Racing-Europe - 2005 Trip - Newmarket & The Arc

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NEWMARKET & THE ARC
12 Days, 11 Nights (including one en route)
SEPTEMBER 22 to OCTOBER 3, 2005

5 nights in Newmarket, 5 nights in Paris
3 days of racing at Newmarket & Longchamp
Training area / Farm visits in Newmarket & Chantilly

Day 1
Thur Sept 22 Depart U.S., if not joining the trip from elsewhere in the U.K. or Europe.

Day 2
Fri Sept 23 Arrive in London. You will be met at the airport and delivered to Newmarket and our hotel there, the Bedford Lodge. We will also provide transport from Central London if you're already there. These transfers will take about two hours. The remainder of the day is free for adjustment and your own activities. At 6PM we will convene for cocktails at the hotel to get to know one another a bit and get set for our journeys together.
THE BEDFORD LODGE: Modern, comfortable, and located not far from the town center, the Bedford Lodge is our resting place in Newmarket. It has a fitness club and indoor pool, a restaurant, and a lively bar always filled with racing people and racing talk. At www.bedfordlodgehotel.co.uk you can find more. Full English breakfast each morning is included.

Day 3
Sat Sept 24 The "Festival of Racing", normally put on at Ascot, will this year be held at Newmarket's Rowley Mile racecourse. We'll go out to the course a little early, and be given a private look-around the plant. There's a fine race card, headed by the Group 1 Queen Elizabeth II Stakes, Europe's last major one-mile race before the Breeders' Cup. It also includes The Group 1 Fillies' Mile, the Group 3 Princess Royal for older females, and a couple of listed events. We'll have members' enclosure badges and reserved seats.
We'll book a table at one of the area's fine restaurants tonight, open to subscription on a no-host basis.

Day 4
Sun Sept 25 This is an OPEN DAY for you to use as you please. One of your choices is another day's racing at the Rowley Mile - the headlining Group 2 Royal Lodge Stakes for 2-year-olds is a significant pointer to next year's classics, and the Group 3 Cumberland Lodge for older horses at 12 furlongs usually draws a competitive field. There's a Group 2 sprint and a listed race scheduled as well.
Cambridge with all of its sights is just a half-hour away, and the lovely Cambridgshire and Suffolk countryside offer many other things worth seeing.

Day 5
Mon Sept 26 Newmarket is known in English racing circles as "HQ". This is where thoroughbred racing as we know it developed, and today it's still by far England's largest training center. We'll start today with a morning visit to the famous gallops and a drop-in at a trainer's yard. We'll get a bite to eat and then go on to the nearby Retraining Yard, where ex-racehorses are prepped for second careers of all kinds.
Depending on how everybody's feeling at this point, we'll either take the rest of the afternoon off, or continue on to one or more of Newmarket's many other horse-related activities. These include the racing school, the veterinary hospital, and the racing forensic lab.
Tonight we'll organize a no-host group dinner at a nearby village pub. Book enthusiasts might want to head out before dinnertime, and have a visit to Greg Way's. Greg has a large collection of racing and sporting books, both rare and unrare, for sale and shipment back to the U.S. (Preparatory conversations with Greg can be easily arranged.)

Day 6
Tue Sept 27 The second day of our extensive look around Newmarket will include — in an order to be determined — a visit to the excellent Racing Museum; a tour of the private rooms of the Jockey Club; a look at the facilities of Tattersalls, who conduct England's most important racehorse sales; a visit to the old-fashioned July Course which is used in the summer; and for those inclined, an on-foot exploration of the racecourses. We'll also work in a visit to one of the area's breeding farms, either today or as part of yesterday's program.

Day 7
Wed Sept 28 Today, after checkout, our motor coach will take us down to London where we'll board the under-the-Channel Eurostar fast train to Paris. We'll have lunch on the train and get into Gare du Nord in central Paris at about 4PM, having lost an hour to continental time. It's a short ride to our Paris home, the Raphael Hotel.
EUROSTAR: Beginning in 1994, Eurostar has transformed travel between London and the Continent. On its service routes, it now carries more passengers than all the airlines combined. Journey time between the city centers of London and Paris is only 2 3/4 hours. See www.eurostar.com to learn more.
THE RAPHAEL: We have chosen the Raphael as our Paris hotel for its location and distinctive charm. In the 16th Arrondissement, it is close to Longchamp Racecourse, the Arc de Triomphe, the cafes of the Champs Elysees, and the shopping on Avenue Victor Hugo. And it has retained, more than any of the other top Paris hotels, an ambience of discreet and traditional luxury. There is a fine restaurant, a cozy "English" bar, and a delightful rooftop garden. Our rooms are large, and a buffet breakfast is included each morning. Please see www.raphael-hotel.com for more on the hotel.
After settling in, we'll regroup in the Raphael Bar for a cocktail, and then head out for a no-host dinner cruise on the Seine. As cliched as a gondola ride in Venice or a balloon ride over the Serengeti, an evening boat ride in Paris is one of those things that you've just got to do. And like the others, it seldom disappoints. We'll be going on one of the nicer boats.

Day 8
Thur Sept 29 An OPEN DAY to enjoy Paris.

Day 9
Fri Sept 30 We take a trip to Chantilly today, twenty-five miles north of Paris and, like Newmarket, the principal thoroughbred training center of its country. We'll see the vast array of workout courses - in action - then visit a trainer's yard, and have a look at the racecourse where the French Derby and Oaks are run every June. After lunch, you have the choice of taking the train back into Paris for the rest of the day, or staying on in Chantilly to see the Museum of the Living Horse in the famous "Great Stables", or the superb Chantilly Chateau with its moats, apartments, and art collection.

Day 10
Sat Oct 1 We make our first of two visits to Longchamp Racecourse, for Day One of "Arc Weekend". In recent years, the French authorities have decisively upgraded this day's card, and the Group 1 Prix de la Foret, along with four Group 2 events at a variety of distances, are offered up as appetizers for tomorrow. We'll have lunch at the Restaurant Panoramique overlooking this most majestic of the world's urban racecourses, where the Eiffel Tower serves as an unofficial 1 1/4-mile pole.

Day 11
Sun Oct 2 Arc Day. An incomparable fashion spectacle at Longchamp and the climactic day of the European racing season for the last fifty years. The undercard includes five Group 1 races: a five-furlong sprint, a two-and-a-half mile marathon, 2-year-old races for both colts and fillies, and the prestigious Prix de l'Opera for fillies and mares. And finally, the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe itself, Europe's greatest all-age race at a mile and a half, the one they all show up for. John Randall and Tony Morris in A Century of Champions: "The best horses have to accept that ultimate challenge; if they are fit and well and they do not, we can only assume they are not up to it."
This day is the closest thing Europe has to a Breeders' Cup - where, incidentally, some of today's runners may be making their next stop. We'll have a block of seats, and access to the best parts of the paddock-side, to mingle with what is probably the most cosmopolitan racing crowd that gathers anywhere on the planet.
In the evening we can gather again in the bar at the Raphael to talk over the horses, races, and places we've seen - and maybe start making plans to come back next year.

Day 12
Mon Oct 3 The organized itinerary ends after breakfast and checkout this morning. If you must go home, bonne chance and travel safely. Transfer to your Paris airport is provided if you are leaving today or extending at the Raphael.

CLOSING DATE:

This trip closed on August 19, 2005.

COME EARLY, STAY LATE:

The itinerary, by design, is full and busy. If you would like a bit more of a leisurely experience, we invite you to consider coming to the U.K. earlier and / or staying on in Paris.

London could be a place for you to come over to first, for some adjustment, shopping, or sightseeing. We have a good relationship with the Draycott Hotel and highly recommend it.

October is many people's favorite time of the year in Paris, and the concierge at the Raphael has all the keys to the city.

The Draycott and the Raphael have promised to accommodate extensions as best they can, but the space is not blocked or guaranteed. Please let us know as soon as possible if you want more time in either place. It is particularly busy in Paris at this time of year.

ITINERARY & PRICES:

The itinerary includes:

Ten(10) nights lodging as indicated: five(5) in Newmarket, and five(5) in Paris.

Breakfast each morning as indicated.

Three(3) escorted days' racing at Newmarket and Longchamp, including transportation to and from the racecourse, members' enclosure admission or equivalent, and race card. Reserved seating at Newmarket and seating at Longchamp October 2. Restaurant seating at Longchamp October 1.

Lunch on Four(4) days: in Newmarket September 26, on the Eurostar train September 28, in Chantilly September 30, and at Longchamp Racecourse October 1.

Two days' exploration of Newmarket, to include at a minimum: morning visit to the gallops and a trainer's yard, visit to the Retraining Yard, admission to the Racing Museum, visit to the private rooms of the Jockey Club, visit to the July Course, and visit to an area horse farm, with all transportation supplied.

Morning visit to Chantilly, including the training gallops, a trainer's yard, and the racecourse.

Transfer from London airport or Central London to the Bedford Lodge Hotel, Newmarket.

Transfer from Bedford Lodge Hotel, Newmarket, to London Waterlooo Train Station.

First-class seat on Eurostar train from London to Paris.

Transfer from Gare du Nord to Raphael Hotel, Paris.

Transfer from Raphael Hotel to Paris airport.

Complimentary racing newspaper each day.

Welcome cocktails at the Bedford Lodge Hotel, Newmarket.

Accompaniment throughout by a racewise and notably affable American escort.

*We reserve the right to substitute economy-class airfare, without lunch, from London to Paris in lieu of the Eurostar train, if the September Eurostar schedule proves to be unsuitable, with transfer from Paris airport to Raphael Hotel.

The itinerary does not include:

Airfare to and from the U.S.A.
Dinner on any night, or lunch except on days indicated.

The Cost of the Trip does not include:

Any charges incurred at hotels other than the basic cost of the room, including but not limited to room service, mini-bar, television or video, restaurant or bar service, laundry or dry-cleaning, business services, golf or other activities, and activities arranged through hotel concierge. (All group members will be required to provide a credit card imprint upon check-in at each hotel to guarantee payment for any individual charges.)
Excess baggage charges.
Costs related to obtaining passports or visas.
Travel insurance.
Alcoholic beverages.
Charges incurred for anything other than what is specified in the "Itinerary Includes" summary above.
Any gratuities. Please note your principal tour escort does not expect and will not accept a gratuity.

The Cost of the Trip Is:

Please note singles will be accommodated in the same class of double rooms as the double-occupancy members of the group.

We will attempt to match single travelers wishing to double up and thereby avoid the Single Supplement, however it will always be the single traveler's decision whether or not to accept a roommate. Because of the limited number of rooms that we have been able to reserve at these very busy times, we regret we must reserve the right to limit the number of single travelers on each trip.

Trip prices are subject to change up to thirty-five(35) days prior to trip departure to reflect fluctuations in currency exchange rates between the United States, the United Kingdom, and the European Union. Dollar prices quoted here are based on the following exchange rates:

OPTIONS:

Additional Nights at the Raphael Hotel, Paris, if available: $255 per night, per person, based on double occupancy. Single supplement $255 per night.
Additional Nights at the Draycott Hotel, London, if available: to be determined.
Seine River Dinner Cruise: Estimate $250 per person.

*The trips are designed for ten to sixteen people. We reserve the right to cancel a trip if it has less than ten subscribers. Should we need to do this, all payments made toward the cost of the trip will be fully and promptly refunded.

*You must have a valid passport to enter the United Kingdom and France.

View the itineraries for our other 2005 trips:
For June, click here For July, click here For August, click here

Quote by John Randall and Tony Morris from A Century of Champions, published in 1999 by Portway Press Ltd., Halifax, West Yorkshire HX1 1XE