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Tags: Tennis Travel / Wimbledon-Tour-Guide / Britain Travel / Sports Travel / → All Tags

No More Waiting For the Wonder of Wimbledon

In case you didn't notice, the annual tennis extravaganza that is Wimbledon started on Monday, but don't fret as the best is still to come. This year's championships culminate on July 5, so there's still almost two full weeks of Wimbledon action to entertain us.

If you're lucky enough to be in London and are keen to head along to eat strawberries and cream (and watch a match or two), the good news is it is never too late. Wimbledon always keeps some tickets to sell on the morning of the match—at least 500 tickets for the three main courts await the firstcomers at the turnstiles each day, apart from the final days.

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Tags: Travel Bans / Dubai Travel / Tennis Travel / Religious Travel / → All Tags

Is Dubai Travel Kosher?

The game of tit for tat continues in the Middle East. This time United Arab Emirates officials barred Israeli tennis players from competing in Dubai's Tennis Championships. Their rationalization is based on "recent events in the region" that potentially could "put at risk the players and the many tennis fans of different nationalities that we have here in the UAE."

The Simon Wiesenthal Center, an international Jewish human rights organization, has fired back with an e-mail asking its 400,000 members and the international Jewish community to nix any vacay plans to Dubai. SWC officials say the travel advisory will lift when the government of Dubai drops its security concerns. This could be sooner than we think. Apparently today, the UAE has given a permit entry to Israeli tennis player, Andy Ram.

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Tags: What Recession? / Cruises / Crystal Cruises / Tennis Travel / → All Tags

A Wimbledon Cruise Package For Only $25,299

Do you love cruises and Wimbledon so much that even as the economy continues to tank, you have no qualms about plunking down $25,000 for an extravagant tennis-themed cruise? If this is you, then a new Crystal Cruises packages was made with your kind in mind. (Also, can you pay for our trip too?)

Their latest cruise package extends your vacation with tickets to Wimbledon at the conclusion of its London-Stockholm trip. If you ever wanted to whisper sweet nothings in Rafael Nadal's ear, you probably won't get any closer than this.

After the 11-day cruise, which includes a trip to the Tennis Hall of Fame in Bastad, Sweden, passengers will be flown business class to London, where they'll be put up at the newly renovated Savoy Hotel. They'll get tickets to the women's and men's singles semifinals and finals at Center Court and admission into Fairway Village, where VIPs take their afternoon tea after the matches.

But before you pack your decorous sun-brimmed hat, you should be aware that this sporting sidebar costs more than the cruise itself -- and no, you can't just buy the post-cruise package and show up in Sweden. Cruise packages start at $4,995, but the Wimbledon package will set you back a cool $25,299. So how badly do you want to party with a Williams sister?

Related Stories:
· California to Cruise Ships: Clean Up Your Act [Jaunted]
· Hotel Renovations Update: London Savoy Hotel [HC]
· Boris Becker's Unauthorized Guide to Wimbledon [Jaunted]

[Photo from Wimbledon '07: michelle_magnumm]

Tags: Tennis Travel / Australia Travel / Roger Federer / Venus Williams / → All Tags

It's Not Too Late For Oz Open Tix

Summer tennis action has hit Australia this week with the start of the the 2009 Australian Open in Melbourne. The tournament is held in Melbourne Park, a ten-minute walk from the center of the city, or a five-minute trip on the tram.

Whether, like us, you still have a weird thing for #2 seed Roger Federer, or if Serbian beauty Jelena Jankovic gets your racket swinging, apparently there are still tickets available even for the second week of the tournament, starting at A$70 ($50) for early rounds and rising as the matches go on.

As for who's going to be holding the trophies come February 1, well, we can't really go past a Williams sister for the women's, although we're not willing to decide on Venus or Serena. On the men's court, we're hoping for Federer but have a suspicion it might be Novak Djokovic this time round. But don't place bets based on our intuition.

Related Stories:
· Australian Open [Official Site]
· See McEnroe in the Dressing Room [Jaunted]
· Melbourne Travel Guide [Jaunted]

[Photo: MD111]

Tags: Celeb Travel / Rafael Nadal / Tennis Travel / → All Tags

Championship Travel: No Racquets on Rafael Nadal's Vacation

American athletes go to Disneyland when they win big; Europeans go to the Mediterranean. 2008 Wimbledon champ Rafael Nadal was seen relaxing in the surf off Mallorca yesterday.

Nadal played through an injured knee to win on the grass, but he turned down a tournament next week in Stuttgart, Germany in order to recuperate.

We're sure having his ladyfriend (at right, looking rather frightened) on vacation with him doesn't hurt. Maybe he'll even have time to even out that tennis tan!

Related Stories:
· Airport Photo Shoot: Maria Sharapova is Dri-Fit Free [Jaunted]
· Tennis Travel: See McEnroe In The Dressing Room [Jaunted]
· Celeb Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Celebrity-Gossip.net]

Tags: Airport Photo Shoots / Maria Sharapova / Tennis Travel / French Open / Celeb Travel / → All Tags

Airport Photo Shoot: Maria Sharapova is Dri-Fit Free

Tennis pro Maria Sharapova was snapped waiting for her luggage--a lot of it--at LAX last week. Her striped sweater and wide-leg jeans may not wick away moisture or help her whip around the court, but they sure keeps her warm on a cold flight.

Sharapova recently dropped to number two in the world tennis ratings after a fourth-round French Open loss, but the 21-year-old is still one of the highest paid female tennis players in the world--including an endorsement deal from Nike, makers of the Dri-Fit line. She hasn't left the top 10 since she landed there in 2004.

In a 2005 Travel + Leisure article, Sharapova said she never travels without "Kiehl's lip balm, Fresh moisturizer, my pink iPod mini and a good book."

Related Links
· Ivanovic Officially Takes over at Number One [Sporting News]
· Fast Talk: Maria Sharapova [T+L]
· Airport Photo Shoots coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: WorldCeleb.net]

Tags: UK Travel / Tennis Travel / Sports Travel / Museums / → All Tags

Tennis Travel: See McEnroe in the Dressing Room

With the Australian Open tennis Grand Slam due to start on Monday, tennis is on our brains. It's probably too late to get many center court seats in Melbourne, so we're already looking ahead to the 2008 Wimbledon tournament, not least of all because we were inspired by reading about the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Museum.

This museum just won a gold medal from Visit London as the Best Tourism Experience of 2007, and it's got lots of neat stuff, even if you're not a huge tennis fan. From a tennis fashion exhibit through to the Reaction Zone (where you test your reaction time against some illuminated tennis balls), there's lots to see. We're particularly keen for the walkthrough of the men's dressing room--as it was in the 1980s when John McEnroe was there. He's still there--in hologram form--and will tell you stories as you walk through.

The museum also has audio guides in many languages plus live guided tours, but we're rather taken by the gadgets they have for hearing-impaired visitors. You can get a hand-held video guide that tells you about the museum in sign language. Just don't stare too long at the video screen or you'll forget to check out what McEnroe's wearing (or not) in the dressing room.

Related Stories:
· Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Museum [Official Site]
· Boris Becker's Unauthorized Wimbledon Travel Guide [Jaunted]

[Photo: wallyg]

Tags: Wimbledon-Tour-Guide / UK Travel / Tennis Travel / → All Tags

Boris Becker's Unauthorized Wimbledon Travel Guide

Boris Becker's Unauthorized Guide To Wimbledon

The 2007 Championships Wimbledon have been wrought with rain delays, so we thought it would be a good idea to look at three places around center court where tourists, players, and media can go to enjoy their time in the UK--indoors of course.

To give us a tour of the area surrounding Wimbledon, we figured we would indirectly Google ask an expert. So, we scoured the web for Boris Becker's travel tips to Wimbledon.

Boris Becker's three spot tour guide to Wimbledon.

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