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About Vancouver
"On Canada's West Coast, nestled between the
rugged Coastal Mountains and the Pacific Ocean, you'll
find a city that wows everyone -- Vancouver. With
a rare blend of cosmopolitan amenities, natural splendors
and cultural attractions, our city is truly one of
a kind. Vancouver enjoys a rich culture and ethnic
diversity that permeates everything from cuisine and
entertainment, to neighborhoods and traditions. World
renowned for our Spectacular by Nature setting and
scenery, you can immerse yourself in the energy of
the city yet minutes later enjoy the tranquility of
a mountaintop lake. There is no easy way to describe
Vancouver. You'll just have to see for yourself. April
2004, Beyond the Horizon will be Beyond Your Expectations!"
For additional information on activities and sights
in Vancouver, visit www.tourismvancouver.com
Accommodations
All meetings and events will be held at:
Hyatt Regency Vancouver
655 Burrard Street
Vancouver, BC, Canada V6C 2R7
phone: 604/683-1234 fax: 604/689-3707
Make your hotel reservations by March 21, 2004
to ensure availability and to receive the special SPSSCS
group rate of $219 single / $244 double (plus tax) for
meeting registrants. All hotel prices are quoted in
Canadian Dollars. To make reservations, call
the Hotel's Reservation Department 604/683-1234 or 800/233-1234.
Online reservations can be made at www.vancouver.hyatt.com.
Please indicate Group Code G-SPSS to secure
the SPSSCS rate. Requests received after March 21,
2004, or if the convention block is already sold out,
will be confirmed on space available basis at the prevailing
rate. Deposit and cancellation penalties apply,
so please ask for these details when making your reservation.
Rates are subject to an additional provincial room tax
of 10% and 7% Goods and Services Tax (GST). Visitors
residing outside of Canada are eligible for a GST rebate
on the guest room portion of their bill.
Cancellation Policy
Refunds for meeting registration will not be considered
unless a written request is mailed to the SPSSCS Central
Office and postmarked by March 19, 2004. Refunds will
be subject to a 10% administrative fee.
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Continuing Education Credit for Nurses
Nurses can earn up to 15.4 contact hours by attending
the entire meeting. Additional hours can be earned by
attending the ASAPS Innovations in Facial Shaping Course
on Friday, April 16. A completed evaluation form must
be submitted for each session before contact hours will
be issued.
Currency
Canada's currency system is based on dollars and cents;
$1.00 CDN = 100 cents and is worth about 3/4 of a US
dollar. Most Vancouver establishments accept US dollars
and offer reasonable exchange rates. The exchange rate
is subject to change. Currency exchange services are
available at points of entry, Vancouver financial institutions
and at most hotels. Visit www.x-rates.com
for the current daily exchange rate.
Passports and Visas
- United States Visitors
United States citizens, permanent residents and
naturalized citizens need to carry a valid US passport
OR photo government ID and a US birth certificate.
Permanent alien residents should carry their immigration
documents, such as a green card. Temporary residents
need to carry their immigration paperwork. For nationwide
passport information, visit www.travel.state.gov/passport_services.html.
- Visitors from Countries Other than the United
States
Visitors must have a valid passport. In addition,
visitors from some countries require a Visa. For
more information please see www.cic.gc.ca
or consult the nearest Canadian Embassy, High Commission,
Consulate or Agent at least six months prior to
the Congress. Persons who wish to enter the United
States from Canada should make appropriate arrangements
before leaving their home country.
Taxes
A Goods and Services Tax (GST) of 7% is applied to most
goods and services. Hotel accommodations in the Vancouver
area are taxed at 10% plus 7% GST. Visitors residing
outside Canada are eligible for a GST rebate and must
have their receipts stamped by Canadian Customs upon
departure. Details, restrictions and rebate forms are
available at border crossings, at the airport, and at
the Tourism Vancouver information desk located in the
lobby of the Vancouver Convention and Exhibition Centre
or via their web site at www.ccra-adrc.gc.ca.
Upon departure from Vancouver, a small Airport Improvement
Fee of $10 Canadian is charged (subject to change).
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Temperature/Weather
Weather in Vancouver in April averages a mild high of
58 degrees.
Transportation
Our air travel provider, Uniglobe Advance Travel,
is a leading travel management company located in
Vancouver BC, Canada. In conjunction with Uniglobe,
we have successfully negotiated convention air programs
with Air Canada, Alaska Airlines, American Airlines,
and United Air Lines. To ensure our attendees receive
the lowest available airfares, Uniglobe places each
air request through their airfare technology that
searches at least 30 airlines and websites as well
as offering their own negotiated inbound rates to
ensure the best value.
To make your airline arrangements, please contact
Uniglobe Advance Travel.
Phone: 888/221-5221
E-mail: Airdesk@uniglobe-advance.com
Hours: Monday through Friday 5:00am - 5:00pm PST
Getting to Know You in Vancouver!
SPSSCS New Member Breakfast and "Mentors for New
Members/First Time Attendees" Program
On Tuesday, April 13 at 7am, we will have a New Member/First
Time Attendee Welcoming Breakfast! This will be a wonderful
opportunity for mentors and mentees to meet, as well
as to interact with members of the Board of Directors.
Our goal is to create a welcoming environment and facilitate
long lasting professional relationships and friendships.
If you would like to serve as a "Mentor" or
if you are a new member or first time attendee and would
like to be a "Mentee," please sign up on the
Registration Form. Our administrative staff will pair
everyone together and send notification to both the
mentors and mentees explaining who their contact person
is and how to meet them in Vancouver.
Welcome Reception
Monday, April 12, 6-8pm
Sponsored by N.V. Perricone, M.D. Cosmeceuticals
British Columbia has a rich and varied heritage. We
will create a window into the diverse culture and customs
of Vancouver for everyone to experience at "Our
Home and Native Land" Welcome Reception. Make plans
to meet your old friends and make some new ones at this
festive reception! The Welcome Reception will be held
during registration hours of 6-8pm on Monday in the
Seymour/Grouse/Stanley Rooms on the 34th Floor.
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"Sugar Daddy's Dinner & Dance Club"
Social Event/Dinner
Tuesday, April 13, 7-10pm
Sponsored by La Roche-Posay
All meeting attendees are invited to join us for an
evening at the Sugar Daddy's Dance Club. The Hyatt Regency
Ballroom will be transformed into Austin's 'pad' featuring
a 'live' performance by Austin Powers and the Shagadelics.
Wear your best duds and groove to the disco beat! A
ticket is included with your meeting Registration Fee.
Accompanying guests may also attend with the purchase
of a ticket on your Registration Form for $125 each.
Make plans now to attend!
An SPSSCS 10th Anniversary Meeting Bonus!
The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS)
has graciously invited the SPSSCS 10th Anniversary Meeting
registrants to participate in ASAPS full-day course
-- "Innovations in Facial Shaping -- Adjuncts to
Cosmetic Surgery: Skin Care, Peels, Lasers, Botulinum
Toxin and Fillers," to be held Friday, April 16,
2003 at the Vancouver Convention Centre.
Attendance at this outstanding course is included in
your 10th Anniversary Meeting registration fee, so plan
to attend our annual meeting in Vancouver and receive
this exceptional educational bonus from the Aesthetic
Society!
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Ten Official Reasons for Visiting Vancouver
- Jog, bike or walk the Stanley Park Seawall
(10.5 kilometres; 6.5 miles.)
- Brag about skiing, golfing, or sailing in
the same day.
- Stroll among the City's most fashionable shops
on Robson Street.
- See Shakespeare all summer long, set against
a magnificent backdrop of city, sea and mountains
at Bard on the Beach. (June to Sept)
- Wander through a coastal virgin rainforest
in Lighthouse Park.
- Bargain for bargains in Chinatown, the third
largest in North America.
- Walk along the cobblestone streets of Gastown
and watch its famous Steam Clock hiss and toot.
- Be a trendsetter in Yaletown, Vancouver's
hip, renovated warehouse district and fastest-growing
neighbourhood.
- Taste BC Ice Wine and contribute to the region's
standing as the highest per-capita consumer
of wine in North America.
- Feast on alder-grilled salmon, smoked oolicans
and bannock in Vancouver's only First Nations
restaurant.
Ten Unofficial Reasons to Visit Vancouver
- Go skinny-dipping at Wreck Beach.
- Walk (not drive!) the Burrard Bridge at sunset.
- Order steamed, not fried at Hon's Wun Tun
House.
- Hike the Grouse Grind at Grouse Mountain.
- Buy Chinese Stamps for your postcards at the
Chinese Post Office in Richmond.
- Sip an espresso, people watch and learn to
speak Italian on The Drive.
- Take the Aquabus across False Creek to Granville
Island or the SeaBus across Burrard Inlet to
Lonsdale Quay.
- Buy the lowest cost CD's in North America
(including those by homegrown artists Bryan
Adams, Nelly Furtado, Sarah McLachlan and Diana
Krall.)
- Sit on a park bench at Dundarave Pier or Kitsilano
Beach and watch cruise ships sail by.
- Come home with a one-of-a-kind 24 karat gold,
diamond studded toe ring from Granville Island.
Ten Things To do on a Rainy Day in Vancouver
- Have a brolly custom-made at The Umbrella
Shop (1106 West Broadway.) Ask Glen Flader for
a tour of the workroom and see the Singer sewing
machines his grandfather used when he started
the business 65 years ago. www.TheUmbrellaShop.com
- Enter the realm of the unexplored. Take an
X-Tour to see where the actual scenes were shot
for some of the 118 X-Files episodes filmed
in Vancouver. www.x-tour.com
- Roll out your sleeping bag and overnight next
to the beluga whales tank at the Vancouver Aquarium
Marine Science Centre. www.vanaqua.org
- Visit the Bloedel Conservatory in Queen Elizabeth
Park. The tropical heat and brilliant colours
of the exotic plants are startling when contrasted
with the gloomy weather outside the glass dome.
- Do lunch in a temperate rainforest at Lighthouse
Park with wilderness guide and Culinary Olympics
chef, Manfred Scholermann. www.rockwoodadventures.com
- Warm your insides with a tongue-tingling Jalapeno
or Chile pepper-and-chocolate gelato from La
Casa Gelato, the only retailer in the world
with over 388 gelato flavours to choose from.
www.lacasagelato.com
- Enjoy the tranquillity of afternoon tea by
the fire in the Bacchus Lounge of the Wedgewood
Hotel ; www.wedgewoodhotel.com or the Fish House
in Stanley Park www.fishhousestanleypark.com
- Take a trek to the remote east-end dockside
location of The Cannery Restaurant. Two fireplaces,
one of the city's best wine lists and a baker's
dozen of honestly prepared, seafood choices
make this a winner in inclement weather. www.canneryseafood.com
- Select some reading material from the 1.2
million books at the coliseum-like Library Square.
- Visit the Vancouver Art Gallery's permanent
collection representing the most comprehensive
resource for visual culture in British Columbia.
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