Racing: Do F1 Drivers Pay For Their Own Travel?

I was reading my local sports newspaper over coffee this morning and saw photos of Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen boarding their private jets after this past weekend’s Grand Prix. I wondered whether it was the same for all the drivers. Did they all have to arrange their own flights between races or was it something that their teams were responsible for. So I set about finding out whether F1 drivers pay for their own travel.

 F1 drivers are not required to pay for their own travel. The teams of most drivers pay their travel costs in first/business class seats on commercial flights. Some teams own jets and the drivers travel on those. There are a few drivers who use their own private jet to get between races.

Let’s take a closer look at how the jet-setting F1 drivers travel around the world. Which drivers fly commercial and which teams make private jets available to drivers.

Do F1 Drivers Pay For Their Own Travel?

In general, F1 teams do make flights available to their drivers to use to get from one race weekend to the next. However, because many drivers want to maximize the efficiency of their travel and be able to make their own personal trips to their respective countries to take a bit of a break between races drivers either own or charter private jets.

Flying private removes the waiting for a scheduled commercial flight. In some instances, drivers can already be landing at their destination before the first available commercial flight has taken off.

Flying private has added perks of additional luxury and comfort. Many private jets have a bedroom where drivers can sleep during the flight to maximize their recovery.

Do F1 Drivers Fly First Class?

There are specific instances where drivers do make use of commercial airlines either to travel home or to travel to the next race. Invariably they will be traveling either business class or first class because of the added comfort that maximizes the chance of rest and Recovery during the flight.

Some drivers choose to fly on a commercial airline simply because that is the same flight used by the remainder of the team including the mechanics and technicians.

Do F1 Drivers Fly Home Between Races?

Formula 1 drivers can go home between races. However, many of the races during the season are on consecutive weekends. Flying home for sometimes just a single day or two just adds additional travel stress. Although it is nice to spend time at home, dealing with airports and flights causes fatigue. So flying to their home country only to turn around and nearly immediately fly to the following weekend\’s race doubles the stress unnecessarily.

In practice, drivers will travel to the venue of the next F1 Grand Prix when races are on consecutive weekends and will wait until they have a two-week break or longer between races before flying home.

Drivers also take into account the potential for jet lag and the time it takes to adapt to the heat or cold of the venue of the next GP before making a decision about whether it is worth flying home or not between races.

Do F1 Teams Have Their Own Planes?

Many of the larger F1 teams such as Ferrari, Mercedes, Red Bull, etcetera do have their own aircraft that are used by both drivers and top management to get between races, especially those that are on consecutive race weekends.

Ironically, many of the drivers in these large teams such as Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen use their own private jets to get between races even though they have the team\’s private jet at their disposal. This is simply because their own private jet is fitted with a bedroom and other familiar comforts. They can maximize their rest and recovery almost immediately after takeoff if they have the space to themselves.

Do F1 Drivers’ Families Travel With Them?

There are some instances where a driver’s wife or significant other will travel to the race with them. This is also more easily done when the drivers are flying private as it gives drivers and their families their own privacy away from the public and paparazzi.

The time when drivers are most likely to spend significant time with their family during a GP weekend is if the race is happening in that driver’s home country. The driver will then sleep at home and commute to the race track by car.

Do F1 Drivers Stay In Hotels?

When it comes to driver accommodation for GP weekends, there are three options. The first is when a GP is in the driver’s home country and it is practical to stay at home and commute to the track by car. For all other Grand Prix, the options are to either stay in a hotel or in a luxurious motorhome that is right at the trackside.

In general, when competing in European countries drivers will most often stay in their luxurious motorhome. The motorhome is supplied by the team and is driven between race venues. A driver will be able to stay in the same motorhome at all the races during a season giving both a feeling of consistency as well as a sense of privacy while still being really near to the track.

When competing outside Europe, drivers will be accommodated in hotels by their teams.

Another advantage of using motorhomes is that drivers often choose to isolate themselves from outside distractions in order to be able to get into the right frame of mind to fully focus on the job at hand. This is more easily done in a motorhome than in a hotel while in a foreign country.