on the road to barcelona with antonela pounder
Does the spanish sunshine tempt you into attending the Spanish GP? Well the weather certainly tempted Antonela who took the trip to the Catalunian circuit for the pre-season testing earlier this year. You can view her thoughts and advice here through her diary of the trip!
Antonela's (@McLaren_Lew_F1) Story:
Pre-seasontesting is an event that doesn’t offer exciting racing, but gives any motorsport fan the chance to get to witness and hear an F1 car within metres away. It gives fans a chance to support their favourite teams, and see what they get up to in the pit lane. What was first a dream, soon turned into a reality when me, my boyfriend and 2 friend of mine booked tickets and went to Barcelona in March 2012 (2-4th) First things first, I would highly recommend it to any F1 fan. The chance to sit in grandstand that would cost over 250euros on
race day cost 15-20euros a day in testing. Here is a breakdown of my weekend away at Barcelona!
Antonela's (@McLaren_Lew_F1) Story:
Pre-seasontesting is an event that doesn’t offer exciting racing, but gives any motorsport fan the chance to get to witness and hear an F1 car within metres away. It gives fans a chance to support their favourite teams, and see what they get up to in the pit lane. What was first a dream, soon turned into a reality when me, my boyfriend and 2 friend of mine booked tickets and went to Barcelona in March 2012 (2-4th) First things first, I would highly recommend it to any F1 fan. The chance to sit in grandstand that would cost over 250euros on
race day cost 15-20euros a day in testing. Here is a breakdown of my weekend away at Barcelona!
the details of her trip
Flight Cost:Ryanair £80ish return
Flight Length: 2 hours 10 minutes Hotel: Hotel Sidorme (Mollet del Valles) Hotel Cost: 33 euros per couple per night including breakfast. FreeWi-Fi. Distance from Circuit: 10 minutes Distance from Airport: 40 minutes Circuit Admission: 15 euros - Weekday. 20 euros – Weekend |
day 1
Waking up incredibly early – mainly due to excitement, it was time to check we had everything and head to the airport. First things first however, McDonalds breakfast! Flying to Barcelona was a first for all of us! As we only took hand luggage, this meant we could get from A to B without the waiting.
Regarding ourchoice of airline, Ryanair was fantastic to travel with. This is a company that I would highly recommend due to the fact they were cheap, on time and the staff were incredibly friendly. Getting to Barcelona 2 hours later, we were greeted with fabulous sunshine and a taxi to take us to our hotel.
Everything ran incredibly smoothly. Our taxi driver did suggest we start supporting Alonso! However,as a loyal Lewis Hamilton and McLaren fan, this was not going to happen.
The journey time from the airport to Hotel Sidorme was around 40 minutes. We found the hotel very clean, and surprisingly cheap. The staff were so friendly, and even organised taxis to take us to the circuit. Their free Wi-Fi proved incredibly beneficial, as I could talk with F1 fans on Twitter in the evenings about my time at the circuit that day. Each room is equipped with a bathroom, towels,flat screen TV, desk and a window. We opted for the breakfast in the mornings. This was brilliant! From cereal to croissants, to cheese, ham and continental breads, the food available was brilliant, and ensured we got to the circuit on a full stomach.
The taxisare expensive in Spain. Cannot remember the exact cost, but we spent a lot on them over the course of the weekend. At around 15 euros each way, it is fair tosay train is the cheaper option. (For those interested, the train station is a 10-15 minute walk away from this hotel and VERY cheap. Also allows easy access into Barcelona city centre.)
After a busy day travelling, it was time for some sleep, before heading to the circuit on the Saturday.
Regarding ourchoice of airline, Ryanair was fantastic to travel with. This is a company that I would highly recommend due to the fact they were cheap, on time and the staff were incredibly friendly. Getting to Barcelona 2 hours later, we were greeted with fabulous sunshine and a taxi to take us to our hotel.
Everything ran incredibly smoothly. Our taxi driver did suggest we start supporting Alonso! However,as a loyal Lewis Hamilton and McLaren fan, this was not going to happen.
The journey time from the airport to Hotel Sidorme was around 40 minutes. We found the hotel very clean, and surprisingly cheap. The staff were so friendly, and even organised taxis to take us to the circuit. Their free Wi-Fi proved incredibly beneficial, as I could talk with F1 fans on Twitter in the evenings about my time at the circuit that day. Each room is equipped with a bathroom, towels,flat screen TV, desk and a window. We opted for the breakfast in the mornings. This was brilliant! From cereal to croissants, to cheese, ham and continental breads, the food available was brilliant, and ensured we got to the circuit on a full stomach.
The taxisare expensive in Spain. Cannot remember the exact cost, but we spent a lot on them over the course of the weekend. At around 15 euros each way, it is fair tosay train is the cheaper option. (For those interested, the train station is a 10-15 minute walk away from this hotel and VERY cheap. Also allows easy access into Barcelona city centre.)
After a busy day travelling, it was time for some sleep, before heading to the circuit on the Saturday.
day 2
As a huge McLaren supporter, I was keen to get a good spot in the main grandstand across from the garage. With my #BelieveInMcLaren banners at the ready, we all had our breakfast, got in a taxi and arrived at the circuit a short time later. Tickets do not have to be pre-booked, as they can be bought at many of the circuit’s entrances depending on where you get dropped off.
We arrived at the circuit at around 8am, toallow us time to familiarise ourselves with our surroundings and get a decent spot before the cars fired up their engines. The circuit wasn’t so busy whatsoever, that was until Sunday, when the hero of Spain got into his Ferrari! I’m speaking about Fernando Alonso of course!
The track temperature was quite low. It almost felt like Britain! However, we were in Barcelona, watching Formula 1 cars, cheering on the McLaren guys, so had no excuse to complain. Goosebumps soon came when we heard the cars make their way around the circuit for the first time. Gosh I love that sound!!!
We arrived at the circuit at around 8am, toallow us time to familiarise ourselves with our surroundings and get a decent spot before the cars fired up their engines. The circuit wasn’t so busy whatsoever, that was until Sunday, when the hero of Spain got into his Ferrari! I’m speaking about Fernando Alonso of course!
The track temperature was quite low. It almost felt like Britain! However, we were in Barcelona, watching Formula 1 cars, cheering on the McLaren guys, so had no excuse to complain. Goosebumps soon came when we heard the cars make their way around the circuit for the first time. Gosh I love that sound!!!
After spending some time across from the garages, watching the teams work on their new babies, we made our way around the circuit. As many know, I am a lover of photography. This circuit gave me many great opportunities to get some decent photos. All can be viewed on my Flickr site.
In terms of the circuit area itself, this was clean, easy to get around, with food and drinks available at the numerous stands scattered around. There is plenty of merchandise to purchase too, at very reasonable prices. The shops were situated behind the main grandstand. |
Jenson Button was driving that day and we were keen to get him to see us showing out support.We got a wave from him when he was on his lunch break, which made us smile! McLaren’s @TheFifthDriver gave me a tweet too, which made my day!
In terms of food, I can only suggest you either take your own or be prepared to spend. Circuit food prices are high, but it is amazing to be fair. To get back to wherever you are stopping, taxis are available around the circuit, but train is also a good option.
After a busy 8+ hour day watching and listening to F1 cars, we headed out of the circuitaround 5-6pm. A visit to Barcelona city centre in the evening made our weekend that more special. I highly recommend it, such a beautiful city!
In terms of food, I can only suggest you either take your own or be prepared to spend. Circuit food prices are high, but it is amazing to be fair. To get back to wherever you are stopping, taxis are available around the circuit, but train is also a good option.
After a busy 8+ hour day watching and listening to F1 cars, we headed out of the circuitaround 5-6pm. A visit to Barcelona city centre in the evening made our weekend that more special. I highly recommend it, such a beautiful city!
day 3
As this was only a weekend trip, we had to leave on the Sunday evening. Lewis Hamilton was driving for McLaren that day, so I really wanted to see him in the car.
Yet again,we hung up our banners to show our support and watched the teams make the most of the last day of pre-season testing before the start of the 2012 F1 World Championship. My #BelieveInMcLaren banners were noticed by a few again, including a few members of the McLaren team! We got a wave from a few of the team members too. Again, we would spend most of the day across from the garages, but we did walk around areas of the track to watch the cars at a lower speed. There are some amazing spots around the circuit, especially if you ever opt for GA. Some of my most successful photos were taken at GA spots. |
As our flight was around 5pm, we were able to stay at the circuit until around lunchtime. From here, we headed back to our hotel, got in our pre-booked taxi and headed back to Barcelona airport. From here, it was a very straight forward journey home. No delays, no issues, so thank you Ryanair. Budget airlines don’t get as much praise as they deserve. We would certainly book with them again.
Arriving back in the UK in the evening, it was time to get back to reality.What.A.Weekend. It’s so strange to think that you can just get on a plane, go to Barcelona, watch some F1, and get back to the UK in a couple of days.
If you want to experience some F1 action outside of the UK, but can’t afford a full-on race weekend, I would highly recommend pre-season testing. How often do you get to listen and watch F1 cars, teams and drivers for over 8 hours at a time during a day?! Not many! Certainly a weekend to remember! Oh and one last thing… If you have a ticket already booked for the Spanish GP, as far as I am aware you are entitled to a pit-walk during lunch break. We saw many people doing this during the course of the time we spent at the circuit. |
If you would like to ask Antonela more about her adventure and her advice please tweet her at : @McLaren_Lew_F1 .
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You can also view more of her photography on her Flickr site at:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/antonela1989/sets/72157629152787804/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/antonela1989/sets/72157629152787804/