I had Montreal Grand Prix General Admission tickets last year. I walked around the whole circuit and found every single GA viewing point, and this is my full review and guide to being a General Admission spectator at the Montreal F1 race.
General Admission tickets are the cheapest way to access Circuit Gilles Villeneuve during the Formula 1 weekend to watch some of the action.
But as this article will show, the views as a General Admission ticket holder at the Canadian Grand Prix aren’t the best. So it’s probably worth spending the extra on a grandstand seat.
This article provides a lot of extra information and tips to help you plan your day. It includes a list of things to bring, info on food & drink, money what time to arrive and lots more.
Contents
Montreal Grand Prix General Admission Tickets
General Admission tickets are the cheapest way to access the Montreal Formula 1 race, but that means they’re also some of the first to sell out on the official Canadian GP website.
If that’s the case but you still want tickets, you can do what I did and buy Canadian F1 tickets through Stubhub. instead. But check out the options for grandstand seats on there too – you can find single-day tickets at very reasonable prices, especially on the Friday and Saturday.
I used Stubhub for my Canadian GP tickets tickets last year and purchased them around 2 weeks before the race weekend. Grandstand ticket holders have access to all the General Admission areas, and I bought a cheap Friday-only ticket on there for Grandstand 47 for just $38CAD – cheaper than an official GA ticket!
Their FanProtect guarantee is solid and keeps your money safe. They always have a huge number of GA and grandstand tickets available in the lead up to the Montreal F1 race.
Check out the Canadian Grand Prix Schedule to get an idea of everything that’s taking place on each day.
Zone access
A General Admission ticket for the Canadian Grand Prix gives you access to the circuit venue and all zones except the Blue Zone and VIP zones.
General Admission tickets at Montreal do not give you access to any of the grandstands.
CGV Experience
New this year are the CGV experience tickets. These are General Admission tickets with the added benefit of getting access to the Beach platform where you’ll be able to watch the racing on a big screen during the day, then there’ll be some live music concerts in the evening.
If you have normal General Admission or grandstand tickets, however, you cannot access the concerts unless you purchase an add-on. See my full guide to accessing the music concerts at the Canadian GP for more info, and details of this year’s lineup.
Getting to the Montreal Grand Prix
See my comprehensive Canada GP travel guide for information and tips on how to get to the circuit and which methods of travel to use.
There are four different entrances around the track and the one you use should be based on where you plan on viewing the racing from. See my guide to the Montreal F1 entrance gates for more information.
Montreal Grand Prix General Admission views
Unfortunately Circuit Gilles Villeneuve isn’t a great place to be a General Admission spectator. The circuit is completely flat which means you’re always viewing from ground level, and often there’s two fences that you have to look through.
Plus the grandstands have increased in size and number over the years, taking up some of the better viewing spots. The remaining view points are pretty limited and it’s almost always a challenge to find a spot where you can see some of the action.
The map below shows all of the Montreal F1 General Admission viewpoints around the circuit highlighted in blue.
I walked around the whole circuit to check out every single General Admission viewing spot, and the verdict wasn’t good. All the GA viewing spots have very limited views of the circuit, only a couple have views of TV screens and they all get incredibly busy, so if you want to stand a chance of actually seeing anything from them you have to get there super early (before gates open) on Saturday and Sunday.
I’ve put together the video below showing the views from every spot, so you can get an idea of what to expect. These views correspond to the blue squares on the map above.
Best General Admission view
From checking out all of the General Admission viewpoints at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, my favourite was the one to the right of the Lance Stroll Grandstand at the Turn 10 hairpin. From there you could see the hairpin itself where you’re likely to see some overtaking, and you could also see the main TV screen. Plus there’s a huge selection of food and drinks vendors right behind it.
However, it wasn’t just my favourite spot. It seemed to be everyone else’s as well, so if you want to sit or stand here on race day you’ll have to get there super early.
Is Montreal Grand Prix General Admission worth it?
If you’re hoping to see some good racing action then Montreal Grand Prix General Admission is not worth it.
Hopefully my video above has given you a feel for what it’s like to be a General Admission spectator at the Montreal Grand Prix. Not great.
The views are very limited and you’ll always be battling a big crowd, especially on race day, to try and get a good spot.
If you can snap up some of the cheaper grandstand tickets then I would 100% recommend doing that. Some of the stands around the hairpin like Grandstand 46 and Grandstand 47 are only ~$30 CAD more than the GA ticket, and guarantee TV screen visibility.
Commentary at the Canadian Grand Prix
The live commentary at the circuit is in French and English. Hearing it depends on how close you are to a speaker and how much the sound of the cars drowns it out. Usually it’s very difficult to hear.
There are large TVs in the F1 Fan Zone to sit and watch the action on if you don’t get a spot near the track.
Failing that, bring a little FM radio and try and tune in to a sports station to get the commentary instead. The internet and phone signal can be pretty bad so don’t rely on getting a live stream up on your phone.
Try the FM frequencies below, thanks to hotfries44 on reddit for this tip:
Comment
by u/hotfries44 from discussion A Guide to the Canadian Grand Prix
in GrandPrixTravel
Walking around
Most of the spectators pathways within the Canadian Grand Prix enclosure are paved. However, you often find yourself having to cut across some grass and if it rains this is likely to be muddy. Make sure you bring shoes you are happy to get dirty.
Also, there is a surprising amount of walking to be done. If you are planning on getting over towards the start / finish straight it’s one heck of a walk from the Concorde or Cosmos entrance. It can take over an hour with all the people around you. So make sure your shoes are comfy as well.
On my day at the Montreal Grand Prix I did over 32,000 steps – more than 22km of walking!
Water Refill Points
You can bring your own water bottles in to the Montreal Grand Prix. There are water bottle refill stations dotted around Circuit Gilles Villeneuve and there were a fair number of these.
It’s worth bringing as much water as you can carry as there’s nothing worse than running out, although you can also buy it (at a high cost) from the food and drink vendors on site.
Food and Drink at the Montreal Grand Prix
You can bring your own food and drink to the Canadian Grand Prix and it’s definitely worth doing so, to help save you money on the vendors within the circuit. If you don’t have time to prepare your own, even stopping at a nearby market on the way to the track to pick up some snacks is worthwhile.
You are not allowed to bring your own alcohol in to the Montreal F1 circuit. You have to purchase it from the trackside bars.
The price of food and drink at the merchants within the circuit was been surprisingly reasonable. Here are some example prices from the last Canadian Grand Prix:
- Coffee – $5 CAD
- Water – $6.25 CAD
- Soft drink – $6 .50CAD
- Gatorade – $7.25 CAD
- Heineken 500ml – $15.95 CAD
- Heineken 0.0% 330ml – $13.50 CAD
- Spirit cocktail – $14.50 CAD
- Wine – $14.50 CAD
- Chips – $4.50 CAD
- Hot dog with Maple and Cider sausage – $10 CAD
- Caesar Salad – $16.00 CAD
- Sushi rolls – $18 CAD
- Poke bowl – $23 CAD
- Chicken shawarma pita – $14.50 CAD
- Portugese chicken sandwich – $20 CAD
- Classic Poutine – $16.50 CAD
There’s a full list of food options at this year’s race here.
One of the nicest spots to grab some food is on the steps behind the Lance Stroll stand. There’s a whole row of food vendors here. If the weather’s nice sitting on the steps and looking out over the water is a nice place to take a break.
Toilets
Most of the toilets around the circuit are portacabins. These can run out of toilet paper over the course of a day so pack your own, or bring wetwipes, just in case. But there are some much nicer ones between Grandstand 15 and the Lance Stroll Grandstand.
Bag Policy at the Canadian Grand Prix
You are allowed to bring backpacks and coolers in to the Montreal Grand Prix. The circuit states they must be of the following maximum size:
Height: 22.8 cm (9 in)
Length: 45.7 cm (18 in)
Depth: 25.4 cm (10 in)
The reality is that as long as you don’t try and bring something ridiculously huge, you’ll probably be allowed in ok. They will search you bag on entry just to check for any of the prohibited items.
What to do around the circuit
There are a number of different things to see and do when you’re not watching the racing. You can do all of these whether you’re a Montral Grand Prix general admission ticket holder, or a grandstand seat ticket holder.
- F1 Fan Zone: Includes a reaction time challenge, pit stop challenge, driving simulators, merchandise stands, virtual F1 driver selfies and more
- The Casino: Inside the circuit is a huge casino that’s open across the whole Canadian GP weekend
- Heineken Terrace: Enjoy a beer. In 2023 Martin Garrix played here after the race.
- Support race paddock: See the other race cars behind Grandstand 15
What to bring to the Montreal Grand Prix
Below is a list of items you should considering bringing to the Canadian Grand Prix:
General
- Tickets – printed or easily available on your phone
- Money – Montreal F1 is cashless so bring cards, but cash is handy for stuff outside the circuit
- Rucksack
Weather protection
- Sun screen (even if it’s not sunny it helps stop wind burn)
- UV protection lip balm
- Sun hat / cap
- Sun glasses
- Waterproof everything – jacket / trousers / cagoule, even a waterproof rucksack (or cover) can help keep your belongings dry
- Waterproof poncho is a good idea as it can cover your backpack too
- Umbrella (not allowed in the grandstands, only for General Admission)
- Warm clothes
- Windproof clothes / snood
- Gloves
- Thick socks
- Waterproof shoes / boots that you don’t mind getting dirty and are comfortable
- Hand warmers
Electronics
- Fully charged phone
- Pay for F1 TV and download the app for the weekend so you can watch / listen to live coverage and commentary (although signal can be patchy)
- In-ear headphones to connect to your phone
- Small FM radio to listen to the commentary on 99.1 or 90.7 FM
- A set of noise cancelling over-ear headphones to go over the top of the in-ear headphones from the radio helps cancel out the noise of the cars so you can hear the commentary more easily.
- Battery bank / power pack
- Still camera with zoom lens
- Video camera
- Spare camera batteries
- Spare memory cards
Spectating
- Folding camping chair(s) / stools – essential for General Admission viewing
- Ear plugs or ear defenders, especially for young kids
- Picnic rug or something waterproof to put on the ground to sit on
- Cushion (equally useful on grandstand seats)
- Pushchair for young children
Food / drink
- Food – you are allowed to bring your own food in to Montreal. There are lots of food vendors but they all serve similar stuff and can be a little pricey, so bringing your own can be cheaper, better and more varied.
- Drinks – You are allowed to bring your own soft drinks and water, but no alcohol. No glass bottles allowed. There are a number of bars dotted around the site that will be selling alcohol.
- Cool box
- Rubbish bag – don’t leave any litter!
- Tissues / wet wipes
Check out our article on the Canadian F1 Dress code for more information on what you can and can’t wear in different areas, plus some example outfits.
Montreal GP Prohibited Items
Below is a list of the official prohibited items at the Canadian Grand Prix, taken from the official FAQ here.
Ticket access
There will be QR code scanners at the gates to read your tickets. These will be fine on your phone but make sure you’ve already downloaded them and saved them locally as internet signal can be patchy.
It’s never a bad idea to bring a print out of your ticket as a backup (and it’s usually faster).
Leaving the Montreal Grand Prix
Last year a total of 352,000 spectators attended the Canadian Grand Prix over the 3-day weekend. That’s a lot of people to cram on to a small island that was never designed for this many people to enter / exit.
Once the racing’s over almost everyone will try and leave and head for the Jean Drapeau Metro station at the same time and it’ll be carnage. Don’t plan on being anywhere anytime soon at the end of the day.
I left from near the final chicane at the end of the day on the Friday (practice day) and it took me over 90 minutes to get to the Metro station. When I got there, the queue for the Metro was MASSIVE and I couldn’t face it, so sat down and waited 60 minutes for an Uber instead. At least my feet got a rest!
There’s no way to leave the Montreal Grand Prix quickly. All the spectators get funneled via just two or three exit bridges, and there will be huge delays getting out. Just expect it and embrace it.
Check out my full guide on getting to the Canadian Grand Prix for a look at different transport options.
Canadian Grand Prix Track Invasion
After the race finishes on Sunday there’s always a track invasion on the Montreal Grand Prix circuit. People will jump fences, climb barrier and squeeze through the tightest gaps to get on the track.
Fans usually flock down to the Podium just next to the start line. You need to get there fast if you want a good spot to watch the ceremony.
They’ve shut down A (now GS10), H, and the part of J closer to the chicane.