My husband and I just bid a small fortune in the lottery to get tickets to various events for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

I can't find any hotels that are accepting reservations, and the prices for apartments on VRBO and Craigslist are very high for that timeframe. Of course, I understand that everyone will be charging top dollar, but I would still like to find a reasonably "decent" deal. I'm not sure what that is at this point, but $300 U.S. would be a start.

I thought I had scored a great deal on an apartment for the week in the Yaletown area. But after a few emails back and forth with the owner, he re-read my request and realized my dates were during the Olympics. At that point, he cancelled the deal.

So, back to the drawing board... I'm looking for a place that is in a good location for the Vancouver events (hockey, figure skating). We plan to be there for one week, and it is for two adults and possibly one baby (hey, 2010 is a ways away!). Also, I'd like to find a place with a kitchen, so we can eat there and save a little money.`

Thanks much for any ideas,
Laura

Do you mean the hotels in Vancouver are not accepting reservations for that time period yet, or that they are sold out?

I'm not completely sure how it's working. It seems as if all of the hotels have made an agreement to have their bookings handled by a central body.

I called the Vancouver tourism office, who will be handling some of the reservations. They have put my name on a list.

I am most interested in renting an apartment however. I've made many inquiries on vbro and craigslist. So far, the lowest rate I've found is $650 Canadian/night.

Yikes, that's crazy expensive! Plus you never know for sure with sites like that whether it's legit or not.

If previous Olympics are any indication lodging rates may well come down just before the games--I have friends who were able to get last minute accommodations for Salt Lake, for example, and not at outrageous prices. But since you have expensive tickets you will want to have a backup reservation I'm sure. Maybe make a cancellable reservation once you can book hotels? If I hear of any other options (I'm in Seattle so not far) I'll post again.

Thanks NWWanderer. Yes, it's crazy expensive. And the ones going for $650/night are the smallest ones. Their normal prices are $100/night or even less.

I understand that people see an opportunity to make a lot of money, but I'm afraid this is going to break our bank.

I went to the Olympics in Atlanta in 1996, but I was lucky to have relatives to stay with.

Good luck to you finding a reasonable place to stay. I received more days off work this christmas season than I thought,so looked into skiing at Whistler.Hah! A 2 bedroom suite at any hotel is 900.00 a night plus tax, and that was the cheapest I could find. So needless to say, we will be sticking to Canmore.

Maybe, as the olympics get closer, there will be homeowners renting out rooms, etc . There is also a site called Kijiji that is a classifieds-like website. Again, good luck.

You might want to look at Sunset Suites on Burnaby Street in the West End www.sunsetinn.com
I visited my travelling sil at her suite there about a month ago. She had a really large, recently remodeled suite with a balcony facing north. It's not a street a first timer to Vancouver might think of (1 block south of Davie) but it's pretty, safe and probably less inexpensive than if it was located a few blocks north.

&quot;<i>....the ones going for $650/night are the smallest ones.....</i>&quot;

Hmmmm...

I'm thinking of doing something with the laundry room.....$-)