Anyone planning on going to this?

I've never been to an Olympics, or London. Heck, I've never been outside the United States, which is why I'm starting planning this far in advance and looking for advice.

How do I go about getting tickets to events? When/where do they go on sale? Should I expect to pay an arm and a leg for hotels? Any chance I'll be able to use airmiles for my plane tickets, or will airlines block out any reasonable dates?

I'm open to advice, if you have a 'must see' or 'don't do that' or 'this place has cold beer' etc. toss it out there

Thanks in advance!

go to the London 2012 website for ticket info. They go on sale next spring.

I will be going over there and plan on just buying my airfare since they will probably not have a lot of rewards seats available. I usually just priceline hotels but we'll see how that goes. I fully expect to pay up for the trip.

Call your airline now and see if you can book any seats. To even stand a chance at using miles, you would have to do it this far in advance.

London is expensive as is, so expect it to be even more pricey for hotels during the olympics. There really are not that many good cheap hotels there....I have no idea your age, but maybe even look into hostels if you are younger.

Tickets to the events I do not think would be that hard to get....but that would be for the not-so-desirable events. If you are trying to go to the more highly watched ones, then you may run into trouble. I really have no idea on this one, but I think you can "easily" see some events each day.

Might try to B&B route rather than hotels or hostels. It's a BIG business over there, and of the 25 or so I have stayed in throughout England/Scotland/Wales, there is only one I would not return to. You may have to stay on the periphery of London, though.

If you're over there a week or more, get an apartment. If, for some reason, they really jack up flights to the UK, you can fly elsewhere in Europe (Paris, Frankfurt, etc.) then either use one of the European discount airlines (watch the fees on baggage) or rail to get to London. Adding a day or two in Paris (Eurostar train from London takes less than 3 hours and goes from city center to city center) on each end of your stay wouldn't be a bad way to go.

I want to go. I did the Winter Olympics this past year and it was excellent.

We stayed at a Bed and Breakfast outside of town and went to the lesser events like Curling and Women's Hockey. I anticipate going the same route in London if I do choose to go.

Planning that trip intimidates me more than the one to Vancouver.

Ticket prices for the men's 100m final is intimidating me.

Im tempted to go the winter olympics in Russia in 2014...

1. I would definetly look into alternative accommodation as the hotel prices will surely be jacked up. Perhaps an apartment rent? Or you could try staying a bit outside of London (public transport is very easy).

2. I agree with the above poster about flights. If flights into London are too high consider flying into Paris or Amsterdam. I don't know where you live but there are usually reasonably priced flights to both of the cities from IAH in Houston.

[This message has been edited by TXCityAggie (edited 12/8/2010 10:12a).]

single, 25 (will be 27 in 2012). likely going solo or with a small group of friends. live in Houston and plan on flying from there.

flying to another city and then taking eurostar to London sounds like a good option to explore. will give me an opportunity to see a bit more of Europe. i was thinking about staying on the mainland for a week or more afterward, rearranging to before the Olympics would be just fine

apartment/hostel/b&b,, good to see there are more options than pricey hotels. although, from what i see on tripadvisor, apartments can get expensive quick, unless i can find 5 friends who want to split a big place. what are other websites i should look at to find b&b's or apmts?

Blue star is for those who've posted so far,, thanks!

www.vrbo.com

That's a good place to start. It's not an agency--just a website used by owner/agents. You'll want to rent a place that has been listed for a little while and has a track record to go on--be wary of new listings with no reviews. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. And, don't wire your rental payments to Western Union. You may be asked to pay the full rent in advance by PayPal, or check, or by wire transfer, but don't touch anything that wants payment by Western Union wire.

Our party of 3 rented a place in central London (http://www.vrbo.com/47902) which had an outstanding location and a much better price than you'd find looking for a decent hotel or B&B that would accomodate three.

Since you are younger, I highly recommend hostels. I dont think there really is any better option if you are traveling alone (or hell, even with 5 people and you can all just buy a full room).

At hotels and B&Bs, you will struggle to meet people or even find things to do with people. So, check out www.hostelworld.com. I solely go by ratings and locations (which usually if it is a high ranking, it will have a good location regardless).

defroach: Any other time, and a hostel might be the right choice for this guy, but I wonder if that would really be the best choice during an event like the Olympics?

i'll be honest, the movie 'hostel' did frighten me

but, the reviews of the apmts saying they are great for age 55+ travelers also concern me

If you're with friends, an apartment is great. The best thing about a hostel is social interaction, but if you're with friends, that's less of a plus. Many hostels feature the opportunity to cook your own food (or cook with others cooking their own food), so that's one potential overlap (and don't underestimate the value of being able to have breakfast before you have to get out amongst the public).

I guess it depends on what you want to do. If you want as much social interaction with other tourists as possible, a hostel is the place for you. If you want a place where you and your friends can hang out and unwind after a day/night out on the town, then an apartment is better.

I have never had an issue with any hostels as far as safety goes and that is from many trips to many parts of the world. I did a solo trip a couple of weeks ago in south America and would not have stayed anywhere but hostels due to the social aspect.

quote:

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To even stand a chance at using miles, you would have to do it this far in advance.

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impossible. i'd assume you probably can't even buy regular tickets now.


most airlines don't open up award inventory until 350ish days out.

The olympics cover a 30 day span.... There will be a lot of regular flights in and out during that period

i think you misunderstood me. i meant that it's probably impossible to buy tickets yet.

award inventories haven't been opened that far in advance yet, and likely general inventories as well.

aa's website tells me i can't book until 331 days before the flight. once i firmer plans, i'll call and see if i can get in ahead of time

gotcha

misunderstanding there

hotel price will probably be outrageous there during that time.

b&b is definitely the way to go...

for tickets to events, it appears that the only option is buying through cosport.com. does anyone know if this is correct? has cosport been the only source of tickets for past olympics?

Only contract air will allow you purchase before the 330 day mark (they still don't ticket air until 330 days from the return date). So even if you do contact them well in advance, the airlines could be fairly full with people booking through international travel agencies before you get a chance to use reward air.