'I've been to over 25 festivals but enjoyed Saturday more' - Irish racegoers loving the Cheltenham craic in November
Even better than the real thing. Less expensive, less intense, less hassle, but more craic. Ssshhh, whisper it quietly, but November is the new March. Well, that's according to plenty of Irish folk anyway. Less is more, they say.
"I've been to over 25 festivals here, but I probably enjoyed Saturday more than any day I've ever had at the festival," Dubliner Denis Kirwan told me.
"There is no sporting amphitheatre anywhere in the world like Cheltenham and you get to see it properly in November. Everything is manic in March. It's far more relaxed and easygoing for this meeting. You can see everything, you can go anywhere and you can do what you want when you want.
Read the full story
Read award-winning journalism from the best writers in racing, with exclusive news, interviews, columns, investigations, stable tours and subscriber-only emails.
Subscribe to unlock
- Racing Post digital newspaper (worth over £100 per month)
- Award-winning journalism from the best writers in racing
- Expert tips from the likes of Tom Segal and Paul Kealy
- Replays and results analysis from all UK and Irish racecourses
- Form study tools including the Pro Card and Horse Tracker
- Extensive archive of statistics covering horses, trainers, jockeys, owners, pedigree and sales data
Already a subscriber?Log in
Published on inFeatures
Last updated
Copy- Top racing and betting books of 2025: must-reads of the year, from the perfect Christmas gift to tales of old-school punting
- The comeback kid and Cheltenham's first lady - how Bob Olinger and Rachael Blackmore proved the perfect couple
- Eat, sleep, report, repeat: back on duty and back on the naughty step at the Tattersalls December Sale
- Coole Cody: the old prize-fighter who put on a show for everybody and made Cheltenham his own
- Foxtrots, false starts and fumbles as racing stars channel their inner Strictly - all for a great cause
- Top racing and betting books of 2025: must-reads of the year, from the perfect Christmas gift to tales of old-school punting
- The comeback kid and Cheltenham's first lady - how Bob Olinger and Rachael Blackmore proved the perfect couple
- Eat, sleep, report, repeat: back on duty and back on the naughty step at the Tattersalls December Sale
- Coole Cody: the old prize-fighter who put on a show for everybody and made Cheltenham his own
- Foxtrots, false starts and fumbles as racing stars channel their inner Strictly - all for a great cause