In order to get 3 or 4 trackdays at premier circuits such as Portimao and Jerez in the same week, we start planning our Iberia some 9 months or so prior, which means we need an outline itinerary shortly. In the two years we've organised the February Iberia trip we've taken well over 100 clients from the UK, and other than Portimao being a clear favourite, opinion is very much mixed on the other 3 circuits we've visited (Ascari, Estoril and Jerez).

As the organiser of an event of this size, there are many factors which affect our venue decision - quite apart from how good the circuit is to actually drive. Personal relationships and ease of booking with certain venues make them significantly more attractive than others. Proximity to quality 5-star hotels is another factor, as is the distance to the nearest budget airport. Finally, we have to consider the amount of travelling involved in comparison to the track time available and obviously time away from home.

Many clients treat the Iberia trip as a winter sun holiday, bringing their partner along to ease the burdon of being away from home for a full week. Others travel alone or meet up with friends en-route, using the free time for socialising. There's also those who see the trip as an opportunity for some winter testing - although the latter decreased significantly when the 2012 trip was extended to 7 days from the 5 day event of 2011.

There's always going to be a conflict of opinion with regards to the track-time vs relaxing-time ratio, with many clients suggesting an extra day off would be of benefit and others saying they'd rather spend that time on-track!

Equally, there are some who prefer to stay at the same venue for 2 days (enjoying the familarity that gives when driving on the second day) rather than spending a day on the road to sample a different circuit.

And so onto the purpose of this blog post - we've added a poll to our Facebook page HERE, where you can give your opinion on the format and venues for Iberia 2013.

Regardless of which venues we choose, if the last two years events are anything to go by we're in for another awesome week of track days, decent food and great company. We're hoping for a repeat booking rate of around 75% again next year and with places strictly limited you're advised to book up early.


Platinum Member Ade Barwick at the massively popular Portimao circuit. The combined brainpower of BookaTrack (Sarah) and Speedworks Motorsport (Amy) busy figuring out the best way to get 30-odd clients back to the airport on the minibuses - either that or choosing white wine! Iberia trip veterans Bryan Hotston and Richard Williams chat over wine at the fabulous 5-star Cascais Miragem Hotel.



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Jonny Leroux  ▶ Director 5 Jun 2012