Upcoming Daytona 500 dates
Dates and live ticket listings appear here as soon as they are on sale. The guide below covers what to know before you buy.
Daytona 500 seats: the short answer
For the Daytona 500, sit high and close to the start/finish line. From the upper levels near the tri-oval you can follow the pack around all 2.5 miles, watch drafting lines form and catch every restart, every pit stop and the last-lap scramble that usually settles it. Low rows deliver noise and speed but very little of the race itself.
Next on the calendar: Sunday, February 21, 2027. The race is a 200-lap, 500-mile NASCAR Cup Series race run on the Daytona Beach, Florida, superspeedway, and it has kicked off every Cup season since 1982.
How the frontstretch grandstand is stacked
The Daytona Rising renovation, which ran from July 2013 to January 2016, rebuilt the frontstretch and removed the backstretch grandstands. Today every permanent seat sits on the frontstretch and faces the infield across the tri-oval, a track shape with a dogleg (a gentle bend) built into the front straight. No seat points the wrong way, yet the backstretch is always a long way from you.
Sections are numbered by level:
- 100 level: close to track height. Loud and fast, with the catch fence (the tall safety fence between the track and the stands) in your line of sight.
- Middle rows: every step up adds more of the track to your view and pushes the fence lower in your sightline.
- 300 and 400 levels: the high seats. These see the whole circuit, including the 31-degree banking in the turns.
The renovation also brought wider seats and five enlarged entry towers, which the speedway calls injectors, spread along the grandstand.
Upper levels near the tri-oval
This is the seat to reserve if you want to understand what is happening. On a track this large, cars run in tight drafting packs, and a wreck often starts in turn 3 or turn 4 before it sweeps past you. From up high you see it coming. Down in the 100 level, the cars are in view for only a moment before they are gone.
The Trioval Club
The premium choice in this zone is the Trioval Club, sold as 2-day or 4-day packages in 300-level sections 340 to 362 and 400-level sections 440 to 444 and 458 to 462. On top of a strong angle on the finish, club holders get an outdoor bar with patio space.
Toward turn 1 or turn 4
Move toward either turn and you sit near where cars enter or leave pit road and drop into the steep banking. The finish line is then off to one side rather than straight ahead. For many fans that is a fair trade, and these sections often draw less demand than the seats right at the line.
Seats and assumptions to avoid
- The lowest rows of the 100 level. Buy them only if the sensation of speed is the whole point. At that height, the safety fence and a wall of passing cars hide most of the action.
- Counting on shade. The weather in mid-February is generally pleasant, yet three-plus hours under a Florida sky still burns. The speedway's own pages do not publish which rows are shaded, so bring sunscreen and a hat wherever you sit.
- Treating a Fanzone pass as a seat. The pass is an extra; entry still requires a grandstand ticket for that day.
Single day, multi-day or Trioval Club
The speedway assigns a specific seat to every grandstand ticket for the 500, and none of the stands is general admission. The ticket structures, as listed for 2027:
- Single-day: one assigned seat for Sunday's race. This is what most resale listings offer.
- 2-day package: keeps your seat for the support-race doubleheader, pairing the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series with the ARCA Menards Series, and for Sunday.
- 4-day package: stretches that to four days, bringing in the Duel at Daytona qualifiers and the Craftsman Truck Series event.
- Trioval Club: the premium 2-day or 4-day option described above.
- Add-ons: parking, scanner rental and the Hard Rock Bet Fanzone pass, all priced apart from the seat.
The most sought-after seats are high and close to the line, and interest climbs through January as travel plans firm up. Resale prices float relative to face value and can dip late if rain threatens or listings pile up. Reserved Seat backs every order with a 100% guarantee, useful protection when flights and hotels depend on one Sunday.
The week before Sunday
No other NASCAR race sets its field this way. Single-car timed qualifying, usually on the Wednesday, sets only the front row. On Thursday, two 150-mile qualifying races called the Duels set the rest of the grid, and for teams without a guaranteed spot they decide whether the car races on Sunday at all. Forty-one cars took the green flag in 2026.
Friday and Saturday carry the support races: the trucks, plus the O'Reilly and ARCA doubleheader. Crowds are lighter, which makes those days a relaxed introduction to the place.
Inside the track sits the Hard Rock Bet Fanzone, renamed in January 2024 from the UNOH Fanzone. According to the speedway, pass holders get garage viewing, driver question sessions, a concert before the race, a spot up front for introductions and the chance to write their names on the start/finish line. Only that day's Fanzone holders may go onto the frontstretch for pre-race ceremonies, and kids 12 or younger need a paying adult with them.
Coolers, parking and race day logistics
You will find the track at 1801 West International Speedway Boulevard, inland from the oceanfront. Roads clog early, so leave hours of cushion.
- Parking: as of the 2026 season, the speedway sells advance spots in its nearest lots (1, 3, 4 and 8). At select events Lots 7 and 8 cost nothing, and a shuttle links Lot 7 with the ONE Daytona complex across the street.
- Rideshare: use the marked area beside Lot 1, reached from the eastbound frontage road.
- Accessibility: accessible shuttles serve Lots 1 and 4.
- Re-entry: permitted if you scan your ticket on the way out and again coming back.
- Tickets: mobile, through the NASCAR Tracks app.
Unlike most major venues, Daytona lets you carry in food and drinks. As of the 2026 season, the limit is a single soft cooler per person, no bigger than 14 inches on any side; hard coolers stay home. Two bags per person are allowed at a maximum of 18 by 18 by 14 inches, and transparent ones clear security quicker. Leave glass, umbrellas, folding chairs, tripods, selfie sticks and drones behind. Check the speedway FAQ for current rules before you go.
Pack for a long day. The 2026 edition lasted nearly three and a half hours, and overtime stretched the 2023 race to 212 laps and 530 miles. Bring hearing protection, especially for children, layers for a cooling late afternoon, and a scanner (rented or your own) so you can hear driver and spotter radio. Weather moved both the 2020 and 2024 races to a Monday. If that happens, the speedway accepts only that year's Daytona 500 tickets for the makeup date, so hold on to yours.
From Lee Petty to the 65-lead-change finish
Opening day for the speedway was race day: February 22, 1959, with Lee Petty beating Johnny Beauchamp in a close finish. Richard Petty, Lee's son, collected seven wins from 1964 to 1981, still the record. In 1979 the 500 became the first race of its length carried live and complete on a broadcast network. Dale Earnhardt finally won on his 20th attempt in 1998, then died after a crash on the final lap in 2001, which pushed NASCAR toward sweeping safety changes. The tightest margin belongs to 2016, when Denny Hamlin held off Martin Truex Jr. by a hundredth of a second.
In 2026 the lead swapped hands 65 times, a race record, and Tyler Reddick took the win with a pass on Chase Elliott in the final yards. Fans call it The Great American Race. It is normally held on the Presidents Day weekend Sunday, the third in February, and since 2022 it has followed the Super Bowl by seven days. The speedway has been NASCAR property since 2019.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a backstretch grandstand at Daytona?
No. The backstretch seating was removed during the Daytona Rising renovation, completed in January 2016, so all permanent seats are on the frontstretch.
Which Daytona 500 seats show the most of the race?
High seats in the 300 and 400 levels close to the finish line. They show the entire track, pit road and the final lap.
What can you bring into the speedway?
As of the 2026 season, each fan may carry a single soft cooler and two bags within the speedway's size limits. Hard coolers, glass, umbrellas and folding chairs are banned; confirm the rules on the speedway site first.
What do the 2-day and 4-day packages include?
For 2027, two days means the O'Reilly and ARCA doubleheader plus Sunday. Four days also covers the Thursday Duels and the truck race.
What is the seating capacity at Daytona International Speedway?
Roughly 101,500 in permanent grandstands, with the race's own Wikipedia entry citing 102,000. Temporary space can raise the total to roughly 125,000.
Who has won the Daytona 500 the most times?
Richard Petty, with seven wins between 1964 and 1981.