If you’ve been watching the Olympic Games you undoubtedly have seen many empty seats. So much so, that the military have been sent in to fill some of the seats. You se, it never looks well to have empty seats on TV. So what is really going on? Why are these seats empty? And how does one get Olympic Tickets?
No one seems to want to say what’s the deal, but its the expensive seats that are open and its not all the events either. The tickets range in prices, but as an example, the Aquatic Center has tickets in five categories ranging as follows: 150, 95, 65, 40, 20 and for Volleyball: 65, 55, 45, 30 and 20 GBP. You will need as much as 1,500 GBP to get into the Closing Ceremony though. It takes a while as the ticket availability changes constantly on the London 2012 tickets site and it can take well into 2 hours to get anything booked. Hint: Book in the wee hours of the UK morning when people are asleep and the availability is not so dynamic.
Its annoying as there are stories of some friends who failed to get any tickets when requested them during the ticket sales period over the last year. But, If you were lucky during the lead up to the games you would already have a ticket. If you missed out here are a few ways you can get a tickets now.
Start at http://tickets.london2012.com here you will be directed to different web sites based on where you live.
I checked the US site https://www.cosport.com and it showed just very few events open and only the most expensive tickets available. I tried to get individual tickets, but no go and all the Hospitality tickets are sold out. They’ve since added phone numbers as I guess they are being bombarded with calls for tickets. Here is what’s on their site now:
Our telephone numbers in London are as follows: For Will Call Inquiries: +44 (0) 20 7042 6172 | For Hospitality Package Inquiries: +44 (0) 20 7042 6174
The Will Call Center returns to regular business hours, Sunday, July 29 at 9:00 AM and will close at 7:00 PM, these hours will continue through Sunday, August 12.
For the exact information regarding location, click here – Will Call Center
The UK site on the other hand is much better with more availability, but still costly, except if you want to see football in Newcastle, Cardiff or Glasgow or even Wembley stadium. There is a catch though, you have to have a UK address, and a VISA card so call up your UK chums and get it done.
You may try the ticket offices located around the city, but really good luck. Also, you can try the ticket office at the game, but again, good luck.
Lastly, and this is not recommended, but it does exist, you can use a ticket tout as the UK folks call them, scalpers everywhere else. Note, some were arrested today as it is illegal to re-sell the tickets. Before you yell at me, I was able to see a game at face value in Beijing as the only ticket I could get was from a guy selling it on the streets, so you do what works for you. Be careful and don’t get in trouble as its against the rules to buy these tickets and you could be duped.
If all else fails head to Stratford Tube station and hang out at the public Olympic park where there are lots of activities. Also, check out this link of events that you can view from the streets when they pass through the city.
So there you have it. Decide which method works for you and good luck.