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A day at Ascot for the Clarence House Chase with elevated grandstand dining.
4.9
73 reviews
Clients praised the excellent food, professional staff, and live band that created a memorable day
Clients praised the excellent food, professional staff, and live band that created a memorable day
4.9
(73)
Ascot Racecourse
18°
Mixed with showers
Our best tips
Chase Raceday falls in the UK winter, so expect cold temperatures. Pack a warm coat and hat if you're watching outdoors. Our hospitality suites keep you warm inside with full views of the racing.
No formal dress code is required in either enclosure for Chase Raceday however like all Ascot meets, smart dressing is encouraged. Many guests opt for a winter coat and hat also due to the time of year during the jump season.
Book the ON 5 Restaurant for Chase Raceday. You get a private balcony with panoramic track views, an indoor fallback if the weather turns, a 3-course meal, and afternoon tea.
Getting you on track
Completely hands-off from start to finish
Tell us what you're after and we'll plan the rest. All you have to do is show up.
Everything you need at your fingertips
Store all your event information, tickets, and contact details in one convenient place
Add personal touches to your trip
Make a request and our team will do everything they can to make it happen
An Imperial host walks the paddock with you. One person, one number, the whole weekend.
Pick the experience, pick the tier, pick the day. Your account manager handles the rest.
Getting around
Most UK venues are accessible by rail. Your ICE booking confirmation will include the nearest station and any shuttle services running on event day.
Taxis and ride-hailing services are widely available across UK cities. Your ICE events manager can arrange a private chauffeur if preferred.
Your ICE booking confirmation will include driving directions and parking information. Pre-booking parking is recommended for major events.
Ascot's jump season runs through the winter months, offering a different character entirely from the summer flat programme. The centrepiece of Chase Raceday is the Ascot Chase, a Grade 1 steeplechase inaugurated in 1995 that has become one of the most important mid-season tests for staying chasers. Run over two miles and five furlongs on Ascot's right-handed track, it regularly attracts Cheltenham Festival contenders sharpening up for March.
I'm a jump jockey. I can't believe I've won this.
There is no better racecourse in the world than Ascot.
A queen on horseback chose this heath in 1711; royal patronage has never left.
While out riding near Windsor, Queen Anne spotted a stretch of open heath she considered ideal for racing. The first meeting took place on 11 August 1711, with Her Majesty's Plate the inaugural race. The course has been under royal patronage ever since, a distinction no other British racecourse holds.
Winter jumping found its true home at Ascot in the 1960s; the terrain had always made the argument.
National Hunt racing had been staged at Ascot intermittently for decades, but the 1960s saw the programme formalised with the introduction of significant races including the Long Walk Hurdle in 1965. The course's undulating terrain and stiff fences made it a natural home for quality jump racing, and the winter fixtures quickly attracted strong fields.
A mid-season gap, neatly filled; the Ascot Chase arrived in 1995 as the bridge between Christmas and Cheltenham.
The inaugural Ascot Chase was staged as a limited handicap steeplechase, run over approximately two miles and five furlongs. It filled a gap in the mid-season programme, giving trainers a high-quality option between the Christmas fixtures and the Cheltenham Festival. The race quickly established itself as a key trial for the spring festivals.
Grade 1 status, earned in just four years; trainers were already circling it as a Cheltenham trial.
Just four years after its inception, the Ascot Chase was upgraded to Grade 1, the highest classification in National Hunt racing. The promotion reflected the quality of horses the race was attracting and cemented its position as one of the premier mid-season chases in the calendar. Trainers began targeting it specifically as a Cheltenham Gold Cup or Queen Mother Champion Chase trial.
A 400-metre grandstand, built from scratch in under two years. Some renovations, and then some.
Ascot embarked on a complete rebuild of its grandstand and facilities, designed by HOK Sport. The project took 20 months and the course reopened in 2006 with a striking modern grandstand stretching over 400 metres. During the closure, Ascot's jump fixtures were temporarily relocated, but the Ascot Chase returned to its home track for the 2006/07 season with facilities transformed beyond recognition.
Sprinter Sacre was virtually untouchable that season; Ascot's winter programme had become unmissable.
Nicky Henderson's brilliant two-mile chaser Sprinter Sacre won the Clarence House Chase at Ascot in January 2013, part of a season in which he was virtually untouchable. His performances at Ascot and elsewhere reminded racegoers why the course's winter programme matters: it is where the best chasers in training prove themselves before the spring festivals. Ascot's jump fixtures had become essential viewing.
Dashel Drasher proved the Ascot Chase belongs to brave front-runners, not big yards.
Jeremy Scott-trained Dashel Drasher won the 2021 Ascot Chase, a result that showed the race's capacity to produce stories beyond the big yards. Ridden by Matt Griffiths, the gelding held off Master Tommytucker to win at odds that reflected his ability rather than his profile. It was a reminder that the Ascot Chase rewards bold, front-running horses who handle the track's demands.
Pic D'Orhy made the Ascot Chase his personal property, winning it back-to-back under Paul Nicholls.
Paul Nicholls-trained Pic D'Orhy won the Ascot Chase in both 2024 and 2025, establishing himself as a course specialist. His back-to-back victories demonstrated the kind of consistency that defines the best staying chasers, and he became only the latest in a line of horses to make the race their own.
Jonbon dethroned the defending champion to announce himself as the finest chaser of his generation.
Nicky Henderson's Jonbon won the 2026 Ascot Chase, beating the defending champion Pic D'Orhy into second. The victory underlined the race's status as a meeting point for the season's best chasers and confirmed Jonbon's credentials as one of the outstanding jumpers of his generation. Chase Raceday continues to draw serious horses and serious racegoers to Berkshire each February.
