WINTER GAME TICKETS

BC Place Stadium
Vancouver, BC
FEBRUARY 12-28 2010

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So What's Going On at the Vancouver Olympic Games?

The Olympics are an exciting time, whether you're talking about the summer or winter games. But there's just something about the winter games especially that are magical.  Maybe it's the snow and the closeness to the holiday season.  Regardless of the reason, the experience is made all the better if, instead of watching the Games on TV, you take your family there for a special Olympic vacation.  And since the Games this year are held in Vancouver, they're convenient for those in the United States and Canada to do just that.

You'll need tickets, of course, and we can help you with that.  FrontRow.com has the largest selection of tickets available of any online site. Contact us and we'll help you get to Vancouver.

But once you get there, what can you expect to see?  Lots!  Let's run through the main stuff there is to take in during your special Winter Olympic Adventure.  We'll look first at the Games themselves, then some Olympics-related activities, and finally, point you to some other things to do while in Vancouver.

The XXI Winter Olympiad opens February 12 and runs until closing ceremonies on February 28  There will be 86 different medal competitions covering seven sports categories. These categories are skiing, luge, ice hockey, skating, bob sleigh, biathlon, and curling.

The opening ceremony is scheduled for February 12 and will be held at Vancouver's BC Place Stadium, which seats 60,000 spectators.  At the opening ceremonies will be a production entitled "to Inspire the World," which will tell the spectators the story of contemporary Canada.

Alpine Skiing is set for February 13 to 17; 19 to 21; and 25 to 27.  It will take place at Whistler Creekside at Whistler Mountain. Events will include Men's Super Combined, Women's Super Combined, Men's Downhill, Women's Downhill, Men's Giant Slalom, Women's giant Slalom, Men's Super G, Women's Super G, Men's Slalom, Women's Slalom.

The Biathlon is scheduled for Feb. 14, 16, 18, 21, 23 and 26.  It will take place at Whistler Olympic Park. Events will include Men's 12km Pursuit, Men's 10km Sprint, women's 10km Pursuit, Men's 20km Individual,, Women's 15km Individual, Men's 15km Mass Start, Women's 12.km Mass Start, Men's 4x7.5 Relay, Women's 4X6km relay.

The Bobsled Competition is scheduled for February 20 to 24, 26 and 27 at Whistler Sliding Centre, at Blackcomb Mountain.  Events will include the Men's and Women's Two-Man and the Men's Four-man.

Cross Country is set for Feb. 4, 6, 8 to 9, 11, 13 to 14, 16 to 17 at Whistler Olympic Park  Cross-country events will include the Men's 15km, Women's 10km, Men's and Women's 1.5km Sprint, Men's / Women's team Sprint, Women's 15km Pursuit, Men's 4x 10km relay, Women's 4x10 km Relay, Men's 50km Mass Start and Women's 30km Mass Start.

Curling is scheduled for February 16 to 27 and will be done at the Vancouver Olympic Paralympic Centre.  Events will include the Women's Tournament, Men's Tournament, Tiebreakers, Semifinals, and the Bronze & Gold Medal Match.

Figure Skating is set for Feb. 14 to 16, 18 to 19, 21, 22 to 23, 25 and 27 at the VenuePacific Coliseum.  Events will include the Pairs' Free Skate, Pairs' Short Program, Men's Short Program, Men's, Compulsory Dance, Free Dance, Original Dance, Free Skate, Ladies' Free Skate, Ladies' Short Program and the Gala Exhibition.

Freestyle Skiing is scheduled for February 13 to 14 and 20 to 25 at Cypress Mountains. Skiing events will include the Men's Moguls, Women's Moguls, Men's Aerials, Women's Aerials, Men's Ski Cross, and Women's Ski Cross.

Ice hockey will take place February 13 to 28 at Canada Hockey Place. Hockey events will include Men's Qualifying, Women's Qualifying, Men's Quarterfinals, Women's Semifinals, Women's Playoffs, and the Medal games.  Teams participating include Canada, Switzerland and Norway, and the United States (Group A), Czech Republic, Russia, Latvia and Slovakia (Group B) and Finland, Sweden, Germany and Belarus (Group C).

The Luge Competition is scheduled for February 13 to 17 at the Whistler Sliding Centre at Blackcomb Mountain.  Events will include the Men's Singles, the Women's Singles, and men's / women's doubles.

The Nordic Combined will take place February 14, 23 and 25 at Whistler Olympic Park. The events set for this competition include Individual Large Hill, Individual Normal Hill, and Team Large Hill.

Short Track Speed Skating is scheduled for February 13, 17, 20, 24 and 26 at Vancouver's Pacific Coliseum.  It will consist of the following events:  Men's 500m, Men's 1000m, Men's 1500 m, Men's 5000 m Relay, Women's 500 m, Women's 1000 m, Women's 1500 m, and Women's 3000 m Relay. 

The Skeleton (aka, Toboggans) will take place February 18 to 19 at Whistler Sliding Center. Events will include the Men's Runs and the Women's Runs.

Ski Jumping is scheduled for February 12 to 13, 19 to 20 and 22 at Whistler Olympic Park.  Events will include the Men's Normal Hill, the Large Hill, and Team Jumping.  There is still some discussion about adding some women's events, but as of this writing, they had not yet been scheduled.

Snowboarding is scheduled for February 15 to 18, and 26 to 27.  Events will include the Parallel Giant Slalom, Men's / Women's Half-pipe, and Snowboard Cross.

Speed Skating will take place February 13 to 18, 20 to 23 and 25 to 26 at Richmond Olympic Oval.  Events will include the Men's 500 m, Men's 1000 m, Men's 1500 m, Men's 5000 m, Men's 10,000 m, Team Pursuit, Women's 500 m, Women's 1000 m, Women's 1500 m, Women's 3000 m, Women's 5000 m and Team Pursuit.

Closing Ceremonies will be held February 28 at The BC Place in Vancouver.

In addition to the Games themselves, there are various cultural activities that will be available specifically for educating Olympic visitors about the Games and about Canada. Many of these cultural events will be free.  There is, for example, The Cultural Olympiad in downtown or Whistler Live!, which promises to bring international performers to provide live music, theatre, art, street productions and digital media for the public to enjoy.

If you act quickly, you can get a unique lodging experience full of its own brand of culture. We're talking about the Norwegian Star, a luxury cruise ship that will be docked at North Vancouver throughout the games.  It provides all of the accommodations of the finest hotel, including three meals a day at 13 on-board restaurants, as well as spa and gym access and kids' activities.  The ship is an especially good option for families who want to experience Olympic excitement,but have a quite place of refuge at the end of the day.  In fact, you can extend your vacation by a day and do nothing but enjoy the on-board activities.

If you can squeeze them into your schedule, there are lots of other things to do in Vancouver while you're there--activities for everyone in the family.  It is, after all, ranked consistently as one of the world's most livable cities. 

You'll want to be sure to check out Downtown Vancouver.  Although it's not exactly a huge metropolis, there are several memorable parts.  Two of the major streets are Burrard and Robson, where you'll find stores that the teens are sure to love--stores like American Eagle, Aritzia and Hollister.

But it's not all shopping in downtown.  There are several memorable museums that the entire family will enjoy.  Another fascinating stop would be at the Supreme and B.C. Provincial & Supreme Courts.  You're allowed to sit in on cases, if you want to see the Canadian legal system at work. Since not all of the world's courts open their doors to strangers, you should consider this a privilege and treat.

Another worthwhile stop would be at Gastown.  It's a small city but has many old, historical buildings (The ground is still made of cobblestone).  You'll find lots of charming boutiques and bars and a few fancy restaurants. In fact, many people believe that Vancouver's best food is in this area.

Close to Gastown is North Vancouver.  Here you'll find activities such as mountain hiking, a wooden bridge that will rock and swing you when you cross it, and more.

A lot of people will be interested in stopping by the University of British Columbia, located at Westside Vancouver.  UBC is considered one of Canada's finest universities--in fact, one of the finest in the world.  Some places to check out if you visit UBC include the "Lookout" to North Vancouver, the Chan Centre for Performing Arts, the Asian Studies Centre and the Japanese Garden.

Granville Island is a good job for an hour or two.  There's plenty to do in the way of art and public markets. In fact, you'll find some of the biggest art shows and markets in Vancouver right here.

If you still have some time to kill, consider traveling east a bit.  There you'll find Burnaby.  Although this is largely residential territory, it also boast's Canada's second largest mall.  It's truly a shopper's paradise.

Just to the south of Burnaby is Richmond.  This entire area is like a suburb, but there's still stuff for the visitor to see.  For instance, there is a charming pier that has great food and some shopping malls.  This is primarily an Asian area, so it's great for authentic Chinese or other Oriental cuisine.

Keep going south and you'll run into White Rock--just before crossing back over the border into the United States.  Most of the people living in White Rock live there for leisure and do not have school-aged kids.  You'll find some of the best parks, beaches and piers available in this part of the world.

And that's it:  your trip to Vancouver for the 2010 Winter Olympics.  Just one last bit of advice:  Before you go, especially if you have children, you should consider it a challenge to learn as much about the country and about the Olympics as you can.  This will make the whole trip seem like more of a true once-a-lifetime event.  You should consider going as a family to the public library one day and see if there are videos or films you can check out to watch together.  Whether there is or not, there are lots of books that are sure to stoke your interest in the country and the Games.

A couple of the best books include:

The Winter Olympics: An Insider's Guide to the Legends, Lore and Events of the Games Vancouver Edition.  This is a keepsake guidebook to 2010's Games, with informative profile of each of the individual sports.

and Vancouver:  A Visual Portrait.  It features photos of some of Vancouver's most beautiful sites, taken by Canada's most gifted photographers. Some of the places featured in the book include Stanley Park, Lion's Gate Bridge, Dr. Sun Yat Sen Classical Chinese Gardens, Vancouver Art Gallery, Capilano Suspension Bridge, Grouse Mountain, Granville Island, and Wreck Beach. 

If your library does not have the book you're wanting, ask and they'll order it from one that does.