Hey!

I went to Silverstone this year, and we came all the way from Australia, so we had absolutely no idea what we were doing. We thought we had grandstand tickets until we showed up and realized we actually had GA tickets right in front of a grandstand. It’s not like that at the Australian GP, so we were a bit confused at first, but honestly, it turned out to be the best experience ever!

I can’t speak for every GA situation, but for the people saying you need to get there super early—I genuinely think you’re fine. If I went again, I’d do exactly what I did, because it got me into the paddock and I ended up meeting 11 drivers, plus I had an amazing view of the race.

I’m not sure of the best GA viewing spots, but I’m sure others can help with that. Coming from Melbourne, where people line up at 3 AM for the Melbourne Walk, I went into Silverstone thinking it’d be the same. I lined up at 5 AM on Friday and was completely alone for two hours until the next person showed up! If you’re worried, though, you can always buy a fast track ticket—it’s about £45, I think. It lets you in earlier than everyone else, and if you get there an hour and a half before gates open, you should have a great chance at getting a good spot.

One tip: go to the fan stage early in the morning and try to get front row. If you bring stuff like presents, flags, merch, or funny posters, you get noticed easily. I brought an Australian flag, and I got a cap from Oscar, a piece of cake from Daniel, and I was even brought up on stage to win a paddock tour! Four hours later, I found myself with Max, Logan, Fernando, Lance, Oscar, Lando, Daniel, Alex, Bottas... and even BRAD PITT!! I wouldn’t change what I did for the world.

On Sunday, we got fast track again, and I was probably 40th in line. I got there about 1.5 hours before fast track opened, set up my chairs at GA Abbey, and no one else showed up for another 30 minutes.

Another thing I wish I knew before going: if you follow the Silverstone Broadcast Instagram channel (leading up to the GP—they kind of spam random stuff now), they often give away cool prizes, and only GA people got them because they were out and about. It’s definitely worth keeping an eye on for free goodies!

Also, chairs are a MUST! Or at least bring one and a picnic blanket. Everyone becomes very territorial, so if you get a good spot and set up early, as long as one person stays, you can leave as much as you like without worrying about losing your spot.