Sports Trips From London: The Best Events Worth Leaving The City For
Ten events that justify the journey — from a one-hour train to Ascot to an eleven-hour flight to the Super Bowl. Dates, venues, how long it actually takes to get there from London, and where to book each one.
London hosts more elite sport than any city in Europe, so the bar for leaving it is high. These are the ten that clear it. Some are day trips you can do on a single train ticket and be home the same night — Ascot, Epsom and Roland-Garros all qualify. Others are proper trips: a Sheffield overnight timed around the Crucible final, a race week at Le Mans, an Open week in Fife. And two of them, the Super Bowl and WrestleMania, are far enough away that most London fans will watch from a bar here rather than fly — both event pages cover that option too.
Travel times below are approximate door-to-door estimates from central London. Where an event’s date has not been confirmed by its organiser, the card says so rather than guessing — the linked event page updates as soon as it is official.
Rooms are the part people leave too late. Race weeks, Open week and Ryder Cup week clear out local accommodation months ahead, so check availability before you commit to tickets — not after.
📍 Ascot Racecourse, Berkshire
🚆 Approx. 1hr from London
Five days of the finest flat racing in Britain — the Gold Cup, the Royal Procession, the Royal Enclosure dress code. A direct train from Waterloo, then a short walk from Ascot station to the gates.
📍 Epsom Downs Racecourse, Surrey
🚆 Approx. 1hr from London Victoria
The world's most famous flat race, run at Epsom since 1780, plus the Oaks on Ladies' Day. Tattenham Corner station sits at the course entrance, and The Hill enclosure is free.
📍 Silverstone Circuit, Northamptonshire
🚗 Approx. 1hr 30mins from London
Long high-speed sweeps and tight technical complexes, in front of one of the championship's most knowledgeable home crowds. The 2027 MotoGP calendar has not been published yet.
📍 Crucible Theatre, Sheffield
🚆 Approx. 2hrs 10mins from London
Seventeen days at the 980-seat Crucible, home of the World Championship since 1977, building to a final over up to 35 frames. Worth an overnight for the later rounds.
📍 Circuit de la Sarthe, Le Mans
🚆 Approx. 4hrs 15mins from London
The world's greatest endurance race, with Aston Martin, BMW, Cadillac, Ferrari, Ford, Genesis, McLaren, Peugeot and Toyota all in Hypercar. Eurostar plus a TGV puts you trackside in under four hours.
Never Miss a London Ticket Drop
Get alerts for ballots, on-sales, resale windows and price drops before the best tickets disappear.
You’re on the list ✓
We’ll alert you when major London ticket opportunities are announced.
📍 Old Course, St Andrews
✈️ Approx. 1hr 20mins from Gatwick
Golf's oldest major at the home of golf — the Swilcan Bridge, the Road Hole, the broad shared fairways. Accommodation across Fife fills months ahead of Open week.
📍 SoFi Stadium, Los Angeles
✈️ Approx. 11hrs 15mins from Heathrow
The biggest single-day event in sport, and in 2027 it lands on Valentine's Day. Kickoff is expected around 11:30pm GMT, so most London fans watch it here rather than fly.
📍 Stade Roland Garros, Paris
🚆 Approx. 3hrs from London
The premier clay-court Grand Slam, on the red terre battue beside the Bois de Boulogne. Eurostar to Gare du Nord, then 30 minutes on the RER C or Metro.
📍 Adare Manor, County Limerick
✈️ Approx. 1hr 30mins from Heathrow
Three days of foursomes, fourballs and singles at Adare Manor, with the Ryder Cup back on European soil. Regular Heathrow and Gatwick flights to Shannon make it a long weekend.
📍 Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
✈️ Approx. 6hrs from Heathrow
WWE's flagship show leaves North America for the first time in its history, staged in Riyadh. Expected as a two-night broadcast on TNT Sports; WWE has not confirmed the date.
Every event above sells through its own official channel and each one runs to a different release pattern — an Open ballot, a Roland-Garros ballot, phased Crucible session releases, Jockey Club enclosure tickets, MotoGP general admission. There is no single ticket source that covers all ten, so use the linked event page for each rather than a blanket resale search.
Two practical rules. First, book accommodation before tickets on anything with a fixed venue town — St Andrews, Le Mans and Adare Manor all run out of rooms long before they run out of tickets. Second, check the last train home before assuming a day trip: Ascot, Epsom and Sheffield all work as returns, but only if you know when the last one leaves.