Belmont Park and the Belmont Stakes: 2026 fall meet, tickets and how to bet from New York

A $550 million rebuild and a day-one sellout at Belmont Park

Belmont Park was dark for three years. It came back on Friday, Sept. 18, 2026, with Gov. Kathy Hochul at the ribbon-cutting and a capacity crowd of 6,000.

The headline act delivered. Japan’s Forever Young, the reigning Breeders’ Cup Classic champion, won the Grade 1, $1 million Jockey Club Gold Cup for jockey Ryusei Sakai and trainer Yoshito Yahagi. Bettors pushed $13,997,423 through the windows on the nine-race card, according to NYRA.

The new park is smaller and built for year-round racing. A five-story, roughly 300,000-square-foot grandstand designed by Populous replaces the old 1.25 million-square-foot building. The infield is open to fans for the first time. NYRA renovated the 1½-mile main dirt track (“Big Sandy”) and both turf courses, and added an all-weather synthetic surface.

Only the first two floors are open so far. Capacity is 4,000 from Sept. 24 until floors 3 to 5 are finished, which NYRA expects in the first quarter of 2027.

Fall 2026 race dates and what comes next

NYRA’s 2026 calendar has 46 live race days at Belmont Park, Sept. 18 to Dec. 6, with first post at 12:05 p.m. on Saturdays and 1:10 p.m. on most other race days in September.

• Stakes: 72 stakes, 32 of them graded, worth $17.7 million in purses.
• Breeders’ Cup preps: Sept. 26 and Oct. 3 each carried 10 graded stakes, including six “Win and You’re In” races.
• Cigar Mile Day closes out the fall stakes calendar.
• Winter meet: opens Dec. 10, 2026, with 11 race days in December, and runs into 2027.

Aqueduct closed to racing on June 28, 2026, so Belmont is now NYRA’s downstate home every month Saratoga isn’t running.

Belmont Stakes 2027: back on Long Island June 5

The Belmont Stakes spent 2024 to 2026 at Saratoga, run at 1¼ miles while Belmont was rebuilt. Golden Tempo won the 2026 edition on June 6 for jockey José Ortiz and trainer Cherie DeVaux, adding it to his Kentucky Derby.

The race returns to Belmont Park on Saturday, June 5, 2027, according to NYRA. Five months later Belmont hosts the Breeders’ Cup World Championships on Oct. 29–30, 2027, the first time the event has been in New York since 2005.

$7 admission: tickets and parking at Belmont Park

General admission is $7 in advance or $10 on the day, with a program included. Reserved grandstand seats cost $50 on select days, including a $25 food and drink credit. For regulars, NYRA sells a $185 Fall Meet Pass (45 race days) and a $99 Fall Weekender Pass.

Gates open at 11 a.m. Parking is in the Gold, Silver (A and B) and Emerald lots and is pre-paid online. NYRA hasn’t published a daily rate, so buy admission and parking together on NYRA’s Belmont ticket page. GA fans can bring outside food and factory-sealed water in soft-sided bags.

LIRR, bus or car: the trip out to Elmont

• LIRR: ride to Elmont-UBS Arena station. Free shuttles run from the station to the gates.
• Bus: the n6 stops directly across the street and connects to subway, bus and LIRR lines.
• Car: Cross Island Parkway Exit 26B for the Gold and Silver lots (Gate 5), Exit 26D for the Emerald lot.
• Rideshare: drop-off is the West End area on Green Road, Floral Park.

Full directions are on NYRA’s transportation page.

Which apps take bets on Belmont Park races?

There’s no casino or sportsbook at Belmont. Off the track, you bet the races legally through a licensed advance deposit wagering (ADW) app.

NYRA runs its own: the NYRA Bets review covers fees, rebates and live video, and NYRA Bets was the presenting sponsor of the 2026 Belmont Stakes. TVG, TwinSpires, DK Horse and Xpressbet also take bets from New York residents, according to the NY State Gaming Commission’s ADW reports. Our guide to online horse betting in New York compares them.

Horse racing bets go through ADWs, not sportsbook apps. For football and the rest, see the best NY sportsbooks.

Belmont Park and Belmont Stakes FAQ