Iffezheim racecourse

If the northern Black Forest has one grand social occasion, it takes place on the turf at Iffezheim. Horses have raced on the course just outside Baden-Baden since 1858, which makes it one of the most historic racecourses in Germany.

What Ascot is to England, Iffezheim is to German horse racing. International fields, big names, big hats and a setting between the Rhine plain and the edge of the Black Forest that gives the spectacle a fitting stage.

Racing at Iffezheim is not a year-round affair. It comes in concentrated race weeks, and each has a character of its own. The Spring Meeting opens the season, when the ground trembles under hooves for the first time after the winter. The high point of the year is the Große Woche, the Grand Week, in late August and early September. The most important races are run then, and the sporting event becomes a social occasion for which half of Baden-Baden dresses up.

The year closes with the Sales & Racing Festival in October, where thoroughbreds go under the hammer alongside the racing. For visitors, a rare glimpse behind the scenes of the turf.

A race day follows a script of its own. Between races there is time to stroll and to look in at the parade ring, where the horses are shown before the start. And time to watch the other racegoers at leisure, their outfits shifting somewhere between country outing and catwalk. A hat is not compulsory, but it is rarely wrong.

The Tote is part of the ritual too. A small bet on the horse with the prettiest name turns every race into a personal drama. Leave it at that and you have understood the sport. Food and drink at the course come at every level, from the bratwurst stand to the champagne pavilion.

From Baiersbronn the road runs gently down the Murg valley towards Rastatt, and after a good hour you reach the racecourse. If you want to make a proper day of it, pair it with Baden-Baden. The Lichtentaler Allee or a museum in the morning, the races in the afternoon, a table for dinner in the evening. There is hardly a more concentrated way to experience Baden-Baden at its most fashionable.

Racing only takes place on the meeting dates, so a look at the racing calendar belongs at the start of any planning. And as always, the drive back over the heights is longer, but lovelier.