Canada Day

Hi there--

We are flying into Vancouver on July 1st and have arranged for a limo service to pick us up due to Canada Day. I didn't want to take the chance of having a long wait to catch a cab or Aerocar due to the holiday. (especially since we are coming from Ft. Lauderdale)

We are staying at Hotel Blu on Robson. We would like to tour Vancouver on the 2nd and think that hop on hop off would be fun. Will they be running on normal schedule? Or will they not be able to go their normal route due to the holiday?

Thanks

Thoughts....

• you would have been fine with a cab. No real need for a limo arriving Canada Day.
  
• What time is your flight arriving? We can provide better congestion advice knowing when you are arriving.
  
• road closures are mainly around the cruise terminal.... your Robson hotel is not affected.
  
• not sure if they are running a late-afternoon/evening parade along Georgia at this time. This may affect your hotel a few blocks away.
  
• I notice there's word of a Canada150 parade downtown on Sunday July 2. If it goes ahead.... it will create congestion around your hotel.
  http://www.canadaplace.ca/events/canada-day/
  
• There's word there is a Cannabis Day event around the Art Gallery on July 1st. Depending on crowds.... this can affect congestion around the roads to the hotel.
  

Thoughts....

 

• you would have been fine with a cab. No real need for a limo arriving Canada Day.
  
• What time is your flight arriving? We can provide better congestion advice knowing when you are arriving.
  
• road closures are mainly around the cruise terminal.... your Robson hotel is not affected.
  
• not sure if they are running a late-afternoon/evening parade along Georgia at this time. This may affect your hotel a few blocks away.
  
• I notice there's word of a Canada150 parade downtown on Sunday July 2. If it goes ahead.... it will create congestion around your hotel.
  http://www.canadaplace.ca/events/canada-day/
  
• There's word there is a Cannabis Day event around the Art Gallery on July 1st. Depending on crowds.... this can affect congestion around the . roads to the hotel.
  

Thanks for responding.

We are arriving at 9:37 p.m. on the 1st. We will probably just go to the hotel and grab something to eat nearby.

Should we get up early on the 2nd and do the hop on hop off to tour the city?

Typically....

• 9:37 wheels down
  
• 10:25 board cab
  
• 11pm hotel
  

However, you are arriving just as the fireworks are ending... downtown will be heavily congested with traffic exiting the cruise terminal fireworks show. My advice..... take your time in the airport. Perhaps even grab dinner and think about boarding a cab around 10:45 or later to avoid traffic congestion.

July 2nd is a normally a great day for exploration. However details for the Canada 150 parade have not been announced. We know the date, but we do not know the time, nor the route. Once that's released, the Hop On service will know whether it's able to reroute. During the Pride parade.... Hop On service shuts down for the day due to congestion.

Once the Canada150 details are announced, I can make some suggestions to plan around it. Perhaps catch a shuttle to Capilano and Grouse for the day.

Have to disagree on the timing - if your flight is on time and you get through immigration & customs fast, you might just be able to actually see the fireworks downtown if you hustle. Unlike the contest late July/early Aug, they start later (at 10:30pm). Given it's a big birthday year for us it's likely to be a fairly elaborate, longer show running until perhaps after 11pm. Traveling to downtown even during the show could actually give you a spectacular, if distant view - be alert as you cross over the 'hump' around 33rd Ave (depends which route the car takes - if they ask, go for Cambie which tops the crest at the highest point) as you'll see downtown spread out below you.

There should be zero queue for cabs or Aerocar - everyone in the region will already be downtown or staying home! A prebooked limo actually has a longer end-to-end travel time as they are not allowed to wait by the doors - so your driver will meet you inside, help with bags if needed, but you'll end up waiting on the curb for at least 5 minutes while he goes and get the car from where it's parked and comes to get you - so just walking straight out into the limo queue will put you in the car faster as well as save you the $50 meet & greet fee. Offer that to your driver as a bribe to get you downtown faster instead - or get him to park somewhere with a view en route!

If you are driving in while the fireworks are still on, you may find the streets leading to your hotel to be totally dead. While folks will begin leaving as soon as they're over, it takes time to get to their cars again so traffic won't really start getting busy until at least 15mins after the end of the show and probably peak a half hour after. With no 'flip flop' lanes on any of the southern approaches, driving against even ridiculously busy traffic has very little impact on your time, only turns across oncoming traffic are slowed.

I wouldn't recommend dining after arriving, but on the plane - your tums need to adjust three hours westward (earlier), so you should ideally be trying to split the difference on day one and have your evening meal at least an hour earlier than you would at home. Unless you're all from Barcelona I can't imagine dining at midnight our time/9pm yours is your usual routine;-)

Thanks for the heads up on the 10:30 start.

Yes.... Cab straight to the hotel upon landing.

Hope you have you evening post-checkin meal planned. Most restaurants will be very busy.

Thanks you all!! I appreciate it:)