I sat in the GE18 grandstand at the Madring Formula 1 circuit for the Spanish Grand Prix in Madrid.
I’ve put together this review of the GE18 grandstand, and I’ll share my thoughts on what it’s like to sit in this stand. I’ve included a video which shows the views from a number of different seats, my thoughts on where the best seats are in the stand, a full seating chart and tips how to buy Spanish Grand Prix tickets for much less than the official price, just like I did.
GE18 grandstand location
Grandstand GE18 is on the left hand side (inside) of the Madring circuit at Turn 14. To its left is grandstand GE19 and sadly, directly to its right, is a massive bridge over the track which as you’ll see in the video lower down this page blocks your view completely.
Turn 14 is quite a fast right-hander which is narrow and a difficult place to overtake, like the rest of the circuit! You’re unlikely to see much on-track action here other than the cars coming through Turn 14 and heading down towards Turn 15 at a decent speed.
Zone
GE18 is in the Madring Norte (North) half of the circuit and specifically it’s situated in the Distrito Fan Zone. This is the biggest fan zone at the track meaning there’s a lot of other things to see and do here when you’re not in the stand.
You should use the E gates to access this grandstand. However when I arrived at the track I was actually on the other side near Turn 10 and closer to the D gates. I tried entering there but security wouldn’t let me, so I had to walk all the way around the permiter of the track on the streets for another 30 minutes to get there, which was annoying.
Ideally, the best way to get to GE18 and the E gates at the Madring F1 circuit would be to go to the Valdebabas train station which is a short 5 minute walk away. But at the end of the day there will be massive lines of people trying to leave using that station. I couldn’t face those queues, so I walked to the San Lorenzo metro station which was about 30 minutes away, and when I got there there was no queue at all.
GE18 is classified as part of the the Curva 14B Bronze grandstand on the Madring website. It’s in Zone E which is part of the Curvas enlazadas area of the track.
Confusingly the Curva 14B stand isn’t just just one grandstand, it’s actually made up of grandstands GE18 and 19.
Grandstand tickets - Madring F1
I bought my weekend ticket for the Formula 1 race in Madrid for around half the official cost on the ViaGoGo ticket platform.
I bought my tickets pretty late -just 1 week before the race weekend – but ViaGoGo is great for last-minute purchases like mine as they always have a great selection of tickets available right up until the end of the Grand Prix weekend, even if they are sold out everywhere else.
They also offer one-day tickets which are cheaper and can give you the flexibility to try different stands on different days of the weekend.
As well as for this trip to see F1 at the Madring I’ve used ViaGoGo loads of times during the past few seasons to buy my Formula 1 tickets, including for my recent trips to watch the Montreal and Silverstone Grand Prix. I’ve always had a great experience buying with them and I’ll be happy to do so again next time.
Grandstand details
TV Screens
There’s one big TV screen visible from this stand. It’s on the opposite side of the track and a little way to the left, so those in the higher seat numbers have a better view of it.
Seats
The seats are plastic chairs.
Cover
This grandstand has no shade so you’re completely exposed to the sun all day long.
It faces South West, so the sun will be right in your face all afternoon pretty much until it sets. And to be honest it was too hot here in mid-afternoon, so when the F1 cars weren’t on track me and pretty much everyone else left their seats and went to to seek some shade in the fan zone.
Grandstand GE18 seating chart
Below is the seating chart for Grandstand GE18 at the Madring Formula 1 circuit.
The grandstand has 27 rows – Row 1 is at the front and Row 27 is higher up at the back.
The stand is 90 seats wide. Seat numbers increase from left to right if you stand on the track looking at this grandstand.
Accommodation
If you’re heading to Madrid for the F1 weekend and need somewhere to stay, the map below shows accommodation options surrounding the Madring circuit itself (blue pin). The track is a short way outside of the city, but staying close by is a good idea if you want to try and avoid the massive queues for train stations at the end of each day.
Alternatively you could do what I did which was stay in the centre of Madrid then commute to and from the track each day. That way at least you can enjoy the city’s nightlife, bars and restaurants when you’re not at the GP.
Have a look around the map below to see all of the different places to stay and their location around the track:
View
On the circuit map below the parts of the track you can see from this stand are shown in green:
The worst thing about sitting in this stand is the massive pedestrian bridge over the track at Turn 14 that’s directly to the right of you:
This blocks your view of the cars leaving Turn 13 and approaching Turn 14. The closer you sit to the bridge the worse it gets:
If you sit in seat numbers 40 and up, actually choosing the lower rows (10 and below) allows you to see under the bridge and down towards the exit of Turn 13.
As you look to the left you’ll see the cars head towards Turn 15 and you’ll lose them out of sight just as they turn in to the corner. In the highest seat numbers (80 – 90) in rows 15 and up the grandstand to the left blocks your view of Turn 15 slightly.
In the video below I’ve filmed the view from a number of different seats to show you how it changes, and how badly the bridge can obstruct your view to the right in some seats.
The clips in this video were filmed from the following seats:
- Seat 1 Row 11
- Seat 1 Row 20
- Seat 31 Row 24
- Seat 36 Row 9
- Seat 53 Row 27
- Seat 58 Row 3
- Seat 60 Row 14
- Seat 79 Row 12
- Seat 81 Row 15
- Seat 90 Row 27
Best seats
The best seats in grandstand GE18 at the Madring are those which allow you to see under the bridge down towards the exit of Turn 13. For that, you need seat numbers 40 and above in rows 1 to 10.
Avoid seat numbers 1 to 20 in rows 1 to 20 as the bridge will massively obstruct your view in those seats.
