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Tourism
Celebrate the holidays Okanagan Valley-style with Winter Wine Events
OKANAGAN – Okanagan Valley wineries are getting in the holiday spirit with open houses, events,…
Penticton airport expansion delayed
PENTICTON - A new bidding process for the planned expansion project at the Penticton Regional Airport is in place after the first one was considered unsuccessful. There is no deadline for when the process will be complete, however Public Works and Government Services Canada, and Transport Canada are working to complete the design and the...
Wine documentary rolls out the red carpet for Okanagan premiere
SOUTH OKANAGAN - A documentary that follows three South Okanagan wineries through a season is rolling out the red carpet for its premiere showing in Oliver in two weeks. Local production artists and videographers Jon Hunwick and Kenton Gilchrist of Asymetriq Productions Inc. are ready to release their latest film titled Ventures in Wine Country,...
Okanagan Valley wineries propose new designation area
SOUTH OKANAGAN - Okanagan Valley wineries may receive a new official designation after a study revealed that an original agricultural landscape is a contributing factor to the production of unique wines. Golden Mile Bench wineries, located near Oliver, have submitted a proposal to become the first official sub-Designated Viticultural Area of the Okanagan Valley DVA....
Thompson-Okanagan Tourism Summit heads to Penticton
PENTICTON - The tourism industry is about to get a major boost thanks to a tourism summit expected to draw close to 200 industry leaders comes to town in December. The two-day Thompson Okanagan Tourism Summit held at the Lakeside Resort will host international and national speakers who will cover best practices for boosting the...
Jukka Laurio takes second attempt at mayoral seat
PENTICTON - The mayoral race just got a little tougher with local business owner Jukka Laurio filing to become the third candidate. Laurio is no stranger to city politics, having run for mayor in 2011, but he says he’s more focused this time around. “I’m going to give Penticton a job,” he says. He explained...
Litke still has a few tricks up his sleeve
PENTICTON - With two months left in office, Mayor Garry Litke hopes to accomplish a few more things before he walks out the doors of City Hall for good. Before he became mayor, Litke was a city councillor for eight years. Being a part of the team that created the South Okanagan Events Centre was...
The Fintry Queen is coming to Penticton
PENTICTON - The Fintry Queen has found a new home on the south shore of Okanagan Lake, after spending years docked in a Kelowna bay. The city of Penticton agreed to a license with Fintry operators, the Okanagan Lake Boat Company, on Monday night. The five-year agreement will cost a total of $70,000 for moorage...
Wine festival a ‘grape’ success
OLIVER - Hundreds of people gathered in Oliver this weekend to test some wines, enjoy the sun, and make a mess stomping grapes at the Festival of the Grape. Wineries from all over the Okanagan set up to sample some of their best vintages, which were well recieved by festival attendees, judging by the comments...
WestJet encourages winter season in South Okanagan
PENTICTON - The arrival of WestJet in Penticton is encouraging the City, tourism and other organizations throughout the South Okanagan to focus on what the region as to offer in the winter season. AirCanada will no longer be the sole airline flying out of Penticton once WestJet joins the ranks at the end of October,...
Mount Baldy expected to reopen for skiing this season
PENTICTON - Mount Baldy may be up-and-running this season despite financial setbacks that kept the ski resort closed last year. The company that has been handling the Mount Baldy foreclosure account, G-Force Real Estate, says the only thing left to do is assemble all the required pieces to re-launch the resort this upcoming season. A...
Cycling: the Penticton tourism industry’s next target
PENTICTON - Cycling is a popular hobby and sport in the South Okanagan but it could soon be a major tourism driver. City representatives introduced the idea of Penticton as a province-wide cycling destination to provincial ministers at the Union of B.C. Municipalities convention in Whistler last week. But Tourism Penticton, an entity of the city, already...
Wine sensory lab officially open at Okanagan College
PENTICTON - Wine and viticulture courses at the Okanagan College are about to get a sensory overload with the official opening of the B.C. Wine Information Society Sensory Centre. The Centre is having its grand opening today thanks to a $300,000 donation form the B.C. Wine Information Society that made construction of the facility possible....
Kamloops airport numbers continue to gain altitude
KAMLOOPS - Nearly 20,000 more travellers have passed through the gates at Fulton Field compared to this time last year, keeping the Kamloops Airport on track for another record year. More than 27,400 travellers used the airport in August 2014, up nine per cent over the same month the year before and bringing the year-to-date...
ARCHER: The trouble with Penticton’s priorities
Penticton has been all about beaches, peaches, wine and scenery for decades. Our little town is sandwiched between two beautiful lakes and fenced in with mountains and blue skies, so of course it makes sense to market it as a tourist attraction—a place to visit and hopefully stay. But in order for people to stay...
Grab your cameras and binoculars; Marina Way Lookout is open
PENTICTON - The Marina Way Lookout officially opens Thursday evening, revealing the newest view of Okanagan Lake with a celebration and historical tour. The reconstruction project was part of the city’s waterfront enhancement strategy. The vision was to transform the abandoned peninsula — formally used as a Canadian National Railway loading dock — into a...
Skaha Hills Winery to release two labels in 2015
PENTICTON - Skaha Hills Winery is gearing up for this year’s harvest and will release its first batch of white wines next summer. The Winery will release two white labels in 2015, a Viognier, and a Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon blend. Red grapes harvested this year will be made into three red labels—a Merlot, Syrah,...
Your weather forecast for Challenge weekend
PENTICTON - The weather will cool off this weekend — a lucky break for triathletes competing in the second Challenge Penticton race on Sunday. There is a chance of rain Thursday through Saturday, with Sunday being the only day not calling for showers. There is a chance of thunderstorms Thursday, with a high of 25...
Challenge Penticton lines up weekend full of events
PENTICTON - The second Challenge triathlon is this Sunday and there are lots of all-ages events lined up in the days before the race. Events start Thursday, Aug. 21 and run for four days. There will be fun runs, a junior triathlon race, party in the park, free yoga and a charity swim. The whole...
Penticton Hospitality Association endorses Challenge Penticton
PENTICTON - The Penticton Hospitality Association has officially endorsed Challenge Penticton for a second year in a row. The association donated $15,000 to the Triathlon Society — funding from the Hotel Room Tax dollars that were recently given back to the association by the city. “To have the support again this year from the PHA...
Okanagan Valley ranks No. 2 in world by USA Today
OKANAGAN - Readers of USA Today voted the Okanagan Valley as the second best wine region in the world, with Alentejo, Portugal ranking number one. “It’s important that the world is going to know that we;re a major wine region,” said Chris Bower, executive director of Tourism Penticton. Residents of the Okanagan have always known...
PHA wants to move forward, work with city
PENTICTON - The Penticton Hospitality Association plans to move forward with a positive attitude now that the lawsuit is over between the association and the city, but directors are not impressed with how the city dealt with the matter. In a press release, association directors said the city has been out to get them since...
What you need to know if you’re coming to Boonstock
PENTICTON - If you’re heading out to Penticton this weekend for the Boonstock Music and Arts Festival you may have some questions about the grounds, booze, and what to do in town while giving your liver and ears a break. Here’s the low-down: ACCESS The festival grounds can only be accessed from the North side...
Mount Baldy foreclosed, assets for sale
SOUTH OKANAGAN - Mount Baldy Resort and its assets are up for sale after being slapped with a foreclosure notice. Located east of Oliver and Osoyoos, the resort was closed during the 2013-14 season because of financial difficulties. G-Force Real Estate issued a press release last week that said the resort’s assets including land lots,...