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2010 Winter Games at Whistler
Whistler is a year-round leisure and meeting destination located 120 kilometres (75 miles) north of Vancouver, B.C., Canada, and is the site for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. Whistler offers a wide selection of restaurants, bars, spas, boutiques and galleries. Activities range from world-renowned skiing and snowboarding, mountain biking and golf, to hiking, rock climbing, and river rafting.
Whistler Creekside
Accommodations
There is limited availability at First Tracks Lodge over the month of February 2010. For Olympic reservations, please our hotel reservations team where one of our Travel Consultants can assist you with the most up to date accommodations availability.
Call Toll-Free 1.866.385.0614
Transportation Plan
The Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC), in conjunction with its partners, has released Phase 1 of the Integrated Games Transportation Plan. The Plan provides preliminary details on getting to, from and around Whistler during the Games. Additional information will be released this summer (Phase 2) and fall (Phase 3) to ensure that guests, residents and businesses have access to the necessary tools and information to plan appropriately for travel during the Games.
Key Highlights
Highway 99 will remain open throughout the Games to ensure that those who need to travel to, from and around Whistler during the Games can;
Whistler Blackcomb will remain 90% open throughout the Games;
Day visitors will be welcomed to Whistler during the Games, and with unrestricted access throughout Whistler Village and the free Olympic Celebration Sites, it will be a great opportunity to do some amazing skiing and riding as well as get caught up in the Olympic excitement;
A "know before you go" philosophy will be rolled out with extensive information and trip-planning tools available;
The number and frequency of private buses to Whistler from Vancouver for day visitors will be increased to conveniently provide access to the mountains and the Village during the Games;
Overnight visitors will continue to access the resort either by a variety of shuttle services or by car; Guests with reserved accommodations will have access to parking and should confirm this with accommodation providers;
Highway travel during off-peak Games times is strongly encouraged;
The skier parking lots will be unavailable for public parking during Games time;
Local transit in and around Whistler, and to/from Squamish and Pemberton will be greatly enhanced and will run 24 hours a day.
Looking Ahead
In the months ahead, the Olympic and Paralympic Transportation Team will release additional details about transportation during the Games. To date, 80 per cent of the planning has been completed. The next expected releases include:
Summer 2009
- Transportation plans for the Paralympic Games in March 2010
- Transportation details specific to each venue (drop off/load zones, shuttle services)
- Details on the management of the northbound checkpoint on Highway 99
- Booking details and remaining departure points for transport on the Olympic Bus Network
- Dates road closures and parking restrictions will be in effect
- Details on the management of Olympic Lanes
- Temporary routes for the movement of goods and services
Fall 2009
- Details of the Travel smart - Know Before You Go program
- Transportation contingency plans
FAQ
During the month of February 2010 the Creekside Gondola will be closed to the public and will re-open in early March, with priority access given to Paralympic athletes and officials.
These are the first Olympics where the mountain venues have been completed 2 years prior to the Games. Visitors to Whistler village before or during the Games, will not be affected by any construction, as we are ready to host the world.
Definitely! Outside of the month of February, the 2009/2010 season is expected to be business as usual. If you are looking for a more regular ski holiday we would recommend you travel outside of the 17-day period of the Olympics although the skiing is expected to be phenomenal during this time.
Both Whistler and Blackcomb will be in operational before , during and after the Games. Whistler Mountain offers more than 100 trails and only 4 of them will be closed during the games (Dave Murray Downhill, Raven, Franz's Run and Wildcard will be closed). In addition, Blackcomb Mountain will be in full operation, also offering more than 100 trails. So we're 100% open before and after the Games and 90% open during the Games!
A Transportation Advisory Committee was formed in February 2006. VANOC has also contracted a company to conduct an analysis of the region. Information collected will be incorporated into plans for key roads, including the Sea to Sky highway, loading zones, general parking, bus operations, client services, traffic management and venue transportation management. A more detailed transportation plan will be announced later this year based on making public transportation during the Games convenient, affordable, and in keeping with environmental sustainability commitments.
In addition to the competition events, there will be many parties, shows, and activities going on including the Olympic Arts Festival and Paralympic Arts Festival which will run throughout each Games. The festivals will celebrate the best in BC, Canadian and international arts and culture featuring aboriginal, classical and contemporary music, theatre, dance, film, literary, visual arts, street entertainment and more.
Yes. Outside of the ticketed events, there will be 6 Live Sites set up throughout the village. These will include big screens showing the day’s events and nightly medal ceremonies, as well as free daily and nightly entertainment including bands, performing artists, and theatre.
By summer, there should be more information about venue tours but here is what we know so far: The grand opening of the Sliding Centre will be in October 2008, possibly with scheduled tours. After the Games, the Whistler Legacies Society will be implementing a tour program for the Whistler Olympic Park and Whistler Sliding Centre. There has also been discussion about a tourist sliding sports ride program. Currently guests can test their skills on the Dave Murray downhill which will be the site of the alpine skiing events and the Whistler Olympic Park is already in full operation offering 40 kilometres (25 miles) of cross-country ski trails ranging from beginner to Olympic caliber.
Yes, because there are more hotel rooms in Vancouver than in Whistler more people will be in Vancouver, however there will still be a lot going on in Whistler including concerts, parties, medal ceremonies, etc.
Each country will have their own official Olympic wholesaler. We will be able to provide you a list of them at a later date. Approximately 1.6 million tickets will be available with more than 100,000 tickets available for $25. Half of all Games tickets will be priced at $100 or less. Tickets will go on sale in October 2008.
Whistler boasts more than 90 restaurants. In addition, hotels and other venues are looking into the possibility of using some of their meeting rooms as F & B locations.
Alpine Skiing
The Alpine Skiing events will take place on Whistler Mountain and include Downhill, Super G, Giant Slalom, Slalom, and Combined. The Men's events will be hosted entirely on the Dave Murray Downhill, widely considered as one of the top 3 courses in the world. The Women's and Paralympic Alpine course will begin on Wild Card, swing over to Lower Jimmie's Joker, and wind its way down a portion of Franz's to finally join up with the Men's course on the Lower Dave Murray Downhill.
The entire Creekside base will be transformed during game-time to accommodate facilities such as wax cabins, athlete's lounge, and security check posts. VANOC is working toward the installation of a cabriole lift at Creekside to carry eager onlookers from the base area to the Timing Flats. In all, this venue will be prepared to host a capacity crowd of 7600 people. After the Games, much of the overlay will be removed and Whistler Creekside will be a site for future international competitions and Canadian team training.
Nordic
The Nordic Competition Venue is on track for completion in the fall of 2007 and will host all Nordic events: cross country skiing, biathlon, ski jumping, and Nordic combined events.
The construction project involves the competition facilities (including two ski jumps), 14 km of competition trails and 8 km of training trails, as well as utility installation, access roads, parking lots, technical sport buildings, a day lodge and other related infrastructure. The final plan also includes 20-25 km of recreational trails to be built in the area. Three separate, temporary stadiums will be in place for the Olympic Games; each will house 12,000 fans.
Sliding
The Whistler Sliding Centre on Blackcomb Mountain will host the Sliding events: Bobsled, Luge, and Skeleton events. Construction of the track is well underway and can easily be seen by looking across Fitzsimmons Creek from the slopes of Whistler Mountain.
This 1,450 m refrigerated track, which will cost almost $105 million to build, will wind its way down 150m of vertical, allowing for three starting areas: Competitive Men's and Women's, and Recreational. It is anticipated this facility will reach completion before the end of 2007 and will then be ready to present the excitement of sliding sports to a crowd of 12,000 people. It is expected that the track will see some competitive action in preparation for the Games.
Paralympic
Whistler will host the following Paralympic events: all Alpine Skiing events, the Biathalon and Cross-Country events.
All Paralympic alpine skiing events will take place on Franz's Run on Whistler Mountain.
All the Paralympic cross-country skiing and biathlon events will start and finish from the Olympic cross-country stadium and will use parts of the Olympic cross-country competition trails. Competition courses include a 5-kilometre course for the standing classes and a 3.75-kilometre course for the sit-ski classes. Several kilometres of training trails will be available near the competition courses. A temporary and portable 10-metre biathlon range will be set up in the stadium for the biathlon events.
For more information regarding the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, please visit the official website at vancouver2010.com