Ffos Las
Date of Review: 16th March 2026
RCA Reviewers: Dave & Ray
Address: Culla Road, Trimsaran, Kidwelly, Carmarthenshire, SA17
Website: https://www.ffoslas-racecourse.co.uk/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ffoslasracecourse/
Email: info@ffoslas-racecourse.co.uk
Phone: 01554 811092
Accommodation: https://www.ffoslas-racecourse.co.uk/raceday-experience/where-to-stay
Track Layout: Ffos Las Racecourse (Images acknowledged & credited to Timeform & At The Races)
Ffos Las is a dual-purpose (flat & Jumps) racecourse. It is a wide, galloping left-handed track around a mile and a half in circumference. It is very flat with a slight uphill inclination on the back straight and a downhill one on the home straight. Both straights are relatively long, and on the flat course, there is a chute to accommodate five and six-furlong sprint races. Both the hurdles and steeplechase courses have short run-ins.
There are no particular quirks or idiosyncrasies that favour any particular type of horse or racing style, making it a fair track. In the winter, the going can be gruelling, and on occasion, low sun can cause problems, sometimes necessitating the omission of flights or fences in the home straight.
The Racecourse Advisor Guide to Ffos Las Racecourse:
Course Information: Ffos Las Racecourse is situated in a rural area of Wales between Carway and Trimsaran. It is seven miles north of Llanelli, 18 miles north of Swansea and sixty miles from Cardiff.
Location Map – Ffos Las Racecourse
Translated into English, Ffos Las means ‘blue ditch’ – and the site was an open cast mine until 1997 and was once the largest open cast mine in Europe. The racecourse was built in 2009 after the mine was infilled, and it was the UK's newest National Hunt racecourse in 80 years. The total racecourse site is approximately 600 acres in size, and it is set in a natural amphitheatre. The racecourse hosts around 27 fixtures per year, with flat racing in the spring and summer and National Hunt (jumps) racing in the autumn and winter.
Location & Course Access:
By Road: The racecourse is situated just off the A484 between Llanelli and Carmarthen. If travelling from the east: take Junction 48 (M4) joining the A4138 to Llanelli and follow brown racecourse signs. It is approximately 15 minutes after leaving the motorway. From the west, follow A40 to Carmarthen, then A484 to Llanelli and follow brown racecourse signs. Use the postcode SA17 4DE in your Sat-Nav. If you are driving cross-country from the Midlands, it is a difficult drive once you hit Wales, with numerous 20 mph limit areas, speed bumps and cameras everywhere.
By Rail: The Racecourse is about 5 miles from Kidwelly Railway Station, which is a local stop between Llanelli and Carmarthen. So it’s a taxi or approximately a 90-minute walk away. There is a free bus service that operates from Llanelli train station, with dedicated pickup and return times. The bus is free of charge but operates on a strictly first-come, first-served basis and cannot be pre-booked.
By Air: The nearest airport to Ffos Las racecourse is Cardiff (CWL), 45 miles away. Other nearby airports include Bristol (BRS), 70 miles away, and Birmingham Airport (BHX), 134 miles away. The racecourse will accommodate helicopters on racedays by request. Advance notice is required to ensure arrival and departure times do not conflict with racing or other bookings on the day. Pembury Airport is only 3 miles away and can accommodate commercial aircraft and helicopters. Rating: 6/10.
Parking: Parking really is a doddle. Plenty of free parking in a large, tarmacked car park immediately outside the main entrance. Rating: 10/10.
Pricing: On the day of our visit, it was a Monday “Spring Afternoon” National Hunt Raceday with a six-race card of one Class 3 race. Two Class 4 races and three Class 5 races, so relatively low-grade racing (with one of those races having only 4 runners, one with 5 runners, and two with only 6 runners). Tickets at the gate for the Grandstand Enclosure were £22.00. However, if booked in advance online, tickets could have been purchased for £17.00 each or £30.00 for two persons. If a group of 10 or more purchased tickets in advance, they were £14.00 each. There was a £5 concession for those aged over 60 and students.
A “Premier Viewing” ticket, which included a private suite with a viewing balcony, a racecard, and a drink, was £25.00 per person.
A “Premier Reserve Plus” ticket could have been had for £45.00, which also included a one-course meal and a guaranteed table. A couple of upgrades were also available. For £85.00, a table in Bridles Restaurant was available with a two-course menu and a complimentary racecard. However, be aware that a sneaky, unnecessary “booking fee” of £2.12 is added to the price. For the same price of £85.00, a “Balcony Box” (minimum of 10 people) could have been had, which included entry to a private box, a hot and cold buffet, and a racecard. However, a “booking fee” of a whopping £21.00 is also applied. Why not just publish the total price upfront and be done with these rip-off charges?
In our opinion, the advance-purchase tickets are slightly overpriced, but to be charged £22 on the gate for such low-grade, low-quality racing with so few runners is excessive. Ffos Las is a cashless racecourse, so all payments (excluding the on-course bookmakers) require either a credit or debit card to be used. Rating: 4/10.
Racecard: Once again, we wonder why some racecourses even bother with a racecard. It contained very little, but then again, with only 6 races and only 1 race with more than 8 runners, you are not going to fill it with the lifted comments from Timeform.
What could you pad it out with, maybe some full-page adverts? No, there were only 2 full page advertisements, and that meant the net result, with the total absence of a course layout and facilities map, was that you had the thinnest racecard we have come across. We know what you are thinking, that they could have reduced the cost of the card due to it having nothing in it, but no, it was the usual £3.50. The only upside was that the introductory page from the General Manager was written in a very personal and welcoming way. Our recommendation is to keep your money in your pocket.
Viewing: The overall viewing experience at Ffos Las Racecourse is excellent. It has only one stand: The Jonathan Davies Grandstand.
The Jonathan Davies Grandstand – Ffos Las Racecourse
Due to the track being almost pan-flat and situated in a natural amphitheatre without any trees or outbuildings to obstruct things, you can see the horses 100% of the time in any race, regardless of the distance or starting position. It is one of the best we have experienced on our travels.
The Grandstand is relatively large, with around 20 rows of concrete terracing and numerous crash bars along its length. However, there is no seating whatsoever. The viewing section nearest the winning post is cordoned off for use by the Owners & Trainers.
The Owners & Trainers Section in the Jonathan Davies Grandstand – Ffos Las Racecourse
Due to the height of the roof, the terracing at the very front of the stand offers no shelter from the elements.
The Wheelchair Users Area – Ffos Las Racecourse
Positioned at the bottom of the stand and at the very front of the concourse is a large, dedicated wheelchair users' area which offers a terrific view across the whole of the racecourse. Overall, the viewing experience here is top-class. Rating: 10/10.
Parade Ring / Winners Enclosure: The Parade Ring/Winners Enclosure is positioned at the rear of the main Grandstand to the left-hand side.
The Parade Ring – Ffos Las Racecourse
It is triangular in shape, large in size, and has full access around its entire perimeter. It has terraced spectator viewing steps in front of the winner’s enclosure, which is located at the front of the Parade Ring. However, in our opinion, the area was somewhat soulless with a distinct lack of colour or character. There wasn’t a single tree, shrub, flower box or hanging basket in sight. It could easily and quickly be brightened up with a few of the above dotted around, and it would make a huge difference to the look and feel of the place. There is a pre-parade ring and a saddling enclosure towards the top-left of the parade ring. Rating: 6/10.
Bookmakers / Betting Facilities: The main on-course bookmakers are located at the entrance of the Johnathan Davies Grandstand.
The On-Course Bookmakers – Ffos Las Racecourse
On the day of our visit, there were 8 bookmakers in total. Four at the main entrance of the Grandstand and a further 4 more located at other entrances. This was more than enough for the crowd in attendance. There is also a large William Hill concession at the back of the main Grandstand, along with a small BritBet concession. Rating 7/10.
Catering: Here at Racecourse Advisor, we enjoy doing “racecourse reviews” rather than restaurant reviews. We do not pretend to be food critics. We aim to provide you with an overview of the culinary options and prices available at the racecourse on race days.
On the day of our visit, to say the food and drink/catering options at Ffos Lass Racecourse were limited would be a massive understatement. We never thought we would report a racecourse with worse catering facilities than Leicester Racecourse. However, unfortunately, we have to report that we have.
The Catering Option – Ffos Las Racecourse
At the right-hand side of Blinkers Bar, which is situated in the main grandstand, is the Final Fence snack bar. It sold a limited range of sandwiches, salads, pies, chocolate bars and crisps. However, on the day of our visit, there were no salads, pies, chocolate bars or crisps available. Just a sad-looking variety of sandwiches at £4.50 each. It also sold tea, coffee, and hot chocolate, priced from £2.10 to £3.00 depending on your selection. And that was it.
Outside of the grandstand, there was a kiosk selling Cornish Pasties for £6.00 and sausage rolls for
Food Kiosk – Ffos Las Racecourse
£4.00 or £5.00 (small or large), along with some muffins and flapjacks, and a range of teas/coffees and soft drinks. The only other food option on the racecourse was a burger van on the other side of the main grandstand.
Burger Van – Ffos Las Racecourse
This was knocking out the standards, such as a 6oz beef burger for £7.00. Add cheese for £1.00 and a rasher of bacon for a further £1.00. A foot-long pork sausage was £8.00.
The only bar on the racecourse is Blinkers Bar, which is inside the main grandstand.
Blinkers Bar – Ffos Las Racecourse
It is a large bar area, and to the left were a number of round tables with padded chairs. As it is the only bar/seating area on the whole racecourse, it does tend to get busy. However, we did get a seat and had a chat with a few other racegoers who seemed to be as disillusioned about the Ffos Las experience as we were. A pint of Carlsberg was £6.30. Guinness £7.60. Kronenbourg £7.25. And Somersby cider £6.30. All spirits were £5.10 each. Wine was £7.00 a glass or £28.00 a bottle.
What can we say? Just a shockingly bad effort by the racecourse and ARC Ltd, who, in our opinion, are treating racegoers, the paying customers, with contempt. Rating: 2/10.
Guinness Standard: We decided to sample the black stuff in Blinkers Bar and, unfortunately, we were less than impressed. It was served in one of those super flimsy plastic pint points where you need at least two of them before you can think about picking it up. It was a bang-average pint, priced at £7.60, which is even more than the price at the Cheltenham Festival these days (£7.50). Rating: 5/10.
Friendliness of Course Staff: The course staff we met and interacted with were excellent. Polite, friendly and very helpful. Rating: 10/10.
Pros & Cons: For us, the cons far outweighed the pros. The pros include the car parking and the overall viewing experience, and that’s about it. It was low-quality racing with a small number of runners in 5 of the 6 races. The racecard was an unfunny joke. The catering was pitiful, and the drinks were expensive. The parade ring was soulless, and to top it off, there was no on-course Wi-Fi available (see below).
As experienced and seasoned reviewers, we do try very hard to find the positives at any racecourse we visit, but when the management and the owners (ARC Ltd.) clearly view the racegoers who do turn up on the day as an inconvenience, it's difficult to do so. We get the feeling within ARC Ltd. is that if those pesky customers would just stay away, we could race behind closed doors, and it would all be so much easier and cheaper for us. The lack of interest and effort towards the racegoers (paying customers) is lamentable, and it shows with a drab, soulless and somewhat depressing experience. Rating: 4/10.
As always, here at Racecourse Advisor, after each visit to a racecourse, we ask ourselves the question: would we return? We think it's pretty clear that the answer to that is an emphatic no. Never again.
Overall Racecourse Advisor Rating: 6.4/10.
Internet Access: Surprisingly and disappointingly, on the day of our visit, there was no free WI-FI access available on the course (see picture below).
Both our reviewers tried with their phones and got the same result.
The entire day's racing results can be found here: https://www.sportinglife.com/racing/meeting/2026-03-16/ffos-las/117703
Facilities & Location Map Ffos Las Racecourse: (Image acknowledged & credited to ARC Ltd.)
Aerial View of Ffos Las Racecourse (Image acknowledged & credited to Google Earth)
Disclaimer: The reviews contained in this website's content are just the authors' opinions. The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in the text belong solely to the authors and not necessarily to any other group or individual. Any content or opinion provided in our reviews is not intended to malign any party, group, club, organisation, company, individual, or anything whatsoever.
