What's New

All of western Canada is gearing up to welcome the Winter Olympic Games in 2010 -- even though this international sporting event is a couple years away, there's lots of new construction and anticipatory prettification going on across British Columbia. While both Vancouver and Whistler, which will play host to the games, are, naturally enough, getting ready to roll out the red carpet, other areas of western Canada are anticipating lots of spillover from the games themselves and from the heightened media attention surrounding them. Following are a few of the new and noteworthy changes that visitors will encounter in western Canada.

Vancouver -- Prices are sure to rise for the 2010 Olympics, but for now, fabulous restaurants and accommodations in Vancouver are still priced lower than those in Toronto, Montreal, or any major U.S. city. This is true even with the weakening value of the U.S. dollar.

Parts of Vancouver are torn up for the construction of Canada Line, a new light-rail hookup from Vancouver International Airport. When it begins operation in 2009, visitors will be able to board the train at the airport and arrive downtown or in Yaletown in 22 minutes.

Frontier Airlines has introduced a new daily nonstop service between its Denver hub and Vancouver, the first U.S. low-cost carrier to serve Vancouver.

Gale-force winds in December 2006 wreaked havoc on Stanley Park, toppling thousands of trees. Expect some hiking trails to be closed well into 2008.

2010 Winter Olympics Update -- Construction of The Richmond Oval, where 12 speed-skating events will be held, began in November 2006. The facility will house a 400m track and seating for 8,000 spectators. Post-games, the Oval will become a multipurpose sports, recreation, and wellness facility.

Victoria -- Improvements to an old logging road have resulted in the new Pacific Marine Circle Tour. The 52km (32-mile) loop road, which opened in 2005, makes it easier to get to Port Renfrew, Sooke, Jordan River, and Lake Cowichan on a daylong circular tour from Victoria. For details, check with the Tourism Victoria Visitor Info Centre, 812 Wharf St. (tel. 800/663-3883; www.tourismvictoria.com).

Southern Vancouver Island -- Calling all food lovers! The beloved Fairburn Farm B&B is under new management as the Fairburn Farm Culinary Retreat & Guesthouse (Duncan; tel. 250/746-4637). With a busy schedule of cooking lessons, mushroom hunts, farm tours, and winery visits -- plus comfy rooms in a historic farmhouse -- this lovely farm is the place for a Slow-Food-seeking holiday.

Central Vancouver Island -- Downtown Nanaimo is undergoing a major construction project. Scheduled for completion in 2008, the Vancouver Island Conference Centre will offer 3,530 sq. m (38,000 sq. ft.) of meeting space, plus provide a new home for the Nanaimo Museum and a new Marriott hotel.

Northern Vancouver Island -- The marvelous Nuyumbalees Cultural Centre (formerly the Kwakiutl Museum and Cultural Center, tel. 250/285-3733) has reopened. The potlatch museum has one of the world's best collections of artifacts, ceremonial masks, and tribal costumes, which were once used by the Cape Mudge Band in elaborate potlatch ceremonies before being confiscated by Canadian officials. These treasures were repatriated from eastern Canadian museums in the 1970s and 1980s and housed in this museum, which had been shuttered for nearly a decade.

Whistler -- With the Winter Olympics' skiing and sliding events coming to Whistler in 2010, the news in this world-renowned ski resort is always of building and rebuilding. The continuing road construction on the Sea-to-Sky Highway (Hwy. 99) between Horseshoe Bay and Whistler will probably have the most impact on pre-Olympics visitors. Expect delays of between 45 and 60 minutes. Note also that the entire route may be closed for most of the night (between midnight and 6am), due to blasting. Check the links under Driving to Whistler at www.tourismwhistler.com for the latest updates on construction schedules and closures.

On a higher note, one of the largest construction projects in Whistler history opens in winter 2008. Intrawest, the corporation behind Whistler Blackcomb Resort, is building a record-defying gondola that will link together the peaks of Whistler (elev. 2,182m/5,280 ft.) and Blackcomb (elev. 2,284m/7,160 ft.) Mountains. The Peak to Peak Gondola will have the longest free-span lift in the world, at 3km (2 miles) the highest detachable lift in the world, at 415m (1,361 ft.) above the valley floor. The gondola will be open in winter to skiers and in summer to sightseers seeking an adrenaline rush.

Posh, totally-up-to-the-moment Adara Hotel (tel. 866/502-3272; www.adarahotel.com) has opened in Whistler. This postmodern hipster-oriented hotel is delightful to look at (it's a great bromide to the heavy, log-and-stone-lodge look so prevalent in Whistler), though it also offers sumptuous luxury. The photo-transfer glass shower walls are especially cool.

Opening to the public in 2008, the Squamish Lil'wat Cultural Centre (www.slcc.ca) celebrates the cultures of the Squamish and Lil'wat Nations who have lived in the Whistler valley for millennia. The facility is anchored by the monumental Great Hall with traditional artifacts, a gallery of Squamish and Lil'wat sacred cultural treasures and icons, plus a shop for First Nations art.

Queen Charlotte Islands -- The Haida Heritage Centre at Quay 'Ilnagaay (tel. 250/559-4643), near Skidegate Village, is a newly completed cultural center for the Haida First Nation that includes the Haida Gwaii Museum, which houses historic totem poles, contemporary and historic Haida art, and extensive photo archives. The complex is a series of long, houselike structures overlooking the harbor.

The Okanagan Island -- The small agricultural town of Oliver has been the hub of Okanagan Valley fruit production since the 1930s, and more recently it's become the locus of the valley's burgeoning wine industry, with more than 1,600 hectares (4,000 acres) in wine-grape production and over 20 top wineries in the area. However, the town of Oliver itself has offered little for the traveling wine connoisseur. That's about to end.

The Oliver Wine Village (www.oliverwinevillage.com), a mixed-use development that includes a condo hotel, fine-dining restaurant, and spa, is slated to open in 2010. The grounds will also include the Okanagan Wine Interpretive Centre, which will educate wine lovers on the winemaking process, and the Okanagan Culinary Arts Centre, where food-lovers can enjoy cooking lessons and food classes, and of course, learn more about pairing wines with food.

The mile-long, three-lane Hwy. 97 bridge that connects Westbank to Kelowna across Okanagan Lake long ago ceased to handle the traffic load in this fast-growing resort and winegrowing mecca. In fact, this bridge was the most congested piece of roadway in all of B.C. outside of Vancouver. A new five-lane bridge is scheduled for completion in 2008, which with hope will ease traffic in this otherwise beautifully scenic area. But, of course, build it and they will come: Within the decade, the new bridge's designers expect the span to carry nearly 70,000 vehicles a day (30% more than today).

As the name suggests, the Grand Okanagan Lakefront Resort (tel. 800/465-4651; www.grandokanagan.com), is the grandest place to stay in Kelowna. However, with the opening of the Royal Private Residence Club, a new building of opulent and spacious suites adjacent to the existing resort, the Grand Okanagan takes luxury to a new height. With rich but comfortable decor, fully equipped designer kitchens, multiple bathrooms and TVs, and views over the marina, these accommodations are perfect for a special occasion. You'll also want to watch the sunset from the top floor's heated infinity pool.

Southern British Columbia -- The billion-dollar, four-season Revelstoke Mountain Resort (tel. 866/922-8754 or 250/814-0087; www.revelstokecatskiing.com) has opened. When fully complete the resort will include 21 lifts, 110 ski trails, 5,000 housing units, a pedestrian village, and an 18-hole golf course. It also has the longest lift-serviced vertical in North America, with 1,800 vertical meters (6,000 vertical feet) of skiing. The resort also offers heli- and cat-skiing.

Kicking Horse Mountain Resort is home to more than just superb powder skiing and the highest-elevation restaurant in North America. It's home to Boo, an orphaned grizzly bear that roams the resort's grizzly bear refuge. Visitors can ride the lifts to mid-mountain and watch Boo as he eats, hunts, naps, and plays.

Calgary -- The Kensington Riverside Inn (tel. 877/313-3733; www.kensingtonriversideinn.com), a small boutique lodging across the Bow River from downtown Calgary, has a stellar reputation as a stylish small inn for travelers with discriminating tastes. The upscale 19-room lodging is about to get more tasteful. The Kensington Riverside's small dining area, previously for guests only, opens in 2008 as 25-seat dining room with two seatings each evening. The manager characterizes the planned menu as "French Laundry meets the Canadian heartland," referring to chef Thomas Keller's French Laundry restaurant in Napa Valley, famed for its many small courses of exquisite, but very local food.

Gateways to the Canadian Rockies: Edmonton -- The Art Gallery of Alberta (tel. 780/422-6223; www.artgalleryalberta.com), whose longtime home in Winston Churchill Square is undergoing complete restructuring, has a new temporary home. Until the new building is complete (scheduled for 2009), the AGA is mounting shows and displaying works from its permanent collection at Enterprise Square, 100-10230 Jasper Ave. (formerly the Hudson Bay Building). Operated in collaboration with the University of Alberta, the Enterprise Square gallery offers 3,300 square meters (11,000 square feet) of newly renovated gallery space, as well as studio classrooms, and an art and gift storefront.

Westcorp Properties, the hotel and property development firm behind Edmonton's Metterra on Whyte and Varscona hotels, is opening a newly redesigned hotel near the Alberta Legislature Building and a few blocks from downtown. The Matrix Hotel (tel. 866/465-8150; www.matrixedmonton) takes over a 1964 structure built as Edmonton's first luxury high-rise hotel. The slightly severe Moderne facade is the perfect foil for the Matrix Hotel's 185 urban chic rooms and suites, filled with fine art and stylish furnishings that seem right out of design magazines. The manager promises warm hospitality but cool decor.

The Canadian Rockies -- The Baker Creek Lodge (east of Lake Louise; tel. 403/522-3761) has completed an expansion of its handsome, rustic lodges. Although these log cabins are newly built, they will fulfill all your fantasies about western vacations spent in the woods.

Jasper isn't the kind of place that seeks the limelight, but when the Food Network came to town to film a segment of its program Opening Soon, the mountain town had its moment in the lights. The show captured the opening stresses and triumphs of the Jasper Brewing Company, 624 Connaught Dr. (tel. 780/852-4111), the town's first true brewpub. With the film crews safely departed, this friendly pub with great bistro fare is a fantastic addition to Jasper's youthful nightlife scene.