| The grass is green on all sides | |
| Aabhas Sharma / New Delhi June 21, 2009, 0:09 IST | |
Tennis may not be the only reason to go to Wimbledon.
There is a reason why Wimbledon remains the most anticipated Grand Slam of the year. Apart from the high-quality tennis on display, for two weeks in June, the place becomes a hub for tourists. You can find snaking queues of fans waiting in anticipation for tickets, and if you are fortunate or wealthy enough to get a hospitality package, a trip to Wimbledon gets even better.
You could get champagne, an all-day free bar, four-course lunch, afternoon tea with strawberries and cream, even umbrellas in case rain plays spoilsport.
All this comes at a hefty price, though. The cheapest package comes for £500, which is close to Rs 40,000 for one day of watching tennis. The cost of the package goes up four times if you want to watch the final or the semi finals of the tournament.
There’s the famous Wimbledon museum, which one can visit. The museum is exceptional, a 20,000-square-foot collection of rooms with interactive exhibits that span the history of the game, from its early years in the 1800s to the current stream of champions. The museum tour is a must for anyone who goes to Wimbledon.
Being a village, Wimbledon has a lot to offer for people who aren’t interested in tennis. There is the Wimbledon Theatre, which is extremely popular and considerably cheaper than the main theatre zone, West End in London.
The “common” and windmill are another two tourist attractions which see a lot of people flocking there during the two weeks of the tournament.
And if tennis isn’t of much interest to you, one can always catch the Greyhound Race, which takes place in the village.
But tennis should be the number one priority for visitors to Wimbledon. A sea of people arrives each day from various parts of the world. Fans camp outside the gates if they don’t get tickets. Giant screens are put outside for ticketless fans, who can get a picnic basket or the famous strawberries of Wimbledon and enjoy the action.
The average ticket price is close to £50 for the smaller courts, going up to £100-120 for seats around Centre Court and Courts 1 and 2.
Just pack a raincoat or umbrella, because the weather at Wimbledon is as unpredictable as anything you will see in England!
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