News Tracy Allison Frank and her father started a special tradition in 2000 – attending every Summer and Winter Olympic Games For Tracy, the Games are an opportunity to travel and meet people from all over the world, and for her father, it’s an opportunity to collect Olympic pins   “The Olympics hold a special place in my heart,” said Tracy “It brings out a youthfulness in my dad that nothing else does ” This 16-year tradition has only been broken twice, in 2004 (Athens) and 2014 (Sochi) Not wanting to miss two Olympic Games in row, Tracy and her father made an impulse decision last Wednesday to attend the Games in Rio de Janeiro Tracy Allison Frank at the London 2012 Olympic Games (Photo: Tracy Allison Frank) “He had pretty much decided not to go,” Tracy said “But he came down to visit on Wednesday, and after a day of adventure in San Diego, we got home and he asked, do you really want to go? And I said yes!” Within three days Frank and her father booked airline and Olympic tickets and found a room in a house in Rio de Janeiro They will be two of the 500,000 tourists who are expected to invade Rio de Janeiro for the first ever Olympic and Paralympic Games in South America For most people, planning a trip to the Olympic and Paralympic Games is a logistical puzzle that involves months, if not years of planning Rio de Janeiro’s Games are different A relaxed visa policy (for Americans, Canadians and Australians) and the ability to still snag tickets to some of the most coveted events have made these Games a procrastinator’s dream   How to get there Tracy was looking for the cheapest ticket from Los Angeles and she found it with LATAM airlines, the official airline of the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games From 1 June until 18 September, Brazil has lifted the visa restrictions of those from the United States, Canada, Australia and Japan Travellers from these countries simply need a passport with at least six months of validity Tourists from many other nations – including European Union member states, Russia, Argentina, South Africa and the Republic of Korea – already do not need a visa to visit Brazil See the list of nationalities that do not need a visa to visit Brazil as a tourist When to go The Olympics Games last 17 days from 5 August until 21 August The Paralympic Games start on 7 September and go until the 18th In general, the first week of the Olympic Games is all about swimming, while athletics dominate the second week Gymnastics straddles the first and second weeks The Paralympic Games are smaller than the Olympics but they pack in just as much emotion and competition See our sport-by-sport spectator guides, which include schedules Tickets The Maria Lenk Aquatics Centre will host diving, synchronized swimming and water polo (Photo: Rio 2016) After Frank booked her flight from Los Angeles, she bought Olympic tickets to gymnastics and beach volleyball, two of the most high-profile events at the Games   “Beach volleyball is almost like a party in the stands,” Frank said “There is always so much cheering going on I think in Brazil it will be especially good since their country will do well in the sport " This link has all the information on how to buy tickets to the Olympic and Paralympic Games Choosing tickets can be as simple as choosing your favourite sports or athletes If that doesn’t work, here is another strategy: Watch at least one gold-medal match or game Watch a sport in the Olympic Park, a 1 18 million square metres area that will have seven venues, and host 15 sports A live site will broadcast competitions on large screens and feature live entertainment Watch a medal ceremony There’s beauty in seeing an Olympic or Paralympic champion watch his or her flag being raised How to get around As a veteran of the Olympic Games, Tracy knows that public transportation is always the best option to get around Starting on 1 August, visitors can buy a special card that will be valid for one, three or seven days and cover all forms of public transportation – metro, train, bus-rapid transport (BRT) and the bus The one-day RioCard will cost 25 reais (US$7 50), the three-day card 70 reais (US$20 90) and the seven-day version 160 reais (US$47 85) The cards will be accepted on public transport from 1 August to 19 September April Holmes invites fans to the Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro Where to stay Before looking at other options, consider Airbnb, the official accommodation services supplier of Rio 2016 This service allows locals to rent out their private rooms and apartments for vacation rentals Due to higher demand, the prices during the Olympics may be higher than the prices during the Paralympics Good locations for tourists to stay in include Leblon, Ipanema, Copacabana and Leme These areas are beach neighbourhoods and they have easy transportation access to all of the sports venues The Barra neighbourhood is good for people who will spend most of their time attending events at the Olympic Park What to do in Rio de Janeiro Since Tracy will be in Rio de Janeiro for almost two weeks, she plans to save some days to go hiking in the city   “I like to have a balance of Olympic things and exploring days,” Frank said “I plan to do some hiking and find some yoga classes I am excited to see the beaches and the nightlife ” Rio is a city full of mountains and hills that provide hikers with amazing views One hiking tour takes people through the community of Vidigal and up to the pinnacle of Dois Irmãos From there, hikers have a panoramic view of Rio’s famous coastline As Olympic and Paralympic athletes complete their competition schedules, their focus shifts from winning medals to having as much fun as they can For Frank, this can mean partying in hospitality houses and nightclubs with the same athletes she was watching compete just a few days ago Hospitality houses are venues that countries transform into party and cultural houses Some houses are private but others, like the popular Holland Heineken House, welcome international visitors Those who love culture should buy the Rio cultural passport, a R$15 pass that provides discounts to Rio de Janeiro museums and concerts   For more fun ideas, also see The five most Instagram-able locations in Rio ‘Olympic Boulevard’ to host waterfront fan parties during Rio 2016 Games Art meets science at the Museum of Tomorrow NBA House to be home for basketball fans during Rio 2016 Rio 2016 supports trek into reserve that is saving endangered monkeys Sustainable travel intineraries for Rio and Brazil