<p>D’12 just said she’s enjoying the Winter Olympics so much that she’d like to attend the 2012 summer games in London as a graduation/18th birthday trip. It took about 1.5 seconds for her brother, father, and I agree it sounds like a great idea.</p>
<p>So, now what? Any ideas how to begin this planning? Are there any reputable travel agents that specialize in sports tickets and trips, etc? </p>
<p>What about London? When not at the Olympics we’d be stereotypical tourists. Is there a section of the city that’s central to the Olympic venues as well as all the touristy spots? </p>
<p>I’ve gone to the summer games twice. I say book early and bring a big wallet. </p>
<p>Typically for tickets to the Olympic events and official Olympic housing, you need to go through the official travel agency. Agencies bid for the exclusive rights to distribute these tickets for any given country. I don’t know who has the exclusive concession for the tickets alotted to the US for London 2012. It may not have been awarded yet. If it has you can probably find out who on Google or maybe the USOC website.</p>
<p>DougBetsy, our family will be planning to be there, too! Our daughter is graduating in '12 and that’s what she wants as a grad present. It’ll also be close to our 25th wedding anniversary. We’ve been to London and may stay in Paris or outside of London. As for Olympic info, check out their website. Looking forward to comparing info!</p>
<p>No, the Olympics are centered in East London, which is generally not considered the “good” part of town. That’s partly why it’s there - to revitalize the area. There are plenty of events nearer to central London though.</p>
<p>But…London is not big…whether you are in North, west or East london, you are just a maximum 30 minute subway ride away…south might be a bit longer.</p>
<p>Well Notting Hill is really in Central London, but even if you’re farther out the Underground makes traveling a breeze, as long as you’re reasonably close to a station.</p>
<p>We’ve been to the '96 Summer Olympics in Atlanta and my advice is to plan early, especially for tickets (events like opening and closing ceremonies will get sold out sooner than others) and lodging. You will have to buy tickets and reserve hotels through a designated, Olympic travel agency. We went to the rhythmic gymnastics and artistic gymnastics events. Rhythmic gymnastics was in Athens, GA, and while we were in Athens, we were able to see women’s soccer. We purchased tickets for the soccer events right outside the stadium. IIRC ticket prices were high, but not outrageous. Lodging, however, was outrageously high. For a few nights, it worked out for us to stay with friends who lived in Clemson, SC (which was about 100-some miles away). If you know someone in London or nearby–see if you can stay there. We’re considering going to the 2014 winter games in Russia.</p>
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