London- Wimbledon
 

My husband and I are trying to plan a trip to Wimbledon this june. Planning on maybe 2 days for tennis and the rest of the time touring in london. we would appreciate any advise on where to stay, hotels, B and B , rent a condo/flat. We dont need a 4-5 star hotel, we actually like smaller quaint places, but must be clean. thanks dianedo

so are you wanting to stay in wimbledon or central london? and do you already have tickets for wimbledon? [because if you haven't, you've missed the boat].

You really need to give a budget for anyone to provide useful advice.

we do not have tickets yet, but were planning to try and get grounds passes. I think we want to stay in central london and take the underground to wimbledon. Budget- I guess up to 3000 without the air, depending upon how long we decide to stay.

"<i>Budget- I guess up to 3000 without the air, depending upon how long we decide to stay.</i>"

3000 what -- $$, ££, €€ or ??

But that really doesn't tell us anything. Essentially, what nytraveler was asking was 'how much do you want to pay per night for your hotel?'

<i>we do not have tickets yet, but were planning to try and get grounds passes. </i>

Then be prepared to get there <i>very</i> VERY early. Many people camp out overnight in the famous queue to get the limited number of daily tickets available. It is sometimes possible to get in late in the day once the corporate people have headed home, but that can also involve lengthy queueing.

and you can make your life easier by choosing a hotel with easy access to station on a direct train or tube line to Wimbledon.

Ok ok ok. Let's do this in an organized fashion.

First: How long will you stay in London, period. You said two days for tennis, and what's the "rest of the time"? If you're talking about a week total, or more, then consider renting an apartment.

Second, the 3000 budget is probably US, right? If so, that means about 1200-1500 for lodging and that's about 750-920+ GBP. That's far more reasonable for an apartment of decent quality than a hotel that won't suck.

Third, I agree that being near a Tube station that has direct access to Wimbledon is important, and that means somewhere on the District Line. Best way to do this would be to get a place in South Kens or Sloane Square area.

But if you really don't score tickets ahead of time and need to get to the grounds as early as Gordon R indicates (and there's every reason to believe him and no reason not to), then you'll probably have to take pre-dawn taxis anyway.

hi bigRuss,

great info, and not wanting to sound picky, but it's South Ken.

Thanks Big Russ,

interesting info...

We are thinking about 2 days for wimbledon and probably 5-6 days touring london.

As i mentioned before we like small hotels, which are clean privately owned. We do not like the larger chains, we want something with more "local" feel. We have not decided on a budget, but I was thinking $200 (Dollars) or less per night.
Where are you located? Would you have any suggestions for this type of hotel near So Kensington, Sloan Square or Victoria station?

Here in the US we go to the US Open every year and get grounds passes, which works well. Do you know anything about grounds passes for wimbledon. We are still investigating them. Thanks dj

Gordon - above - has explained about getting passes - requiring stading on line from early am to have a chance to get in.

I assume the concierge of any decent hotel can also get you whatever tickets you want - for a price.

So now you are talking about a week-ish - right? Two days queueing at Wimbledon and 5 or 6 days for seeing London. For that length of time and your budget you'll do better renting a flat. The sorts of hotel rooms you'll likely find @ less than $200 (£125) this summer w/ all the big events won't be very roomy/comfy. After a few days cabin fever may set in. Much nicer to have a one bdrm or large studio w/ more space, kitchen/kitchenette, washer, etc.

But it is also getting a little late to be looking for a flat.

For hotel semi-bargains check out londontown.com

As a regular to Wimbledon, if you are planning on queuing you would need to stay in Wimbledon - by the time the Tube arrives at Wimbledon you could already be too late. An alternative is to go late in the day and get about three hours of tennis on the back of people leaving - but again its a risk. The only time I would think of queuing is the first few days of the tournament, this is when you are likely to see some of the top tennis stars in action on the outside courts - your chances of getting onto a show court by queuing is virtually nil. Don't like to be pessimistic, but I've a long experience of being frustrated.

The real pity, is I have won two tickets for Wimbledon in the ballot (which I enter each year) I can neither go on these dates nor can I pass them on or sell them - its against the rules.... so they are going in the bin.

"<i>I can neither go on these dates nor can I pass them on or sell them - its against the rules.... so they are going in the bin.</i>"

What a shame :(

Could you possible murder the blokes you're tied up w/ those days?? No one would convict you . . .

The real pity, is I have won two tickets for Wimbledon in the ballot (which I enter each year) I can neither go on these dates nor can I pass them on or sell them - its against the rules.... so they are going in the bin.>>

are the rules really so tight that you can't give them to family or friends? they never were when I used to get tickets, many years ago. They've tightened up i know, but surely not to that extent.

if nothing else, send them back!

Are ground tickets difficult to get? How far in advance?

After doing some more research and re-reading all the entries above I finally realize it will be nearly impossible to even get ground tickets for the day we would like to go (June 30). So sad...it's a good thing we haven't told our kids!