2007 Rugby World Cup Accommodation

Posted by David Whitley May 24, 2007

The 2007 Rugby World Cup in France is only a few months away – it starts in September, and accommodation in the host cities (Paris, St Denis, Lens, Marseille, Lyon, Nantes, Bordeaux, St-Etienne, Montpellier, Toulouse, Cardiff and Edinburgh) is likely to be both extremely scarce and expensive once the tournament is underway.

Visitors travelling to France and rugby union fans with tickets for the matches should be looking to plan ahead, therefore. This means looking for cheap hotels, hostels, campsites and pensions early, well in advance of the tournament, as this is going to be the only way to get cheaper deals and better rates.

Whilst Paris has a lot of hotels and accommodation options, and should be able to deal with the influx of tourists and rugby fans, the other host cities of the 2007 Rugby World Cup haven’t got the same range of accommodation options. Youth hostels will be full, as will the campsites, and cheap hotels will book out early.

Therefore, anyone who has a ticket for one of the big games in Lens, Marseille, Lyon, Nantes, Bordeaux, St-Etienne, Montpellier or Toulouse should get onto the internet as soon as possible, and start looking at booking hotels online for their rugby-related trip in September and October. Those who don’t could end up regretting it somewhat.

If a precedent is needed, bear in mind what happened to Sydney in Australia during the 2003 Rugby World Cup. A few days before the final, Australia’s biggest city was swarmed upon by English fans wearing red and white – it was like the colonials were back again. Accommodation at the time was VERY hard to come by.