Whistler recovers from Olympic blahs

Lots of skiers and snow have returned to Whistler.

WHISTLER, B.C. – This B.C. party town is finally getting over its Olympic hangover.

It’s been two years since Whistler co-hosted the 2010 Winter Olympics with Vancouver and the anticipated attention and extra business the town thought that world event would generate afterwards just never materialized.

“Last year (2011) was an absolutely dismal year for me,” a shopkeeper in Upper Whistler Village told me this week during my visit. “I almost went broke because people just stayed away. Thankfully, the drought appears to be over – we had our busiest March this year in two years.”

It’s not unusual for host cities to experience post-Olympic syndrome – it took Sydney, Australia almost four years to see tourism return to normal numbers after it hosted the 2000 Summer Olympics and Athens has yet to recover from its big Olympic show, which incidentally helped bankrupt the Greek capital. People seem to rush to Olympic cities prior to the event but are reluctant to return, mainly because hotel rates in host cities always seem to rise afterwards.

Ironically, one of the main reasons why overnight stays are still down in Whistler is because of the new Sea to Sky Highway, once one of the most dangerous roads in Canada which was made safer with a billion dollar remake just before the Games.

“The Sea to Sky once discouraged people from heading home after a day of skiing - especially I the dark. But now skiers can get back to Vancouver in about 90 minutes very safely,” an executive at the Fairmont Chateau Whistler told me.

One thing that has really helped Whistler recover is the abundance of snow it has received this winter, which should extend the season at North America’s best ski resort to well past Easter.

Golfers like me who will be denied getting on the town’s collection of world-class golf courses won’t be happy, though.

Vancouver gets set for the re-opening of historic Rosewood Hotel Georgia

Vancouver has so many good things going for it these days. Canada's most beautiful city is still basking in the success of the best Winter Olympics (2010) ever staged and will soon be celebrating its first Stanley Cup victory - Go Canucks Go!

Vancouver's  Rosewood Hotel Georgia never looked better.

But the best thing that will happen in Vancouver this year will be the opening of the Rosewood Hotel Georgia, which occurs in July - just in time to give summer visitors a chance to sleep in a hotel where the likes of Elvis Presley, the Rolling Stones and Frank Sinatra once laid their heads.

 

Actually, the Hotel Georgia dates back to 1927 when it served as the "in" place for Hollywood types visiting Vancouver. A $100 million facelift of the Hotel Georgia by the luxury Rosewood group out of Dallas has given the Grand Dame a new lease on life and she's never looked better.

 

I met with Steve Halliday, the congenial Managing Director of the Rosewood-managed Hotel Georgia over a coffee in Toronto yesterday and he's beaming with pride with what has been done to make the Hotel Georgia the best place to stay in Vancouver.



The "new look" Rosewood Hotel Georgia features 155 spacious rooms and luxury suites and a number of fine dining spots - Vancouver is abuzz with excitement over the opening of Hawksworth, the hotel's main dining option (it actually opened to great fanfare earlier this week) which is governed by celebrity Chef David Hawksworth. Head Chef Ned Bell, another of Vancouver's culinary giants, will oversee the hotel's other dining rooms.

 

The Rosewood Hotel Georgia also features a state-of-the-art spa and its public areas are dotted with pieces from a million dollar art collection - I especially like the native Canadian pieces that Steve showed me yesterday.

 

I can't wait to test-drive this beauty on my next visit to Vancouver. I was recently introduced to the Rosewood brand on my visit to Dallas - home of the flagship Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek; a stunning beauty in its own right - and I was instantly hooked on this luxury collection. 

 

If you're heading to Vancouver in the near future, I highly recommend you treat yourself to a stay at the Rosewood Hotel Georgia. Go to http://www.rosewoodhotels.com/ for details and information on opening specials at the Vancouver property.