Cartmel Racecourse draws the crowds for a summer of jump racing

Few sporting days out in Cumbria have quite the atmosphere of a race meeting at Cartmel. The village racecourse, on the edge of the southern Lake District, regularly attracts crowds of more than 10,000 spectators.

Its 2026 season, announced in August 2025, offered nine days of racing between May and August. Meetings took place on 23, 25 and 27 May, the last of those an evening fixture, followed by 26 and 28 June, 18 and 20 July, and 29 and 31 August.

The June meeting featured races including the Oakmere Homes Handicap Chase on 28 June, one of the more valuable contests of the season. Across the summer the cards mixed hurdles and chases, novices and handicaps, giving racegoers plenty of variety over a day. For many visitors, picking a horse from the racecard and cheering it home is half the fun, whether or not they know much about racing beforehand.

Cartmel stages jump racing, with hurdles and chases on its cards, and its fixtures include bank holiday weekends, when families, groups of friends and seasoned racegoers make a day of it.

Part of the appeal is the setting. The course sits right beside the village of Cartmel, so a day at the races can easily be combined with time exploring the village itself.

The racing calendar also brings local sponsors to the fore. Race titles on the cards in 2026 included local names such as Cartmel Priory CofE School, which gave its name to an amateur jockeys' handicap hurdle.

For the village and the wider Cartmel peninsula, race days are an important boost, filling pubs, cafés and holiday accommodation and bringing visitors who often return to explore the area at a quieter pace.

Racegoers are drawn back year after year by the combination of close-up racing and a relaxed, friendly crowd, making Cartmel a favourite with people who might not otherwise visit a racecourse.

The racecourse announces fixtures, race times and ticket information on its website, which is the place to look for news of the 2027 season.