Richard Petty NASCAR Experience

[oilheadbob]

Hello All,

Looking for comments on whether to purchase tickets for Richard Petty Nascar Experience before we head to the world in Oct or wait and try and get them once we arrive and have a better feel for the weather? My concern is that my two brothers who are planning to do this with me are not Disney nuts like my wife and I. Therefore, if they bought tickets and we get rainied out, they may not get back to Disney within the next year to use them and $424 and change is big money! Anybody care to give me some feedback?

Thanks,

Bob Ryan
Gainesville, Va.

 

[kmk1180]

my guess, and it's a guess, would be that once you get there they would still have space available most days for you to book it.
when we went in July there were a number of people but it wasn't really jammed packed so I would assume oct. woud be slower, thus more availablity.

 

[KigerKat]

I booked this for DH last October, and made sure to book it on our very first day and first thing in the morning. That way, if it gets canceled for some reason you have the rest of your trip to re-book. They are really great about squeezing people in where they can.

And by the way...DH LOVED it! Have a great time!!

 

[mthompson22]

I had the opposite experience. I took my husband two years ago in September and it was booked solid for the day (a Saturday). It may depend on the day of the week you do it, or it may be slower now if not too many people are willing to shell out the $$ for it. I remember it had rained a good deal that morning, and the drivers ran the cars around the track for awhile to try to burn off the water. We were delayed a little bit, but not too much. My husband loved it and is saving up for another trip around the track

 

[SimonV]

I'd be surprised if the Experience is fully booked on weekdays in October. I'd be inclined to wait until the week before you go, check the forecast, then give them a call to check availability for early in your stay. Generally speaking, a morning booking shouldn't be affected by weather and, if it is, you should have the choice of the rest of your stay to re-arrange.

 

[Lauri]

Just wondering what you think for Thanksgiving week? Right now there is availability, but as that will be our 3rd trip this year, we will not be going back within the year. I do want to surprise DH for his birthday with this. Thanks.

Lauri

 

[brooklynbrenden]

I purchased the $360 package for my DH for father's day and booked it for October 7th. Get your package from undercover tourist when you do. It is only 360, no tax and free shipping.

 

[KigerKat]

I purchased the $360 package for my DH for father's day and booked it for October 7th. Get your package from undercover tourist when you do. It is only 360, no tax and free shipping.

AAA offers a discount as well, I can't remember what it is - either 10% or 20%.

 

[Must C Mickey]

The great thing about the Richard Petty Driving Experience is that you can call or go online to www.1800bepetty.com and order a gift card. The gift card is good for all of the tracks offered thru the RPDE at race tracks all over the country. We got the gift card for my bro n law last yr for his bday. He was going to do his ride along this yr at WDW but they were booked the day we had allotted for it, soooo he just went to Lowes Motor Speedway in Charlotte when we got back home. He was totally fine w/ it.

 

[AlternateEgo]

The Ride-A-Long can be purchased as a gift card and used at any time.

The Rookie experience (which I assume, since it is $399 plus tax) can be rescheduled within 364 days from the time you were orignially scheduled.

I would book it now, if I were you.

Book it for early in your vacation, so that if it needs to be rescheduled, it can be while you are still in the area.

And if for some reason you can not manage to fit the Experience in before the end of your vacation, you will still have 364 days from your original booking to reschedule... even at a different location. It doesn't have to be at the Walt Disney Speedway.

I learned we actually have a participating speedway about an hour and half away, so I bet you have one closer than you realize.

Just call them up, they are extremely helpful!

P.S. Check the website for promotions. I was able to book the with the father's day promotion and got a gift card for $109 to spend on the ride a long or any souvenirs that we want. This promotion has ended obviously.

 

[AlternateEgo]

I copied this from the site, they are the participating tracks.

Atlanta Motor Speedway
Hampton, Georgia

See what Atlanta has to offer!

Bristol Motor Speedway
Bristol, Tennessee

See what Bristol has to offer!

Auto Club Speedway
Fontana, California

See what the Auto Club
(formerly California Speedway) has to offer!

Chicagoland Speedway
Joliet, Illinois

See what Chicagoland has to offer!

Darlington Raceway
Darlington, South Carolina

See what Darlington has to offer!

Daytona International Speedway
Daytona Beach, Florida

See what Daytona has to offer!

Gateway International Raceway (St. Louis)
Madison, Illinois

See what Gateway has to offer!

Homestead-Miami Speedway
Homestead, Florida

See what Homestead has to offer!

Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Indianapolis, Indiana

See what Indianapolis has to offer!

Iowa Speedway
Newton, Iowa

See what Iowa has to offer!

Kansas Speedway
Kansas City, Kansas

See what Kansas has to offer!

Kentucky Speedway
Sparta, Kentucky

See what Kentucky has to offer!

Las Vegas Motor Speedway
Las Vegas, Nevada

See what Las Vegas has to offer!

Lowe's Motor Speedway (Charlotte)
Concord, North Carolina

See what Lowe's has to offer!

Michigan International Speedway
Brooklyn, Michigan

See what Michigan has to offer!

New Hampshire Motor Speedway
Loudon, New Hampshire

See what New Hampshire has to offer!

Phoenix International Raceway
Phoenix, Arizona

See what Phoenix has to offer!

Richmond International Raceway
Richmond, Virginia

See what Richmond has to offer!

Talladega Superspeedway
Talladega, Alabama

See what Talladega has to offer!

Texas Motor Speedway
Fort Worth, Texas

See what Texas has to offer!

Walt Disney World® Speedway (Orlando)
Orlando, Florida

See what Orlando has to offer!

 

[toverly]

Book early in the week and change days if it rains. Also, take the extra Ride Along with the drive. I gave this to my DH and he was disappointed in himself that his times were so slow. He felt (after he turned the ride along down) that he would have driven faster had he "felt" the speed in the car with an expert driving first.