F1 United States Grand Prix at COTA 2026: Parking, Shuttles and the Sunday Timeline

The Formula 1 United States Grand Prix runs Thursday, Oct. 22, through Sunday, Oct. 25, at Circuit of The Americas in southeast Austin, Texas, and the race itself starts at 3:00 p.m. Sunday. According to ATX Things' read of COTA's own pages, three rules decide how your day goes: nobody parks at COTA without a COTA-issued pass, rideshare drops you at a separate lot, and the last shuttle bus toward the track on race day leaves at 2 p.m.

This is a plan built from COTA's schedule, parking, shuttle and "Know Before You Go" pages, read Oct. 18, 2026, plus a forecast pull the same day. One caveat: the Know Before You Go page we could read sits at a web address labelled as a draft (the standard address returned a 404), and COTA says it will keep updating it through the weekend. We have not been to this year's event and we did not reach COTA. Where a detail is missing or the pages disagree, we say so.

AI-generated illustration, not a photo of the event.

What time is the race, and when do the gates open?

The Grand Prix is 56 laps and starts at 3:00 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 25. COTA's schedule has the drivers' parade at 1:00, the national anthem at 2:44, and the lights after that. Parking lots open at 8:00 a.m. Sunday and gates at 8:30. Friday's lots open at 8:30 with gates at 9:00, and Saturday's open at 8:00 with gates at 8:30.

Source: Circuit of The Americas race schedule, read Oct. 18, 2026. Times are COTA's and can change.

Friday and Saturday concerts are on the Germania Insurance Super Stage. COTA says the lawn opens about an hour and a half after track activity ends that day, and that anyone holding a COTA-bought race ticket gets in for that day's show. If you bought through a reseller, COTA tells you to ask the seller. Alesso on Sunday plays the Germania Insurance Amphitheater right after the race.

How do you park at COTA, and what does it cost?

COTA's parking page says a COTA-issued pass is required for every vehicle parking on site, and that a car without one cannot get onto COTA Boulevard at all. There is no hunting for a spot on the day. Display the pass before you arrive.

The page lists these starting ("+") prices:

Source: COTA F1 parking page, read Oct. 18, 2026. "From" prices; the page does not say which lots are still available.

The single-day ticket pages suggest Lots G, L and R. We could not match a price to Lot G on the parking page, so check the ticket seller before you assume it. COTA's directions page has the recommended route to each lot.

Should you take the shuttle or a rideshare?

COTA runs two shuttle origins, both round trip: Waterloo Park downtown (500 E. 12th St.) from $49, and the Travis County Expo Center in northeast Austin (7311 Decker Ln.) from $34. Buses run on a dedicated lane to the front gates. They start about an hour before gates open each day.

Three details from the shuttle page matter more than the price:

• Sunday's last inbound bus leaves at 2 p.m. On Friday and Saturday it is 6:30 p.m. Return service runs until 60 minutes after the music stops on Friday and Saturday.
• The slowest rides are Sunday between 9:30 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. That is COTA's own warning. If you can be on a bus before 9:30, do it.
• Standby passes are possible but not promised. COTA says a limited number may be sold at the pickup locations and "are NOT guaranteed." Cards only.

Rideshare (Uber, Lyft, taxis) cannot use COTA Boulevard. COTA says those rides drop and pick up at the North McAngus lot, with free trams to the Grand Plaza front gates. Older fan posts describe other rideshare lots from earlier years; COTA's current pages say North McAngus. We have not timed the tram leg, so leave yourself margin.

AI-generated illustration, not a photo of the shuttle.

What should you bring, and what will not get in?

COTA allows bags smaller than 12 by 12 by 20 inches. Bags are screened at the gate, and COTA says its walk-through scanners let you leave items in the bag. The full prohibited-items list is on COTA's FAQ page. Check it, because we could not read that page ourselves.

The venue is cashless. COTA says it accepts Visa, Discover and Mastercard. All tickets except parking and the three-day general admission wristbands are mobile and live in the COTA app. COTA asks you to update the app on Wednesday, Oct. 21, to get the current information. The three-day general admission passes show as sold out on COTA's shuttle page; single-day tickets list from $109.13 for Friday, $271.60 for Saturday and $249 for Sunday.

COTA is a rain-or-shine venue, and says the cars race in the rain. Our forecast pull (Open-Meteo, Oct. 18, for the track's coordinates) shows highs of about 85° Thursday through Saturday and 82° Sunday, with morning lows around 62° to 64°. The model's highest rain chance for race day is 4 percent. That is a model forecast, not a promise; check it again Friday.

What can you do this week to make race day easier?

1. Buy the pass or shuttle seat first. Parking and shuttles are sold separately from tickets.
2. Download the COTA app now, then update it Wednesday. Your tickets live in it.
3. Know where you will be at 9:30 a.m. Sunday. If you are on a shuttle, you want to be on the bus before the 9:30 to 12:15 crush.
4. Visit the box office early if you need help. The Grand Plaza box office opens Monday, Oct. 19, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., through Thursday, then runs 8:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Sunday.
5. Pack for the sun. We did not find shade information on the COTA pages we read. Our ACL heat checklist still applies: see what heat gear gets you in.

What is there to do besides the cars?

COTA lists five themed areas on the grounds, including Lonestar Land near Turn 2 (barbecue and "the World's Largest Cowboy Hat"), The Saloon at Turn 2 with dueling pianos, and the Texas Tailgate at Turn 3. The Tower Observation Deck, 251 feet up behind the amphitheater, costs $40 at the base of the tower, with a champagne toast for $20 more. Its hours are 12:30 to 5:00 p.m. Thursday and Friday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday.

For the rest of your week, our things to do in Austin page and best restaurants guide are better bets for the hours before and after the track.

FAQ

What time does the Austin F1 race start? The 2026 United States Grand Prix starts at 3:00 p.m. Central on Sunday, Oct. 25, after the drivers' parade at 1:00 and the anthem at 2:44, per COTA's schedule.

Can you park at COTA without a pass? No. COTA says a COTA-issued parking pass is required, and cars without one cannot enter COTA Boulevard during the race weekend.

Where do Uber and Lyft drop off at COTA? At the North McAngus lot. COTA runs free trams from there to the Grand Plaza front gates, and rideshare vehicles cannot use COTA Boulevard.

When is the last shuttle to COTA on race day? 2 p.m. Sunday, per COTA's shuttle page. On Friday and Saturday the last inbound bus is 6:30 p.m.

What is the bag size limit at COTA? Bags must be smaller than 12 by 12 by 20 inches. They are screened at the gates.

We will add a dated update here if COTA changes the schedule or the shuttle rules. This desk publishes twice a day, morning and afternoon; follow @austintexasthings for the rest of race week.