Despite being a very new race, the Las Vegas Grand Prix has quickly established itself as one of the most iconic dates on the calendar. The track includes a long straight that follows the line of the Las Vegas strip, and the whole Grand Prix weekend is filled with the kind of excess that made the city famous.
Unfortunately, the race only happens once per year. But you can experience Formula 1 year round, and even drive on a bit of the iconic track, thanks to the F1 Experience at Grand Prix Plaza. The building is the same one that houses the pit garages, paddock, and hospitality during the race itself, and is located a very short distance from the strip. You can Uber there from any of the main casinos in minutes, and free parking is available if you choose to drive in.
You can drive on the F1 track (sort of)
One of the big attractions of the F1 experience is its go-kart track, which allows you to put down a little rubber on a section of the F1 track itself. Now, obviously they’re not closing the strip for this. Plus, I’d imagine letting go-karts loose on a full sized track would turn out to be exceptionally boring. They cap out at around 30 mph, and a long strait would see you sitting with your foot flat for a couple of minutes with not much else to do.
So you need a lot of twists and turns. These are provided in abundance, as the track snakes its way through the pit garages and around the area where the track will start on race day.
You can get on the go-kart track for as little as $37. Which is less than you’ll spend on two hands of blackjack on the nearby Strip these days. Plus this lasts longer, provides a few more thrills and (when I’m playing anyway) tends to have the same end result. Your bank balance is $40 lighter than it was.
The carts are pacey enough to feel exciting while still being pretty controllable. There are also two boost buttons, one that requires a bar to recharge and another that you can activate when within overtaking distance of another vehicle. If you want a good time, I’d recommend absolutely hammering both.
It took a couple of laps to settle in, but when I had a bit of clear track ahead of me (and I’d worked the buttons out) I managed to set my best lap of the day. I finished fourth overall, as usual I’m nothing to write home about when it comes to racing. I could have probably shaved a little more time off had I not hit traffic, but truth be told trying to overtake two or three karts without causing a pile up is the most entertaining part. I could have honestly done this all day.
The $37 option is just for an eight minute session where everyone is ranked by their fastest lap time. Other packages include a three-race “Grand Prix” and a session that bundles the on-track experience with a look around upstairs. The latter is certainly worth doing.
F1 X is a wonderful introduction to the sport
While the Go Karts are exciting, the main attraction is upstairs. F1 X combines explanations of the sport’s various elements, the chance to see some iconic sporting memorabilia up close, and some genuinely entertaining interactive elements.
Right off the bat, you’ll be asked to name your “racing team” and like all of the other interactive elements that name will come back to haunt you later on. If you pick a silly one like I did, anyway. Other opportunities to express yourself include a station where you design your own helmet, and another where you add some custom livery to an F1 car.
I’ve followed and covered F1 for a while, so not a lot of the exhibits were new to me. Still, it’s as entertaining for an enthusiast as it is for a complete racing novice.
One of the hands-on experiences involves changing a tire as quickly as possible. For reference, the world record was set by McLaren the other season when their pit team swapped out all four tires during a race in under two seconds.
During my effort, the time was in the high teens. It was my fault the first time, I forgot to set the drill, and then sort of not as much my fault the second time as the chap assisting dropped the tire. While it was still far quicker than I’ve changed a tire on one of my own vehicles, I’m not expecting a call from an F1 team any time soon.
One of the more unique aspects involved a “4D” theater experience. I won’t spoil the ending, but it was definitely a surprise when the champagne corks started popping following the virtual race. Speaking of virtual races, eight laps in a racing simulator can be added on to the package for around $10. It’s a high-end simulator, which moves you with the vehicle.
It’s still simulation, you won’t feel the road and the G-Forces, but it’s as good as things get outside of the multi-million dollar machines professional drivers use while training. It also gives you a chance to drive the full track itself, and inevitably send it straight into a wall when you get distracted by the lights and casinos of the Las Vegas strip.
Grand Prix Plaza is the best deal in Vegas right now
Should you want to take a break from the attractions and stop for a bite to eat, there’s a cafe right there next to the experience itself. It’s not large, there are fewer than 20 tables at a guess. But the food is solid, and not everyone will be stopping for lunch there.
Again, the pricing is pretty reasonable. A few too many attractions in Vegas are seemingly doing their best to gouge the hell out of you these days, but F1 isn’t on that list. You’ll pay somewhere in the $20 to $25 range for an entree, which can consist of a very good smash burger or a personal pizza. Oh and it’s Vegas so cocktails are obviously on the menu, just make sure you get the karting out of the way first.
To put this into context, I dropped around $20 on a meal from Whataburger during the same trip. I’m not knocking Texas’ premier fast food outlet, but the burger from the F1 Experience’s cafe was far superior.
Couple this with the modest entry fees, along with perks like free parking, and you can see the balance that the organizers seem to be trying to strike here. Yes, part of it is the desire to operate a profitable attraction in a city where people go to have fun. But there also seems to be an urge to expose more people to the sport of F1, and further build the US fanbase.
This works out well for everyone. You get a very reasonably priced day out, along with activities you can either enjoy as a family or a group of adults. And F1 hopefully gets a few more people paying attention when all of this is packed away for a couple of months and the actual Las Vegas Grand Prix comes to town in November.
Numerous packages are available, and Grand Prix Plaza often shows its appreciation for first responders, teachers, and military by bundling in extra discounts for those groups. This can include dropping admission to as low as $10. May’s deals can be found here.
