Important note: Gondola tower collapses at Whister!

Gondola tower collapses at Whistler, B.C., resort
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/6600ap_canada_whistler_gondola_tower.html


WHISTLER, British Columbia -- More than 50 people were evacuated from about 30 ski gondolas after a tower supporting the cables partially collapsed Tuesday at Canada's Whistler resort.

Police said there were no serious injuries at the resort, which is to host the alpine events of the 2010 winter Olympic games. But health officials said five people had been taken to a hospital after the mid-afternoon accident.

While a crane was brought in to support the leaning tower, fire crews worked quickly to evacuate three cars that were most in danger.

One of the gondola cars hit a bus shelter, while two more were left dangling before the broken tower. In all, it took more than three hours for fire crews and the mountain's ski patrol to evacuate 53 people, Whistler-Blackcomb ski resort said. The gondola section involved is about 30 feet above the ground.

Doug Forseth, resort senior vice president, cited structural failure on a tower on Blackcomb Mountain's Excalibur gondola. An investigation into the cause of the accident will begin Wednesday, he said. "We have representatives of Dopelmayr, the lift manufacturer, coming tomorrow," Forseth said. "We will start to look at this failure in daylight and start to look at the possibilities of what might have caused this."

Royal Canadian Mounted Police Sgt. Steve Wright said the passengers who were rescued were in good spirits and were met by emergency health services. Wright said frigid temperatures were not a concern because the people were wearing protective ski clothing and were in a sheltered environment.

Amber Turnau, a spokeswoman for Whistler Blackcomb, said the tower that collapsed is on the lower half of the lift. She said Tower 4, the one that went down, is not far from the gondola's start. Graeme Bell said his gondola car hit the ground."It was pretty freaky. We heard the noise of the tower collapsing and then the cabin started shaking and down it went," Bell told CTV television. "It hit the ground. It busted one of the windows and we jumped out."
Bell said those around him were complaining of sore backs and one man had a bloody head.

All of the Olympic Games events will take place on Whistler mountain, not Blackcomb where the accident occurred. It's not the first ski lift accident at the resort.
A Dec. 23, 1995, accident on the Quicksilver ski lift killed two men and injured nine other people.
The high-speed lift was ferrying skiers to the top of a run when one chair slipped on a cable and slammed into another, setting off a cascade that sent four chairs crashing into the bush and rocks below.

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We're excited to welcome our new Park City, Utah home!

We're excited to announce our latest property in the portfolio, Park City Utah http://www.vacationhousedestinations.com/dtlMbrPropPUB.cfm?propID=2020. It's a stunning townhouse in the center of it all -and only 36 miles from the Salt Lake City International Airport- there's so much to do and see you'll have to experience it for yourself!

A few of the many adventures you can have include:

Park City adventures:
Amazing shopping, luxury spas and world-class skiing/snowboarding - it's a wonderful family destination.

Dining and Nightlife:
If you're looking for an evening out, you'll find nothing but a diverse dining scene -with more than 100 restaurants and more chefs per capita, than Paris!! Come hungry!!

Leisure:
Besides world-class skiing/snowboarding, you can enjoy snowshoeing, hot-air ballooning, tubing and snowmobiling. Of course, there's always the option of relaxing in your custom designed townhouse and relaxing in the hot tub, cooking a great meal or just grabbing a book to unwind by the fireplace.

Events:
The Sundance Film Festival - of course one of the greatest gathering of celebrities, movie icons and directors - the townhouse is still available, but it won't be for long. There's also tons of music acts, theater productions, galleries and lively performances. There's plenty to fill your visual senses, if the natural landscape wasn't inviting enough.

We welcome you to come visit Park City, Utah soon!!

www.vacationhousedestinations.com

Top Tricks of the Trade to Save on Your Next Flight

With the tightening economy, airfare feels more painful than ever, you can avoid paying more than absolutely necessary with these seven tips...

1. Buying really far in advance usually doesn't matter
The lowest prices get released in the period 2-8 weeks beforehand. Buying earlier than eight weeks in advance won't usually won't get you any deals, and you might even miss out.

2. Buying really far in advance DOES matter for peak travel dates
Spring Break flights leaving on Friday, Sunday returns during summer months, and, of course, anything around Thanksgiving and Christmas.

3. Snatch up price drops
Fare cuts are usually bye bye in 2 days.

4. Spurn high fares
Hiked prices are often cut when airlines have to make up for all the lost business from prices being too high.

5. Day of flight is important
The cheapest days to fly are Tuesday, Wednesday, and Saturday.

6. Day of ticket purchase matters
Price drops usually get rolled out earlier in the week

7. Leave earlier, stay longer
You can save during holiday rush times if you depart a day earlier and come back a day later than most people would

Get back to www.vacationhousedestinations.com


Thanks to Wired for the article here:
http://www.wired.com/science/discoveries/magazine/16-07/pb_airfares

Vacation Homes – Saving You Money On Your Next Vacation

You’re finally ready to go on that much deserved vacation. You’ve found the perfect destination, picked the activities and got time off. Now you’re ready to spend countless hours researching every hotel in a 25 mile radius. Looking at the usual hotels that are available and taking into account you didn’t just win the lottery – you can crowd the whole gang into a small room for a few weeks and throw personal space and relaxation out the window OR you can pick the more affordable and comfortable option – vacation homes.


Believe it or not, renting vacation homes is LESS EXPENSIVE and can save you money when you compare the cost of a hotel room to renting a house. In a hotel room, you get a bed, a TV, a small bathroom and a view to the parking lot. If you want to get something to eat you have a few options; go to a restaurant; ransack the minibar fridge with $4 candy bars and $5 bottles of water or you can get room service, wait an hr for dinner and pay extra for the convenience of eating it on top of your bed.

Renting vacation homes on the other hand, offers your convenience, cost savings and space to stretch out. Each home is professionally maintained and can comfortably accommodate guests – bring your friends and family along and split the cost for even MORE SAVINGS. Vacation homes offer full kitchens (with all the utensils, dishes), private bedrooms so you can escape, a nice living room –some offering views, but most importantly a home away from home where you can relax, rejuvenate and spend time doing what you love most. Don’t settle for another overpriced, overcrowded hotel – save some money and book your next vacation at one of our vacation homes – you may never want to go home.



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Lights, Camera and Action in Mazama

The lights, camera and action were trained on several locations in the Methow Valley for the filming of psychological thriller, The Absent. Producer/director/writer Sage Bannick assembled a cast and crew of 120 people from the Mazama area (including a dozen local teens wandering the halls of the high school as extras) and Los Angeles for the movie, which he co-wrote with Twisp-based Damon Abdallah and Hawaii-based Ari Bernstein. Filming is going on through next week - so you never know if you'll be lucky enough to be in a movie :)

Leavenworth Oktoberfest is just around the corner

With the leaves slowly changing from green to spectacular shades of red and yellow, it makes us think about Oktoberfest in Leavenworth. Sure, we could be thinking about hot apple cider, soup and dreaming about the warm summer days again - but Oktoberfest is an event not to be missed!

It's not just for beer lovers - it's three weekends of fun entertainment for the entire family including bands, musical troops, great food, arts and crafts, bounce houses and clowns and even a parade every Saturday through the village. As you're planning your weekend getaways in October, don't forget about Oktoberfest Oct 3-4, 10-11 and 17-18. There's still openings at our Leavenworth home here: http://vacationhousedestinations.com/dtlMbrPropPUB.cfm?propID=1013 so plan your getaway soon, before all the bratwurst, beer and German chocolate cake is gone!

Travel Statistics

According to the Travel Industry Association (TIA), the non-profit trade group that represents the U.S. travel industry, Americans are expected to take more than 327 million leisure trips during June, July and August this year. That’s equivalent to 109 million trips a month, 3,554,348 trips per day and a skosh over one trip for every man, woman and child in the United States.

Thought those numbers were amazing! Vacations are important to take time off and refresh. Hope you're making the time to take one of the 327 million trips that are up for grabs :)


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