The Brits Travelling In Their Thousands To 'costa Del Cheltenham'

According to recreation retailer On nan Beach, Benidorm is group for nan biggest ever Cheltenham Festival pinch bookings up 65% for nan week compared to past twelvemonth and hotels signaling a 225% summation successful bookings.

So why are group deciding to watch athletics overseas alternatively than astatine nan arena itself?

Those heading to warmer climes constituent to nan lure of sunshine, cheaper nutrient and portion and a much laid-back acquisition free of crowds and queues.

Stephen Dahl, 39, has been going to Benidorm for nan Festival since 2020 aft making nan move owed to expanding costs.

"We utilized to spell to Cheltenham each year," Dahl told BBC Sport. "We would ever get nan lads together, whether we'd tally a coach from Liverpool aliases enactment over, it was our thing.

"We were having to enactment further and further distant from Cheltenham [because of accommodation costs] and past paying £60 for a taxi to a small colony truthful because of that we started doing nan 1 time because it was getting much and much expensive."

In nan end, they chose to effort Benidorm which he says was "not arsenic popular" six years agone arsenic it is now, and contempt a mini summation successful costs since, he believes it is still amended worth for money.

Dahl has not turned his backmost connected racing, successful truth he "goes to much title meetings now" than he did previously, but he says spending "at slightest £150 a day" astatine Cheltenham cannot beryllium justified and that is why he cannot spot himself ever going back.

And pursuing a surge successful fame successful caller years, going to Benidorm has moreover caught nan curiosity of immoderate staunch Cheltenham attendees.

Racing Lee, who presents nan Only Fools Love Horses racing podcast, will beryllium astatine Cheltenham for nan first 2 days of nan Festival, but is past flying retired to Spain to acquisition Thursday and Friday - Gold Cup Day - pinch his friends successful Benidorm.

It will beryllium Lee's first clip going overseas for nan Festival aft attending for 14 years and he has decided to divided his week because he could not bring himself to "miss it all", but he besides wanted to "try nan replacement and spot what others are talking about".

"The wide Festival acquisition is for illustration nary other," he says, "but erstwhile things are half nan value elsewhere? Sometimes you person sewage to return nan value!"

Lee paid £300 for his 2 nights successful Cheltenham erstwhile he booked successful September and it was astir nan aforesaid value for 3 nights successful Benidorm, booking successful January.

"Benidorm offers value, but Cheltenham offers nan existent atmosphere," he added. "So each to their ain and here's to a awesome Festival wherever you whitethorn beryllium watching!"

In an ironic twist, contempt a barren and mild day successful Cheltenham connected nan first time of nan meeting, those who had flown retired to Benidorm sat beneath grey skies and dodged occassional showers.