Oaklawn Racing Casino Resort

Thoroughbred Racetrack Opened In 1904, One Of The Longest Continuously Operating Racetracks In The United States. Home Of The Arkansas Derby, A Major Kentucky Derby Qualifying Race, And The Rebel Stakes And Apple Blossom Handicap. · Hot Springs, Arkansas

Oaklawn has been running thoroughbreds in Hot Springs since 1904, which makes it one of the oldest continuously operating tracks in the country, and for a few months every winter and spring it is the most important racetrack in America that nobody outside racing has heard of. The Arkansas Derby is a major qualifying race for the Kentucky Derby, and the horses that have come through here on the way to Louisville include Smarty Jones and American Pharoah, who won the Rebel and the Arkansas Derby before taking the Triple Crown in 2015. The meet runs through the coldest part of the year, which is the opposite of most tracks, and it fills every hotel room in Hot Springs on the big days. Since Arkansas legalised casino gaming in 2018 the site has grown a casino floor and a hotel and now runs year-round, but the reason to come is still the paddock before a race and a corned beef sandwich that costs almost nothing.

2705 Central Avenue, Hot Springs, Arkansas, 71901, United States

The live racing meet runs roughly from December to early May, with race days concentrated on weekends and a fixed weekly pattern - the track is dark on most weekdays. The casino, restaurants and hotel operate year-round, daily, with the gaming floor open late. General admission on most race days is free or very cheap; reserved seating, boxes and the big stakes days are ticketed and the Arkansas Derby sells out. Confirm the racing calendar before travelling - outside the meet there is a casino here and no horses.

Oaklawn Racing Casino Resort on Spottos · Explore more places on Spottos