Pimlico Race Course

Home of the preakness. This place is a perfect mess. I had mug and Vine tickets to the infield fest at the Preakness and it did not dissapoint. Private area with a tent, clean-​ish bathrooms, unlimited wine, beer and water, right next to the track. what could be better.
The infield itself is perfect for people watching. It’s super muddy and filled with college kids who don’t care too much for horses and just want to have a good time. I wish the lines for the beer were shorter. For the price you pay, and the amount of people there I think they need to include more beer stations. I’m glad I tried the infield once but will surely get regular tickets in the future.

Love this track and the hospitality. Lots of charm and nostalgia. The facility needs some upgrades and I hope that happens. However the vintage feel is fabulous.
The paddock is indoors which I think is unique.
I’ve been in most areas for Preakness. The terrace dining is very nice as is the sports palace if you want a seat and good food for the day.
The clubhouse and grandstand outdoor seats are fun but not all are covered. People bring coolers and food like a picnic!
The infield suites are done well with couches and lounges, open bar and excellent food options. Very impressive but you have to walk out there and it’s a haul.
The Preakness is magical. The dining is stellar and the views amazing. The staff does a lovely job.
An American iconic sports facility!

Second time at Preakness! First time at Hall of Fame Restaurant. Wow! What an upgrade from Sports Palace Restaurant, when I was here two years ago. The food is 1^st rate. The view is incredible — over looking the race track Pimlico! Definitely be back!

Today we were fortunate to be able to take a Behind the Scenes Tour of Pimlico’s Stables and Club House with Baltimore
. Pimlico is a whirl wind of activity as they are getting ready for the 141^st Preakness at Old Hilltop this Saturday, May 21, 2016. Our tour guides were April Smith and Donnie Miller –both a wealth of information. Pimlico opened in 1870 and is truly a Baltimore icon. Although a devastating fire destroyed the old clubhouse in 1966, the seven furlong track, stables for 1000 horses, and even the new grandstands at Pimlico today, still hold loads of Baltimore history and stories. Pimlico sits on approximately, 140 acres of land. Although it was drizzling rain for our entire tour, it was most interesting. We were able to see the stables, the Stakes Barn where the Preakness horses are housed, the Preakness horses exercising on the track, the Grandstand, the Club House dining room, Jockeys’ locker room and lounge, the Paddock, the Budweiser Clydesdales horses, the Finish Line and the Winner’s Circle. The infield was a wash of white tents. A former jockey took the time to explain what a jockey wears and why. We were surprised at how small the saddles were. Also, that a jockey might start off a race wearing as many as 7 goggles and peals them off as they get dirty. We were able to see the room where the jockeys dress — the colors are determined by the owners of each horse. We also visited with a farrier (who is an equine-​foot-​care specialist) who shoes horses. He showed us the tools that he uses and some of the horseshoes. Pimlico is a huge place. It was a fascinating tour.

Seems like a nice facility, though I don’t have experience with other horse racing locales to compare it to. I feel like their parking situation needs a lot of work (very full of potholes), and the different entrances are hard to find and could be better labelled (especially the smaller ones). It would be nice if you could walk through the facility to access the VIP areas instead of walking around (I ended up walking at least ¾ of the way around). Since you cannot, they need to do a much better job of educating folks at the different entrances as to the fastest way around, because being told to walk the wrong way around (and having no signage to determine for myself) is unacceptable for a venue where folks are often dressed up (goddamn high heels).
I was here for Black-​eyed Susan day, which was an interesting event. It’s worth noting that the way the concert is setup, you won’t hear it start unless you’re in the infield, which surprised me. I’d go back for infieldfest if there were good bands playing again, but I wouldn’t dress up and watching horse-​racing just isn’t for me lol.

My first time here was for Moonrise Festival. The area surrounding the racetrack is not nice. Not that I expected it to be but I felt very uneasy. There was an hour wait to get in the first day and that was only with the parking! They were not at ALL prepared for the festival. I got on the block at 3:00 and was okay because I my favorite DJs weren’t on for another hour, but AFTER walking from the parking lot, which was kind of far from the entrance, you had to walk down this sketchy street to get to the entrance where all the residence of the homes were outside catcalling all the girls and trying to sell things, which was so uncomfortable. When we got to the actual entrance there was 0 organization, I’ve been to many festivals but this one took us an HOUR AND A HALF to get in!!! I missed both my favorite DJS, the staff was SO rude. There was no lines, no gates, nothing. Just a blob of people trying to get in. Once we got in the festival itself was amazing, the drinks and food weren’t too pricy I’ve seen worse but the only reason it was good was because it was all outside vendors and not Pimlico itself, but the venue, I would never ever go back. When we were leaving the festival they were giving out free Rockstar drinks but when we approached the gate to leave there was a member of the staff literally yelling and screaming at everyone to throw everything out and I’m not over exaggerating he was flipping out as if someone was trying to fight him. It killed all the good vibes. I was honestly afraid and I’m from NY we see some shit here, so me being afraid says something. As we walked back to our cars there was sketchy men lined up the street catcalling and following all the girls who left the festival, if we had not all been moving as a large group, it would have been very dangerous. I will never ever return to this place!!! Whoever runs Moonrise should know that this place completely put me off ever coming back to the festival. We come to these things for the good vibes and experience and the first day was not that when it came to interacting with the staff of the racecourse.

My first time here was for Beer and Bourbon festival. I was surprised how old the building was. The food was absolutely horrible lol. As my boyfriend and I ate the pizza, we laughed/​cringed about how gross it was, but it got the job done. But otherwise, we had fun. I guess free drinks, handsome horses and good company beats crappy food

I really need to go back and update this review then as this is only for my spending $ 150 for an infield ticket to the Black Eyed Susan day for the Preakness. However, though I didn’t get to experience the inside of the club area or the everyday bleachers, I LOVED my experience. Not focusing on anything that was BES, but the track and the environment was great. I will be back for sure to experience the real thing.

First year attending the Preakness. We went with the mug and vine lounge tickets ($ 140) over the general infield tickets ($ 80). I was a little apprehensive, because I couldn’t find anything on the Mug and Vine Lounge, other than the short blurb on the Preakness website. We had air conditioned bathrooms, free beer and wine, our own food vendors, betting windows and picnic tables. As well as TVs inside the tent area. We wanted to watch the races and get take advantage of the free beer. These tickets were perfect. If we ever go back, we will only do it with the mug and vine tickets. The only downside to the whole trip was the line to get into the track. It was hands down the longest line I have ever been in. Overall, great experience, even with the down pour that came just as they were loading for the big race. If your on the fence trying to decide if they are worth the extra money, the answer is a resounding yes. All it takes to appreciate the tickets, is a quick walk thru the infield Knowing you can escape back to your lounge and get away from it all and enjoy the races.

Very hot in the «air conditioned» grand stand Preakness Day. And, how can you let the sewer system back up and close the toilets down with 100K+ guests? Time for some serious renovations!

Preakness weekend and there is nothing like it! Great bands, hats, dresses, bow ties, Horses! Not much more you can ask for. Oh wait yep you can ask for one more thing… a beautiful 80 degree day with no clouds in the sky! and we are blessed with it! Great day.

Churchill Downs this place is not, but it’s still cool to place a few pennies on the ponies on a normal Saturday at the place where one of the Triple Crown races takes place.
On a normal day, it’s tough to tell the grandeur that this place has once a year. It looks like a race track that has had better days in a neighborhood that can say the same. Inside, however, it is nicer than most tracks I’ve been to. The grandstands are in good order and it’s nice that they let people who would ordinarily have the cheap seats sit unrestricted in any (outside) box they want. There are shaded areas close to track level that makes the experience bearable.
One thing I liked a lot about this track is it has a lot of races for fillies. The day we went had an entire half of the program devoted to the gals. They also pay out extra purses for Maryland horses. So it’s both local and egalitarian. What’s not to love?
Well, there is one thing not to enjoy. On just an average race day, there is an admission fee of $ 5. That’s an entire bet for me, Mr. Low Roller. And parking is not free. It’s not like they draw huge crowds except one weekend a year so this blew my mind. I can’t justify paying admission on a regular basis since, for me, horse racing is a nice day out and not a money stream so I can’t say I would visit Pimlico often. But it is a nice option on the Baltimore/D.C. sports scene for sure.

Great place to hold a festival, Moonrise Festival was hands down the best experience yet! The grounds are large, spacious, and well-​maintained. My only complaint is that it’s smack dab right in the middle of the hood!

I took a trip to Pimlico during their annual Beer and Bourbon Festival and really enjoyed my visit! The check in process for the event was seamless and we were off to taste away and watch the races. There were a good amount of beers for tasting and the crowd brought good energy when the racing happened.
The only reason I don’t have a full five stars is because none of the good stands took credit card (make sure you have cash!) and my friend and I couldn’t even understand the instructions on how to read the race book. Maybe once someone explains it to me I’ll be back to actually bet on the races!

For those looking to familiarize themselves with the work of Dante look no further! Pimlico Race Course is the physical embodiment of The Infero. They even included all 9 layers of hell! How Fun:)
I’ve had the pleasure of attending The Preakness for the past few years, sitting in The Clubhouse Turn Reserved section. This area is made up of non-​permanent grandstands that are built strictly for Preakness weekend. There’s all you can drink wine and beer, horribly overpriced food in terrible long lines and in general, an amazing section to sit in if you want a «make your own fun» sort of atmosphere”.
However, that’s not why you’re reading this review. No, you’re here for something much different. You want to know about the hole that is beautiful Pimlico Race Course. Well, good news! Each year I venture into the building itself so that hopefully you don’t have to!
Walking into the main entrance near the finish line you’re greeted by incompetent staff who don’t know their ass from a hole in the ground, (ironically they’re working in one) which is always extremely helpful when you have literally know idea where you are going. After figuring out where you are it’s extremely easy to sneak into the premium seats at the finish line that cost roughly $ 300 on Preakness day. This sneaking in experience is something I highly recommend to people who either «want to see how the other half live» or simply want to be as far away as humanly possibly from the «riffraff» and «gambling degenerates».
So, now that you’ve seen the «good» stuff it’s time to move further down the grandstand. The first thing you’ll notice as you walk by the horrible food vendors is the beautiful decaying architecture from Pimlico’s recent «renovations». The inherent disgustingness found within every racetrack is quite fascinating if I do say so myself.
Your final stop will be right before you walk into Infield Fest (excuse me if I’m being presumptuous but I assume you’re reading this before attending The Preakness for the first time as only a moron would ever go to this hell on earth any other day of the year) I highly suggest you stop by the «bathroom». This is hands down the dirtiest washroom that has ever had the privilege of having me piss in it and if you know me then you know that’s a lot of other cans it, «beat out»
Finally, you’re going to go into the infield to see Infield Fest. Now I don’t want to ruin anything for you so let me just close by saying this:
After spending 5 minutes in the infield on Preakness day I cannot wait to see what the next generation of American leaders do to your country.
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Thought I was done this review, turns out I’m not. Unilocal!wants to know if this is a good place for kids. Well, because Baltimore defies logic the answer to this question is yes as I’ve seen 5 year old kids placing bets for their parents at Pimlico.
Keep on keepin’ on Baltimore!

Date: 05/​17/​2014
139^th Preakness Day (08:00 am — 06:30 pm)
Our first Preakness, and my friends and I got $ 80.00 Infieldfest General Admission with Mug Club tickets.
Parking is $ 50, and because the event oversold parking permits, police officers were directing attendees to park on certain grass areas. Luckily, we found a parking garage down the road, and paid $ 30.00 instead of opting to pay $ 20~30 in someone’s driveway and/​or apartment complex. The people around the venue looked sketchy…
Police officers at the venue do not know where the entrance is. We asked and ended up walking around the entire perimeter looking for the Infield entrance. For Infield entrance, enter via Preakness Way.
The staff do not know what they are doing. We got in line for admission after advising them that we are Mug Club ticket holders. Guess what happened next. After waiting and reaching the front of the line, another staff member told us to go to the older side of the road! So, we had to go to a different line in order to have our IDs checked and to get wristbands.
Finally, we got inside the venue, and asked additional staff for the location of the mugs. They don’t know where the mugs were being distributed and kept driving us in circles!
Overall experience… A lot of drunk people, mud everywhere, and you do not get to see any horses or races standing Infield.
Here is what to bring:
Blanket and tarp, otherwise expect to stand all day long
Cash for food; ATM on premises
Hand sanitizer for port-​a-​potty use
Folding chairs if you want to park your butt in a seat
Rain boots (or really old shoes)
Sunglasses/​sunscreen

After riding horses for the majority of my life and living in the DC area for a good portion, I finally had the opportunity to go to the Preakness in 2014. Having not been before, I had a lot of questions regarding crowds, logistics, food, tickets, etc. and never really found an updated place with answers. Having attended the event successfully and cheaply, here is my advice:
Transportation:
As expected, the roads near the racetrack on Preakness day are a mess. To park near the racetrack, you need to buy a pass months in advance and fork over upwards of $ 100, and even then you waste lots of time on congested streets near the track. There’s also the option of paying about $ 20 – 25 to park on someone’s lawn near the track, but again, you’ll spend a lot of time in traffic and then get jammed and double parked somewhere.
The best way to deal with transportation is to take public transit. The MTA site did a fantastic job posting race day logistics on their website, and they offer shuttles from stops on both the light rail and subways lines. My group opted to park at a subway stop for free, pleasantly surprised to see that only a handful of people did this and there was almost no traffic. We paid $ 3.50 for a metro ticket, rode it one stop, and got off the train to board a shuttle bus. There were tons of employees helping people, lots of buses waiting, and clean, spacious shuttles. The drivers drove us to within a block of the racetrack, and were there waiting at the end of the race. Seriously the best way to spend almost no money, deal with zero traffic, and get into and out of the track quickly! I’ll admit to being skeptical about how smoothly public transit would run, but I was very impressed!
Atmosphere:
The racetrack itself is really nothing special. While there’s definitely a special buzz on Preakness day, the track itself has seen better days, and is a glorified gymnasium. There’s basically two levels of completely open floor plans, with some outdated screens, betting windows, and vendors throughout. I bought a General Admission ticket for $ 25, and was a little disappointed to find out that you can only go to these inside areas. Attendants wouldn’t let people near the glass to watch the races, so to actually see anything, you had to watch on a screen. While seated tickets are pricey, I think they’re definitely worth the money if you want to see the races!
Probably the best part of the track is the paddock area which is inside. It’s a little hard to find, but was surprisingly uncrowded and gives you a really up close look at the horses and jockeys. The horses that «pony» the racehorses to the start gate are very friendly, and the riders are great about bringing them up to the crowd to pet and feed treats. While most of the horses for the Preakness are saddled on the turf, a few still came through, and it’s definitely the closest you’ll get to them at any point of the race! Plan to get a good spot a race in advance; it’s a neat way to see the «behind the scenes» and even spot a couple celebrities (we saw Bob Costas).
Food:
The food is what you’d expect. Pizza, ice cream, crab cakes, and hot dogs. Everything was about $ 6 – 10, cash only. All types of alcohol available, particularly the famous Black Eyed Susans on Preakness Day. Long lines, and to emphasize again: cash only.
Attire:
I was surprised to see a full range of attire. Most people were dressy, with women in sundresses and hats, and men in suits, colored pants, and «country club» fashion. However, I also saw lots of people in jeans and more casual clothes, so the race definitely didn’t have the vibe that the Derby can have. In the infield, people basically dressed for a music festival, and I saw lots of muddy and sunburned people exiting.
Overall, it’s something I’m glad I did once, but I’m not sure I’d do again. It definitely never seemed crowded which was nice, and the excitement of the big race was incredible. If I went back, I’d definitely pay the money to get a seat to see the races better!

I ended up having a very unique experience at my trip to Pimlico. I went for Black-​Eyed Susan Day, specifically for the Infieldfest concert to see Counting Crows.
I spent the majority of my time waiting by the stage for front and center spots for the concert but was able to do a little exploring of the grandstand. The property is huge and old. They had your standard ballpark, event center, arena food and beverage options.
The concert set up was great. It was literally in the infield but the stage was very professionally set up. Sight lines were great, as were the acoustics.
So on a day like Black-​Eyed Susan Day there’s a lot going on and the whole set up was really confusing. After the concert my husband and I somehow missed the shuttle back to our car. We wandered around trying to find out where to go and ended up at the front of the grandstand. We approached a group of people who looked like they worked there and asked how to get back.
One of the gentleman went back inside the building to get keys to the golf chart so he could personally drive us back to our car. Well it turns out that he was the CEO/​President of Pimlico. If that’s not amazing customer service and generosity, I don’t know what is! We easily could have been SOL left to fend for ourselves in an area of Baltimore that we heard isn’t that great.
Clearly a confusing set up in an old property with standard food doesn’t warrant a 5 star review. However the act of kindness of the property’s top dog can’t go unnoticed or unappreciated. I can only hope that the track is run with such great consideration for its employees and horses.

Old classic race track. Great place to enjoy a day of racing Really could use a face lift but still has that charm. Surrounding area is a little sketchy but hey it’s Baltimore what do u expect. Sign up for a players card for free admission. Looking forward to going back for Preakness Day.

I attended my first horse race at Pimlico Race Course in late April 2013. My friends and I purchased a livingsocial deal to do unlimited wine tasting and watch the horse race at the Pimlico Race Course. For $ 20, it was totally worth it. It was really fun to sit out in the sun and watch the horse races and then drink as much wine as we wanted, to our heart’s content. There were so many excellent wines to choose from — fruity wines, port wines, chalky wines, strong wines, bitter wines, etc, from vineyards all over Maryland.
It was such a fun day with fun people. I would highly recommend checking out Pimlico Race Course when there’s another livingsocial wine event going on.