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Cities are rated on criteria such as ambience, friendliness, culture, sites, restaurants, lodging and shopping. Victoria has consistently been named among the top ten cities in the Americas in Conde Nast’s annual Readers’ Choice Awards, taking top honours as the number one best city in the Americas in 2003.

“It is an honour for Victoria to be recognized as one of the best cities in the world in such a consistent fashion and in a prominent publication like Conde Nast Traveler,” says Rob Gialloreto, Tourism Victoria’s President & CEO. “With a per issue readership of over three million, Conde Nast is considered a premier travel magazine and accolades such as this raise awareness of Victoria as one of the world’s finest destinations.”

Victoria’s accolades coincide with Vancouver Island being awarded the Readers’ Choice award for Top North American Island for the seventh year in a row. Vancouver Island ranked first ahead of Kiawah and Nantucket in the North American Island category.

“With the natural beauty of Victoria and Vancouver Island, and the first-class tourism products we offer visitors, it is no surprise that we are recognized by travellers as a world-class destination,” said Bill Bennett, Minister of Tourism, Culture and the Arts. “This kind of recognition will only increase as the world watches British Columbia prepare for and host the 2010 Winter and Paralympic Games.”

“With Vancouver Island taking top spot for North American Islands for a record seventh year, and Victoria tying for third place as top American city, the readers of Conde Nast Traveler are telling us something that we are fortunate to know already – the wide variety of unique travel experiences found on Vancouver Island and in Victoria are unparalleled in the world,” said Rod Harris, President & CEO of Tourism British Columbia.

Established in 1987, Conde Nast Traveler is designed for the experienced, discerning, frequent traveller and reports on an array of diverse travel experiences. The magazine presents information encompassing art, fashion, architecture, culture, cuisine and shopping at a variety of destinations throughout the world.

About Tourism Victoria
Tourism Victoria is the official not-for-profit tourism industry association that works in partnership with over 1,000 business members and municipalities in the Greater Victoria area and surrounding communities of Vancouver Island, British Columbia and Canada. Tourism Victoria’s mandate is to increase the economic impact of tourism for Greater Victoria by marketing the destination and servicing visitor needs. For more information about Tourism Victoria, visit www.tourismvictoria.com.

Colwood, B.C. – Word of mouth has traffic pouring into a West Shore development as preparations are made to release a new building as the spring market heats up.

Aquattro is a luxury condominium and townhouse development in Colwood on Victoria’s West Shore. Developer Peter Daniel says their sales team is seeing a huge increase in sales centre traffic, with buyers pouring in over each of the last few weekends. The team also sold seven homes over the slow winter months, ranging from the $600,000’s to more than $1.3 million.

“In talking to our buyers, we’ve found that one of the principle reasons people come to look at Aquattro is ‘word on the street’. Purchasers tell their friends, who tell their friends, who tell their families, and on it goes. And once people actually see the beauty of this site and understand what we’re offering here, they immediately become potential purchasers,” says Daniel.

Buzz about the development is growing, and Daniel says many of the real estate shoppers they’re seeing are “local tourists”, who may have lived in Victoria for years but rarely go to the West Shore. “They can’t get over the stunning views and the space provided by this tranquil, beachside setting that’s so close to town, but feels like another world,” he says.

For Victoria business guru Bob Saunders it’s Aquattro’s location at one of Vancouver Island’s most beautiful waterways, coupled with the fact he knows Aquattro will be a first class project, that attracted him to buy.

He has since sent many friends and clients to the development on the Esquimalt Lagoon, with 10 of these visits resulting in sales.

“I see Aquattro as an incredible investment and as an amazing place to call home, ” says Saunders. “Most people I bring to Aquattro are equally impressed- these are all locals and the beauty of the Esquimalt Lagoon has a special place in their hearts, but they are also impressed with the amenities like the fact that 40 per cent of the land has been dedicated as park land. Aquattro is definitely putting Colwood on the map as a desirable place to call home.”

Saunders has many property holdings in the area but sees the Aquattro setting as being entirely unique with its proximity to beaches, its easy access to Royal Roads and through being close to many of the best fishing grounds in the area. He is currently considering buying a second unit at Aquattro.

About Aquattro

Aquattro is the largest waterfront development on Victoria’s West Shore and one of the largest developments going up in Colwood, 20 minutes outside of Victoria. It is located on 50 beachside acres of rolling green space that slopes down with views of the ocean, Olympic Mountains and Victoria. When complete, it will have 26 buildings, including three 12-storey highrises, townhouses, terraced buildings and low-rise condos overlooking a locally popular, two-kilometre-long Fisgard Beach.

With most of 80 homes sold in three four-storey buildings and six townhouses, Aquattro is now preparing to release its fifth building, the Biscayne in early May. The Biscayne will be a four-storey condominium building with 30 suites.

In terms of green space, Aquattro borders the Esquimalt Lagoon, home to birds and other wildlife. A fish-bearing steam, now being restored and restocked, runs through the property. The back of the property accesses 650-acres of old growth forest that’s part of Royal Roads University, as well as five kilometres of walking and hiking trails.

The room to roam continues in Aquattro’s condominium suites, which range from one to three bedrooms, with the square footage of units including 810, 965, 1,200, 1,440, and 1,650, all the way up to 2,500 square feet.

Buildings are scheduled to complete in December this year and in January, July and September in 2009.

For more information, visit Aquattroliving.com or call 250.381.6256.

Victoria, B.C. – Home buyers want it, government wants it, and the environment wants it, so Aquattro is providing it – a geoexchange system that both heats and cools homes, reduces energy requirements and provides the strata with fixed costs for the geoexchange system at this 563-unit development in Colwood, on Victoria’s West Shore.

“Homebuyers are asking us more questions about environmental sustainability, and with a geothermal system like Aquattro’s, they know they can enjoy the comfort of a luxury home with a lighter carbon footprint and a smaller heating bill,” says Woodburn Management’s Peter Daniel, developer of Aquattro. “We’ve already installed the first phase of the system in our show suite so that people can see that it’s possible, and that it works.”

A geoexchange system uses the heat stored in the earth from a ground or water source to heat and cool a building. In colder months, heat is drawn from the earth, either through a closed or open loop system, which transfers that heat via a water loop to a heat exchanger.

A heat pump then upgrades the heat to provide the level of warmth required for the building. In warmer months, the system reverses itself, providing cooling by transferring heat from the building back into the ground. Geoexchange systems are highly efficient and the energy required to run the geoexchange equipment is up to 75 per cent less than what is required for a conventional heating system.

“It sounds extremely simple, and in many ways it is,” says Daniel. “But it means a significant reduction in heating costs when projected over several years due to the monthly fixed cost over the next 25 years related to the geoexchange loopfield, which is very attractive for homebuyers. It’s the kind of innovation that will help the B.C. government – and the people of B.C. – meet its aggressive targets for greenhouse gas reductions.”

Aquattro is working with Terasen Energy Services (TES) to develop the system, which TES will own and manage at completion. TES designs, constructs and operates energy systems with sustainability as its focus. Helping to make Aquattro a leader in geoexchange energy on the West Shore means raising the bar for other developments in this rapidly growing area, where the population is expected to double by 2026.

“We’re pleased that Aquattro is committed to this type of innovative energy solution, and we believe that this project is another example of how Terasen can help create quality residential communities which have minimal impacts on the environment, and which don’t sacrifice residents’ comfort or luxury,” says Gareth Jones vice president of TES.

Environmental: Reducing the carbon footprint

The use of geoexchange energy for each 2,000 square foot residence at Aquattro will equate to offsetting up to two tonnes of greenhouse gases each year. By creating the same amount of heat while using up to 75 per cent less energy, each resident will significantly reduce their carbon footprint.

Economical: Saving Green

The long-term energy cost savings for the environmentally friendly heating system can be substantial. The fixed charge for the geoexchange system combined with the significant reduction in energy to run geoexchange equipment results in an initial cost that is competitive with conventional energy. This cost becomes even more favourable as commodity prices increase. With electricity prices hitting all time highs and with further increases expected, savings will continue to increase in the future.