CHESTER Racecourse has been named as the UK and Ireland’s most ‘Instagrammable’ racecourse, according to new research.

The study, by The Winners Enclosure, looked at the number of hashtags the 85 active racecourses across the UK and Ireland have on Instagram, compared with their maximum capacity to reveal the ones that racegoers consider the most photogenic.

Across the UK and Ireland, 6,066 million people attended a racecourse in 2023, but it is fans who went to Chester who were most likely to share their experiences on social media.

Established in 1539, the 25,000-capacity racecourse is the oldest still in operation around the world and has amassed 70,700 posts from the hashtag #ChesterRaces. This gives it a post-per-spectator ratio of 2.83, almost double that of any other racecourse, and shows the positive sentiment that fans have towards the track.

(Image: The Winners Enclosure)

Cheltenham has the most hashtags of any UK and Ireland racecourse with 98,900 people using #CheltenhamRaces on Instagram. Prestbury Park has a capacity of 68,500 which is often sold out every March, and this means the famous course has 1.44 posts-per-spectator, placing it second.

In third overall and the most Instagrammable Irish racecourse is Galway. The Galway Summer Festival is the most attended in Ireland and has helped the course receive 62,000 hashtags from fans. With a capacity of 45,000, this gives Galway 1.38 posts-per-spectator.

York ranks fourth, thanks to its post-per-spectator ratio of 1.24. Up to 56,000 fans descend on the flat course during the summer, and this has led to 69,200 hashtags on Instagram.

Scotland’s highest-ranking racecourse is Perth, which takes fifth overall. Located around 38 miles north of Edinburgh, it has a capacity of 10,000. Almost 9,000 spectators have posted pictures at the racecourse on Instagram which gives it 0.9 posts-per-spectator.

Goodwood is sixth on the list with 17,545 hashtags. Combined with its 20,000 capacity, Glorious Goodwood has a score of .88.

Ascot may be home to the most Royal of all the racecourses in the UK and Ireland, but its high capacity of 70,000 means it is seventh overall. Despite being included in 55,900 hashtags on Instagram, it has a post-per-spectator ratio of 0.8.

Eighth is Newmarket which has 34,000 posts with the #NewmarketRaces. Its capacity of 45,000 means it has an overall score of 0.76.

Newbury ranks ninth with over 15,600 posts on Instagram which results in a post-per-spectator score of 0.71.

Musselburgh takes the final spot in the top 10. The Scottish track has over 6,200 hashtags, giving it a score of 0.63.