New trend effective, according to two of Whistler’s newest batch of seasonal workers

Tim Page knew that it was going to be almost impossible to find accommodation in Whistler.

House Hunter Kristian Waller takes out an ad for accommodation on a stroll last week, and finds a place to live. Photo by Erin Littlewood

For the past two years, the Australian citizen heard rumours about Whistler’s difficult housing market. People worldwide were talking about it. If you are going to come to Whistler, he was told, you’ve got to be really lucky.

So when he finally arrived in Whistler two weeks ago, he decided to get creative with his housing search. Instead using more traditional venues — local newspapers and Craigslist listings — Page made a “seeking accommodation” ad out of cardboard, taped it to his body, and began walking through Whistler Village.

“I was originally going to use (the cardboard sign) as a last resort, but then I thought ‘Why?’ so I put it on straight away,” said Page, 23.

Even though Page was a bit embarrassed about the sign, his unusual method worked. Within one day, he and his girlfriend had a found a place to lay their head for the winter season, for about $1,100 a month.

“I went to a notice board at a café, and I was standing looking at it, when someone saw my sign and approached me,” recounts Page.

“He said ‘Are you looking for a room?’ and I said ‘Yes’, so I sat down and had breakfast with him. He told me to come up and see the room at four o’clock that afternoon. I did, and he said yes straight away.” (more…)

WHISTLER - Owners of luxury homes in Whistler are looking for rents in the $100,000-a-month range for the 2010 Winter Olympics.

“I would say we are looking at $8,000 to $15,000 per bedroom for a 31-day period,” said Sylvia Koltzenburg, who is running an Olympic accommodation matchmaking service.

(*see Whistler Olympic 2010 accommodation services) 

“We’ve certainly got homes over $100,000. It all depends on the number of bedrooms. It’s easy to get $90,000 if you have a fairly high-end home here.”

Koltzenburg has been fielding scores of calls and e-mails since she started advertising earlier this year. (more…)

The rumour-ville is buzzing of a potential Whistler accommodation rental shortages for the 2010 Whistler Vancouver winter Olympic games. Bamja.com, one of Whistler Blackcombs major rental accommodation online community’s of privately owned accommodations and lodging for rent by owners in Whistler, BC, Canada, offers the the solution to help owners help fill their rental property vacanies leading up to, during and after the 2010 Olympics, hosted in Vancouver and Whistler.

A year or two ago when Vancouver and Whistler won the Olympic bid, the Olympic organizers allotted an est. ~1,800 Whistler hotel accommodations, +750 condominiums for officials, sponsors and media, and +1,600 lodging and accommodation rooms under development leading up to the 2010 Olympics.

There is large speculation that far greater lodging and accommodations in Whistler will be required to host the games and all the tourists and travellers visiting the city over the 2 week Olympic period.

While alternative options will be to rent an accommodation in nearby Squamish and Pemberton, and of course Vancouver, anyone travelling to one of North America’s best luxury ski resorts will have a eagerness to take advantage of the opportunity of the Olympic activities and settle their vacation stay right in the city of Whistler and Whistler Village. (more…)

I have Christmas on my mind. Even as an adult, I count down the days until Santa Claus comes to visit. Only now, I get to relive it through my children, who are so excited they could pop. At 5 and 3, my kids are at the perfect age to believe in the magic of Christmas. But, do you know what’s as magical as the Christmas season but lasts much longer than the 12 official days of the holiday? You guessed it, a Whistler Vacation. (more…)

Summer is almost gone, and if you live in Vancouver or Whistler, BC, Canada you’re likely already feeling the snap of cold mornings and evenings. It’s the feeling of that fall / winter season and already has people thinking of their winter vacation in Whistler. Though with the Canadian dollar at par with the US, don’t expect the significant drop in americans traveling to Whistler Blackcomb this season for their Whistler accommodation getaway.

Whistler has always seemed to retain high volume of tourists from around the globe and local, and as we ramp up to hopefully another stellar winter season, those people thinking of hitting the ski slopes in Whistler for the day, or taking up a vacation rental in Whistler better start looking and booking for their winter Whistler accommodation. Rental properties, hotel rooms, condos, owner-direct and all the other variety of accommodations in Whistler is expected to book fast. Finding the perfect Whistler accommodation however can be no easy task as the variety of luxury places to stay, the ski in ski out lodging and those accommodations located right in the middle of Whistler Village where the party hits all night, book quickly and fill up all season.

So if you’re planning a winter vacation for ski vacation in Whistler this season, be sure to find your accommodation and lodging in Whistler before they fill fast.