October 27, 2009

Statistics About Visitors to Vancouver

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Got some fun statistics for you today (if you’re into that.) 

Out of the nearly five million people that visited Vancouver in 2008…
 
o   60.4% were fellow Canadians
 
o   23.12% were American neighbors to the south (With California ranking highest, followed by Washington tourists.)
 
o   9.18% were from the Asia/Pacific region (With Australia being number one, followed by Japan)
 
o   And 5.39% flew over the Atlantic to visit from Europe (With U.K. citizens ranking noticeably higher than anyone else, more than double second place (Germany)).
 
On average, a visitor’s budget will look something like this..
 
o   31.85% on accommodations
o   25.95% on food and beverage
o   18.99% on retail
o   8.83% on private transportation
o   9.22% on recreation and entertainment
o   5.15% on public transportation
 
Of course, these numbers may not match well to your budget as the Winter Olympics will have fluctuations in prices… but it’s a good start.
 
You probably will need to budget more for accommodations during the Olympics, and depending on how many events you will attend during your stay — your recreation and entertainment budget will be different too.
 
We here at Olympic Home Hotels don’t expect the price of food and beverages to rise too much… and transportation costs should stay about the same.
 
What you should definitely budget more for is recreation and entertainment. In previous blog posts, we offered several attractions for you to visit in Vancouver before heading back home.
 
Speaking of statistics, numbers and expenditures…
 
If you’re visiting from America, please don’t forget to calculate for currency conversions and imperial-to-metric measurement.
 
For the most up to date currency exchange information, I would visit www.xe.com
 
As for the imperial and metric conversion:
 
1 kilometer = 0.62 miles
1 mile = 1.61 kilometer
 
QUICK TIP: Most city driving speed limits are 50 km/hr, which is slightly more than 30 mph. Highway driving tends to be 80 km/hr, which translates to slightly under 50 mph.
 
1 gallon = 3.78 liters
1 liter = 0.264 gallons
 
QUICK TIP: When you’re at the gas station, multiply the per liter price by four. It’s not exactly right, but close enough.
 
Have a safe and fun trip at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic Games. Be safe, use Safe Funds.

Fine Dining During the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics

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If you’re going to enjoy the beautiful landscape of Vancouver without having a fine dinner to go with it, you’re seriously missing out. 

Here are some of the best fine dining Vancouver has to offer.
 
1. C Restaurant – (Seafood) – Listed in the latest edition of "1,000 Places to See Before You Die), Executive Chef Robert Clark offers fine seafood along with fresh produce, both sourced locally.
 
For more details:
http://www.crestaurant.com
 
2. West – (Pacific Northwest) – Ranked number one in Zagat Survey four times in a row (including this year), West offers contemporary regional cuisine.
 
For more details:
http://www.westrestaurant.com/
 
3. Bishop’s - (Pacific Northwest) Local, simple, delicious. Distinctively Pacific Northwest. Owner and host John Bishop is often seen conversing with his guests.
 
For more details:
http://www.bishopsonline.com/
 
4. Le Crocodile – (French) – Owner and Chef Michel Jacob named his restaurant after his hometown’s favorite in Strasbourg. For an authentic French dining experience, dine at Le Crocodile.
 
For more details:
http://www.lecrocodilerestaurant.com
 
5. Blue Water Café + Raw Bar – (Seafood) – Executive Chef insists on fresh, sustainable seafood while Raw Bar Chef Yoshihiro Tabo is all about purity and simplicity. Blue Water is in its second year of Best Seafood as voted by Vancouver Magazine Restaurant Awards.                                                     
 
For more details:
http://www.bluewatercafe.net
 
Of course, there are several more top notch restaurants — and not all necessarily fine dining. Vancouver is known for its multiculturalism… if you can name a nationality, there is probably a restaurant here dedicated to it.
 
To explore more restaurants, I have found this user-ranking and reviewed website quite useful.
 
http://www.dinehere.ca/
 
You can organize restaurants by price, location, and type. You won’t find foodie critiques on this website. Just average folks like you and me giving their opinion and rankings.
 
Of course, your temporary landlord may offer home cooked meals or an in-house chef hired just for you, too. Be sure to check the listings on Olympic Home Hotels for these extra value added services.

 

October 24, 2009

Watch out for Fake Memorabilia During Your Stay at the 2010 Winter Olympics

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Bill Cooper, 2010’s director of commercial rights, has been in charge of seizing 40 cases of fake 2010 Winter Olympics merchandise in the last two years. Forty cases equates to about 30,000 units overall.

The counterfeits range from pins, to maple syrup, to glassware, toys and apparel.
 
When you come stay at a home listed on Olympic Home Hotels, we urge you to be careful about purchasing memorabilia.
 
Bill Cooper says you can probably tell a fake by its craftsmanship. Three things you can quickly look for…
 
1. Poor quality in make.
2. No official hologrammed "hang-tag"
3. Missing sewn-in 2010 label.
 
Surprisingly, these fakes aren’t just found on the streets and in the back of unmarked white vans. A wide variety of retailers, from mom-and-pop stores to national ones have both been found with fakes.
 
The expected gross retail of official Olympic merchandise is estimated at $500 million.
 
Just like we recommend you to pay safely with Safe Funds on Olympic Home Hotels… we also urge you to pay close attention when buying Olympic merchandise.
 
And we’re not kidding about safety. Such knockoffs may be dangerous as they typically aren’t made with fire retardant material.

2010 Winter Olympic Venues in Whistler, Richmond & West Vancouver

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If you have event tickets to the 2010 Winter Olympics in Whistler, Richmond and West Vancouver you probably want to get a better idea of where your venues are. 

Here’s some trivia thrown in for good measure.
 
o   Whistler Sliding Centre – Located on Blackcomb mountain, the Whistler Sliding Centre is one of only sixteen international sliding tracks in the world.
 
It also has the highest vertical drop on any track in the world of 499 feet. The track G-force is expected to reach 5.02 Gs for the men’s luge.
 
o   Whistler Creekside – Consistently ranked number one ski resort in North America, Whistler welcomes over two million visitors every year. It has hosted its share of International Ski Federation World Cup competitions.
 
Along with Blackcomb mountain, Whistler boasts 8,171 acres of terrain, 39 lifts and more than 200 trails.
 
o   Whistler Olympic Park – This small one square kilometer park will include three stadiums for the purposes of cross-country skiing, biathlon, Nordic combined and ski jumping. In fact, it will be the first time in Olympic history where all four Nordic disciplines are taking place at the same venue.
 
o   Richmond Oval – Built for the Olympics to host all speed skating events, this iconic landmark will be see in the air by incoming air passengers (as it’s built near the international air port.)
 
o   Cypress Mountain – With 51 downhill skiing and snowboard runs and nine lifts, Cypress Mountain is one of Vancouver’s most popular ski resorts.
 
For a map of these locations, click on the following links… [make these anchor links]
 
Whistler Sliding Centre:
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Whistler+Sliding+Centre&sll=49.273405,-123.159828&sspn=0.099232,0.307274&ie=UTF8&ll=50.113864,-122.944994&spn=0.024383,0.076818&z=14&iwloc=A
 
Whistler Creekside:
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Whistler+Creekside&sll=50.113864,-122.944994&sspn=0.024383,0.076818&ie=UTF8&ll=50.105056,-122.966022&spn=0.051527,0.153637&z=13&iwloc=A
 
Whistler Olympic Park:
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Whistler+Olympic+Park&sll=50.105056,-122.966022&sspn=0.051527,0.153637&ie=UTF8&ll=50.287584,-123.118286&spn=0.777403,2.458191&z=9&iwloc=A
 
Richmond Oval:
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=richmond+oval+bc&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=32.610437,78.662109&ie=UTF8&ll=49.178505,-123.153391&spn=0.024856,0.076818&z=14&iwloc=B
 
Cypress Mountain:
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=cypress+mountain+bc&sll=49.178505,-123.153391&sspn=0.024856,0.076818&ie=UTF8&ll=49.491323,-123.015289&spn=0.39517,1.229095&z=10&iwloc=A

October 23, 2009

2010 Winter Olympic Venues in Vancouver

Filed under: Articles, Venues — Tags: , , , , , — OlympicHomeHotels

If you have event tickets to the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, you probably want to get a better idea of where your venues are. 

Here’s some trivia thrown in for good measure.
 
o   Canada Hockey Place – a.k.a. General Motors Place, this is the same sports arena that houses the Vancouver Canucks of the NHL… and in a distant past, the Vancouver Grizzlies of the NBA (now the Memphis Grizzlies)
 
Aside from being a great place for rock concerts and international sporting events, Canada Hockey Place has had world-renowned guests speak there. Three that comes to mind are former US president Bill Clinton, Her Royal Highness Queen Elizabeth the Second and his Holiness, the Dalai Lama.
 
o   Vancouver Olympic/Paralympic Centre – Located inside Queen Elizabeth Park, the Vancouver Olympic/Paralympic Centre will be the largest curling venue at any Winter Olympics to date (at 100,000 square feet).
 
After the games, the centre will be converted to a multi-purpose recreation center with a ice hockey rink, a gymnasium, a library and six to eight sheets of curling ice.
 
o   Pacific Coliseum – Home to the Vancouver Giants, junior hockey team and former home of the NHL team Vancouver Canucks, Pacific Coliseum is no stranger to international sporting events such as the World Junior Hockey Championships and ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships.
 
The Pacific Coliseum has seens its share of historical hockey events, including the Stanley Cup finals of 1982 and 1994 and the 1977 NHL All-Star Game.
 
o   UBC Thunderbird Arena – Located on the campus of University of British Columbia, the Vancouver Olympic committee decided to add a sports complex here under the name of Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sport Centre.
 
Interesting tidbit: At least 215 athletes, coaches and support staff from UBC have participated in the Olympics Games since 1928.
 
For a map of these locations, click on the following links… [make these anchor links]
 
Canada Hockey Place:
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=CAnada+hockey+place&sll=87.509706,170.15625&sspn=163.218718,360&ie=UTF8&ll=49.281972,-123.108759&spn=0.026204,0.076818&z=14&iwloc=B
 
Vancouver Olympic Centre:
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Vancouver+Olympic+Centre&sll=49.281972,-123.108759&sspn=0.026204,0.076818&ie=UTF8&ll=49.285947,-123.081894&spn=0.099207,0.307274&z=12&iwloc=A
 
Pacific Coliseum:
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=pacific+coliseum&sll=49.285947,-123.081894&sspn=0.104806,0.307274&ie=UTF8&ll=49.290874,-123.043184&spn=0.024799,0.076818&z=14&iwloc=A
 
UBC Thunderbird Arena:
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=ubc+thunderbird+stadium&sll=49.290874,-123.043184&sspn=0.024799,0.076818&ie=UTF8&ll=49.273405,-123.159828&spn=0.099232,0.307274&z=12&iwloc=A

October 22, 2009

What You Need to Know About Medical Work While Visiting the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics

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Quickly, there are three things you need to know when visiting a hospital in Canada. 

1. Foreign patients have to pay $600 before receiving medical treatment
 
2. Credit cards are accepted
 
3. They won’t send you away if you don’t have the money.
 
This does not mean you do not need health insurance, however! As stated on the Government of Canada website:
 
"Canada does not pay for hospital or medical services for visitors. Make sure you have health insurance to cover any medical costs before you come to Canada."
 
It’s important you check with your medical insurance company before travelling to check if you are covered overseas.
 
If you are an American, it’s important you understand that Medicare and Medicaid programs will NOT cover ANY medical expenses outside of the United States.
 
Regardless of that fact…
 
If you didn’t know already, there are quite a lot of people doing what’s called "medical tourism" these days — Where they go to a foreign country to receive medical attention where it’s more expensive at home.
 
Here are some facts about medical treatment in Canada compared to the U.S.A.
 
o Average in-hospital treatment costs are half of what’s charged in American
 
o Compared to the 7.9 per thousand nurses in the U.S.A., Canada has 9.9 per thousand
 
o There’s almost 57% more in-hopital deaths in America (1.4% Canada, 2.2% U.S.A.)
 
o American hospital administrative costs are nearly 21% more than Canadian hospitals.
 
o Prescription drugs and medicine are far less expensive in Canada.
 
It’s no wonder Canada is becoming a top spot for "medical tourists".
 
Canada’s health care system is run on a provincial basis. Which means BC has it’s own hospital insurance plan. It’s funded by Canadian taxpayers.

It should be understood that tourists and temporary visitors do not qualify for this health care plan.

Top Ten Tourist Attractions While You’re in Vancouver for the 2010 Winter Olympics – Part 3

Filed under: Articles, Tourist Attractions — Tags: , , , , , — OlympicHomeHotels

Here it is. The last part of three in the top ten places you should visit in Vancouver… before or after the 2010 Winter Olympic events. 

Work with your homeowner from Olympic Home Hotels to stay a few more days if you can.
 
.    Canada Place – If you ever attend a fancy convention in Vancouver, it’ll probably be here.
 
If you’re royalty, a high ranking politician or a C-level businessman, you’ll probably stay at the Pan Pacific (part of Canada Place)
 
If your cruise ship is docking in Vancouver, it will be in front of Canada Place.
 
And regardless if you’re one of the above or not… you have to visit this Vancouver landmark for it’s interesting architecture.
 
For more details:
http://www.canadaplace.ca
 
.    Grouse Mountain – Take the Grouse Mountain Skyride up to an evening of dining and dancing at the Mountain Chalet.
 
Or, if you got hiker’s blood in your veins… attempt the Grouse Grind, 1.8 miles going up 2,800 feet. It usually takes and hour and a half on average to make this climb… but the current record holder has 25:24.
 
In the wintertime, you can snowshoe, snowboard, ski, ice skate, the list goes on.
 
For more details:
http://www.grousemountain.com
 
.    Capilano Suspension Bridge – Got the guts to walk 450 feet on a 120-year-old suspension bridge? Sure, sure the original hemp and cedar planks of yore have since been reinforced by steel and concrete, but still…
 
If you make it across, there are some rewarding activities. The Treetops Adventure gives you access to see the rainforest from a bird’s eye view (as high as 100 feet above ground). There’s a collection of totem poles. And there’s a rainforest tour.
 
For more details:
http://www.capbridge.com
 
.    Stanley Park – 400 hectares of cedar, hemlock and fir trees. The world famous 5.5 mile seawall where cyclists, pedestrians and inline skaters traverse. And gardens, several artfully landscaped gardens.
 
Stanley Park could be argued as Vancouver’s biggest tourist (and residents) attraction. Nearly eight million people visit every year.
 
If the weather permits, conquer the seawall.
 
For more details:
http://vancouver.ca/Parks/parks/stanley/

And that concludes are Top Ten Places to Visit in Vancouver series. We hope you found at least one attraction you’re willing to stick around in Vancouver after the 2010 Winter Olympics.

October 21, 2009

Top Ten Tourist Attractions While You’re in Vancouver for the 2010 Winter Olympics – Part 2

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Continuing on from last blog post, here is part two of three in the top ten places you should visit in Vancouver… before or after the 2010 Winter Olympic events.

Take a few more days off from work. Why not?
 
.    Vancouver Aquarium – With over 70,000 animals, it’s no wonder the Vancouver Aquarium is the largest one in Canada. There are dolphins, beluga whales, sea turtles, a few sharks and sea otters you can observe.
 
Not to mention, a large selection of tropical fish and fascinating specimens specific to the Pacific North West. This writer personally has an annual pass and enjoys taking his two year old whenever possible.
 
For more information:
http://www.visitvanaqua.org/
 
.    Granville Island – Not really an island, but a former industrial park, Granville Island may be the most powerful testament to urban development around. Today, it is a center for the arts (with live theatre and the Emily Carr Institute of Art) and a bustling, vibrant public market.
 
On the pier, you can take a cheap ferry ride into downtown Vancouver or you can watch buskers, magicians and other street performers.
 
For more information:
http://www.granvilleisland.com/en
 
.    Gastown – Gastown is Vancouver’s original downtown before it fell into disrepair in the 30s, then slowly restored after the 60’s when it came close to being demolished for a freeway (along with Chinatown).
 
Today, you can visit the old steam clock which continues to whistle every hour on the hour (albeit very much out-of-tune).
 
Also, you can walk the faux-cobblestone streets shopping at fashion boutiques and other tourist-oriented shops. At night, there are several nightclubs playing live music ranging from rock, to jazz to techno.
 
And how can I forget, the International Jazz Festival tends to crowd up Gastown during the early summer months. Quite the scene.
 
For more details:
http://www.gastown.org
 
That’s it for this blog. Watch for the exciting conclusion in the next one.

October 20, 2009

Top Ten Tourist Attractions While You’re in Vancouver for the 2010 Winter Olympics – Part 1

Filed under: Articles, Tourist Attractions — OlympicHomeHotels
There are quite a lot of Vancouver points of interest and attractions you may want to visit before or after the Winter Olympic events. If you can, why not stick around to see them, or come earlier, before the events?
 
In this three part series, I’ll cover off ten places you should check out.
 
.    Dr. Sun Yet-Sen Gardens – Named after China’s first professional revolutionary, Dr. Sun Yet-Sen travelled the world to raise funds and awareness for democracy in China during the early 20th century.
 
Fifty-two master craftsman from Suzhou China worked on this beautiful landscape over twelve months. It is faithful to the Qing dynasty, complete with intricate halls and walkways put together without nails, screws or glue.
 
For more details:
http://www.vancouverchinesegarden.com
 
.    Chinatown – Did you know Vancouver’s Chinatown is North America’s second largest, after San Francisco? It’s true.
 
Here are a few locations you want to see: Silk Road Route, Chinatown Millennium Gate, Historical Alley and Han Dynasty Bell.
 
Then there’s the Sam Kee building, recognized by Ripley’s Believe or Not as the narrowest building on earth.
 
Of course, I would also recommend doing a little shopping for fresh groceries in the open streets. It’s quite an experience.
 
For more details:
http://vancouverchinatown.ca
 
.    Robson Street – This one is for the shopaholics. High-end stores and upscale restaurants line this vibrant shopping street. Burberry’s first Canadian location is here. So are Hermes, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Cartier, Tiffany & Co., Lacoste and Coach.
 
And let’s not forget the infamous corner of Thurlow and Robson where two Starbucks sit diagonally across from each other. If you decide to meet there, be sure to tell your friend if it’s the North-East one or the South-West one.
 

That’s three for now. In the next blog post, we’ll cover off another three key Vancouver attractions you may want to visit while you’re here for the 2010 Winter Olympics.

GPS Tour Guides At the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics

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How would you like a knowledgeable, interesting tour guide beside you, for your entire stay in Vancouver during the 2010 Winter Olympics… for an alarming rate of $15 per day?

How is this possible? Let me tell you.
 
There’s a Canadian company called GyPSy and they rent out GPS devices you connect to your car’s stereo system, rental or otherwise.
 
As you drive around the city, the GPS system will automatically play fascinating audio tidbits depending on where you are.
 
For example, if you were to drive around Vancouver, the GPS would activate at the following locations:
 
  • Stanley Park
  • Gastown
  • Chinatown
  • English Bay
  • Granville Island
  • Yaletown
  • Robson Street
  • Kitsilano
  • Point Grey
  • Canada Place
  • Museum of Anthropology
  • Vancouver Airport
  • Tsawwassen Ferry Terminal
  • Lions Gate Bridge
  • Lighthouse Park
  • Capilano Suspension Bridge
  • Ambleside
  • Grouse Mountain
  • Lonsdale Quay
  • Lynn Canyon
  • Deep Cove
  • 2nd Narrows Bridge
  • Horseshoe Bay
  • Join Sea to Sky Highway to Whistler
 
If you’d like to hear a sample of a GPS tour guide, click on the following link…
 
http://www.gpstourscanada.com/where/city_vancouver.html
 
In case you didn’t know, G.P.S. stands for Global Positioning System.
 
If you have a GPS receiver, it connects to the 24 to 32 satellites orbiting earth, letting you know where you are — latitude, longitude and even altitude.
 
Most GPS receivers come with pre-loaded street maps so you can use it as a navigation device. Many people today buy them for their cars to get live play-by-play directions to their driving destination.
 
They are extremely useful when you’re driving in unfamiliar cities.
 
If you decide to rent a car or drive to Vancouver for the Winter Olympics, you may want to consider purchasing a Garmin or TomTom GPS receivor if you don’t have one already.

 

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