Tourism Vancouver spokesman Walt Judas says tourists staying outside the downtown core won't have any problem commuting. (CBC)

B.C. tourism officials say there are still plenty of places to stay during the 2010 Winter Games — but most are not downtown.

Many of the Olympic festivities and pavilions will be in and around the downtown core, and it is expected to be one of the busiest areas during the Games.

Most downtown hotels are fully booked, and not just by tourists planning to attend the Games but by Vancouver's Olympic organizing committee, which has reserved rooms for dignitaries, officials and sponsors.

Walt Judas of Tourism Vancouver said plenty of rooms are available further from the core and in neighbouring municipalities.

In the Greater Vancouver and Whistler areas, there are an estimated 32,000 hotel rooms, and approximately 20 per cent of them are still available to rent.

Judas expects people won't mind commuting to events.

"For example [for the Torino Games], people stayed in Milan and it was an hour by train and people were accustomed to commuting on a daily basis to attend an Olympic event, so it's not that unusual," he said.

"I think obviously people want to stay closer to the venues and preferably within the city boundaries, but on the other hand, they don't mind commuting."

Judas said there are also plenty of other options like renting private residences, rooms aboard cruise ships, and the city of Vancouver's RV site.

Gordon Griffin and his wife, Denise, from Saskatchewan, are among the first to arrive at the city's designated RV park, set up specifically for the Games.

"I think we want to be able to say we were here, we talk about the people that we meet and learn more about different cultures," he said.

Meanwhile, North Vancouver resident Tom Mulleder is putting up a group of his friends from Switzerland who are opting to avoid hotel costs during the Games.

"I have four guests coming and I also have two of my local friends joining us," he said.

An estimated 250,000 people are expected to visit Vancouver for the Games.