Formula 1 2025 Montreal

My hubby's bucket list included Formula 1, so a couple years ago we bought a grandstand package for the Las Vegas race that was taking place the weekend before Thanksgiving. We ended up getting Thanksgiving Day NFL tickets for the whole family, which meant we couldn't do both activities. We decided to fly to Vegas for just the first practice day to get a taste of the action, and sold the rest of our tickets. The practice was a bust because a manhole cover came loose on the track, so we got to watch like 9 minutes of racing before it got cancelled. Definitely not an ideal F1 experience. 

Fast forward a couple years and we decided to try again, this time in Montreal with a hospitality package. We opted for the "Champions Club Blanc," which came with a prime viewing location right before the Wall of Champions for all 3 days of racing, food and drinks each day, private seating and bathrooms, special guest appearances, a guided paddock tour, and a grid walk. It was a pricey package, but we figured this was the best way to get the full experience, especially since we planned to be there 8-10 hours each day. The race takes place on an island, so we stayed at a hotel near a Metro stop and used public transportation to get to the site every day. Going back to the hotel each night was a little more difficult because everybody was leaving the racetrack at once. Luckily there is also a casino on the island, so we just stayed and played for a couple hours until the crowds subsided! It's definitely a cluster if you're trying to use the Metro or ridesharing right after the practices or main race ends. 

The first day of racing we got to check out our seating and viewing arrangements and then do the guided paddock tour. That was really fun because we got to walk between all the hospitality buildings and the backs of the garages. That area is filled with the team personnel, owners, media, and you can even spot a driver sometimes. Meezy checked out the various types of tires they use on the cars, we asked lots of questions, and took lots of pics!

The racing on the first day included the Porsche Carrera Cup practices, the F1 Academy practices (lady drivers!), and the Formula 1 practices. We got to see so much action! We also got to hear from Sean Kelly, chief statistician for F1 broadcasts, and Bernd Maylander, the official F1 safety car driver.  

The second day's schedule included F1 Academy racing, Porsche Carrera Cup qualifying and racing, and then the Formula 1 third practice session and qualifying session. Our vantage point was really amazing. Not only did we get to see the cars go through the final chicane and narrowly miss the Wall of Champions, but we also got to watch them go down the straightaway. 

That day we also got to hear from former F1 driver Nico Rosberg, do a grid walk, and take a photo with the championship trophy. It was pretty neat to look into the garages, check out the Wall of Champions, see a curve up close, walk the track, and soak it all in.

The final day of racing included the Porsche Carrera Cup second race, the F1 Academy third race, the F1 Driver's Parade, and the main event Formula 1 race. There was so much excitement in the air that day! It was a fun environment to be in. It was also helpful that our hospitality areas had TVs so we could keep up with what was happening on other parts of the track and hear the broadcast commentary. 

After the race was over, fans were allowed to go on the track, so we got to see the trophy presentation and champagne spray. The coolest part was being closer to the race cars! 

Being only a very casual F1 fan myself, this was still a fun experience for me and of course it was worth it to see how much my hubby enjoyed seeing the action live. We don't have plans to see another race in person in the future, but if we do, it would likely be one in Europe and definitely with the same type of hospitality package. I think it was worth the cost! 

King's Day Trip 2025 Part 5 - Tulips and Zandvoort

While King's Day was the main reason for our trip to Amsterdam in spring 2025, tulip season was a close second. The weather was gorgeous when we made our trek to Keukenhof. There's only two months out of the year when you can enjoy this attraction, and now that I've been there, I agree with the hype. It is breathtaking. I know my pictures don't do it justice, so you'll just have to go see them in person! 

Keukenhof is humongous, and you can definitely spend a whole day there. Over 7 million flower bulbs are planted each year, with 800 different varieties of tulips. I was in awe at the colors of tulips I had never seen before. We grabbed lunch there and took a million photos, and then rented bikes (in true Dutch fashion) to head to our next destination. 

After a bit of a detour because we got lost, we ended up at the Tulip Experience. Compared to Keukenhof, this was a much smaller quantity of tulips, but it was cool because you could walk between all the rows of tulips and get a more up-close experience. We definitely got some amazing photo ops there.

Because this was our last day in the Netherlands, we didn't just want to go back to our hotel for the night. I mentioned to my sister that the city of Zandvoort, where an F1 track is, was somewhat on the way back to Amsterdam, so she was game with checking it out. With my husband being a huge F1 fan, I knew a race would be happening there later in the year, but thought it might be deserted in the spring. I wasn't sure how close we'd be able to get to the track, but I figured it was worth a shot. We parked nearby and started walking, looking for some kind of viewpoint. We walked for a while and thought we might have to give up, when we spotted a fence with an open gate. I didn't know what the sign said, but the gate was open, so to me that meant "welcome!" To our amusement, there was actually a motorcycle race going on! We had a pretty great vantage point. We watched some of the action and I sent pics back to my husband.  

It was time for dinner, so we decided to eat in Zandvoort before our final drive back to Amsterdam. The timing could not have been more perfect. We found a restaurant facing the North Sea and got to enjoy our Mexican food as the sun set over the water. What a picturesque ending to our magical trip! 

King's Day Trip 2025 Part 4 - Delft

This day we drove from Amsterdam to Delft so we could meet up with a friend. She was gracious enough to travel multiple hours by train to see us! 

If you're Dutch, you likely have a lot of blue Delft pottery in your household. My sister and I had never been to this town, so we enjoyed walking through the city, visiting Delft shops, learning a little history, and of course catching up with our friend over lunch.  

Of course we wore blue!