[Dsmock812]

Hello there. I am making my first trip to Manchester around New Years and would love to attend the January 3 match vs. Spurs at Old Trafford. I understand this is a very difficult ticket to obtain. Does anyone have any suggestions on getting tickets for this match? It would be a dream come true to see a match while I am there. Also, if touts are the only way, what should I expect to pay. The cheapest seat on the ground would be fine as I just want to get in the stadium. Thank you and have wonderful day.

[futbolnut]

First, get on the club website (manutd.com), get the phone number and call the club direct to see if someone can help since you are traveling from the US.
Also you can join the US branch of the supporter's club, they have tickets available.
There are also travel packages you can look up (should be able to get link through club website or ask someone at MAN-U for a phone number).

[ManUtd R16]

I also went to Manchester for the first time at the exact same time last year (i saw the game vs. Everton on Boxing Day 2003). The only way that I know of to guarantee yourself a ticket is through MU Travel (http://www.travelcaresports.com/mutravel/). You basically buy a complete package which includes a match ticket, Old Trafford museum tour, and at least one night of hotel stay. Me and my friend got our tickets through MU Travel and we each paid 110 pounds (~$200) for the package.

This is more expensive than it would be to get tickets from the official Man Utd US Supporters Club (www.muscusa.com). To apply for tickets you must be a member. Membership is $90 for a year. Tickets would be ~$50. Museum tour is ~$10 so it'll end up just a little cheaper than the package if you stay in a cheap hostel.

But the caveat for joining the Supportes Club: you are *not* guaranteed a ticket. They'll tell you for a particular game or season if you're more likely or less likely to get tickets but you are not guaranteed anything. So it's possible for you to pay your $90 dues and end up with your membership card, free DVD, but no ticket for your Spurs game.

If you ask for my advice, I'd say go for the MU Travel package. Pay the extra 20 bucks, everything's taken care of for you, no fret no sweat. I tried joining MUSCUSA but it ended up being a real hassle (which involved a whole bunch of email exchanges, unanswered emails, late application for my tickets on their part, unsuccessful application for my tickets due to late submission, and finally, also fortunately, refund of my membership fee).

Hope this helps and enjoy your trip to Manchester (including its weather )!

[Lancashire Lad]

Its sunny here at the moment, especially after beating the Windies at cricket.

£110 sounds expensive, wonder how much the hotel is? You would expect £40-50.

[ManUtd R16]

Oh yeah, one more piece of advice for Dsmock812, if this is also your first time visiting England: plan on everything there being more expensive than what you think. With the weakened dollar, I find that food especially is expensive there. You have to get used to paying 7 bucks for a McDonalds meal and a half-decent dinner will easily cost you $20.

Oh yeah, and remember water at a restaurant is not free! I was at a Pizza Hut at Leicester Square, London, and the waitress asked me what I wanted to drink. I said water's fine, and she asked "fizz or still?" I was like, "huh?" When I finally understood her I knew I didn't want fizz water so I assumed still water must be like regular water, right? I laughed out loud when I saw her coming back with a tray -- sitting on it are 2 bottles of "still water" and two cups with ice in it. Sure enough, the label says "still water" on it. I thought that since I had pay the 2 bucks fifty for that bottle of water I might as well keep the bottle (yes, it's good quality). I kept it for the rest of my journey across UK and I think I still have it now.

Other England annoyances include: no water fountains at public areas, no paper towels in bathrooms, no trash cans at any train station, and finally, tolled bathrooms (imagine the agony of finally locating a bathroom but unable to come up with a twenty-pence). Okay, I'm getting more and more off-topic but all this experience is worth it so have a nice trip!

[Lancashire Lad]

You could always ask for a glass of tap water.

Some toliets have paper towels, but for some reason american hand dryers seem to be very popular. Not as hygenic as paper towels.

No what you mean about bins, took me ages to find one at York station recently. Keep Britain tidy my a**e!

China Town in Manchester is worth a visit. Not far from OT is the Imperal War Museum North (IWMN) and the Lowry Centre, both worth a visit. IWMN is free. Local beer in Manchester is Boddingtons or Boddies its bitter not larger, worth a try.

[jammybastard]

Originally Posted by Lancashire Lad

China Town in Manchester is worth a visit. Not far from OT is the Imperal War Museum North (IWMN) and the Lowry Centre, both worth a visit. IWMN is free. Local beer in Manchester is Boddingtons or Boddies its bitter not larger, worth a try.

I'll be in MCR in early September.
Looking forward to Chinatown and busking in the City Centre.

[ManUtd R16]

Originally Posted by Lancashire Lad

You could always ask for a glass of tap water.

I guess the point is that In America, the default is always tap water, which is probably not true in England.

But anyway, yeah I like the Lowry Centre. The Red Cinema is there right? I'm surprised that it being affiliated with Manchester United and all, there were very few people there when I went (I saw Love, Actually around Christmas and there were only a handful of people at the theater). Maybe I just went at the wrong time but the impression I got was that they were selling really cheap tickets to try to attract people but business is still not very good.

Another thing I like about Manchester is the architecture. Gotta love Urbis!

Finally, the one place I regretted not visiting is the University of Manchester. Studying computer science myself, I should've paid tribute to Alan Turing who pioneered the modern computer at the University of Manchester in the 50s.

[Lancashire Lad]

Originally Posted by ManUtd R16

But anyway, yeah I like the Lowry Centre. The Red Cinema is there right? I'm surprised that it being affiliated with Manchester United and all, there were very few people there when I went (I saw Love, Actually around Christmas and there were only a handful of people at the theater). Maybe I just went at the wrong time but the impression I got was that they were selling really cheap tickets to try to attract people but business is still not very good.

Another thing I like about Manchester is the architecture. Gotta love Urbis!

Depends upon when you go to the Cinema. Some days are cheaper than others. Salford is a Red area of Manchester.

There has been a lot of redevelopment in the North over the last 10 years including Manchester. Some good buildings in Manchester. Go the the science museum they have a Stevensons Rocket (one of the earliest trains), its the old Liverpool Road station (its free too). The Town Hall is very impressive, has a great statue of the Duke of Lancaster, you can visit it.

Thought you might like this link
http://www.freefoto.com/browse.jsp?id=37-08-0
The Salford pages have a lot of pics of the Lowry, and on a photo looking away from centre you can see OT in the background. Obviously not a football fan. Please note the weather in the pics it doesnt always rain!

[ManUtd R16]

Originally Posted by Lancashire Lad

Thought you might like this link
http://www.freefoto.com/browse.jsp?id=37-08-0

Thanks mate!