Just booked flights for three to London at the end of July for nine nights. I booked a tentative hotel- club quarters st paul( OUCH). Can keep this reservation ...... Looked at vrbo and I could not believe there was anything left for such a busy week, which led me to think scam?? Any ideas for lodging? Or tickets? I have been checking the cosport ticketing site and will continue to do that. Thanks!
Posted by
Atlanta, GA, USA
142 posts
Not likely a scam...more like under-sold. See, with the Olympics going on it has scared the normal tourists away so honestly there's a fire sale going on. If you google and do some research you'll find I'm right...lots of vacancies remain and some of the prices have ped. I know airfare has because I too did the last minute kind of thing. I bought my event tickets in advance but waited to book air and accomidations last. Just make sure you check the reviews on VRBO or AirBnB before booking somewhere, that's my advice on that. I haven't had a bad experience but I like to read the feedback. As far as tickets go....CoSport hasn't listed anything fresh in weeks. You'll be able to find people selling tickets there and even CoSport will have somewhere set up to sell left-overs. Just be wary of scalpers but I'm sure you know that. Also, you may try your luck at eBay. I'm selling my extra ticket on there and I know lots of other folks are as well. I've bought/sold on ebay for years so I recommend it. This is all just my personal opinion and what works for me. I'm sure others will be wary of some of my advice. Feel free to PM me if I can be of further help!
Posted by
Sammamish, WA
403 posts
Not a scam. The news this week has indicated that many hotels in London are running 30% under typical summer occupancy rates. Many of them jacked up their rates for the Olympics, but a lot of people got scared away. So you should be able to find something. booking.com is listing plenty of places with reasonable prices still available.
Be very careful when looking for tickets. The rules about how to buy them are very strict. Technically, the tickets are not transferrable, so eBay is a very risky proposition. Check www.london2012.com for ticket rules and list of unauthorized re-sellers.
Posted by
Oxford, United Kingdom
5456 posts
Batches of tickets are popping up on an almost daily basis on the official sellers for various EU countries. There is a plan for any remaining tickets to be sold from booths around London, but when, where, and what has not been announced.
Posted by
New York City, NY, USA
5678 posts
I agree, it's probably not a scam. The hotel I stayed in the first week of July posted at the front desk that they had openings fr the Olympics.
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
33819 posts
weather ??turning??
Posted by
OP
grand blanc
119 posts
Thanks we do have flights, accommodations, in desperate need of tickets!
Posted by
Boscombe, Dorset, UK
964 posts
Lol, Nigel! The last few months have been the wettest on record. Bring a mac! And some sunshine, please.
Hope you have a great visit and get your tickets.
Posted by
Seattle, WA, USA
1 posts
Ok, I don't know if this helps, buuuut this is what we did for our trip next month for the Olympics. We booked a long time in advance and we're flying into Paris (I am SO glad right now that we made the decision to avoid Heathrow and Gatwick) and then taking the Eurostar from Paris to Ebbsfleet International in Dartford. We've never stayed in Dartford before but the hotels are cheaper and the trains leaving from Ebbsfleet take you within walking distance of Olympic Park. I also think we'll avoid a lot of the chaos in London by taking the Javelin and just avoiding the roads/cabs/etc. When the Games are over, we'll catch the Eurostar from Ebbsfleet again and take it back to Paris. I think the trip will be pretty manageable. Besides, I love the train (who doesn't?) so I'm looking forward to it! The budget hotels are easy to find on hotwire or any other site, just search Dartford. The Ebbsfleet train info is here http://www.ebbsfleetinternational.co.uk/ and then if you're flying into Heathrow or Gatwick you can can the high speed domestic trains right into London, too. Hope this helps!
Posted by
Boscombe, Dorset, UK
964 posts
Wow, Belle! What a good idea!
Posted by
AL, USA
45 posts
you might search home stays - we are flying into Paris as well and I am SO GLAD! we will be one night there - We are staying with a lady who does home stays - pretty low maintenance and not much of a breakfast - but we have stayed with her before - she lives on the Central line east of the city - we saw men's volleyball tickets a few days ago that were available - we are attending ping pong - both men's and women's prelims and finals for trampoline (my daughter is on the Jr National Team - so we are really excited to see her Sr Teammates compute! (GO USA)
and we have finals for women's artistic gymnastics TEAM - we SO wanted track and field - but that was not going to happen! and also diving - but none of those either came our way - happy travels! GO USA!
Posted by
AL, USA
45 posts
oh yes - there is a comfort inn near heathrow that I think still had availability - we are staying there our last night out of town - since we are flying out of Heathrow - it is cheap - basic I am sure - but we are also leaving several days after closing ceremony - we didn't get all the tickets we wanted for the games -
but we did get tickets to two shows - wicked and les mis - so we are excited about that too!