Easter Saturday shapes as one of the best days on the Australian racing calendar with the Sydney Cup on the east coast and the nation’s biggest picnic race meeting at Oakbank in the Adelaide Hills.

Sydney’s revamped autumn carnival is now badged “The Championships” and Saturday is Day Two with the Cup and the Queen Elizabeth Stakes heading the nine-event card at Royal Randwick.

Day at the Australian Turf Club’s Royal Randwick once again promises to be the hottest ticket in town over the Easter weekend as racing fans are urged to book tickets early and save on general admission.

In the $4 million Queen Elizabeth Stakes the feature runner is Carlton House, owned by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, and trained by the queen of Sydney racing in Gai Waterhouse.

The horse will be ridden by Tommy Berry, who tragically lost his twin brother Nathan after a race fall in Singapore.

Three other Group 1 races each worth $1 million – the Sydney Cup, the Queen Of The Turf Stakes and the Australian Oaks make for a classic day.

Irish import The Offer will likely start favourite in the Cup and is expected to give Gai Waterhouse and Tommy Berry more Cup success. The Offer is in top form with wins from his last two start, including an impressive win in last week’s Chairman Stakes over 2600m.

The only concern for punters in Sydney is the expected heavy track.

Back in Adelaide a crowd of around 30,000 is tipped to enjoy perfect conditions and an eight race program that features the Von Doussa Steeplechase and the Onkaparinga Cup.

The Steeplechase features locally trained runners matching it with raiders from Victoria and New Zealand.