Experienced my first Formula 1 race at the Bahrain Grand Prix 2025

The atmosphere in the stands was unlike anything I’ve seen. So much excitement among people and a pure love for racing.

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It was around the mid-season break of last year when most of the fans knew that things would get interesting towards the end (and they did!). But it was around this time that my plan for attending the F1 2025 season started to brew. The last chance we had to attend an F1 GP in India ended in 2013. In fact that year, my college had arranged for a trip to the 2013 Formula One Grand Prix at Buddh International Circuit, but unfortunately, I couldn’t make it. The closest thing that we got to a Formula race in India was the Formula E race that was held in Hyderabad in 2023 (Report). Coming back to 2024, decided to take the leap and attend a Formula 1 Grand Prix race in 2025.

Thankfully, a friend of mine from the gym was just as excited as I was to attend and as if the stars had aligned, he had family members in Bahrain. It was decided then that we’d be attending the Formula 1 Bahrain Grand Prix 2025! Booked the grandstand tickets and the flight tickets and we were set. Sometime in March applied for an e-visa which got approved the next day.

I’ve just realized that in so many years of being a member of the forum, I’ve never written a travelogue. I usually like to disconnect entirely on trips and barely even check my phone. This is my first attempt at a full-fledged travelogue! So, please excuse me if some of the details are missing.

Our onward flight was Oman Air with a stopover at Muscat. The flight experience was very average, very much like a domestic Indigo flight. Had the window seat, so clicked some pictures before landing:

Have been seeing a lot of travel reels for Oman recently on Instagram. Landed in Muscat and then after a couple of hours got on the flight to Bahrain and landed around 9 PM in Bahrain. Overall process of immigration in India and Bahrain was pretty smooth since the visit was for F1:

In terms of accommodation in Bahrain, we booked a hotel which was quite affordable. The circuit also had free transportation shuttles from selected hotels spread across Bahrain. Anyone staying anywhere could reach the hotel pickup points and take these shuttles that would drop you directly to the circuit. There were also shuttles from the airport to the hotels directly. The frequency of the shuttles was ~45 minutes:

My friend’s cousin who was in Bahrain was generous enough to lend us his car for pickup and drop. So, after a good night’s rest on Thursday, we set off for the circuit on Friday. We reached the circuit and we were told that we’d have to get a car pass if we wanted to go into the parking area near the circuit:

The car passes would be given at this massive building called Exhibition World Bahrain (EWB). As the name suggests, this is more like a convention centre. If you think this building is big, there are a total of 10 exhibition halls in EWB spanning across an area of 95,000 square metres:

It was lit up beautifully at night:

The main entrance to EWB:

Some merchandise on display:

Inside, there were different counters. Unfortunately, this year they have started a system where if you have 3 F1 tickets, you’re allowed a free car pass. Otherwise, you had to apply for a car pass separately which we hadn’t. So, for people without a car pass, there were 2 options –

Thankfully, there was one shuttle at EWB when we reached:

People from around the world crammed in a small bus (Very much Ambani wedding vibes ):

We were dropped off at the parking lot and they had a pedestrian walkover bridge to get to the circuit:

I personally like this tagline:

This was the entry gate. The security didn’t allow any outside food or single-use plastic water bottles:

Had to scan your ticket QR code at the turnstile:

Once past the turnstile, there was a big open area with canopies and seating area:

This was the main stage area where all the activities and the end-of-the-day entertainment events were happening:

The drivers and team principals were coming on the stage to say a quick hello to the fans. This was the schedule:

Things started off with the Red Bull junior team – The Visa Cash App Racing Bulls Formula One Team:

Isack Hadjar and Liam Lawson chatting a bit about the heat and racing conditions:

Next up was the Williams Racing team with Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon. Alex was pleasantly surprised to see some Thai fans in the front row:

They were followed by the crowd favourites, the McLaren team:

Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri are clearly the favourites this year:

There was a quick quiz which all the teams had to participate in. It was quite fun:

The Kick Sauber F1 team and the Aston Martin F1 team were on the stage together next:

Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto were good in their game of guessing which track from the picture of the kerb:

Fernando Alonso bringing in the SWAG alongside Lance Stroll:

Very important announcement on the screen. The temperatures were high and the dry heat was killer during the day. The stage area was not covered, so caps were a lifesaver along with sunscreen and lots of water:

On Saturday, the Red Bull team was clubbed with the Haas team:

Yuki and Max were playing around with the 360-degree action camera and sharing some laughs with Esteban and Oliver Bearman. Oliver was there but got cut off in the picture. Sorry, it was very bright and I could barely see what I was clicking:

Some more fun with the quiz:

The crowd went crazy when Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc walked in. They even shared a very funny story where they both were playing online chess and both ended up cheating using an online bot:

Fun and games:

Pierre Gasly attracts a lot of fans from his country and so does Jack Doohan:

Kimi Antonelli was wearing that jacket to keep himself cool while George Russel was pretty cool just being himself:

They had a fun quiz where they had to guess which driver’s faces had been morphed into one face:

A lot of Mercedes fans were in the crowd:

This is the area from which all the stage activities like the images, lights, music, etc. were being controlled:

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