seating). On Sunday, however, you will only be allowed to sit in the grandstand seat that is printed on your ticket.
If you have a general admission ticket and it is your first vist, try to walk the circuit perimeter on Friday to get an idea of where you may like to sit on Saturday/Sunday and plan accordingly. You won't have the luxury of moving to different spots, in particular on Sunday due to the large attendence.
Food:
Like most Grands Prix there are food stalls everywhere. You may be handed a map on entry to the circuit of what stalls are where on the circuit. Beware that between on-track sessions there are large queues and food is predictably expensive. Additionally, there are no ATMs at the track, so be sure to bring cash. Although many vendors now take card payments, including contactless/smartphone payments.
What to avoid:
All the buses and coaches that go to the circuit drop people off at the Luffield entrance meaning that there are always huge queues. Therefore, it is best to walk a couple of minutes to what is known as the main entrance. This entrance is easily recognisable by the huge roundabout with flags on it.
It is also important to get to the circuit early because the traffic going into the circuit is really bad. The traffic issue applies after the race as well and you should aim to get the last bus back to the station if you came by train.
Don't leave the track straight after the race as this is when traffic is at its worst. It's worth hanging around for a few hours after the race is over to check the track out or go to the main stage, as you'd be spending that time sitting in a bus/car anyway.
If you have a general admission seat you need to get to the circuit extremely early on Sunday to get a decent spot for your fold-out chair. Gates open at 6am, but people will already be in the queue from before then. You will struggle to get a good spot, and in particular a good spot for multiple chairs if you arrive up after 10am.
This is the UK in the summer, so make sure to bring an umbrella, several layers of clothes, jeans, shorts suncream, a cap, a rainjacket, and sunglasses. You may need all of these over the course of one morning (seriously).
Misc:
You have to pay extra money for a ticket that allows you to cross over the Wellington bridge or go through the Copse tunnel to the inside of the track. This is the only path to the paddock but of course, you need a very different ticket to gain access to that.
The F1 fan village is situated next to Brooklands corner. This is bordered by the old circuit where you can walk along the kerbing of the old Bridge corner and Priory.
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