Anglesey Circuit / Trac Môn

Anglesey Circuit / Trac Môn at a glance

Location

Ty Croes, Wales

Type

road course

Length

3.38 km (2.1 mi)

Turns

11

Direction

clockwise

Banking

10% banked hairpin at the Banking corner

Surface

asphalt

Opened

1997

Owner

Trac Môn Ltd (Meyrick Group)

Address

Ty Croes, Isle of Anglesey, LL63 5TF

Phone

+44 1407 811400

Website

angleseycircuit.co.uk

Track map and layout

Anglesey sits on the west coast of the island overlooking the Irish Sea, with Snowdonia visible across the water on a clear day, and the site's former life as a British Army and RAF station shows in its wide, sweeping layout. The full International GP Circuit runs 11 corners over 2.10 miles (3.38km), built around imaginative cambers, fast linking sections and a tricky 10% banked hairpin. Three shorter configurations - Coastal, National and Club - are cut from the same tarmac and are used for everything from bike track days to club car racing, with the Coastal layout's downhill Corkscrew section a particular favourite among riders. The circuit runs clockwise and is rated one of the most scenic tracks in Britain thanks to its coastal, largely treeless setting.

Named corners and sections

• Church. Widely rated the most difficult corner on the lap, a demanding turn that catches out drivers carrying too much speed.
• Rocket. A tight left-hander that leads into a right-hand hairpin, part of the circuit's technical mid-section.
• Peel. A right-hander named after broadcaster John Peel, who completed National Service at the Army camp that preceded the circuit.
• The Banking. A hairpin with a 10% banked surface; the camber lets drivers and riders carry extra speed into the apex and through the exit.
• Corkscrew. A downhill sequence unique to the Coastal configuration, popular with motorcycle track-day riders.

Configurations

Events and race weekends

Anglesey isn't a round on the BTCC or BSB national calendars, but it is one of the busiest club-racing venues in Britain, hosting BRSCC, Motorsport UK-affiliated car and bike clubs, sprints, stage rallies and drifting through the season. Its best-known fixture is the Race of Remembrance, a 12-hour endurance race organised with the forces charity Mission Motorsport that pauses on Remembrance Sunday morning for a minute's silence; it has run at Anglesey since 2014. The circuit also stages the Tom Pryce Memorial Trophy, named for Wales' only Formula 1 Grand Prix winner-era driver, and the Wirral 100 Club's motorcycle championship rounds.

Getting there and parking

The circuit is on the west coast of Anglesey, a few minutes from the A55 expressway that runs the length of the island. Ty Croes has its own request-stop railway station on the Holyhead-to-Crewe line, a short walk from the circuit entrance. Holyhead, with its Irish Sea ferry terminal, is about 20-25 minutes away by car, and Anglesey Airport at RAF Valley (weekday flights to Cardiff) is only a few minutes further.

• Anglesey Airport (RAF Valley) (VLY) · about 10 min drive
• Liverpool John Lennon Airport (LPL) · about 105 min drive

Parking

Free spectator car parking is available on-site for race and track-day meetings; arrive early on Race of Remembrance weekend, the circuit's busiest date.

Holyhead's Irish Sea ferries (Dublin and Dun Laoghaire) make Anglesey a practical stop for visitors travelling from Ireland; check the circuit's events calendar before travelling, as many midweek dates are closed track-day or manufacturer test days.

Hotels and camping near Anglesey Circuit / Trac Môn

Most visitors base themselves in Rhosneigr, a beach village about 10 minutes' drive from the circuit with pubs, cafes and self-catering cottages, or in Holyhead and Valley, both within 20 minutes. Llangefni and Bangor on the mainland offer a wider choice of chain hotels for those wanting more facilities. Book well ahead for Race of Remembrance weekend in November, which fills accommodation across the west of the island.

Where to look

Rhosneigr (closest, coastal village with pubs and B&Bs), Holyhead and Valley (both under 20 minutes, near the ferry terminal), and Llangefni or Bangor for a larger choice of hotels.

Track days, driving experiences and lap records

Anglesey is one of Wales' most popular circuits for both car and motorcycle track days, run across all four configurations depending on the organiser and experience level. No Limits Trackdays is a regular own-bike provider on the International and Coastal layouts, and the circuit's in-house Performance Driving Centre runs car experiences and courses for visitors who don't have a track-ready car of their own. Car track days and club testing are also booked through national trackday brokers.

Who runs days here

• No Limits Trackdaysmotorcycle
• Anglesey Circuit Performance Driving Centrecar
• Trackdays.co.uk (multi-organiser booking)both

Lap records

Spectator guide

The circuit's coastal, largely open landscape means spectators can see long sections of the lap from a single vantage point, and a pedestrian walkway around much of the perimeter adds to the viewing. There's little natural shelter, so the Irish Sea weather is worth planning for whatever the season.

Best places to watch

The banking area near the Banking hairpin and the vantage points around Church corner give views across several linked corners at once.

Weather

• Nov: cold, often wet and windy for the Race of Remembrance weekend; pack for coastal conditions
• Jun-Aug: mild, changeable summer weather typical of the North Wales coast

History of Anglesey Circuit / Trac Môn

From army camp to circuit

The land at Ty Croes on Anglesey's west coast started life as a Royal Artillery training facility and later a Territorial Army barracks, before becoming an RAF radar station that was decommissioned in the early 1990s. Broadcaster John Peel completed his National Service there, and the site briefly housed refugees from Idi Amin's Uganda in the 1970s - both facts the circuit still nods to today, with a corner named Peel in his honour.

Building a circuit

Motorsport arrived almost by accident: the Wirral 100 motorcycle club identified the disused base in the early 1990s and ran its first races there in October 1992. Demand grew steadily through club racing, rallycross and sprints, and in 1997 the venue was formally licensed by the governing bodies as a permanent circuit with a proper pitlane, using a single 1.057-mile layout designed with input from racing driver Richard Peacock.

The modern layout

In 2006-07 the circuit was completely reconfigured to Peacock's design, replacing the original loop with the four layouts used today - International GP, Coastal, National and Club - while keeping elements of the old start-finish straight. A dedicated pit and race control complex followed in 2012. The rebuilt circuit quickly earned praise for its scenery and technical variety; motorcyclist Peter Williams called it the most scenic track in the UK.

Present day

Anglesey has never hosted a round of the BTCC or BSB, but it has built a reputation instead as one of Britain's busiest and best-loved club circuits, home to the forces charity Mission Motorsport's Race of Remembrance endurance race since 2014 and the Tom Pryce Memorial Trophy since 2019, alongside a full season of BRSCC, sprint, rally-stage and track-day activity.

Frequently asked questions

Other tracks nearby

• Billown Circuit · 99 km · public road circuit
• Isle of Man TT Mountain Course · 107 km · public road circuit
• Aintree Circuit · 108 km · road course
• Clypse Course · 110 km · historic circuit (defunct)
• St John's Short Course · 113 km · historic circuit (defunct)
• Phoenix Park motor racing circuit · 123 km · public road circuit