Grand National Tours to Aintree

Event and PP Tour Information

Our Grand National Tour to the horse races at Aintree is always a huge party. Departing from central London early Saturday morning, our coach tours take you directly to the Liverpool course. Enjoy lunch, bubbly and refreshments on the trip up. We include entrance to the John Smiths Grand National, a great afternoon's racing at the world's most famous and most historic horse race - followed by a return coach journey to London. Be part of the action!

Look what is included;

• Coach travel from London to Aintree
• Packed lunch on the coach including bubbly
• Racecourse entry into the Aintree Steeplechase Enclosure
• Return journey after the last race, aiming to have you back in London around 11.00pm
• All For Just £49!

Our Grand National tour offers a fun day trip to one of the world's great sporting spectacles and includes;

• Return coach travel from London to historic Grand National Aintree
• Packed lunch provided on the coach tour to the horse races including bubbly
• Racecourse entry into Aintree's Steeplechase Enclosure
• Coach back to London after the last race aiming you to have you back London around 11.00pm

Saturday 10 April, 2010 - be part of it!

Frequently Asked Questions about Grand National

The PP Grand National Experience

Our Grand National 2010 tour is PP Travel's 20th year at Aintree! We pride ourselves in delivering a well organised, excellent value fun day out to one of Britain's premier sporting events and our experience in operting such tours can not be denied.

From the moment you leave central London early Saturday morning, avoiding the city traffic, you will find it an easy going relaxed experience on our coach tour. Our tour leaders are all experienced and will give you a full run down on what to expect on this long day out and provide a complete run down on Aintree horse races, especially the John Smith's Grand National itself. Refreshments will be served on our coaches, which come equipped with toilets, TV and are non-smoking.

After a mid morning break, you will be served with a packed lunch, which you can have either on the journey towards Aintree or save it for the horse races. Being a fun day at the races it would be silly not to wash lunch down with a drink or two! Hence we provide bubbly with your meal to get you in the mood for a big fun day at the Grand National Races.

Our coach will park in the middle of the Aintree Racecourse. Having already been provided with lunch, you can proceed straight to the Steeplechase enclosure entrance with the ticket provided by your PP rep. A fun day out is sure to follow.

Departing for London after the last race, we expect to be back late Saturday evening - making it a very long, but very enjoyable day out.

We look forward to you being part of the entire Grand National experience with us at Aintree and throughout the day.

History

The National at Aintree really has a Grand history - no wonder it is one of Britain's premier sporting events as well as been a fantastic spectacle.

The first official horse races at Aintree were organised by the owner of Liverpool's Waterloo Hotel, Mr William Lynn. Lynn leased the land from Lord Sefton, laid out a course, built a grandstand and staged the first Flat fixture on July 7, 1829.

On Tuesday February 26, 1839, Lottery became the first winner of The Grand National. In those days the field had to jump a stone wall (now the water jump), cross a stretch of plough land and finish over two hurdles.

The Topham Years
The Topham family owned substantial tracts of land around Aintree and had been involved with the management of the course since the early years of the Grand National. In 1949 Lord Sefton sold the course to the Tophams who appointed ex-Gaiety Girl Mirabel Topham to manage it.

A forward thinker and doughty character, Mrs Topham built a new track within the established National course and named it after Lord Mildmay, a fine amateur jockey and lover of the Grand National. The Mildmay course opened in 1953, the same year as the motor circuit which still encircles the track.

The motor circuit was another of Mrs Topham's innovations and it quickly gained a reputation as one the best in the world hosting a European Grand Prix and five British Grand Prix. Stirling Moss won his first Grand Prix on it in 1955 while Jim Clark won the 1962 event.

The Last National
Aintree suffered some lean times in the post-war years and in 1965 it was announced that the course would be sold to a property developer. Thus started one of the longest periods of speculation in the history of British sport - every year brought solemn warnings of "The Last Grand National".

In 1973 the Tophams finally sold the course to property developer Bill Davies who gave a commitment to keep the race going but his heart never quite seemed in it.

The attendance at the 1975 Grand National was the smallest in living memory (Davies had tripled the admission price) and the great race reached its lowest point.

Rescue Campaign
Late in '75 Ladbrokes, the bookmakers, stepped in, signing an agreement with Davies allowing them to manage the Grand National. Cynics condemned the move as bookies protecting their own interests but although the race attracts by far the largest share of betting stakes the result for bookmakers seldom brings a windfall.

Ladbrokes, like all true racing professionals, had a genuine love for the Grand National races and were determined to keep it alive. Their task stretched over the next eight years and they set about it admirably but Davies was reluctant to renew their contract. He was determined to sell Aintree.

Racing and the public in general finally realised that after so many years of "crying wolf" the threat was serious and a huge campaign was launched to rescue the race once and for all.

Jockey Club win through
Donations from the public helped the Jockey Club pay Davies' price and in early '83 he finally sold the racecourse. That year the Grand National was sponsored by the Sun newspaper but in '84 Seagram Distillers stepped in to provide the solid foundation on which Aintree's revival has been built.

Seagram chairman, Ivan Straker, started the ball rolling after reading a passionate newspaper piece by Lord Oaksey who, in his riding days, had failed by just three quarters of a length to win the 1963 National on Carrickbeg.

The last Seagram-sponsored National was in 1991 when the race was won by a horse which chairman Straker twice had the opportunity to buy; the horse's name was Seagram.

Martell and John Smith's Backing
The Seagram subsidiary, Martell, took over sponsorship in 1992 followed by John Smith', who now back the whole three-day meeting Grand National meeting. Around 100,000 people will be at Aintree to watch the top horses battle for honours and excellent prize money between April 8th - 10th. Innovative links have been made with racing in Hong Kong.

The Great Revival
Aintree racecourse is now enjoying its most successful period in modern times. While many courses rely on subsidies, the Aintree management is very much commercially minded and on non-racedays the new Queen Mother stand, opened by Her Majesty in 1991, hosts wedding receptions, conferences and exhibitions.

In the heart of the racecourse a new golf complex features a superb driving range and one of the longest nine-hole courses in the UK.

Future plans include a new grandstand, a Heritage Centre and a strong ambition to establish Aintree as an international tourist attraction on non-racedays.

Red Rum
Red Rum is without a doubt the horse of the Grand National, who achieved an unmatched historic treble when he won the Grand National in 1973, 1974 and 1977. He also came second in 1975 and 1976. An amazing feat. In his first two victories, he was ridden by Brian Fletcher. However in 1975, when L'Escargot was victorious, Fletcher was blamed for costing him victory by holding him back. In 1976 Tommy Stack replaced Fletcher, but was held off by Rag Trade. The following year Stack rode him to his triumphant third Grand National, considered one of the greatest moments in British sporting history. Not surprisingly, Red Rum became one of the best known and most loved racehorses in both the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland.

"Rummy" became a national celebrity, opening supermarkets and annually leading the Grand National parade. His likeness graced playing cards, mugs, posters, models, paintings, plates, and jigsaw puzzles. Several books have been written about Red Rum by his trainer, sculptor, jockeys, and the author Ivor Herbert. Red Rum died on October 18, 1995. He was buried at the winning post of the Aintree Racecourse which is still a destination for his fans today. The epitaph reads "Respect this place, this hallowed ground, a legend here, his rest has found, his feet would fly, our spirits soar, he earned our love for evermore".

Grand National Photos

Grand National 2009 04/04/2009	Grand National 2008 05/04/2008	Grand National 2006 08/04/2006
Grand National 2005 09/04/2005	Grand National 2004 03/04/2004	Grand National 2003 05/04/2003

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