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 ...... .
 Footloosein
Vancouver
by
Jerry W. Bird
Having
been footloose in Vancouver, British Columbia since
the days of streetcars, interurban trams, White
Lunch Cafeteria on Hastings, Woodwards Toyland and
Union Steamships, I consider the West End my
special domain. Morning, noon or night, it's always
an inviting place for rubber-neckers, casual
strollers, browsers, grazers and window shoppers. A
sea of umbrellas one moment, local denizens decked
in everything from beachwear to high fashion the
next. It's a passing parade, minus the 76
trombones-just waiting for you to follow along.
.More
NEW LOOK FOR
HYATT
REGENCY VANCOUVER
A
stunning new interior decor just in time for the
Olympics . More->
VANCOUVER'S CONVENTION
CENTRE EXPANSION
B ritish
Columbia's Premier Gordon Campbell had the honour
of breaking ground on the new convention centre
expansion, an addition that will triple the size of
the award-winning Vancouver Convention and
Exhibition Centre. Once complete, the spectacular
waterfront expanded convention centre will total
almost 500,000 square feet of meeting, exhibit and
function space with an addition of 359,000 square
feet. On behalf of the private tourism industry,
Tourism Vancouver is contributing $90 million
towards the expansion project. The centre, set for
completion in the summer of 2008, will be the media
and broadcast centre during the 2010 Olympic and
Paralympic Winter Games to be held in Vancouver and
Whistler. "The convention centre expansion will
ensure Vancouver remains a top draw for meetings
and conventions from around the world," said
Tourism Vancouver chair Paul Tilbury. "The current
convention centre has established Vancouver as a
world class event destination and created very
strong demand. With this expansion we will be able
to meet that demand and continue to exceed
expectations."
Vancouver is expecting a strong year for the
meetings industry in 2005, but our diversified
hotel inventory still allows us to service
short-term meetings. Many of our convention hotels,
as well as the Vancouver Convention and Exhibition
Centre, have space and value dates available. You
will find our sales and service teams customer
focused and proactive. This responsiveness makes
Vancouver an ideal choice for your shortened
timelines for 2005 meetings. Ask your Tourism
Vancouver representative about value dates in
2005!
VANCOUVER VOTED TOP CITY
IN THE AMERICAS BY CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER
Condé Nast Traveler magazine recognized
Vancouver as the "Best City in the Americas"
at their annual Readers' Choice Awards ceremony
held recently in New York. Vancouver won the top
spot over Victoria and Quebec City. The Americas
division includes Canada, Central America and South
America. Cities are scored on ambience,
friendliness, culture, sites, restaurants, lodging
and shopping. "We're extremely honoured to accept
this award," said Tourism Vancouver chair Paul
Tilbury. "Condé Nast Traveler is a very
respected publication, and winning an accolade such
as this can only further elevate our profile in one
of our key markets." This award tops a long list of
accolades for Vancouver in recent years. Vancouver
has also been honoured with top rankings by groups
such as the American Automobile Association and the
International Air Transportation Association, and
consistently ranks as one of the most Liveable
Cities in the World. Also recognized at the
ceremony was Vancouver's Fairmont Waterfront
Hotel, which was voted the best hotel in
Canada. Vancouver Island, which offers
wonderful pre and post stay opportunities, won the
"Best North American Island" category over
Nantucket and Prince Edward Island.
VANCOUVER PROFESSIONAL
CONGRESS ORGANIZERS RECOGNISED BY INDUSTRY EXPERTS
As of January 1st, 2005, Tourism Vancouver
members, the Advance Group Conference Management
and International Conference Services, will join
the special ranks of Venue West Conference Services
as members of IAPCO - the International Association
of Professional Congress Organizers. IAPCO is a
non-profit industry organization founded in 1968.
It represents professional conference organizers
and managers in the international and national
market including congress, conventions, meetings
and special events. IAPCO is committed to raising
standards of service among its members as well as
other sectors of the meetings industry by means of
continuing education and interaction with other
professionals. IAPCO has stringent membership
requirements and a thorough evaluation process is
mandatory for new members. Existing members
worldwide are monitored on an annual basis. With
three IAPCO member companies now headquartered
Vancouver, the city's reputation as an
international congress destination has leapt
forward once again. More details on IAPCO can be
found at www.iapco.org.
SALES EFFORTS INTO UK
& EUROPEAN MEETINGS, CONFERENCES &
INCENTIVE MARKETS
Capitalizing on the synergies created by hosting
the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games and
the nature of the European MC & IT market,
Tourism Vancouver and Tourism Whistler have
contracted Moulden Marketing to represent the two
organizations in the UK and European meetings
market. Located in London, Gillian Moulden and
Nigel Clarke will work with Tourism Vancouver's
Richard Yore and Tourism Whistler's Monica Leeck to
provide ease of access for customers in these key
markets. For more details, please contact Richard
Yore at ryore@tourismvancouver.com
Appointment in USA
Tourism Vancouver is pleased to announce the
appointment of Kyle Matheson as Manager,
Meeting & Convention Sales, Washington, DC.
Matheson brings strong experience in working with
convention hotels and destination management
companies following positions with the Westin
Bayshore Resort & Marina and Cantrav West
Services. Kyle will work alongside Jackie
Benear, Regional Director of Sales for the
Washington, DC market, and Sales Associate Rachelle
Canotal.
Tourism Vancouver has recently completed an
extensive brand review to assess how our city is
perceived by our visitors, delegates and meeting
professionals in markets around the world. The
process has led us to develop a Vancouver Promise
that sets the direction for the tourism industry
and community at large to deliver the kind of
experience our visitors desire, expect and deserve.
Many visitors have made the wonderful observation,
that as a destination, Vancouver is what the world
should be. Our promise needs to deliver on the core
attributes that embody this. Our ultimate goal is
to be a true one of a kind destination. Vancouver's
Promise is simple:"The Vancouver experience will
exceed visitor's expectations. We will deliver
superior value within a spectacular destination
that is safe, exciting and welcoming to
everyone."
Tourism
Vancouver's Main Website
http://www.tourism-vancouver.org/docs/visit/
.......
Hot News
from Tourism Vancouver
From
current newsletters and timely items
TOURISM
VANCOUVER COMMITS TO "GREENING" ALL OF ITS
FLIGHTS
Tourism Vancouver
has committed to "greening" all of its air travel
with the purchase of carbon offset credits through
Uniglobe Travel's Green Flight program, the only
program of its type in Canada. Tourism Vancouver is
the first destination marketing organization to
commit to offsetting all of their flights through
the program. In 2007 Tourism Vancouver will offset
approximately 220 metric tons of emissions
resulting from the organization's air travel.
www.tourismvancouver.com
TRAVEL WEEKLY
READERS ONCE AGAIN NAME VANCOUVER TOP CANADIAN
DESTINATION
US travel trade
publication Travel Weekly has once again named
Vancouver the "Top Canadian Destination" at their
annual Readers Choice Awards. Accredited travel
agents cast their votes through an on-line open
ballot process, and this marks the fourth
consecutive time that Vancouver has been awarded
the distinction. Travel Weekly is read by over
44,000 agents, suppliers and tour operators in
North America. This award is the latest in a list
of honours that Vancouver has received this past
year, including again being named "Best City in the
Americas" at the recent Condé Nast Traveler
Readers' Choice Awards.
HOTEL GEORGIA
EMBARKS ON MAJOR RECONSTRUCTION AND
EXPANSION
Vancouver's oldest
hotel, the Hotel Georgia has now closed to undergo
an extensive interior reconstruction, redesign and
expansion, which will include a $14 million
structural upgrade. The hotel's guestroom floors
will be reorganized to accommodate larger
guestrooms, resulting in between 220 and 250
opulent rooms and suites. The project will also
include the construction of a 48-storey luxury
condominium tower with retail space and hotel
expansion.
CELTICFEST TURNS
ST. PATRICK'S DAY INTO A FIVE DAY
CELEBRATION
For five days in
March, the sounds of vigorous fiddles, skirling
bagpipes, boisterous bodhrans, dancing feet and
voices will resound throughout downtown Vancouver
as the fourth annual CelticFest Vancouver brings
visitors and locals together for an extraordinary
celebration of Celtic culture. From March 14 to 18
the festival will feature hundreds of local and
international artists at more than 60 events
scheduled at dozens of popular venues and two
outdoor stages along Granville Street. Headliners
for this year's festival include Ashley MacIsaac,
Spirit of the West, Daniel Lapp, The Paperboys and
The Real McKenzies. Along with musical
performances, highlights include a scotch tasting
event, a brewmaster's dinner, Celtic music
workshops, and a limerick competition. The most
popular free event of the festival is the annual
St. Patrick's Day parade, which will be held on
Sunday March 18 from 11am, starting at the corner
of Howe and Drake Streets in downtown
Vancouver.
www.celticfestvancouver.com
OLYMPIC CLOCK
KICKS OFF COUNTDOWN TO THE GAMES
In celebration of
the three-year countdown to the beginning of the
2010 Olympic Winter Games, the Vancouver Organizing
Committee (VANOC) will unveil a giant countdown
clock at the Vancouver Art Gallery on February 12.
The clock will count down the remaining days,
hours, minutes and seconds to the Opening Ceremony
for both the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter
Games. Although full design details of the Omega
clock will be a surprise until the public
unveiling, the clock will represent Canadian and
West Coast themes and promises to become a
signature landmark in Vancouver for the next three
years.
www.vancouver2010.com
START YOUR DAY
WITH CLAUDE MONET
The Vancouver Art
Gallery is offering a unique start to the day for
groups taking in their "Monet to Dali" exhibit this
summer. From June 11 through to September 16,
groups can enjoy a continental or full breakfast
buffet at the Gallery Café before taking in
"Monet to Dali: Modern Masters from the Cleveland
Museum of Art". Groups can choose to dine inside
amidst classical music and floral arrangements, or
outside of one of the city's best downtown patios.
Breakfast and exhibition entry packages start at
CAD $25 per person and are ideal for groups of
between 20 and 40 people.
As well as
introducing the breakfast packages, the gallery has
also announced the following exhibitions that will
take the gallery through to 2008:
• Emily Carr
and the Group of Seven (May 12 - January 6, 2008)
Works of quintessential BC artist Carr will be
featured alongside her Canadian contemporaries, the
Group of Seven.
• Georgia
O'Keeffe (October 6 - January 13, 2008) In
collaboration with the Irish Museum of Modern Art,
the VAG will feature the only North American
presentation of this exhibition.
• Roy Arden
(October 20 - January 20, 2008) Spanning 25 years,
this exhibition will highlight the work of an
artist inherent in establishing Vancouver as a
centre for contemporary photographic
art.
www.vanartgallery.bc.ca
VANCOUVER
LOOKOUT GETS A REFRESH
The Vancouver
Lookout at Harbour Centre is currently undergoing
extensive renovations before reopening in March.
After 12 months of planning, demolition started in
January. The renovated attraction will include an
updated space, along with new interpretive
materials and programming. The lookout, which
originally opened in 1977, sits 50 storeys above
the city and offers a panoramic view of Vancouver
and the Lower Mainland area. The space is available
for private functions and can accommodate 200
guests for a stand-up reception or up to 140 guests
for a sit down dinner.
www.vancouverlookout.com
SPORTS HALL OF FAME
OPENS NEW GREG MOORE GALLERY
The Vancouver-based
BC Sports Hall of Fame is opening a new permanent
gallery to pay to tribute to local Vancouver motor
racing hero Greg Moore. Opening February 27, the
gallery will celebrate the life and sporting
achievements of Moore, a championship-winning Indy
racer, who died while racing in 1999 at the age of
24. The gallery will include exhibits such as his
Indy race car, a race car simulator, childhood
items and video footage. The BC Sports Hall of Fame
also includes tribute galleries that celebrate the
sporting contributions of Terry Fox and Rick Hansen
and is located in the BC Place Stadium in downtown
Vancouver.
www.bcsportshallfoffame.co
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