Formula 1: how much does it cost to go to the Brazilian GP, ​​the closest option even if far in prices for Argentines

Motorsport fans (or not) see the experience of being in a Formula 1 Grand Prix as a once in a lifetime opportunity. If a handful of these people boil down to those living in Argentina, the chances are narrower because the closest run is in Brazil, in Sao Paulo, 2,200 kilometers from Buenos Aires.

Despite this, the Interlagos GP is one of the first to sell out buying a ticket now, a month and a half after the test, boils down to what tourist agencies still hold. And his prices, with an increasingly unfavorable peso-dollar exchange rate, further reduce the number of lucky people who can afford the expense.

The best option to get to Sao Paulo is, of course, the plane, which increases significantly in price every year on the dates of the most important sporting event. This time, the race will take place from 11 to 13 November and on those dates a direct ticket varies between 110 and 120 thousand pesos, depending on whether you decide to arrive one or a couple of days earlier, and to return between Sunday and Monday.

There are cheaper options on different air offer platforms, for example a 90,000 pesos ticket, but there the possibilities of rescheduling and time changes can put your presence on the circuit at risk.

The other variant is the carwhere the best thing is that there are several drivers available so as not to stop along the way to rest and instead make the journey of almost 25 hours at once, in which they will spend some 40 thousand pesos in 218 liters of petrolaccording to the calculation of the specialized site Ruta0.

In micromeanwhile, the price goes up to 65 thousand pesos approximately, although tickets for race days tend to sell out quickly at the Platform 10 site.

Accommodation in Sao Paulo

Either way, you will also need the accommodation, which in São Paulo, one of the most chaotic and busy cities in Brazil, has a varied offer. Around the Interlagos circuit, about 7 kilometers away, can be found on Booking shared rooms for $ 20 per dayas well as hotels at nearly $ 200 a night on a simple basis in higher category hotels such as the Ibis Interlagos.

To this, we must add the transfer adjacent to the José Carlos Pace racetrack, parking payment or, for the more intrepid, the parking at the camper campsomething that most ferreros use all over the world.

The entrances, like the “quente” bread.

Now, what about the tickets? This year, F1 fans have complained about the high ticket prices, following the new furor around the category, due in part to the Netflix series (Drive to Survive) and, basically, to the definition of the last championship, in which Max Verstappen beat Lewis Hamilton on the last date.

When the 2022 season had just begun – and before Verstappen demonstrated the wide dominance he has over Ferrari -, many tickets have been sold out on the Formula 1 website, including the one for Brazil, so there are no reference prices. They are also not available on the website. Global ticketsa German company that usually sells F1 tickets every season around the world.

And now?

Organizing a trip to an F1 race takes time and the willingness to go there for many months before it’s time for the test. A) Yes, avoid falling into resales or tourist agencies. However, the latter appear as an oasis when there are no entrances elsewhere.

It is just a matter of surfing the web to find agencies that still offer options for travel to the Brazilian Grand Prix. There are two variants: tickets for the three days or the complete package with airfare and accommodation.

In the first, the price is $ 1,990 for tickets for all three days in Grandstand N – what is covered by curve 3 (Curva do Sol) -, while in the other you have to pay US $ 3.505 per person. Those prices, quoted with the current card dollar ($ 265), amount to 527,350 and 928,825 pesos.

What costs almost one million pesos includes the flight Buenos Aires-San Pablo-Buenos Aires with only hand luggage, the in / out transfer from the airport to the hotel and also in the circuit for the three days of activity, the hotel in double room with breakfast and ticket to go from Friday to Sunday in Grandstand N.

Agencies also offer the ability to add upgrades and various services that would make the figures even higher.

Meanwhile, on the category website there is still an option in the F1 Experiences, the most expensive and exclusive of each breed. This is the one offered by the Williams team, with seats in the N grandstand and official Williams merchandising at 144,487.45 pesos, without COUNTRY or Perception RG4815 taxes included, which will increase (with current regulations) the price by 65 percent.

In short, going to see this Brazilian Grand Prix is ​​an option for a few Argentines willing to spend close to a million pesos each to live a unique experience – it is true – but in a championship that will reach its penultimate date, certainly already defined. , 24 years after the last F1 GP in Argentina.