Your survival guide to Olympic festivities

If you're headed to the Winter Olympics in British Columbia — or considering a last-minute trip, even just a day trip to join the fun — you don't need to spend a huge sum of money or get stuck in long lines. Here are ways to cut Olympic hassles and costs, plus places to party, take in some culture and watch events even if you don't have tickets.

Getting there

Driving could be painful as there will be congestion at the U.S.-Canada border; very tight restrictions on driving and parking in Vancouver; limited daytime access to the highway to Whistler; and no parking around any Olympic venue. To go car-free, Amtrak (www.amtrak.com) has two daily round-trip trains from Seattle and other Western Washington cities to Vancouver. For a day trip, an early-morning train to Vancouver and the late-afternoon train or bus back will give you five to six hours in the city. Both Greyhound (www.greyhound.com) and Quick Shuttle (www.quickcoach.com) offer frequent daily buses between Seattle and Vancouver, and there are dedicated bus lanes in both directions at the U.S.-Canada border to help speed buses through. Alaska Airlines and Air Canada have frequent Seattle-Vancouver flights.

Border, ID

You'll need a passport or other federally approved document (such as Washington's enhanced driver's license) to cross the U.S.-Canada border; see www.getyouhome.gov.

If you're driving, get border information, both northbound and southbound, at www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic/border/. U.S. customs officials don't expect delays to exceed 90 minutes at peak times since some inspection lanes have been added at major crossings.

Getting around

Locals and visitors are being urged to take public transit, walk and bike because the Vancouver area will be jammed with an estimated 350,000 extra people during the Olympics. Some downtown streets will be pedestrian-only; some lanes will be bus-only; and streets around Olympic venues will be closed for security.

The SkyTrain (including its new Canada Line) is a light-rail system connecting downtown, suburbs (including Richmond, home to Olympic speed skating) and the Vancouver airport. It's fast once aboard, but officials are warning of hour or longer delays to board after major events such as the Olympics Opening and Closing Ceremonies. Transit info: http://travelsmart2010.caOn the south side of False Creek, the new 1.6-mile Olympic Line Streetcar will run for a two-month free demonstration. It links Granville Island to the Olympic Village station of the Canada Line (at Cambie Street and West Second Avenue). See http://olympichostcity.vancouver.ca/gettingaround/publictransit/olympic-line/Ticket-holders to Olympic events can use the Olympic Bus Network, especially useful for getting to events at Cypress Mountain, on the outskirts of Vancouver, and to Whistler, about 80 miles north.

No private vehicles are allowed on Cypress. To take a private vehicle to Whistler, drivers must show permits confirming they have parking (hotels provide permits to guests) in Whistler. There will be a checkpoint on the highway just north of Squamish, with travel on Highway 99 (the Sea to Sky Highway) restricted northbound beyond that point to permit holders from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. from Feb. 11- through Feb. 28.

Much of the Olympics action will be around False Creek, a narrow inlet on the south edge of downtown. False Creek Ferries and the AquaBus run dozen-passenger mini-ferries that will shuttle almost constantly across the narrow False Creek from Granville Island to the downtown side. See www.granvilleislandferries.bc.ca and www.theaquabus.com.

Hotels

As at other Olympics, some Whistler and Vancouver hotel rooms are becoming available in the weeks before the Games. Check the official booking site, www.2010destinationplanner.com.

Celebration sites

Don't have Olympics tickets? Head to Vancouver's two free LiveCity downtown sites to celebrate with a crowd of thousands.

LiveCity Downtown has a massive screen, concert stages, a beer garden and tented pavilions with interactive exhibits (including Canada's national pavilion and corporate sponsors' pavilions). It's at Georgia and Cambie streets and is open daily from Feb. 13 from 11 a.m. until 12:30 a.m. (closes at 4 p.m. Feb. 28).

LiveCity Yaletown will host nightly concerts by big-name Canadian and international musicians, and big screens will show Olympic highlights. Open from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. during the Olympics (shorter hours on the opening and closing days, Feb. 12 and 28). It's on the north shore of False Creek, at David Lam Park (Pacific Boulevard at Drake Street). See www.livecityvancouver.ca.

In the heart of downtown, Robson Square is another official celebration site. It will have big-screen Olympic broadcasts; free live entertainment; exhibits about British Columbia at the official B.C. pavilion (in the adjoining Vancouver Art Gallery) and free public ice-skating at a refurbished outdoor rink.

Richmond's O Zone includes Holland Heineken House, the Dutch national pavilion known from past Olympics for some of the liveliest parties. Its main hall will hold 4,000 people and offer big screens, entertainment and food.

In the Whistler ski resort, Whistler Live! will bring free concerts, art exhibits, theater and big-screen Olympics viewing at six sites scattered along Whistler Village Stroll, the resort's main pedestrian-only thoroughfare. See a map and calendar of concerts and events at http://whistler2010.com/whistler-live.

Vancouver street fun

Some downtown Vancouver streets will be pedestrian-only during the Games from noon to midnight daily, including the trendy Yaletown neighborhood, which links the two LiveCity sites. Yaletown's renovated warehouses have become restaurants, bars and condos.

Granville Island will be a party site with a French Canadian flavor. The four-block-square islet that houses a popular farmers' market, boutiques and galleries will become "Place de la Francophonie" during the Olympics, with more than 100 free events, from mime artists to nightly concerts by musicians from Quebec and beyond; big-screen live Olympic broadcasts in French; and the Olympics-themed Club Adrenaline bar. See http://placefranco2010.ca.Around the city, provincial governments and corporate sponsors' free pavilions will showcase their areas and offer entertainment; see links at www.tourismvancouver.com (click on 2010 Winter Games-related Events).

The Aboriginal Pavilion (next to LiveCity Downtown) will highlight the native cultures of Canada.

For something different, Molson Canadian Hockey House on the north shore of False Creek near BC Place, will be a pay-to-party hockey-mad place with entertainment, gourmet food, veteran hockey stars and, of course, Olympic hockey games on big HD screens.

Get some culture

The 2010 Cultural Olympiad is a staggering lineup of 193 events and exhibits happening now through March 21. Arts lovers will want to go to www.vancouver2010.com/cultural-festivals-and-events, where you can see what's offered and purchase tickets online.

Highlights include:

• "The Blue Dragon / Le Dragon Bleu" by Robert Lepage, noted for his vivid, stylized stage visuals, Feb. 2-27 (604-873-3311).

• "Dance Canada Dance: The National Ballet of Canada and Royal Winnipeg Ballet," featuring works by choreographers Marie Chouinard and Itzik Galili, Feb. 13-14, (800-842-5387); a new show by Laurie Anderson, involving "rotting forests, ghost ships, archaeologists, dead relatives and unmanned tankers," Feb. 16-21 (604-873-3311).

• Exhibits at the Vancouver Art Gallery, which is offering free admission Feb. 12-28 (604-662-4719 or www.vanartgallery.bc.ca).

• The Vancouver Holocaust Education Center has two Olympics-related exhibits: "More Than Just Games: Canada & the 1936 Olympics" and "Framing Bodies: Sport & Spectacle in Nazi Germany." Informative, and rich with photographs and documentation from the Olympic Games in Germany, the exhibits look at the Nazi era's sports ethos and offer an account of a nightmare phase in Olympics history. Open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday. Located on lower level of the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver, 950 W. 41st Ave.; $5.

Don't forget the Paralympics

If the Olympic crowds and prices are just too much, consider attending the Paralympic Games in Vancouver and Whistler from March 12-21. Lower-key, cheaper and much less crowded, they are elite competition for athletes with disabilities, including everything from downhill ski races for the visually impaired to ice-sledge hockey for those with spinal cord injuries. See www.vancouver2010.com/paralympic-games.