Lions tickets

[Banquo]

Dont know if this is the right place...but me and three mates have flights and accomodation booked to Melbourne 23-30 June to try and take in the Rebels game and the second test. Now the difficult bit-- where's the best place to source tickets?

[canute]

Dont know if this is the right place...but me and three mates have flights and accomodation booked to Melbourne 23-30 June to try and take in the Rebels game and the second test. Now the difficult bit-- where's the best place to source tickets?

As I understand it, no date has yet been set for the official release, but it is expected to be sometime in October.

A mate of mine is organising a 'reunion' long weekend for current and former members of a rugby club in Bangkok. We're doing it to coincide with the Sydney test, but I'm looking at going over for all three (maybe just FIFO for the 1st test) and perhaps a mid-week game in between. He's Australian and on all the right mailing lists, so if I remember, I'll let you know when he lets me know!

[Banquo]

As I understand it, no date has yet been set for the official release, but it is expected to be sometime in October.

A mate of mine is organising a 'reunion' long weekend for current and former members of a rugby club in Bangkok. We're doing it to coincide with the Sydney test, but I'm looking at going over for all three (maybe just FIFO for the 1st test) and perhaps a mid-week game in between. He's Australian and on all the right mailing lists, so if I remember, I'll let you know when he lets me know!

Brilliant, many thanks, and if I get any other 'leads' will let you know.

Lionstour.com seems a waste of time for me, organised tours only.

[Y Fferret]

Brilliant, many thanks, and if I get any other 'leads' will let you know.

Lionstour.com seems a waste of time for me, organised tours only.

There is a way to get only tickets. Can't remember who we did it through now, but we booked official tickets for the SA tour (emerging boks, 2nd and 3rd tests). The only "extra" we had to book (apparently we had to book something) was a taxi from the airport.

That said, the tickets were ridiculously expensive...

[canute]

http://www.rugby.com.au/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=JLCQ8llv9SA%3D&tabid=2603

Tickets go on general sale on 18/02/2013. However, it looks like you have be an Australian resident (for all intents and purposes, this means having an Australian registered credit card) to buy them. They are saying that lionstour.com and weloverugby.com are the only ways for non-residents to get them.

From what I can work out, these are your options, Banquo (and anyone else):

1. Book a lionstour.com flights and match tickets only package (these are available) and cancel the flights you have already booked.

2. Book a weloverugby.com tickets and accommodation only package and cancel your hotel booking.

3. Get someone in Australia to buy the tickets as soon as they go on general sale.

4. Get a hospitality package. Cheapest for Sydney are $500, which is basically $100 for the ticket and $400 for some food and booze. It does guarantee tickets though. I suspect that this is probably only open to Australian residents as well.

1 & 2 are much of a muchness and will come down to the conditions of your prior bookings. 3 is obviously the cheapest way of doing it and what I will probably be going for, but it does mean you are running a (probably small) risk of not getting tickets. However, I am also considering 4 for the Sydney test, as we will have a pretty large group (20+ I think) and it'll guarantee us tickets together.

[BOB]

I hear the ticket prices range from £65 to £200. Ouch

[canute]

I hear the ticket prices range from £65 to £200. Ouch

Did you expect anything else?

[BOB]

Did you expect anything else?

From o neil no

[canute]

From o neil no

The thing is, AUS $95 is just over 5 times the minimum hourly wage. It is the equivalent of test tickets in the UK starting at around £35, which is not unreasonable, I think you'll agree. It's the exchange rate that makes them so expensive. Thankfully, it doesn't affect me all that much as the NZ dollar is artificially tied to the AUS dollar.

[BOB]

The thing is, AUS $95 is just over 5 times the minimum hourly wage. It is the equivalent of test tickets in the UK starting at around £35, which is not unreasonable, I think you'll agree. It's the exchange rate that makes them so expensive. Thankfully, it doesn't affect me all that much as the NZ dollar is artificially tied to the AUS dollar.

Didn't look at it from that point of view, I think the range from MS for NZ is £30 -£80. I'm not impacted either as I am not going to Oz:(

[Banquo]

http://www.rugby.com.au/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=JLCQ8llv9SA%3D&tabid=2603

Tickets go on general sale on 18/02/2013. However, it looks like you have be an Australian resident (for all intents and purposes, this means having an Australian registered credit card) to buy them. They are saying that lionstour.com and weloverugby.com are the only ways for non-residents to get them.

From what I can work out, these are your options, Banquo (and anyone else):

1. Book a lionstour.com flights and match tickets only package (these are available) and cancel the flights you have already booked.

2. Book a weloverugby.com tickets and accommodation only package and cancel your hotel booking.

3. Get someone in Australia to buy the tickets as soon as they go on general sale.

4. Get a hospitality package. Cheapest for Sydney are $500, which is basically $100 for the ticket and $400 for some food and booze. It does guarantee tickets though. I suspect that this is probably only open to Australian residents as well.

1 & 2 are much of a muchness and will come down to the conditions of your prior bookings. 3 is obviously the cheapest way of doing it and what I will probably be going for, but it does mean you are running a (probably small) risk of not getting tickets. However, I am also considering 4 for the Sydney test, as we will have a pretty large group (20+ I think) and it'll guarantee us tickets together.

Thanks mate

[awinisawin]

Anyone know the Kick off time for the 1st Test? Or take a guess.

[Y Fferret]

Anyone know the Kick off time for the 1st Test? Or take a guess.

I was thinking about this... presumably the TV companies will ensure that we don't have any 6am kick offs like the last Wales test over there?

[canute]

I was thinking about this... presumably the TV companies will ensure that we don't have any 6am kick offs like the last Wales test over there?

In the Rugby Championship, Wallabies home tests have kicked off at 8pm local time, which is 11am BST. I would expect something similar.

[Y Fferret]

In the Rugby Championship, Wallabies home tests have kicked off at 8pm local time, which is 11am BST. I would expect something similar.

From memory those have always been the times over here recently. I was just very surprised the game was so early for the final Wales test...

[canute]

From memory those have always been the times over here recently. I was just very surprised the game was so early for the final Wales test...

The ARU have been playing more and more games in the afternoon rather than evening in a drive to get attendances up and avoid clashes with rugby league, which is a winning the popularity contest there. I imagine that the union considered the loss in potential TV income for that one match to be worth it, as the demand in Europe would have been relatively low and viewer numbers probably not affected too much by the 6am kick off. It will be completely different with the Lions, in terms of both the stadium attendance and the TV audience, so I wouldn't worry about a repeat.

[canute]

So how's everyone getting on then? Our group for Sydney is now up to 33 and it looks like someone has discovered a very helpful contact in the ARU or NSW Union so we should be able to get our tickets this week, two weeks prior to general sale. Yay!

As far as the rest of the tour goes, I am still considering both Melbourne matches and maybe even a couple more midweek games. Will probably go for a Melbourne test ticket. Can always be sold if I can't make it. The others I will wait on, until I have more concrete plans.

[Banquo]

So how's everyone getting on then? Our group for Sydney is now up to 33 and it looks like someone has discovered a very helpful contact in the ARU or NSW Union so we should be able to get our tickets this week, two weeks prior to general sale. Yay!

As far as the rest of the tour goes, I am still considering both Melbourne matches and maybe even a couple more midweek games. Will probably go for a Melbourne test ticket. Can always be sold if I can't make it. The others I will wait on, until I have more concrete plans.

There's 5 or 6 of us in a flat in Melbourne, flying out from the uk. We have tickets for the midweek match and test match, according to my mate.

[canute]

Test tickets sold out within 15 minutes this morning. Tickets still available to all other matches as far as I can tell.

[Banquo]

Test tickets sold out within 15 minutes this morning. Tickets still available to all other matches as far as I can tell.

Got midweek tickets no problem...have some v expensive test tickets sorted.