CHELTENHAM Festival punters erupted in fury over the eye-watering price of drinks at horse racing’s biggest meet.
They were forced to stump up £7 for a pint of Guinness, while a Carling set them back £6.90.
One photo that went viral on social media showed a punter holding a gin and tonic at a cost of £14.
While another complained about paying £14.10 for an Irish coffee ‘with a splash of Jamesons and some whipped cream squirted on top’.
Even a 330ml bottle of ‘premium lager’ was £6.50 and a pint of Aspalls cider £7.
Some 68,509 punters flocked to the racecourse yesterday – a record figure for day one.
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And they were treated to brilliance on the track with superstar duo Rachael Blackmore and Honeysuckle winning the Champion Hurdle for the second year running.
But it’s clear the whopping price of booze turned out to be a real loser for a number of paying punters.
One punter said in response to a photo of the £14 spirit and mixer: “Does it come with the horse?”
Another wrote: “Someone should pull them on this. Never seen the like.”
A fellow Twitter user posted: “In a plastic cup with no ice and a slice? For £14????”
Another said: “£14? Is the cup made from platinum gold?!”
While one comment read: “That’s worse than London. I have to work for nearly two hours for a gin and tonic.”
And another wrote: “No wonder my stepdad takes a grand for spends, I thought he was being dramatic!”
SunSport has contacted Cheltenham Racecourse for comment on the prices.
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Some 260,000 pints of Guinness are expected to be consumed over the course of the four-day Festival.
Punters have flocked back to Cheltenham after the meeting – which is set to welcome around 270,000 fans over the course of the week – was held behind closed doors last year.
One person who could afford more than a few beverages was Made In Chelsea star Georgia Toffolo.
The TV star was celebrating a massive £37,500 winner after putting down a £5,000 bet.
More than 65,000 fans flocked back to Cheltenham for day one of horse racing’s biggest event
