Buying Tickets
An astonishing 1.6 million tickets have been made available for the Vancouver 2010 Winter Games, with an additional 250,000 available for the Paralympics. Olympic ticket sales are being conducted in four phases. Following an early-request period in October and November 2008, remaining tickets went on sale in spring 2009 on a first-come, first-served basis. During the Games, you can snap up any remaining tickets at
www.vancouver2010.com, at the individual venue box offices, and at the Main Ticket Centre in downtown Vancouver.
Prior to the start of the Games, only Canadian residents (you must have a valid Canadian mailing address and sign for the secure courier delivery) can purchase tickets directly through the Vancouver 2010 website (
www.vancouver2010.com). Residents of other countries must purchase tickets through their National Olympic Committee or the official ticket agent for their country of residence. These agents generally offer both individual tickets and package deals, which may include accommodations, transportation, and meals in addition to admittance to events.
The agents for the major English-speaking countries are:
Ticket Prices
The 2010 Winter Games has divided ticket prices into categories, with the number of price categories offered per sport dependant upon the venue's configuration and seating capacity. Category A tickets get you access to the best (and priciest) seats in the house, Category B is one step down, and so on.
Prices vary widely by sport, with figure skating and men's hockey demanding the loftiest prices. Tickets for figure skating range from C$50 to C$450. Hockey tickets (men only) range from C$50 to C$140 for preliminary games to a big, honkin' C$350 to C$775 for the gold medal game. The cheapest tickets are for the biathlon and cross-country skiing (all tickets C$25-C$70), while those for the sliding sports -- bobsled, luge, and skeleton -- go for C$30 to C$85. Tickets for skiing, ski-jumping, and snowboard events range from C$50 to C$210 (with most topping out between C$120-C$150), while tickets for speed skating range from C$50 to C$185.
Tickets for the nightly Victory Ceremonies (medal ceremonies followed by concerts) are C$22.
If you're interested in attending the Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Winter Games, visit the Ticketing Information section at
www.vancouver2010.com. Tickets to Paralympic events are considerably less expensive, with 85% of individual tickets priced at C$20 or less. Tickets to Paralympic alpine skiing events are C$15, while wheelchair curling tickets go for C$15 to C$30, and ice sledge hockey tickets are C$20 to C$50. Buying for groups of 20 or more will save an additional $5 per ticket on most Paralympic Winter Games tickets.
