Hong Kong’s “Traditional Horse Racing” Cheat Sheet – Grab a Betting Slip and Feel the Thrill!

Text & Photos /Unrestrained

I’ve been to Hong Kong five times, and recently I’ve been wanting to put together a complete record of the attractions I’ve visited and the restaurants I’ve eaten at during those trips. Not knowing where to start, I thought back to my first visit – the coolest thing was definitely going to the horse races. The horses giving it their all on the track and the cheering crowds still get me fired up just thinking about it. So today, I’m going to show you what Hong Kong horse racing is all about, covering the racecourses, transportation, race times, how to bet, and what it’s like at the venue. By the end, I realized this is basically a little cheat sheet!

※ Before we begin, a quick note: you must be 18 or older to enter the racetrack (sounds just like a casino rule, doesn’t it?).

● 《ETNEWS News Cloud》 reminds you: gamble responsibly, enjoy in moderation, and please don’t become addicted to gambling.

Horse Racing Venues

There are two horse racing venues in Hong Kong: one in Sha Tin in the New Territories, and the other in Happy Valley on Hong Kong Island.

Horse Racing Schedule

Horse racing is a seasonal event, with races taking place annually from September to the end of June or mid-July. There are no races from mid-July to the end of August (due to the hot weather).

During the season, both Sha Tin Racecourse and Happy Valley Racecourse hold one race per week, usually on Wednesdays and Sundays, though occasionally the schedule may shift to Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Races are held in the afternoon or evening. Afternoon races typically start at 12:45 PM; evening races start between 7:00–7:30 PM (Wednesdays) / 5:45–6:45 PM (Saturdays and Sundays).

Checking Race Schedules and Times

Want to experience the thrill of horse racing and maybe try your luck at betting? Check if there are any races happening during your visit to Hong Kong!

Just visit the official website of the “Hong Kong Jockey Club”“Race Schedule”to find the relevant information. Taking June 2017 as an example, the page below shows the schedule after clicking the link – that month’s races were held on Wednesdays and Sundays.

▲Hong Kong Horse Racing Calendar (Image / Hong Kong Jockey Club Official Website)

“Tin” refers to Sha Tin, “Valley” refers to Happy Valley, “Sun” means daytime races, “Moon” means night races, “Grass” indicates the race is on turf, and “Track” means the race is on a “mixed track.” Basically, Unrestrained thinks it’s enough to know which venue and whether it’s a day or night race.

Happy Valley almost always holds races on Wednesday evenings, while Sha Tin Racecourse mostly starts races on Sunday afternoons, though there can still be changes – always refer to the official website for updates!

▲Hong Kong Horse Racing Calendar (Image / Hong Kong Jockey Club Official Website)

Taking the 25th and 28th as examples, the race on the 25th is at Sha Tin Racecourse during the day on a mixed track, while the race on the 28th is a night race at Happy Valley on a turf track.

As for the numbers in the tables for the 25th and 28th, Unrestrained isn’t entirely sure either – they probably indicate the race class, but for us non-professional players, it’s not really that important. Just know that “the number of rows in the table equals the number of races that day.” For example, the 25th has 10 rows, meaning 10 races, while the 28th has only 6 races. There’s roughly one race every 30 minutes.

To confirm the start time of the first race of the day, you can check this page on the Jockey Club’s website:“Race Start Times”This page only shows the start times for the most recent day’s races, and remember to check the “Local Races” start times, not the overseas ones!

Getting to the Racecourses

■ Happy Valley Racecourse:

1) MTR: Get off at “Causeway Bay Station Exit A, Times Square Exit.” Once you exit, there are signs, and it’s about a 15–20 minute walk. The racecourse is huge, so it should be quite visible.

2) Ding Ding Tram: Take the "toward Happy Valley" ding ding tram and ride it all the way to the last stop — that’s Up!

■ Sha Tin Racecourse: The most convenient way to get to Sha Tin Racecourse is by MTR, but note that the racecourse is not at Sha Tin Station — it’s at “Racecourse Station.” If you’re coming from Kowloon or Hong Kong Island, transfer to the “East Rail Line” (the light blue line in the map below) at “Kowloon Tong Station” and ride to Racecourse Station.

Please note that trains only run to Racecourse Station on race days. When transferring, check if the train car you’re boarding has a sign indicating it “passes through Racecourse Station.” Make sure it does before getting on — Up!

Sha Tin Racecourse Environment

Unrestrained was originally visiting Sha Tin Racecourse and would like to share what he saw that day!

After exiting the MTR station and crossing a footbridge, you’ll arrive at the racecourse entrance. The entrance has turnstiles similar to those in MTR stations, and you need a ticket to enter — HK$10 per person. If you have an Octopus card, you can just tap it to pay.

After paying the entrance fee, you’ll first see many horse models in various colors and decorations — quite colorful. In front of each horse is a sign that may explain its significance or something similar, but Unrestrained didn’t look too closely.

The outdoor grandstand area is very spacious and looks quite modern. Although it was built over 30 years ago, it has been expanded and is well maintained.

Sha Tin Racecourse is not in a busy district, so there aren’t many commercial buildings nearby. On this day, the weather was great — blue skies and white clouds, paired with the nearby mountains, offering a fantastic view. There are two giant screens next to the track displaying the odds for each horse as well as live race footage.

If you find the outdoor grandstand too hot and want to head somewhere cooler, you can also go indoors to watch the TV screens. Inside, various horse racing info is shown, and lots of local uncles and aunties are seriously watching the screens or studying horse racing newspapers and guides to figure out which horse has the best chance of winning and which to bet on.

All those numbers were really overwhelming to Unrestrained — anyway, I’m just here for the vibe, no need to take it so seriously.

To place bets or claim winnings, go to the orange windows. Some windows offer both “Sell (betting)” and “Pay (claiming winnings),” while others only handle one or the other.

Many areas inside have betting slips and explanations of bet types, even including Mark Six lottery slips, as shown in the picture below. (Note: You must be 18 or older to bet or claim prizes!!! Also, you must be 18 or older to even enter the racecourse.)

If you don’t understand the betting instructions in the brochures, you can also go directly to the service counter (pictured below) to ask. Personally, Unrestrained was a bit lazy to read the brochures and went straight to ask the staff.

Horse Betting Gameplay & How to Bet

Horse betting is a legal sports gambling activity in Hong Kong. The gameplay ranges from simple to complex and is divided into four main categories. The official guide provides four different colored booklets to help everyone understand (as shown below).

For travelers like Unrestrained who just want to soak in the atmosphere and enjoy the excitement, the simplest and easiest option is the way to go (the purple booklet). Here's a brief explanation.

The simplest types of bets are as follows:Win, Place, Quinella, and Quinella Place.

■ Win: Based on the odds and the horse’s condition, choose the horse you think is most likely to come in first.

■ Place: Choose a horse you think will finish in the top three.

■ Quinella: Pick two horses you think will finish in first and second place (no need to specify the order — as long as these two horses are in the top two, regardless of who is first or second, you win a prize).

■ Quinella Place: Pick two horses you think will finish in the top three (no need to specify the order — as long as these two horses are in the top three, you win a prize).

The guidebook explains things quite clearly. Taking the horse racing chart in the guidebook as an example (below), in this race, the first-place horse is No. 9, and the second and third-place horses are No. 6 and No. 12.

If you play Win, you must bet on No. 9 to win a prize; if you play Place, you just need to pick any one of No. 9, No. 6, or No. 12 to win; for Quinella, you need to pick both No. 6 and No. 9; finally, for Quinella Place, as long as you buy any of the following combinations — No. 6 + No. 9, No. 6 + No. 12, or No. 9 + No. 12 — you win a prize.

Each type of bet uses a differently colored betting slip. The four types introduced above use blue slips (as shown above). The slip includes the race number (choose the race number you want to bet on), the type of bet (Win, Place, Quinella, or Quinella Place — you can only choose one type per slip), the horse number(s), and the amount per bet or per slip. Just mark it accordingly. If you’re still unsure how to fill it out, asking the staff at the service center is the fastest way to go — Up!

The minimum bet is HK$10. Unrestrained isn’t a pro, so he only bets HK$10 per slip each time to avoid draining his travel budget.

Once you’ve bought your betting slip, head to the grandstand to wait for the race. If you hate the sun, you can also watch the race on TV indoors, but you’ll miss out on some of the live atmosphere.

Live Horse Racing

Just before the race starts, the grandstand suddenly gets packed — it’s all heads everywhere. Before the race, the jockeys and horses make their appearances one by one.

Then head to the starting point of the race and get ready. When the starting gun fires, everyone sprints with all their might.

During the horse races, I recorded the events on video, so there are no photos QQ. The next two images are screenshots from the videos—the quality isn’t great, but you can still get a sense of the speed.

Visiting a racetrack in Hong Kong to watch a few races is highly recommended when traveling here, as it offers a rare glimpse into Asia’s unique sports gambling culture. Many locals go with friends to chat and bet on horses, and you’ll also see many elderly men and women smoking, holding racing forms, and carefully studying the horses they plan to bet on with reading glasses—perfect for passing an afternoon. Be sure to give it a try if you have the chance.

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