A Guide to London 2012 Olympics Venues
What You Need to Know
- Most of the action will take place in the Olympic Park. Venues situated here include the Aquatics Centre, the Basketball Arena and the main Olympics Stadium.
- The ExCel will also be a hive of activity; split into four separate arenas it will host boxing, judo, table tennis and volleyball.
- The Olympics Stadium is the largest of all the sports venues, with a capacity of 80,000.
- In comparison, just 7,500 spectators will be able to fit into the Royal Artillery Barracks to watch the shooting.
- Historic venues being used for the Games include Lord’s Cricket Ground and Horseguards Parade.
- Outside of London, the sailing events will take place in Weymouth, while the rowing and canoeing will be held in Eton Dorney, 25 miles west of the capital.
- All of the venues either have public transport links in place or will be served by special shuttle buses for the duration of the Games.
More than a dozen venues will host the London 2012 Olympics, not all of them in the capital. Here’s UK Net Guide’s overview of the main venues:
Aquatics Centre
Location: The Olympic Park
Hosting: Diving, Swimming, Paralympic Swimming, Synchronised Swimming, Water Polo, Pentathlon
Capacity: 17,500
Getting There: Tube, DLR and train to Stratford Regional, Stratford International or West Ham stations, cycle or walk via Olympic ‘Greenways’.
Basketball Arena
Location: The Olympic Park
Hosting: Basketball, Wheelchair Basketball, Handball, Wheelchair Rugby
Capacity: 12,000
Getting There: Tube, DLR and train to Stratford Regional, Stratford International or West Ham stations, cycle or walk via Olympic ‘Greenways’.
Earls Court
Location: West London
Hosting: Indoor Volleyball
Capacity: 15,000
Getting There: London Underground to Earls Court, local bus services, bike.
Eton Dorney
Location: 25 miles (40km) west of central London, close to Windsor.
Hosting: Rowing, Paralympic Rowing, Canoe Sprint
Capacity: 30,000.
Getting There: Train from central London to Slough and Windsor & Eton stations. Shuttle buses run from stations to the venue, with travel from London included in the cost of an event ticket. Local park-and-ride services will also be available for spectators not arriving from London.
ExCel
Location: East London, close to London City Airport
Hosting: Boccia, Boxing, Fencing, Judo, Table Tennis, Taekwondo, Weightlifting, Wrestling, Paralympic Table Tennis, Paralympic Judo, Paralympic Powerlifting, Sitting Volleyball, Wheelchair Fencing
Capacity: 40,000 (across four separate sports halls)
Getting There: Served by the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) line.
Greenwich Park
Location: South-east London
Hosting: Equestrian sports: Jumping, Dressage, Eventing and Paralympic Equestrian, Modern Pentathlon
Capacity: 23,000
Getting There: DLR to Greenwich, train to Greenwich Overground and by river ferry from central London.
Hadleigh Farm
Location: Essex, east of London
Hosting: Mountain Biking
Capacity: 3,000
Getting There: Train from central London to Leigh-on-Sea (rail travel included in cost of event ticket). Shuttles will run from the station to the venue and limited parking will be available for disabled spectators.
Handball Arena
Location: The Olympic Park
Hosting: Handball, Goalball, Modern Pentathlon
Capacity: 7,000
Getting There: Tube, DLR and train to Stratford Regional, Stratford International or West Ham stations, cycle or walk via Olympic ‘Greenways’.
Hockey Centre
Location: The Olympic Park
Hosting: Hockey, Paralympic 5-a-side and 7-a-side Football
Capacity: 15,000
Getting There: Tube, DLR and train to Stratford Regional, Stratford International or West Ham stations, cycle or walk via Olympic ‘Greenways'.
Horse Guards Parade
Location: Whitehall, central London, close to Downing Street and Buckingham Palace
Hosting: Beach Volleyball
Capacity: 15,000
Getting There: Tube to Green Park, Charing Cross or Westminster Stations, train to Charing Cross, Victoria and Waterloo (shuttle buses running from overground stations to venue), local bus services, bike.
Hyde Park
Location: Central London
Hosting: Triathlon, 10km Open Water Swim
Capacity: 3,000
Getting There: Tube to Marble Arch, Paddington or St James’s Park, train to Paddington, Charing Cross and Waterloo, (shuttle buses running from overground stations to venue), local bus services, bike.
Lee Valley White Water Centre
Location: Waltham Cross, Hertfordshire, 30km north of London
Hosting: Canoe Slalom
Capacity: 12,000
Getting There: Train from central London to Cheshunt. Shuttle buses will run from the station to the venue, with travel from London included in the cost of an event ticket. Limited parking will be available close to the site for disabled spectators and park-and-ride services will be located nearby for those not coming in from London.
Lord’s Cricket Ground
Location: St John’s Wood, north-west London
Hosting: Archery
Capacity: 6,500
Getting There: Tube to St John’s Wood or Baker Street, train to King’s Cross St Pancras from where shuttle buses will run to the venue. Also accessible by bike and on foot from central London.
North Greenwich Arena
Location: South-east London, close to Canary Wharf
Hosting: Artistic Gymnastics, Basketball, Wheelchair Basketball, Trampoline
Capacity: 20,000
Getting There: Tube to North Greenwich, overground trains to Charlton, local bus services.
The Olympic Stadium
Location: The Olympic Park
Hosting: Athletics, Paralympic Athletics
Capacity: 80,000
Getting There: Tube, DLR and train to Stratford Regional, Stratford International or West Ham stations, cycle or walk via Olympic ‘Greenways’.
The Royal Artillery Barracks
Location: Woolwich Common, south-east London
Hosting: Shooting, Paralympic Shooting, Paralympic Archery
Capacity: 7,500
Getting There: Overground rail or DLR to Woolwich Arsenal station, from where shuttles to the venue will be available to spectators with accessibility needs. Local buses also run to the venue and limited parking will be available for disabled spectators.
The Velodrome
Location: The Olympic Park
Hosting: Track Cycling, BMX, Paralympic Track Cycling
Capacity: 6,000
Getting There: Tube, DLR and train to Stratford Regional, Stratford International or West Ham stations, cycle or walk via Olympic ‘Greenways’.
Wembley Arena
Location: Wembley, north London
Hosting: Badminton, Rhythmic Gymnastics
Capacity: 6,000
Getting There: Tube to Wembley Park, overground train to Wembley Stadium, local bus services. Train travel from central London to the venue is included in the cost of event tickets.
Weymouth and Portland
Location: Dorset, 215km south-west of London
Hosting: Sailing, Paralympic Sailing
Capacity: TBC
Getting There: National rail services to Weymouth Station and then shuttle buses to the venue. Park-and-ride services and limited parking for disabled spectators will also be available. Note that travel from London is not included in the event ticket price.
Water Polo Arena
Location: The Olympic Park
Hosting: Water Polo
Capacity: 5,000
Getting There: Tube, DLR and train to Stratford Regional, Stratford International or West Ham stations, cycle or walk via Olympic ‘Greenways’.
Wimbledon (All England Lawn Tennis Club)
Location: Wimbledon, south-west London
Hosting: Tennis
Capacity: 30,000
Getting There: Tube to Wimbledon and Southfields, overground train to Wimbledon, local buses.
What You Need to Know
- Stay informed of all the latest news about transport in London through the TfL website.
- Read up on the 2012 venues with the official guide to the London Olympics.
- For tips on getting to all the events read our guide to Olympic transport.
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