Tickets for the 2010 Winter Olympics are selling ahead of projections with only two days left to get them.
“We are tracking to pass our internal targets,” said Caley Denton,
vice president of ticketing and consumer marketing for the Vancouver Organizing
Committee for the 2010 Games (VANOC).
“The last few days have been some of our busiest and we are
exploring ways that we could potentially help people get their orders in on
time so that it works for everybody.
“We had over three million hits on the website in October and
we have been seeing activity all across the country. Every province and
territory has submitted orders.
“Hockey is obviously number one, but we are seeing 93 per cent
of our accounts have requested more than one sport and it is encouraging that
Canadians are seeing this as the opportunity to have that experience of a
lifetime and see more than just the sports they see everyday.”
Denton would not reveal what the internal targets were. There
had been some concern when tickets went on sale that buyers would scale back
their ticket purchases due to uncertainty in the economic market.
But Denton said that has not been the case.
“Obviously it was something we were tracking and looking at,”
he said.
“We are seeing that our average order is for about 15 tickets
which is right around where we thought it would be.”
While there are still tickets left to events, many are already oversubscribed and will be going to a lottery system. However, VANOC is encouraging ticket buyers to request all the events they really want because if they don’t then they will miss out on their chance to win the ticket lottery.
People who want to be sure to see some hockey should buy preliminary round tickets, as there are still many available. The most popular teams, Canada and the U.S., start at the beginning just like everyone else, and tickets range in price from $25 to $140 for preliminary round tickets.
Alternately people could purchase Olympic Experience Packages, which combine events.
VANOC is also offering a priority access phase to ticket purchasers this time around. Starting on Dec. 8, remaining tickets will be available in "real time" on a first-come, first-serve basis — but only to account holders who submitted a request during the Phase One request period.
The last day to get tickets is Nov. 7. Go to www.vancouver2010.com to find out more.
Buyers will find out in December what tickets they got, including those that went to lottery. Tickets will also be available closer to Games time but the bulk of the tickets are available in Phase One.