Croft Circuit Driving Experiences

Croft Circuit runs its own driving experiences on the full 2.1 mile race circuit at Dalton-on-Tees, south of Darlington, the layout the British Touring Car Championship visits each year. The menu is seven supercars: Ferrari 458 Spider, Lamborghini Huracán, McLaren 570S, Lotus Emira, Aston Martin V8 Vantage, Audi R8 and a V8 Ford Mustang. Every drive follows one format: demonstration laps, laps driving a Toyota Corolla to learn the circuit, laps in the supercar, then a fast passenger lap with a racing driver.

The rest of the programme is Croft's own too: a New Starter Experience for teenagers in a MINI Cooper S, a New Driver course for learners and new licence holders, passenger rides with stunt driver Paul Swift, the ARDS Novice Driver Training Course for anyone after a racing licence, and novice track days for road cars.

The circuit sits on the former RAF Croft bomber airfield, opened for racing as Croft Autodrome in August 1964 and reopened in its modern form in 1995, and is owned by the British Automobile Racing Club. It suits a first supercar drive as much as a teenager's first laps behind a wheel.

• The cars: Ferrari 458 Spider with its dual clutch gearbox, Lamborghini Huracán (631 bhp V10, four wheel drive, twin clutch), McLaren 570S (562 bhp twin turbo V8, dual clutch), Lotus Emira (400 bhp supercharged V6, six speed manual), Aston Martin V8 Vantage (4.7 litre V8, 380 bhp), Audi R8 (4.2 litre V8, four wheel drive) and Ford Mustang (5 litre V8, manual, 444 bhp).
• Every supercar drive runs the same way over about 2.5 hours on site: a briefing, two demonstration laps with the instructor driving, three laps you drive in a 169 bhp Toyota Corolla hybrid to learn the lines and braking points, four laps you drive in the supercar, then a final flat out lap as a passenger in the Corolla with one of Croft's racing drivers. You drive seven of the ten laps, 21.2 miles in all.
• The instructors are ARDS qualified race instructors, the standard Motorsport UK uses for licensing new racers, and the briefing covers braking points, cornering and acceleration zones before anyone goes out.
• Two MINI based courses for younger drivers: the New Starter Experience puts teenagers in a MINI Cooper S with a manual gearbox and no dual controls for two gentle sessions on the paddock roads and sections of track, then two full laps of the circuit, about an hour and a half all up. The New Driver Experience is three 20 minute sessions in a Mini Cooper with your own instructor, starting on the perimeter roads and finishing on the full circuit, split by two 15 minute theory breaks and closed with a debrief and certificate.
• Passenger rides with stunt driver Paul Swift: three laps in a 444 bhp V8 Ford Mustang GT with a 360 degree in car video with his commentary to keep, or a Ford Focus ST ride shared by up to three passengers. Allow an hour on site for either.
• The ARDS Novice Driver Training Course is the test that leads to a Motorsport UK race licence: classroom briefing, an instructor demonstration of the lines, at least five assessed laps, then a multiple choice exam.
• Croft's own novice track days for road cars run two groups of up to 15 cars through six 20 minute sessions each, 9am registration and briefing, pace laps at 9:45am, first session at 10am, lunch 12:30pm to 1:30pm and a 4pm finish, with ARDS instructors on hand.
• Smaller format days come and go: a Sunday Drive with a Difference ran twice in 2026 with two laps in a MINI Cooper, two in an Alpine A110S and a hot lap with an instructor, plus passenger hot laps for anyone not driving. Friends and family watch from the paddock, where the Hangar50 cafe sits.

• Prices: Ferrari 458 Spider £329, Lamborghini Huracán £349, McLaren 570S £339, Lotus Emira £259, Aston Martin V8 Vantage £249, Audi R8 £199, Ford Mustang £199, each for the 10 lap format. New Starter Experience £130, New Driver Experience £210, ARDS Novice Driver Training Course £295 (junior version £620), Paul Swift Mustang GT ride from £159 (listed down from £189), Paul Swift Focus ST ride £55, Sunday Drive with a Difference £149 per person.
• Driving experiences run on published dates between April and October only; nothing runs over winter. Croft allocates the time slot after booking and advises booking 3 to 6 weeks ahead for a first choice of date. Supercar drives, Paul Swift rides and the ARDS course book online; supercar voucher holders and supercar enquiries go to 01264 882222 or croft@thruxtonracing.co.uk, while New Starter, New Driver and ARDS enquiries go to 01325 721815.
• Supercar drivers must be 18 years of age or over with a full driving licence, shown on the day: no licence means no drive and no refund. Croft's terms ask for a licence valid for a manual gearbox. Penalty points do not matter and there is no minimum time the licence must have been held. Height between 5 ft and 6 ft 4 in and weight up to 18 stone; anyone slightly outside those limits is asked to call the office.
• New Starter Experience: 13 to 16 years of age and over 5 ft tall. New Driver Experience: from 15 years of age and over 5 ft tall, with DVLA medical restrictions applying. Both run on weekdays during school holidays only. The junior ARDS course is open from 13 and a half years of age and has to be backed by a junior championship club, and the ARDS course needs a Go Racing starter pack from Motorsport UK and a signed racing medical from your doctor before the paperwork can be validated.
• Novice track days are for classic and modern road cars only: no race prepared cars and no experienced track day drivers.
• Dress code for driving: long trousers, a long sleeved top and thin soled, narrow shoes. Helmets are supplied. Anyone judged to be under the influence of alcohol or drugs is refused.
• Add ons: one hour of one to one instruction before the ARDS assessment, £185; passenger hot laps at Sunday Drive days, £30 per person; the Mustang GT passenger ride includes its 360 degree video; gift pack and delivery options are offered at checkout.
• Changes and cancellations: a booked date can be moved once, more than 14 days out, for a £25 fee, and not at all inside 14 days. A no show forfeits the whole fee. Sending someone else in your place costs £25 for the name change. Gift vouchers refund within 28 days of purchase, to the buyer, less a £35 administration charge, and not at all once a date has been booked.
• Weather: snow, ice, fog or heavy rain can cancel or restrict a day, and Croft decides on the day rather than from the forecast. Not turning up on a day that runs in bad weather forfeits everything paid. If your driving is cut short by weather you come back another day rather than get a refund.
• If a car is damaged while you are in control, your session ends there and nothing is refunded.
• Getting there, as Croft's own directions put it: A1(M) junction 58 travelling south or junction 57 travelling north, then the A167 towards Northallerton; the circuit is signposted about 2 miles south of Croft on Tees, and Darlington station on the East Coast Main Line is 4 miles north. Sat nav DL2 2PL, what3words publisher.euphoric.laptops.
• Friends and family watch for free. No animals on or around the circuit.

• Last verified: 18 October 2026
• Official link: https://croftcircuit.co.uk/experiences