martha

I intend to be in Sydney and Port Douglas during October,2003. I just found out that the World Rugby Matches will be in Australia during that time. Sydney locals: will these matches make the city overrun with visitors,like with the Olympics, or are events like this commonplace in Sydney? Should I delay my visit till the next year to avoid these crowds, or is it not a big deal?

Prue

Martha,<BR>They are talking huge crowds in Sydney during the World Cup - however, at this stage it is all wishful thinking - and who knows with the world situation how it will all pan out. Although ticket sales have been excellent.<BR>However, there certainly will be more people than normal in the city at the time of the opening Oct 10th through to the closing in November.<BR>The biggest problem you may have though is that many of the hotels, especially the chains, are charging outrageous rates and having minimum of 14 day stays, with full payment in advance etc.<BR>

Max

It should be a ton of fun actually. There won't be anywhere near as many people as there was for the Olympics and if you book in advance you won't have trouble. There are always the outer suburbs you can stay in and for sure there will be lots of good things going on at that time too. Won't effect the rest of Australia.

Lucy

The rugby world cup will impact a lot of Australia as games are being played all over the country including smaller regional areas like Townsville. It should be a lot of fun to be here then Martha - why not go to a game? Tickets to some of the less in demand matches are being sold through www.rugby2003.com.

BB

Hi Martha: We are going to OZ first time ever and wanted to stay in Sydney for 5 nights prior to taking a cruise, Nov. 21-25. Bottom line is FORGET IT! The finals are being played on Nov. 22 and every hotel I contacted is totally booked. The Sir Stamford at Circular Quay quoted us availability 3 times in writing but then flat out REFUSED to honor our reservation request. BAD business to my mind. Anyway, you might have better luck in Oct. but you best get a move on. We decided to go to Cairns for 3 nights and come back to Sydney Nov. 24 &amp; 25, when we did find rooms available at the Westin. <BR><BR>The rates being charged are very expensive, however, all during that time and anyone who tells you it's not going to be very crowded, probably really likes crowds. Good luck.