Fans Visiting Kamloops - Information
Arena:
Interior Savings Centre
Doors open 1 hour prior to game start time
http://blazerhockey.com/i/map.jpg
Driving directions:
From the west (Vancouver/Chilliwack), take the Columbia Street exit (#369) off the Trans Canada. Stay on Columbia until you hit 3rd. Turn left on 3rd and that'll take you to the arena area.
From the east via Yellowhead (Edmonton), stay in the right lane as you cross the bridge over the South Thompson River, this will take you off the highway. Stay left after you exit and head towards the traffic light. Go straight through the light. Stay in the right lane and this will take you down Lansdowne Street towards the arena area.
From the east via Trans Canada (Kelowna, Calgary), take the City Centre exit off the highway and stay in the right lane. This will take you down Lansdowne Street towards the arena area.
FYI, Lansdowne is one-way west and Seymour is one-way east. 1st Ave is one-way south and 3rd Ave is one-way north.
Seating:
http://blazerhockey.com/i/iscseating.gif
5,261 seats + 500 standing room = 5,761 total capacity
Visting Team Defends Section K twice, Blazers Defend Section V Twice.
Benches are in front of section D,E,F. F is behind the visitors bench.
Penalty boxes are in front of section Q.
Sections are all letters. Single letters (e.g. "A") are lower bowl, double letters are balcony (both sides, e.g. "PP"), triple letters are gondola (above the balcony, south side only, e.g. "DDD")
Tickets:
Adult $15
Youth/Senior $12
There is a limited amount of ticket re-selling prior to the game, comprised mainly of a few kids asking people to give them their extras if they have any, then re-selling them for $5-10 a pop.
Games have rarely sold out lately, so you'll be OK buying tickets at the door. But like anywhere else, the earlier you get there the better the seats.
Parking:
Parking is free on city streets (see above map) after 6 and all day Sunday. Lorne Street fills up first, then Lansdowne, then Victoria, and so on as you go south.
There's parking behind the arena (City), which is $3, but it usually fills up first and it takes forever to get out unless you leave before the end of the game.
There's a big dirt lot (City) kitty corner from the arena bordered by the train tracks and Lorne Street on the north & south, and 2nd & 3rd Ave east & west. It's $3 and you can usually get a spot there pretty close to game time.
There's a lot (City) directly across Lorne from that lot, but it's small and also fills up fast ($3).
Lansdowne Village (shopping mall) has a parking lot on Lansdowne between 3rd and 5th Ave. They recently started charging for event parking but I'm not sure how much. Probably $3. Seems to be the standard price.
There's a parkade on Lansdowne between 3rd & 4th. Not sure how much they charge for that.
Handicapped spots are directly across from the arena on Lorne Street (parallel parking). These always fill up fast so you better get there at least an hour early, maybe more.
I'd recommend parking on a city street on the south side of the tracks. Parking on the arena's side of the tracks means a huge traffic jam getting out (or leaving early). 3rd Ave between Lorne & Lansdowne is blocked off before and after games. If you can't find a spot on the street, park in Lansdowne Village's lot or the parkade. It's only a half block further and it'll save you a ton of time getting out.
Food and Spirits:
Food is pretty standard. Hot dogs, burgers, popcorn, etc. concession on both sides (behind sections E and Q). Taco Time is behind section G. Van Houtte Cafe behind section N. Ice cream in the corner behind section J. Chips, candy, chocolate bars behind section L. (somebody's going to have to refresh my memory on the rest)
Beer and coolers are now available both in the Sports Action lounge and on the councourse. Sports Action lounge entrance is behind section V.
Other Retail:
The Blazers souvenier store is behind section B (jerseys, clothing, etc).
There's a souvenier stand behind section T (pennants, pins, pucks, etc).
50/50 tickets are sold in each corner of the arena. An average jackpot is $1,800-$2,000. Tickets are $1 each.
Next to each 50/50 booth is a raffle table for a celebrity item. Usually an NHL jersey signed by a former or current player. Tickets are also $1 each.
There's a generic ATM behind section U.
Concourse Movement and Flow:
When it's sold out the concourse is packed during intermissions especially along the sides where concession lineups clog up the works. If you need to get from one end of the rink to the other in a hurry, go up the stairs to the balcony level and bypass the whole mess. Traffic is much lighter up there.
Accomodation Near the Arena:
Plaza Heritage Hotel - 4th & Victoria
The Thompson Hotel & Convention Centre - Victoria Street between 6th & 7th
Executive Inn - 5th & Victoria (also houses the casino)
Coast Canadian - 3rd & St. Paul
Sandman Inn - 5th & Columbia
Travelodge - 4th & Columbia
Beyond that there are several other hotels/motels further up Columbia (used to be the Trans Canada Highway before the bypass). As you would expect, they are mostly older buildings. There are also many older motels on the Trans Canada east of downtown (Valleyview). Most of the newer hotels are near Aberdeen Mall up the hill on Rogers Way and Hugh Allan Drive.
FYI, the Rendezvous Hotel is not really a hotel - it's a strip club. And for the most part, stay away from hotels on the North Shore (unless someone can tell me of a nice one).
Restaurants/Bars Near the Arena:
Thirsty Dog is a sports bar on Lansdowne between 3rd & 4th.
The 2 closest restaurants to the arena are Robbie's on 3rd & Lansdowne and The Keg on Lorne Street a block east of the arena. The Keg can be tough to find as it's not right on the street. It's on the river side behind the apartments. The building looks like an old train station (because it is).
Tons of restaurants along Victoria Street. Mostly between 2nd and 6th. You pretty much can't go wrong with any of the eateries downtown. I can't think of one I would recommend avoiding.
Familiar chain restaurants include:
McDonald's - 3rd & Victoria
Kelly O'Bryans - on Victoria between 2nd & 3rd
Ric's Grill - on Victoria between 2nd & 3rd
Boston Pizza, Starbucks, A&W, Subway - on Victoria between 3rd & 4th
Fogg 'n Sudds - 6th & Victoria
(another) Starbucks - 3rd & Columbia
And as long as you're here for hockey, you might as well stop at Player's Chophouse & Lounge. Very nice restaurant/bar owned by several former Blazers. On Victoria between 3rd & 4th. Across from Boston Pizza.
Other bars/clubs:
The Max on 2nd & Lansdowne (college age)
Cactus Jack's on 4th & Seymour (country bar)
Rendevous on West Victoria (peelers)
Pubs:
Central Station - 4th & Lansdowne
Sgt O'Flaherty's - in the Coast Canadian (3rd & St. Paul)
Blackjack Lounge - in the Executive Inn (5th & Victoria)
Signage, Noisemakers, Flags etc.:
Less militant than they used to be. Air horns are of course banned. Pretty much everything else is allowed.
