Castle Combe Circuit Driving Experiences

Castle Combe Circuit runs its own driving experiences on the Wiltshire circuit that has hosted racing since 1950. The headline is the Rally Driving Experience: around two hours that start in the classroom and end with ten laps of a purpose built loose surface stage, driven in both a front wheel drive Toyota Celica GT and a rear wheel drive two litre BMW E46 compact. The instructors are the Knott family, Colin with 30 years in national and international championships, Richard a UK and US competitor and Subaru stunt driver, and Andrew a rally competitor at home and abroad.

The rest of the menu is the circuit itself. Startline puts drivers under 17 years of age behind the wheel of dual control cars on the track laid out as a road network. Car track days run as open pit lane Fridays with free tuition from ARDS registered instructors, motorcycle track days run in groups of 12 bikes, and the ARDS novice course is the on track test for a first Motorsport UK competition licence. The circuit shop also sells supercar vouchers that are run on the track by Car Chase Heroes.

The circuit is on the B4039 west of Chippenham, close to junctions 17 and 18 of the M4. It suits a driver with a full manual licence who wants real seat time on a loose surface, a 12 to 16 year old learning to drive before their first road lesson, and anyone with their own car or bike who wants a day on a genuine race circuit.

• Two rally cars and you drive both: the Toyota Celica GT is the front wheel drive car and the two litre BMW E46 compact is the rear wheel drive car. The stage is a purpose built loose surface course beside the circuit, not the tarmac track.
• The rally session runs in a group of about five per instructor: a classroom briefing on safety and rally technique, familiarisation laps with the instructor alongside, then your ten driving laps split across the two cars, time trial laps against the clock in each, a high speed passenger lap in the BMW or the Celica, a written assessment of your technique, a group debrief with a certificate and a Drive of the Day prize.
• Startline lessons run on the race circuit set out as roads with roundabouts, lanes, traffic lights, speed zones and stop junctions. The cars are dual control with limited speed, the instructors are DVSA approved, and each level is one to one: 35 minutes of driving at 1st Gear for someone who has never driven, 60 minutes at 2nd Gear, 70 minutes at 3rd Gear covering mirror, signal, manoeuvre as a practice run for the first road lesson. Each level opens with a theory quiz.
• Car track days are open pit lane: you go out whenever you want between 9am and 5pm with an hour for lunch, and the circuit suggests 15 to 20 minute runs with a break between. The day opens with a safety briefing and sighting laps, ARDS registered instructors ride with you all day, and the premium days on the Friday before a race meeting take 60 cars with 20 on track at a time.
• The ARDS novice course is an assessment, not a lesson: a welcome and safety briefing from the examiners, a 30 minute written test on Section Q of the Motorsport UK Yearbook and every flag, then laps in a road car judged on lines and awareness of other traffic rather than speed. A pass gets the licence application signed and stamped on the day.
• Spectators are welcome at all of it: the rally course has its own viewing area and toilets, the circuit has a walking route around the outside, and Cafe Bar H in the paddock serves snacks, meals and drinks with indoor seating and covered outdoor tables. There is nothing to eat or drink at the rally stage itself.
• The older Racing School single seater, Lotus and Driving Experience Course days are now only bookable by people holding an existing gift voucher.

• Everything here runs on set dates booked online at castlecombecircuit.co.uk. The rally experience runs on Saturdays at 9am, 12pm and on some dates 3pm, with 2026 dates listed through 28 November. Startline runs on Sundays with starts from 8:30am, car track days are Fridays (one Thursday, 12 November 2026) and the ARDS course runs on selected Mondays and Fridays. The office is open Monday to Friday 9am to 5:30pm on 01249 782417.
• Rally Driving Experience: £180 for about two hours including the ten laps, time trials and passenger lap.
• Startline: 1st Gear £60 for about 1 hour 10 minutes, 2nd Gear £100 for about 1 hour 30 minutes, 3rd Gear £120 for about 1 hour 30 minutes. 3rd Gear needs 2nd Gear completed or existing clutch control.
• Car track day: the shop lists it at £40 to £190 with the figure for each option shown at checkout. The Castle Combe Racing Trust track day is £185, or £155 for Castle Combe Racing Club members with their promo code, capped at 48 cars. Extra drivers are booked online before the day and cannot be added on the day.
• ARDS novice course: £330 for 2026 dates. The Motorsport UK Go Racing starter pack must be bought from Motorsport UK before the day and the written test is booked by phone. Drivers under 60 years of age need an optician's vision test only, not a full medical.
• Car Chase Heroes supercar vouchers from the circuit shop: £54 for one car, £114 for three cars, £203 for six cars, with cars marked premium costing extra. The voucher code is redeemed on carchaseheroes.com against their Castle Combe dates, and queries go to Car Chase Heroes on 01443 888144.
• Rally experience rules: a full, current manual UK driving licence, no upper age limit, height from 5 ft 1 in to 6 ft 4 in (about 155 to 193 cm) and weight up to 16 stone (about 102 kg), which the circuit calls guidelines rather than hard cut offs. Racing the other drivers is covered in the briefing and not allowed.
• Startline rules: for drivers under 17 years of age, minimum height 4 ft 8 in (1.42 m), and the student must be able to read a number plate from 20 metres. Spaces for students under 14 years of age are limited and 12 and 13 year olds need a call to the office before booking. No slip on shoes or thick soles. The booking must be made by an adult aged 18 years or over.
• Track day rules: full licence with the number given at checkout, no banned drivers, arrive by 7:30am for noise test, briefing and sign on. Cars must be to MOT standard with four wheels, no single seaters, no slick tyres, and pass 100 dB(A) measured half a metre from the exhaust at 4,500 rpm. Arms and legs covered, helmet to BS6658 or ECE 22-05 or borrow one of the circuit's, no overalls supplied, no hand held cameras in the car. Passengers front seat only, aged 16 years and over, registered in person on the day; passengers under 18 years of age have their indemnity countersigned by a parent or guardian. First session for new drivers is behind an instructor. No timing, no racing. Standard car insurance excludes track use, so your own car is on your own risk.
• Motorcycle track days: bikes over 250cc, one piece or zip together two piece leathers, full face helmet, gloves and boots, 105 dB(A) noise limit tested on arrival, an A licence for any group or an A2 licence for the new to track group only, 12 bikes on track at a time. Days book out in advance and nobody is taken on the day.
• Add ons: the rally experience has none. On track days the official photos are sold on the day and online about a week later at castlecombecircuit.photos, extra drivers are an online pre booking, helmets are lent free, and silencers and spares are sold by the Merlin Motorsport shop in the paddock on track days.
• Cancellation and weather: a cancellation phoned to the office more than 14 days out gets a credit for another event minus a £20 admin fee; later than that nothing is refunded. Moving a confirmed driving school date costs £20. Everything runs in the rain. If the circuit cancels it offers another date or a credit voucher, and if you have not been contacted you are expected to turn up. No refund for rally, racing school or Startline entrants who turn up outside the entry requirements. Every participant and passenger signs an indemnity form before going on track and is covered by the circuit's personal accident policy.
• Gift vouchers are valid for 12 months from purchase, come in a gift pack, and are not replaced if lost.
• Getting there: the circuit is on the B4039 west of Chippenham near junctions 17 and 18 of the M4, signed with brown chequered flag tourist signs, sat nav SN14 7EY. Chippenham station is on the London Paddington to Bristol line and has taxis outside. Parking is on grass at most events with a tarmac Blue Badge car park near the entrance.

• Last verified: 18 October 2026
• Official link: https://castlecombecircuit.co.uk/racing-school-driving-experiences/