Vancouver hotels prepare for the Olympics

Thousands of people from around the world are starting their migration to Vancouver in anticipation of the 2010 Winter Olympics, which starts in two weeks. While tents are being erected, mountains are being prepped and rinks are icing up, hotels in Vancouver have one of the most important jobs: providing a good night’s sleep for sports fans.

If you’ve been planning ahead and have your hotel reservations, rest assured hotels are stepping up their efforts to ensure your stay is memorable. Here’s what you can expect:

Increased security. Hotels
are stepping up their security to ensure the safety and comfort of their guests. You’ll notice more on-site security and 24-hour security staff.

Increased staff. Hotels will have more staff on duty during longer periods of time to ensure the needs of guests are met. Expect everyone from additional kitchen staff to attend to late-night room service to on-site translators.

Increased prices. As you would expect, hotels have increased the prices of staying during the Winter Olympic Games. Despite the fact that most hotels are already sold out, those with rooms still available are taking advantage of the events and marking up room prices 30-40% of the regular room rates. A quick search for available hotels in Vancouver found prices starting at $300 a night to $600 a night from Feb. 13-March 1. Hint: If you have loyalty points with a particular hotel, call that hotel first and see if any rooms are available. If not, ask the hotel to check with their sister properties in Vancouver.

If you’re planning on traveling to Vancouver for the Olympics but haven’t booked your hotel room yet, start thinking outside the box for a place to stay. Consider renting apartments, or stay outside of the city and take advantage of shuttle services to the Olympic games. The official Winter Olympics site suggests the following: