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Quick Answer
Royal Ascot tickets start at £25 for the Windsor Enclosure and £80 for Queen Anne. Parking is £45 in advance. Children under 18 go free in three of the four enclosures, up to four per adult. Only Windsor Enclosure guests can bring their own food and drink.
A day at Royal Ascot starts at £25 for a Windsor Enclosure ticket. Add travel, food and a drink and a realistic Windsor day costs somewhere around £70 to £100 per person. The same day in the Queen Anne Enclosure starts at £80 for the ticket and lands closer to £150 to £200 once everything else is counted.
The gap between those two numbers is mostly the ticket and the dress code, not the racing. Here is what each part actually costs, with the published figures separated from the parts that depend on you.
How much are Royal Ascot tickets?
Advertised starting prices for Royal Ascot 2027 are £25 for the Windsor Enclosure, £65 to £70 for the Village Enclosure depending on the day, and £80 for the Queen Anne Enclosure. Royal Enclosure badges cannot be bought at any price, since the enclosure is open only to members and their guests.
| Enclosure | From |
|---|---|
| Windsor | £25 |
| Village (Thu) | £65 |
| Village (Sat) | £70 |
| Queen Anne | £80 |
| Royal | Members only |
These are starting prices and they rise closer to the meeting. Ascot advertised best price tickets for the 2027 meeting as available until 6 October 2026, so booking early is worth real money rather than a small discount.
The Village Enclosure only opens Thursday to Saturday, so it is not an option on Tuesday or Wednesday.
Do children pay to get into Royal Ascot?
Children under 18 get in free to the Queen Anne, Village and Windsor Enclosures and do not need a pre-purchased ticket, provided an adult brings them. A maximum of four children per adult can attend free.
The Royal Enclosure is different. Children aged 10 to 17 must buy admission there, and children under 10 are not permitted in the Royal Enclosure at all.
For a family, this makes Royal Ascot considerably cheaper than most sporting events. Two adults in the Windsor Enclosure with four children between them pay £50 total for admission.
How much is parking at Royal Ascot?
Car parking at Royal Ascot costs £45 in advance and more if you pay on the day. Unlike ordinary Ascot racedays, where parking is free, it must be purchased for the Royal meeting.
Pre-booking closes roughly a week before each raceday, and Ascot advises that accessible parking usually sells out before that. On the day parking is available in Car Park 8, which takes cash and card, or Car Parks 4 and 6, which are cash only.
Blue Badge holders who miss the pre-booking cut off can park free on the day by displaying the badge on entry.
Is it cheaper to get the train to Ascot?
Usually, yes, if you are travelling from London. South Western Railway runs to Ascot from London Waterloo in an average of 52 minutes, from Reading in 27 minutes and from Aldershot in 30 minutes. The station is a seven minute walk from the racecourse.
Oyster and contactless are not valid to or from Ascot station. You need a paper ticket, bought in advance, and Ascot warns that queuing systems and ticket inspectors are likely to be in place.
Against £45 for parking plus fuel, the train is normally the cheaper option for two people and clearly cheaper for one. Driving wins for a group of four sharing a car.
Can you bring your own food and drink to Royal Ascot?
Only in the Windsor Enclosure, and that single fact is the biggest cost lever available.
Windsor Enclosure guests can bring a picnic and one bottle of sparkling wine or champagne per person over 18. Blankets and fold up chairs are allowed there too. Everything must arrive in a hamper or cool bag at first entry, and nothing can be brought in on re-entry.
In the Royal, Queen Anne and Village Enclosures, no food or drink may be brought in at all. Everything comes from the bars and food outlets inside.
So a Windsor day can be a £25 ticket, a picnic from a supermarket and a bottle you brought yourself. A Queen Anne day cannot.
What does the clothing cost?
This is the part that varies most, and where the enclosure choice matters more than the ticket price.
Windsor Enclosure: nothing. There is no official dress code. Wear clothes you own, avoiding trainers, denim, leggings and shorts, which are banned everywhere on site.
Queen Anne and Village: a suit and tie for men, a dress with straps and a hat or fascinator for women. Most people either own something suitable or can buy something they will wear again.
Royal Enclosure: morning dress with a top hat for men. Hiring is the normal route rather than buying, and Ascot names Moss as its official formalwear hire licensee. Women need a hat or a headpiece with a base of at least 4 inches, since fascinators are not permitted there.
The mistake worth avoiding is buying a Queen Anne ticket for the prestige and then discovering the dress code requires clothes you would have to buy. Work out which enclosure suits you, then dress for that one.
What does a day at Royal Ascot really cost?
Two realistic scenarios, with the published costs marked and the rest estimated.
Windsor Enclosure, travelling by train from London, bringing a picnic:
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| Ticket | £25 (published) |
| Return train from Waterloo | Varies, book ahead |
| Picnic and one bottle | What you spend at a supermarket |
| Drinks inside | Optional, bars available |
Queen Anne Enclosure, driving, eating inside:
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| Ticket | £80 (published) |
| Parking | £45 in advance (published) |
| Food and drink inside | Racecourse prices, no outside food permitted |
| Outfit | Suit and tie, or dress and hat |
I have deliberately not invented numbers for the food, drink and travel lines. Ascot does not publish bar or restaurant prices, train fares vary by how far ahead you book, and any figure I put there would be a guess dressed up as research.
What the published numbers do show is that the ticket is not the main variable. The difference between a £25 Windsor day with a picnic and an £80 Queen Anne day with parking and racecourse catering is much larger than the £55 ticket gap suggests.
What is the cheapest way to do Royal Ascot?
Buy a Windsor Enclosure ticket early, take the train, and bring a picnic and a bottle of champagne.
That gets you trackside on the straight mile, watching the best flat racing in the world, with no dress code and no catering bill. You give up Parade Ring viewing and Grandstand access, which is a real trade off if seeing the horses up close matters to you.
If it does, the Queen Anne Enclosure is the cheapest ticket that includes Parade Ring and Grandstand access, and there is no way around paying for it.
Related guides
- Royal Ascot enclosures: what each one costs and admits you to
- An ordinary Ascot raceday vs Royal Ascot
- Racecourse tickets explained
Sources: Ticket prices, parking charges, children's admission, picnic rules and travel times are published by Ascot at ascot.com, checked in September 2026 for the 2027 meeting. Prices are advertised starting prices and rise closer to the event. Food, drink and travel costs are not published by the racecourse and are not estimated here.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much are Royal Ascot tickets?
Advertised starting prices for 2027 are £25 for the Windsor Enclosure, £65 to £70 for the Village Enclosure and £80 for the Queen Anne Enclosure. Royal Enclosure badges cannot be bought and are for members and their guests only.
How much is parking at Royal Ascot?
£45 in advance, and more on the day. Parking is free at ordinary Ascot racedays but must be purchased for Royal Ascot. Pre-booking closes about a week before each raceday.
Do children pay to get into Royal Ascot?
Children under 18 enter the Queen Anne, Village and Windsor Enclosures free without a pre-purchased ticket, up to four children per adult. In the Royal Enclosure, 10 to 17 year olds must buy admission and under 10s are not permitted.
What is the cheapest way to do Royal Ascot?
A Windsor Enclosure ticket booked early at £25, travelling by train, and bringing a picnic with one bottle of champagne per person. Windsor is the only enclosure where you can bring your own food and drink.
Is it cheaper to take the train to Ascot?
Usually, from London. Trains from Waterloo take about 52 minutes and the station is a seven minute walk away, against £45 for parking plus fuel. Note that Oyster and contactless are not valid to Ascot, so you need a paper ticket.
