INDIANAPOLIS – There are 350,000 people in the grandstands. The engines haven't started yet. And somehow, somehow, it is the loudest thing you have ever heard.

That's not the race. That's the national anthem. That's the flyover. That's 350,000 people who have been coming to this place for decades, standing together inside a 2.5-mile oval that has outlasted every generation that ever entered it.

This is the Indy 500. The 110th running of it. And you should be there.

The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is the largest spectator sporting venue on earth. It holds more people than any stadium, any arena, any other racetrack in existence. That fact alone is worth understanding before you go because this isn't a sports trip. This is a pilgrimage. And like any pilgrimage, the experience is determined entirely by how well you prepare.

Here's how to do it right.

Where to Stay

The speedway is about five miles from downtown Indianapolis. You have two real options: stay downtown and use the official shuttle system or ride-shares to reach IMS, or stay near the track and walk in. Downtown is the better choice for the overall weekend experience. The track hotels are fine for race day, but you'll miss the pre-race energy and the parade and most of what makes this weekend what it is.

Here's how to choose your base camp:

The Luxury Call: Conrad Indianapolis

247 rooms, skybridge access to Circle Centre Mall and the Convention Center, and The Capital Grille on site for when you need a dinner reservation that goes with the occasion. The Conrad operates at a different frequency than the rest of downtown during race weekend: quieter by design, more controlled, better for anyone who wants to come back to a hotel that feels like a reset rather than an extension of the chaos. The spa is legitimate and worth booking in advance.

Best for: Anyone who wants to treat themselves and still be in the center of it all without feeling like they're inside a festival.

The Smart Play: Hyatt Regency Indianapolis

Skywalk access. Convention Center connection. Centrally positioned downtown. Hyatt Regency Indianapolis is a reliable, well-run property that handles large event weekends well. If the JW is sold out, which it often is by the time most people start planning, this is your answer without compromise. Don't overthink it.

Best for: Anyone booking late, groups that need room block availability, or travelers who want premium without the Conrad price point.

The Parade Hotel: Hilton Garden Inn Indianapolis Downtown

The Indy 500 parade runs directly past this property on Saturday. That alone makes it worth mentioning. You can watch one of the best pre-race events in motorsport without leaving the hotel. Hilton Garden Inn Indianapolis Downtown is a casual property with a no-frills sensibility, but during Legends Day weekend, having the parade come to you while you hold a drink from the hospitality room is a legitimate experience upgrade that no five-star property in a different location can match.

The hotel is built inside a historic Indianapolis train station, and select rooms are converted Pullman train cars. Sleep in a train car inside a century-old station a short walk from Lucas Oil Stadium. This is either exactly your thing or it isn't. If it is, book it now and don't look back.

Where to Eat

Indianapolis has a serious dining scene that most first-time visitors underestimate. The city's reputation as a steak town is earned. The restaurant scene around Indy 500 weekend is also extremely competitive for reservations. Book as soon as you know your dates.

St. Elmo Steak House

DOWNTOWN  ·  EST. 1902  ·  RESERVE NOW, NOT LATER 

This is non-negotiable. St. Elmo's has been open since 1902, which means it has hosted celebrities, athletes, executives, and visiting dignitaries for over a century, and it hasn't changed because it doesn't need to. The steaks are first-rate. The bar carries 18,000 bottles in Indiana's largest retail wine cellar. The service is professional in a way that few restaurants in any city achieve.

But the real reason you're here is the shrimp cocktail. The sauce is made with fresh horseradish ground daily. It is the only appetizer on the menu. It is simultaneously one of the best things you will eat in Indianapolis and a genuine physical experience, the kind that makes people fan themselves and order another one immediately. The James Beard Foundation called it an American Classic. That designation is accurate.

Must Order: The world-famous shrimp cocktail followed by your choice of dry-aged USDA Prime steak.

Harry & Izzy's

DOWNTOWN  ·  SAME FAMOUS SPICE  ·  THE SOPHISTICATED ALTERNATIVE

Same ownership as St. Elmo's, next door, same shrimp cocktail sauce, more menu variety. If you didn't get a St. Elmo's reservation in time, and you might not, this isn't settling. It's a legitimately excellent restaurant that during any other weekend would be the top recommendation. The bar is the focal point and the energy on race weekend is exactly what you want from a pre- or post-dinner drink situation.

Must Order: The world-famous shrimp cocktail. It’s the same legendary recipe. Aim for a seat at the bar to soak in the energy.

The Oceanaire Seafood Room

DOWNTOWN  ·  FRESH MARKET CATCH  ·  THE REFINED ALTERNATIVE

The best seafood option in downtown Indianapolis and a reliable call for a serious dinner in a city whose reputation leans heavily toward beef. Chef-driven menu that changes with market availability. The atmosphere is warm without being fussy, and the service matches the occasion. Book well in advance.

Must Order: Whatever the daily special is. Chef-driven menus here reward the curious and the bold.

Sun King Brewing

VARIOUS LOCATIONS  ·  THE ANCHOR OF INDY CRAFT  ·  THE LOCAL PULSE

Indianapolis's homegrown craft brewery, and the one that matters most to the culture of the city. During race week the taprooms are electric, a mix of locals and visitors who all understand that this is a place with a distinct sense of place. If you want to understand Indianapolis beyond the speedway, spend an hour here. It's both a great bar and a quick education in what the city is actually proud of.

Must Order: Sunlight Cream Ale (the flagship) and whatever seasonal they're running race weekend.

Provision

DOWNTOWN  ·  FARM-TO-TABLE DONE RIGHT

Part of the Cunningham Restaurant Group, Provision sources locally and operates its own greenhouse for produce. Twelve different cuts of steak from regional farms. Desserts from Indianapolis's best local bakeries. The wine list is deep. It's the right call for anyone who wants a special dinner that isn't St. Elmo's.

Must Order: Whatever the daily special is. Chef-driven menus here reward the curious and the bold.

Long's Bakery

NEAR IMS  ·  CASH ONLY  ·  EST. 1955  ·  A DAVID LETTERMAN INSTITUTION

No frills. Cash only. A line that wraps around the block on race weekend. And glazed donuts that will ruin every other donut you eat for the rest of your life. Long's Bakery opened in 1955 near the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and has been a race weekend institution ever since. David Letterman, one of Indianapolis's most famous sons and an avid racing fan, made it one of his regular stops every time he came home. That endorsement is worth noting, but it's secondary to the donuts themselves: fresh, melt-in-your-mouth, and gone by mid-morning. Get there early. The line moves fast and it's absolutely worth it.

Must Order: The glazed donut. Just the glazed donut. That’s the whole reason you’re there.

Plump's Last Shot

BROAD RIPPLE  ·  SPORTS BAR  ·  INDIANA HISTORY ON THE WALLS

Bobby Plump made the shot that won the 1954 Indiana state high school basketball championship for tiny Milan High School, the real story that became the movie Hoosiers. He then opened a restaurant. Plump's Last Shot is part sports bar, part basketball shrine, and entirely Indiana. The walls are packed with memorabilia and Hoosier imagery that gives context to why basketball means something different in this state than it does anywhere else in the country. Order the breaded pork tenderloin, Indiana's signature dish, pounded thin, fried, and famously larger than both the bun and sometimes the plate it arrives on.

Must Order: The breaded pork tenderloin sandwich. It is Indiana’s signature dish, pounded thin and famously larger than the bun. If you leave without eating one, you’ve missed something essential about the state.

Slippery Noodle Inn

DOWNTOWN  ·  INDIANA'S OLDEST BAR  ·  EST. 1850  ·  LIVE BLUES DAILY

The Slippery Noodle Inn has been open since 1850, which means it was serving drinks in Indianapolis before the Civil War ended, before the speedway was built, before Indiana became the basketball state it is now. Live blues music every night. A bar that predates everything around it by generations. Just steps from Lucas Oil Stadium. This is not the place to go for dinner; it's the place to go after dinner, when you want to understand what Indianapolis sounds like when nobody's trying to impress you.

Must Order: A cold beer and the live blues. Arrive early to secure a table near the stage and soak in the atmosphere of a bar that predates the race itself.

Workingman's Friend

WESTSIDE  ·  CASH ONLY  ·  21+  ·  NO NONSENSE

Old-school diner. Cash only. 21 and over. Beloved by locals who have been coming here for decades and have no interest in explaining it to anyone. The kind of place that resists description because description is beside the point. You go, you eat, you understand. Worth seeking out precisely because it asks nothing of you except to show up and pay cash.

The Weekend, Day by Day

The Indy 500 is not a Sunday race. It is a five-day event that rewards people who treat it like one. If you fly in Sunday morning and leave Sunday night, you will have seen the race and missed the experience. Here is how to do the whole thing properly.The Indy 500 is not a Sunday race. It's a five-day event that rewards people who treat it like one. If you fly in Sunday morning and leave Sunday night, you'll have seen the race and missed the experience.

Wednesday — Arrive Early

• AFTERNOON: Touch down before the surge. Check in, navigate downtown, and get your bearings. This is the last quiet afternoon Indianapolis will offer until the Monday after the checkers. Use it to find your center.
  
  
• EVENING: Dinner at St. Elmo Steak House. This is your tactical window for a table before the city truly swells. Secure the reservation, order the shrimp cocktail, and don’t look back. It is the definitive start to the pilgrimage.
  
  
• AFTER: Walk Georgia Street. Witness the transformation as the infrastructure of the weekend takes shape. Mapping the geography now will save you when the crowds arrive.

Thursday — IMS Museum

• MORNING: The Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum. This isn’t just a collection of cars; it’s one of the premier sports shrines in the world. The Borg-Warner Trophy, the machines that defined eras, and a century of ghosts. Give it two hours; the history deserves that much.
  
  
• AFTERNOON:  Kiss the Bricks Tour. A narrated lap around the 2.5-mile cathedral that culminates at the start-finish line. You’ll stand on the Yard of Bricks, the same surface where Helio Castroneves began his climbs and A.J. Foyt cemented his legend. It is one of those rare sports moments that feels significantly larger in person than on a screen.
  
  
• EVENING: Sun King Brewing. Arrive early for the food, stay late for the pulse of a city that’s starting to vibrate with race energy. It’s the local heartbeat of the weekend.

Friday — Carb Day

• 8:00 AM: The gates open for Carb Day. This is the final practice, the last chance to see the field in true race trim rather than qualifying bursts. If you want to understand the competitive subtext of Sunday, this session is non-negotiable viewing.
  
  
• 2:30 PM: The Pit Stop Challenge. A high-stakes exhibition of the precision and athleticism that happens in the margins of the race. Seeing a professional crew operate at this speed, in isolation, is a legitimate spectacle that most fans miss. Don’t be one of them.
  
  
• EVENING: The city is officially electric. Dinner at Harry & Izzy’s provides the sophisticated energy the night demands. If you already checked that box, settle into a Georgia Street bar and soak in the atmosphere. You’ve reached the peak of race week.

Saturday — Legends Day

• 9:00 AM: Full Field Autograph Session. All 33 starters at Pagoda Plaza. This is your final chance for proximity before they disappear into the cockpit. Arrive early; the lines are as legendary as the drivers.
  
  
• 11:45 AM: The Indianapolis 500 Parade. The entire 33-car grid, the legends, and the marching bands take over downtown. It feels like a different planet. If you’re at the Hilton Garden Inn, the parade comes to your window. If not, claim your curb space early.
  
  
• AFTERNOON: The Drivers’ Meeting at IMS. A public ritual where final instructions are delivered and starter’s rings are presented. The room is quiet, focused, and heavy with the kind of tension that only exists on the eve of the Spectacle.
  
  
• EVENING: The Final Dinner. This is the night to pull the trigger on that hard-won reservation. Make it count; the next time you eat, the world will be watching a green flag.

Sunday — Race Day

• EARLY: Move before you think you have to. 350,000 people are descending on one point in the universe. If your hotel offers a police-escorted shuttle, take it. It is the only way to bypass the chaos with your sanity intact.
  
  
• MORNING: Gasoline Alley. Walk the garages to see the scale of the operation. It’s a 200-mph business decision wrapped in carbon fiber. The logos, the engineering, and the sheer human effort on display remind you that this is the world’s biggest stage.
  
  
• NOON: The Green Flag. 33 cars, one formation, and a wall of sound that hits you before the cars ever reach the bricks. There is no way to prepare for the physical sensation of the start. In that moment, you will understand why this race has outlasted everything since 1911.
  
  
• VICTORY LANE: The Milk. Since 1936, the ritual has remained: 2% or skim on the Yard of Bricks. It’s a tradition that requires no explanation. Witnessing it live, alongside 300,000 others, is how you close the chapter on a weekend that will likely bring you back next year.The Indy 500 isn't just a Sunday race. It's a five-day pilgrimage that rewards those who respect the process. If you only show up for the green flag, you've seen the cars but missed the Spectacle.
  
  

Only in Indianapolis

Indianapolis is a sports city first and a tourist city second, which means the best experiences here aren't engineered for visitors. They're real, they're specific to this place, and they don't exist anywhere else. Here's what to do between the sessions and before the race:

1. Fowling Warehouse: Fowling, the combination of football throwing and bowling pin knocking, was invented in the infield of the Indianapolis 500. The Fowling Warehouse on East Washington Street is its official home, a massive converted space where you throw footballs at bowling pins from 40 feet away and compete with the kind of intensity that surprises people who've never played. It's chaotic, competitive, and perfect for a group. The fact that it was born at this specific race makes it a genuinely Indianapolis experience.
   
   
2. The Hangar — Pedal Pub & Experience Hub: The Hangar sits just south of downtown, blocks from both Lucas Oil Stadium and Gainbridge Fieldhouse. It's the launch point for Indianapolis's iconic 16-person pedal pub tours, group bikes that let you drink, pedal, and move through the city simultaneously, which sounds ridiculous and turns out to be one of the best ways to see downtown on a race weekend. The Hangar also runs indoor golf simulators and craft workshops. Worth planning in advance for groups; the pedal pubs book out during race week.
   
   
3. White River State Park: The nation's largest urban state park sits 250 acres in the heart of downtown Indianapolis. Inside it: the Indianapolis Zoo, the NCAA Hall of Champions, the IUPUI campus canal walks, and easy waterside access that most visitors miss entirely because they're focused on the speedway. This is where the NCAA chose to put its headquarters, and the Hall of Champions, with its deep dive into the history of college sports and its interactive experiences, is one of the most underrated sports museums in the country.
   
   
4. Kayak or Canoe the White River: Frank's Paddlesport Livery is Indianapolis's first downtown livery, offering kayaks and canoes on the White River for anyone who wants a completely different perspective on a city that's usually experienced at street level. On a non-race morning, this is the most peaceful two hours you'll have all weekend. Book in advance during race week. This is the kind of thing locals know about and visitors discover too late.
   
   
5. Mass Ave + Cultural Trail: Rent a bike and ride the Indianapolis Cultural Trail, a 10-mile urban path that connects the city's neighborhoods, public art installations, restaurants, and green spaces in a way that no driving tour can replicate. Massachusetts Avenue (Mass Ave) is the anchor: the city's arts and dining district, lined with galleries, independent restaurants, and the kind of street-level energy that reminds you Indianapolis has a real city underneath all the sports infrastructure. The Cultural Trail was built as public art. It functions as the best way to understand the city's bones.
   
   
6. Hinkle Fieldhouse: Open since 1928, Hinkle Fieldhouse at Butler University is a National Historic Landmark and one of the oldest active college basketball arenas in the country. It hosted the 1954 Indiana state high school championship, the game where Bobby Plump made the shot that became Hoosiers. It is still Butler's home court. If there's a game during race week, go. If there isn't, the building is worth seeing from the outside, or better yet, getting inside for a moment if public access allows. This is where Indiana basketball actually happened.
   
   
7. Kicasso Sneaker Art Bar: A creative space where you design custom sneakers, which sounds like a novelty until you understand the context: Chuck Taylor, the Converse icon whose name has been on basketball shoes since 1932, was born in Indiana. The state's relationship to basketball culture runs deep enough that a sneaker art bar isn't a gimmick here. It's a genuine cultural experience that connects the visitor's creativity to Indiana's place in the sport's history. A good option for a race week afternoon when you need to slow down before the evening's next event.
   
   

The Storylines That Make the 110th Running Historic

Every Indianapolis 500 has storylines. The 110th running has four that are worth understanding before you're in those grandstands because watching a race is a fundamentally different experience when you know what the people on track are chasing.

The Drive for Five - Helio Castroneves Is Trying to Do Something Nobody Has Ever Done

Helio Castroneves has won the Indianapolis 500 four times. No driver in history has ever won it five. A.J. Foyt won four. Al Unser won four. Rick Mears won four. The ceiling of this race has been four wins for six decades. Castroneves, the Brazilian driver whose trademark victory climb up the fence has made him one of motorsport's most recognizable figures, is attempting to break through it. If you're in those stands on Sunday and it happens, you will have watched one of the defining moments in the history of this race.

Like Father, Like Son - Graham Rahal and Mick Schumacher Race Where Their Fathers Made History

Two drivers in this year's field are chasing ghosts that belong to their fathers. Graham Rahal is the son of Bobby Rahal, who won the 1986 Indianapolis 500. Mick Schumacher is the son of Michael Schumacher, the seven-time Formula One World Champion who never won at Indianapolis but whose name carries the weight of the sport's entire modern era. Both race for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, the team Bobby Rahal co-founded with, yes, David Letterman. The story inside the story: the same team that carries the Letterman name also stops at Long's Bakery. That's Indianapolis in one sentence.

Back-to-Back – Alex Palou Is Defending the Title That Josef Newgarden Held for Two Years

Alex Palou won the 2025 Indianapolis 500 and the 2025 NTT INDYCAR Series championship. Now he's attempting something that only five drivers in the race's 110-year history have managed: back-to-back wins at Indianapolis. Josef Newgarden did it in 2023 and 2024. Before Newgarden, you have to go back to Al Unser Sr. in the 1970s. The field that Palou beat last year will have had a full year to study what he did and build around stopping it. That tension, the champion knowing everyone is coming for him, is the competitive subtext underneath every lap on Sunday.

What You Won't Find on the Official Guide

1. Secure your St. Elmo’s reservation the moment you book your flight. Not after the logistics are settled. Not when the schedule is finalized. Immediately. This is non-negotiable. Race weekend fills this institution faster than any other event in the city’s calendar, and a table during race week is a near-impossible get for the unprepared.
   
   
2. Long’s Bakery is a race weekend institution that sells out before 10 AM. Cash only, near IMS, and serving since 1955. Be there by 8 AM on Saturday. The glazed donuts are worth rearranging your entire morning for, a sentiment shared by David Letterman, who made this his regular homecoming stop. In Indianapolis, that endorsement is all the context you need.
   
   
3. The 500 Festival Parade draws 200,000 people to the downtown streets on Saturday. All 33 starters ride in it, offering your best opportunity for proximity to the grid without a fence between you. It is the city transforming into a spectacle. Claim your curb space by mid-morning, particularly near Monument Circle, where the energy is most concentrated.
   
   
4. The Snake Pit is the Indy 500’s second, louder pulse. Tucked inside Turn 3, it’s a massive concert that runs parallel to the race. It has its own headliners and a distinct, high-voltage energy. It isn’t for the traditionalists, but for those who want a festival atmosphere inside the oval, it’s a factor you should weigh before choosing your grandstand seat.
   
   
5. The Dallara IndyCar Factory is a pilgrimage site for the engineering-minded. Located in Speedway, just 20 minutes from downtown, the facility offers interactive exhibits and race-week tours. If you want to understand the carbon fiber and precision that powers the Sunday start, spend an afternoon here. It’s a deep dive into the business of 200 mph.
   
   
6. The Slippery Noodle Inn has been serving drinks since 1850. It is Indiana’s oldest bar, predating the speedway and the race itself by generations. With live blues every night and a location steps from Lucas Oil Stadium, it’s the place to go on a Thursday to understand what Indianapolis sounds like when the engines are quiet. Order a beer and soak in the bones of the city.
   
   
7. The Kiss the Bricks Tour is your chance to stand on the cathedral floor. Standing on the original 1909 Yard of Bricks at the start-finish line is a rare sports moment that feels significantly larger in person. Execute this on Thursday while the museum is navigable; don’t wait until race day when the venue reaches maximum saturation.
   
   
8. Approach the speedway via Gasoline Alley rather than the main gate. Navigating through the team garages provides a visceral look at the race infrastructure and better vantage points for photography. It adds a few minutes to your walk, but the reward is more time spent inside the technical heart of the operation.

Indianapolis has been hosting major sporting events for over a century, and there's a reason it keeps getting them. The city is good at this. The restaurants are ready. The bars have been open for 175 years. The donuts run out by 10 AM and the line starts at 7. The breaded pork tenderloin is bigger than the bun and always will be.

The 110th Running of the Indianapolis 500 happens on May 24th. Get there before then. Give yourself the full week. Eat the shrimp cocktail at St. Elmo's. Eat the glazed donut at Long's. Ride the Cultural Trail. Stand on the Yard of Bricks. Watch the green flag drop from inside a venue that holds 350,000 people and has been running this race since 1911.Watch to see if Helio Castroneves does something no one has ever done. 

Watch Graham Rahal race where his father won. Watch Alex Palou try to hold on to something that six drivers in 110 years have managed. This is not a race about cars. It is a race about history. And, you have the chance to be inside it when the next chapter is written.

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