Due to a possibly tumultuous first week in April in Central Kentucky, the Spring Meet at Keeneland Race Course will start a couple of days later than usual. The meet, originally scheduled to begin on Friday, April 4, will now start on Sunday, April 6 due to a weather forecast that calls for severe thunderstorms and potential widespread flooding for the period of April 2-5. Friday’s opening-day card moves to Monday, April 7, while the Spring Meet’s traditional high point, the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes card scheduled for Saturday, April 5, will now be held on Tuesday, April 8. Click here for more information.

Once the meet does begin, there’ll be even more pent up excitement among patrons of the picturesque Lexington track, many of them, if not all, crossing their fingers for no more terrible weather in a region that has had more than its share over the past several months.

After the first three scheduled days, Keeneland will host live racing for 12 more on a Wednesday-through-Sunday schedule ending Friday, April 25 (no racing on Easter Sunday, April 20).

Nineteen stakes races are on tap, topped by the 101^st running of the $1 million, Grade 1 Blue Grass, a key prep race for the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve.

Enjoy ABR’s guide to the Keeneland Spring Meet, with recommendations for visiting the track and the Lexington area during springtime. 

Ticket Information, and Prepare for Construction

Enjoying the heart of horse country. (Eclipse Sportswire)

Continuing a policy started in spring 2021, Keeneland grandstand admission and dining tickets must be purchased in advance via the online ticket office or through the Keeneland RaceDay app. The track offers a 48-hour in advance return policy. General admission tickets must also be purchased in advance, except for the two rescheduled days of April 7 and 8. Keeneland announced that due to the adjustment, it will offer free general admission for both days. For the remaining days, $7-$10 general admission tickets are still on sale for all days aside from the two Saturdays of the meet, April 12 and 19, and closing Friday, April 25. You can also sign up for a waiting list to take advantage of cancellations if your original date is sold out, and patrons who purchased general admission tickets for the Friday, April 4, and Saturday, April 5, dates may use them in any subsequent day of the meet, even if the date has sold out. General admission season passes are still available ahead of the Spring Meet and can be purchased online at tickets.keeneland.com. Grandstand tickets for April 4 and April 5 as well as dining passes will be refunded – click here for complete information on the rescheduled days.

Visitors to Keeneland this spring will come face to face with a construction project designed to upgrade the paddock and surrounding buildings. The revamp started after the 2023 fall meet concluded and completion is scheduled in time for the fall 2025 meet. So once again this spring, all paved parking rows will be for permit parking and free handicap parking only. No reservation is required for handicap parking. Permit parking must be bought in advance: purchase here. Free public parking is still available every day at The Hill and Meadow lots, and shuttle service is, as always, provided.

Due to construction, fans will enter through the South or North Gates. The North Gate walking path will feature a unique, behind-the-scenes look at the Keeneland barns.

Climb The Hill

Tailgating is allowed in several areas throughout Keeneland, some of them limited by ongoing construction, but ground zero for prerace fun and camaraderie is up on “The Hill,” a designated spot open on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays (starting on April 11). Jumbo TVs and betting kiosks are available for watching and wagering on the races, and food trucks and live music from The Burl venue will also be featured as part of the overall experience. New this spring is the Race Day Social package that offers a VIP experience (couches under a covered tent, catered lunch, and more) partnered with premium tailgating service Revelxp. 

Betting Options Aplenty

BetOlogists, at your service. (Eclipse Sportswire)

Laying down a bet on-site at Keeneland is easy and the track has BETologists on-site at its Wagering Central hub (located under the grandstand near the finish line) to help fans new to the game become acquainted with the basics of handicapping and money management. Keeneland’s drive-thru betting has been discontinued, but advance-deposit wagering is of course offered through the Keeneland Select site and app. 

Each Wednesday (April 9, 16, and 23), Keeneland offers a WINS-Day Challenge Presented by Malone’s, the popular Lexington steakhouse. With a $10 entry fee, players make mythical $2 win and place wagers on each of the last six races of the day. Prizes include a percentage of the betting pool and Malone’s gift cards.

Two larger handicapping contests are also on the schedule: the $400 Spring Challenge on Friday, April 11 (register here) offering as many as four berths to the 2026 National Horseplayers Championship in Las Vegas; and the Grade 1 Gamble on Saturday, April 12, which offers a first-place prize estimated at $70,000 and as many as 10 berths to the 2026 NHC (register here).

Special Events for One and All

Spring morning scenic. (Eclipse Sportswire)

Keeneland’s family-friendly Sunrise Trackside program will be held on the two Saturdays during the live meet: April 12 and 19. It’s located at the first floor grandstand area and offers a meet-and-greet with the track’s mascot, face painting games, coffee and donuts, and a chance to watch horses train on the track. An equine meet-and-greet will also be held at 8:30 a.m. ET, and on April 19, a special Easter Trackside will include a visit from the Easter bunny. Another popular family-oriented event is Kids Club Family Day Presented by Kentucky Children’s Hospital that, as of this writing, is still scheduled for Sunday, April 6. It’s open to Keeneland Kids Club members (ages 12 and under). Members get free admission and can participate in activities from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Keeneland will also hold a College Scholarship Day Presented by Lane’s End on Friday, April 11, offering the chance to win two $10,000 scholarships to coeds (must be present to win) plus free swag to the first 2,000 students to visit the track’s North Terrace. And Keeneland’s popular Heroes Day on Sunday, April 13 offers up to four complimentary admission tickets to members of the military (active duty and veterans), first responders, healthcare workers and their families.

On Saturday, April 19, Keeneland will host a jockey autograph signing at the North Terrace from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Fans will meet active and retired Keeneland jockeys and can buy items to be autographed or present their own with a donation to the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund (PDJF). Also that day, Keeneland hosts its seventh annual telethon fundraiser for PDJF with a call center located at the Sales Pavilion.

Great Food and Drink

Keeneland is renowned among racetrack aficionados for having some of the best food offerings at all price points. As noted above, dining tickets can only be purchased in advance, but fortunately, there are many options for reserved seat and general admission attendees at stands around the facility (and whatever you do, make sure you visit the Track Kitchen for breakfast at least once during the meet).

Check out ABR’s guide to Keeneland’s food here, and be sure to try the Keeneland Spring Lager, sold in cans and on draft as part of a partnership between the track and Country Boy Brewing of Lexington. Sales for the lager will benefit Blue Grass Farms Charities.

What to Do in Lexington: A Bountiful April Calendar

Tandy Park and the Fifth Third Pavilion in Lexington. (Wikimedia Commons)

Visitors to Lexington this spring, and for the rest of the year actually, will get an extra jolt of history and excitement as the city celebrates its 250^th birthday. Events are scheduled all year long with many of them organized by themed monthly offerings. This April promotes Lexington’s rich literary history, and you can find out about all of the events scheduled right here. (Sneak peek: October’s theme, when the Keeneland Fall Meet is scheduled, will elevate all things equine in the “horse capital of the world.”)

The popular Central Bank Lexington Thursday Night Live weekly series of free concerts kicks off in April. It’s an outdoor event held under the Fifth Third Pavilion in Tandy Park, located in the heart of downtown Lexington, right next to the old courthouse that has been turned into the Lexington Visitor’s Center housing the headquarters of the Breeders’ Cup, Visit Lex, and several other businesses, as well as one of renowned restauranteur Ouita Michel’s eateries, Zim’s Café. Food trucks, information tents, and an outdoor bar are all part of the experience, and the concerts usually feature some of the most popular local and regional cover bands around. The concert series runs all summer long and does not conclude until mid-October during Keeneland’s Fall Meet. Check out the schedule here.

Lexington’s live performance calendar during the month is very active. The Lexington Opera House downtown is busy with shows including a farewell concert from the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band of “Will the Circle Be Unbroken” fame on April 10 and a visit from the hilarious Wanda Sykes on April 12. The April schedule at iconic Rupp Arena is highlighted by a concert from the Avett Brothers on Keeneland’s closing day, April 25. Popular concert venue The Burl in Lexington’s hip Distillery District has an April calendar filled with plenty of rock and country acts. Perhaps the biggest ticket, though, will be at Kroger Field, home of the University of Kentucky football Wildcats, on April 19. Tyler Childers, a native of Lawrence Co. in eastern Kentucky who’s become one of the biggest alt-country singer-songwriters on the national scene in recent years, will play an outdoor show as part of his On the Road tour, with special guests including another Kentucky-bred country icon, this one of over 40 years, Wynonna Judd.

Chicago-style deliciousness. (South of Wrigley photo)

Lexington’s restaurant scene continues to thrive, and for this spring guide, we’ll focus on two spots located on Southland Drive, a thoroughfare about seven miles southeast of the track that during Lexington’s growth spurt back in the middle of the 20^th century was a main shopping district. The Southland strip is riding a revitalization wave in recent years, with plenty of locally owned restaurants and stores around.

One eatery that’s been there for a while (over 25 years in fact) and is still going strong is Winchell’s Restaurant & Sports Bar. In addition to the great atmosphere and staff, the food quality for a casual hangout is two or three rungs higher than what you’ll find elsewhere as its owners are graduates of the Culinary Institute of America in New York.

Close by is a newer joint, South of Wrigley. It opened in 2023 and is operated by a chef that worked in the Chicagoland restaurant community for 20 years. South of Wrigley offers authentic Chicago-style Italian beef sandwiches and hot dogs and receives the America’s Best Racing A+ stamp of approval.

Last but not least, horse lovers in town for Keeneland later in April can wrap up their stay by attending the Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event at the Kentucky Horse Park. The equestrian competition for dressage, stadium jumping, and cross-country will be held April 24-27. Click here for more information and tickets.