An Expansion Under way at Vancouver Convention & Exhibition Centre will add 359,000 square feet of waterfront meeting space, bringing the total to 492,000 square feet. It is scheduled for completion in 2008, in time for the 2010 Olympic Games. Fairmont Hotels and Resorts is developing a hotel/condo project adjacent to the convention center that is expected to open in mid-2009. The Fairmont Pacific Rim will have 415 guest rooms.

The boutique Loden Hotel is opening in phases beginning in July in Vancouver. It will have 76 guest rooms, a fitness center, and a restaurant. The second phase, with 54 more guest rooms, will open in September, and a spa will open later in the year. There will be 3,500 square feet of meeting space.

The 119-room Shangri-La Vancouver will open in Vancouver in early 2008, occupying 15 floors of a new 60-story downtown building.

The Hyatt Regency Vancouver recently opened Deserving Thyme Lifespa, providing traditional spa services along with clinical, noninvasive anti-aging procedures.

Delta Vancouver Airport Hotel has finished remodeling all meeting rooms and public spaces and added a new 525-square-foot meeting room.

Sidney Pier Hotel & Spa is scheduled to open in May 2007 in Sidney, 25 minutes north of Victoria and close to the Victoria International Airport. The boutique hotel will include 55 guest rooms, a 3,250-square-foot spa and fitness center, and 1,388 square feet of meeting and banquet space.

Lord Jim's Resort Hotel has been transformed into Rockwater Secret Cove Resort. The nature-themed resort, accessible by a short ferry or seaplane ride from Vancouver, has a 900-square-foot meeting room and can accommodate up to 140 guests in a combination of cabins, “tenthouse suites,” and a main lodge.

The second phase of The Westin Bear Mountain Victoria Resort & Spa opened adjacent to Victoria's new Bear Mountain Golf and Country Club, which boasts the first Jack Nicklaus-designed course on Vancouver Island. It includes a 6,000-square-foot conference facility, spa and wellness center and 91 guest rooms, bringing the total to 156. A second Nicklaus-designed course, along with a Nicklaus Academy, will open in 2008.

Nita Lake Lodge will open in mid-2007 in Whistler. It will include 77 studio and one-bedroom suites, a full-service spa, and 4,000 square feet of meeting space for up to 150 attendees.

In Calgary, Alberta, the new Le Germain Calgary is expected to open in 2009. The 150-room property will be part of a 20-story office tower in the city's central district.

Shangri-La Hotel, Toronto will open in 2011. The 220-room property will take over the first 17 floors of a 65-floor tower and will include a spa, function rooms, a 150-seat ballroom, and a 50-seat theater.

The 53-story Ritz-Carlton Hotel and Residences, Toronto will combine a 267-room hotel, conference and meeting facilities, restaurants, and a spa. Construction is slated for completion in 2009.

Marriott will open a new 275-room hotel at Montréal's Trudeau International Airport in summer 2008.

Hotel Westin Montréal will open in April 2008 with more than 400 guest rooms and suites and 20,000 square feet of exhibition space.

L'Hotel Nelligan, a boutique hotel in Montréal's historic area, is expanding from 63 to 105 guest rooms and suites and adding a 3,500-square-foot banquet space. Work is expected to be completed this May.

Hotel Dauphin Montréal opened in Montréal's Quartier International in January 2007. Close to the convention center and Old Montréal, it includes 72 rooms and suites and four small meeting rooms.

The Hotel Chateau Laurier in Québec City recently added 92 rooms to its existing 168 guest rooms. The expansion increased the meeting rooms from 6 to 16, including a new 275-guest ballroom.

Hotel Place d'Armes in Old Montréal has added 39 new guest rooms, 48 suites, and a new spa.

Toronto's Bata Shoe Museum features more than 10,000 shoes, housed in an award-winning, 4-story structure designed by architect Raymond Moriyama. Artifacts on display range from Chinese bound-foot shoes and ancient Egyptian sandals to a collection of 20th-century celebrity shoes. Spaces include a 1,200-square-foot reception area; two studios, each adjoining a reception area; an atrium; and a patio. The museum can host dinners for up to 100 guests and receptions for up to 275. www.batashoemuseum.ca