F1 Hospitality Explained: Paddock Club, Champions Club, F1 Garage and Pit Lane Walks

"Hospitality" at a Grand Prix covers everything from a £419 Friday in Silverstone's Racing Green to a ¥1.2 million Paddock Club weekend at Suzuka. The names overlap, two official sellers use some of the same ones, and a "pit lane walk" and "paddock access" are different things that get mixed up in marketing. This is what each product includes, who sells it officially, and what the 2027 races we checked charge.

Who sells it

There are three kinds of official seller, and the same race usually has all three:

1. Formula 1's official F1 ticket store, which sells race tickets and hospitality packages; its safety notice covers "race tickets and Paddock Club™ tickets". On 30 October, 14 of the 24 races in its 2027 list were waitlist-only.
2. F1 Experiences, Formula 1's official ticket-and-travel package seller. It sells Paddock Club packages, its own Champions Club, the F1 Garage, and grandstand packages with extras such as a pit lane walk, optionally with hotels and transfers.
3. The circuit's own hospitality. Silverstone, Miami, Spa, Singapore and Mexico City, among others, sell their own clubs and suites. Some also sell the Paddock Club directly: Miami, COTA and Spa list it, and Suzuka sells it as the official sales agent.

American Express adds a fourth channel at some races: the Amex early-access portal describes Paddock Club hospitality "from private American Express suites at select races" and separate Amex Hospitality spaces for Card Members.

The Paddock Club

F1 Experiences' Paddock Club page lists these inclusions:

• The Paddock Club itself, positioned to watch pre-race preparations, post-race celebrations and strategy unfold.
• Food and drink: chef-prepared menus and open bars with champagne, beer, wine and soft drinks throughout each day.
• Daily Aramco F1 pit lane walks, with a close view of the team garages while mechanics prepare the cars.
• F1 insider appearances from drivers, media or team executives.
• Access to the F1 Paddock, the teams' weekend base.
• Podium celebration access, with its Legend packages only.

F1 Experiences calls these sample inclusions that change by race, and the circuit versions differ:

The Miami line is the one to remember: a Paddock Club pass there gets you onto the pit lane, not into the paddock.

Champions Club

Champions Club is F1 Experiences' own hospitality. It lists:

• Views from trackside suites, or a reserved grandstand seat, depending on the race.
• Snacks and chef-prepared meals, with beer, wine and soft drinks each day, plus simulators and live entertainment.
• A guided F1 paddock tour with an expert host.
• F1 insider appearances.
• A grid walk and a photo with the Formula 1 World Championship trophy.

So Champions Club gets you into the paddock on a guided tour, and onto the grid, while the Paddock Club gives you the daily pit lane walks and a paddock pass. On 30 October the Champions Club page listed Champions Club or similar hospitality for 2027 at Spa, Monza, Madrid, Monaco, Montreal, Suzuka and Melbourne, among others.

F1 Garage

The F1 Garage puts the hospitality inside a garage on the pit lane. F1 Experiences lists views from the garage, a three-day F1 Paddock pass, podium celebration access, menus by Gordon Ramsay, appearances by F1 ambassadors, a photo safari during an active session, the Club Lounge presented by American Express inside the Paddock Club, and an Aramco F1 pit lane walk.

Pit lane walk, grid walk, paddock: what each one is

• Pit lane walk: a walk along the pit lane in front of the team garages, at set times before a track session. F1 Experiences describes "a close-up view of the F1 Team Garages to watch the mechanics prepare the cars".
• Grid walk: time on the starting grid itself. In F1 Experiences' Champions Club it comes with a photo with the championship trophy.
• Paddock access: entry to the paddock behind the garages, each team's base for the weekend, where F1 Experiences says you may get a selfie with drivers. It comes either as a pass (Paddock Club, F1 Garage) or as a guided tour (Champions Club).

You cannot buy a paddock pass on its own at most races. Monza says paddock passes are not on sale to the public, Suzuka says the same, and Melbourne's promoter says pit lane walks are not for sale.

Getting a pit lane walk without hospitality

Two 2027 examples where the pit lane walk comes with a grandstand ticket rather than a hospitality suite:

• Spa: the promoter's Silver 6 and Pitlane Walk ticket, Thursday to Sunday, €490, with profits to charity.
• Silverstone: F1 Experiences' 2027 Pit Lane package pairs a Friday to Sunday grandstand seat with a Thursday promoter pit lane walk, inner track access and the T1 afterparty, listed from US$1,999.

F1 Experiences' Starter and Hero packages at several 2027 races (Miami, Spa, Monza, Madrid, Suzuka) also include an Aramco F1 pit lane walk.

What circuit hospitality costs

If the view and the food matter more than the pit lane, a circuit's own club can cost far less than its Paddock Club. Published 2027 starting prices:

Each race guide in this series lists what that circuit publishes. Our take: decide first whether you want to see the garages up close. If you do, look for the words "pit lane walk" in the inclusions, and if you also want the paddock, look for "paddock access" or "paddock tour" separately. If neither matters, a circuit club is usually the cheaper way to eat well and sit somewhere good.

For when each race's tickets and hospitality go on sale, see the F1 2027 on-sale dates hub. For how to get in early, see the presales guide.