On Tuesday, November 2, Australia will once again host one of the richest horse races in the world—the Melbourne Cup. As it’s a regional public holiday for Victoria residents, you’d want to take some time off your busy schedule and enjoy the thrill that comes with horse racing. (1) (2)
However, there’s a lot more to do on Cup Day apart from horse racing. Read on to learn what else you can do during this momentous event:
1. Watch the race live
There’s nothing as thrilling as watching the race live from the stadium. You get to see the horses and their jockeys with your naked eye and cheer your favorites one-on-one. So, make a point of getting a ticket for the Melbourne Cup Day at Flemington Racecourse.
But you’ll have to be swift as only 10,000 tickets are available for the 2021 race due to COVID-19. Organisers reserved 70% of the tickets for the Victorian Racing Club members. The 25% of the tickets will go to the horse owners, corporate partners, and sponsors. And only 5% are available for the general public. So be ready with AUD$120 to purchase one ticket once public ticket sales kick-off. (3)
2. Bet on your favorites
If you don’t succeed in getting a ticket, make a point of following the race on one of the big screens set up in town. And to make it even more enjoyable, place a wager on the horses that you think will win the race. Of course, this requires some analysis to ensure your prediction has a high probability of being correct. For this reason, try reading a comprehensive punters guide to the Melbourne Cup to get more insight into which horses to pick.
These are some factors that should influence your bet:
- The horse’s form
- The horse’s performance in key lead-up races
- The jockey’s winning history
- The horse trainer’s background
- The weights placed on the horses
To learn more in-depth analysis, the videos at https://www.youtube.com/c/PuntersAustralia should help a lot.
3. Eat out
Cup Day is almost synonymous with fine dining. Indeed, officials recently invested a whopping AUD$128 million on the Flemington Racecourse, part of which went to new dining facilities. (4)
Whether you’ll be in the stadium or anywhere else in Melbourne, it’s your chance to eat some of the fancy meals you haven’t tried in a while. There are lots of restaurants you can pop into, including Attica, Coda, Flower Drum, Ides and Longsong, among others. You’d want to go with a friend or two to eat and chat your hearts out all day long.
4. Dress to kill
Another interesting bit of Cup Day is the extravagant display of fashion that characterizes the day. Ladies and gentlemen of all ages step out in their fanciest outfits to show the world their deep sense of fashion. If you also have a passion for fashion, then this is your chance to join like-minded fellows out there on Melbourne’s streets.
For men, the following outfits are the most desirable:
- Perfectly-fitted black suit with a white shirt
- Mix-and-match blazers with chinos
- A classic suit with eye-catching accessories
- Muted suit with a floral shirt
For ladies, here are some suggestions:
- Floral maxi dresses
- Printed off-shoulder midi dresses
- Monochrome outfits
- Standout hats and headgear
5. Picnic
Being a holiday, you can also choose to retreat from the hustle and bustle of Cup Day to some quiet picnic site within or around Melbourne. Some of the family-friendly ones in Melbourne include Royal Park, Edinburgh Gardens, Treasury Gardens, Fitzroy Gardens, Ardrie park, and Newport lakes.
Make sure to take your family with you. For more relaxation, you can even plan your personal time off around this time of the year so you don’t go back to work too soon. A one-day holiday in the middle of the week might not be restful enough to you.
6. Cruise into Melbourne
If you reside outside Melbourne and you have plenty of time during cup week, consider boarding a cruise ship and arriving at the carnival in style. Around this time, many cruise lines customize their ships to help travelers appreciate the centuries-old horseracing culture of Australia.
While on board, you’ll stay in rooms decorated to remind you of the huge day, eat the kind of food historical jockeys used to eat, play the games they used to play, dress like them, and watch movies depicting their lifestyle. Such an experience is surely worth it when the talk of the town is this prestigious horse racing event.
Conclusion
You can’t miss something interesting to do on Cup Day, which is one of the most glamorous horse races in the world. From watching the race live, betting, following on big screens, having a picnic, eating out and displaying your fashionable outfits, you surely can make the best of the holiday. And whatever activity you engage in, remember to maintain physical distancing and other health protocols, given that the pandemic isn’t over yet.
References:
- “Top 10 richest horse races in the world”, Source: https://sports.bwin.com/en/news/other-sports/horse-racing/richest-horse-races-in-the-world/
- “Melbourne Cup Day in Victoria in 2022”, Source: https://www.officeholidays.com/holidays/australia/victoria/melbourne-cup-day
- “10,000 tickets confirmed for Melbourne Cup day at Flemington, with 70 per cent for members and only 500 for the public”, Source: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-10-20/10000-melbourne-cup-tickets-confirmed-but-only-500-for-public/100554800
- “Work on $128 million Flemington grandstand to start days after Melbourne Cup carnival”, Source: https://www.smh.com.au/sport/racing/work-on-128-million-flemington-grandstand-to-start-days-after-melbourne-cup-carnival-20161024-gs8vu9.html
- “Abbie Chatfield and Angie Kent among stars to say ’nup’ to the Melbourne Cup”, Source: https://www.who.com.au/stars-boycott-melbourne-cup-2021
