Help with staying in Vancouver

I would love some hotel suggestions. We plan on flying in a couple of days early so we can enjoy Vancouver.

Also, are there any activities you like doing there? How about favorite restaurants?

Thanks

If you share your tentative hotel date.... we can make some suggestions based on availability.

I would look on the West Coast Departures board, where Vancouver is discussed extensively, or the Canada (Pacific) board. Vancouver is not in Alaska.

I would love some hotel suggestions. We plan on flying in a couple of days early so we can enjoy Vancouver.

 

Also, are there any activities you like doing there? How about favorite restaurants?

 

Thanks

We stayed at the Sandman Suites on Davie Street prior to our Alaska cruise this past year. It's about a 10 minute taxi ride to the dock (Canada Place) - some would think it's too far away but the price wasn't bad at all - about $210CAD/$160USD. A nice thing is, I believe, all of their rooms are like a small one bedroom apartment. They each have a washer/dryer too which could be useful. Where the hotel is located is more of a regular neighborhood with TONS of small restaurants within a block or two on Davie. Across the street and down a block is a fair size grocery store if you need something and about the same distance the other direction was a large drug store with a post office inside. On top of Canada Place is "FLY OVER CANADA" - it's virtual reality ride where you "fly over Canada" - we did it twice we thought it was so cool. Very realistic. Near the hotel (across the street and a half block away) was a place to eat we were in twice - La Belle Patate. A poutinerie. Excellent poutine!

Good luck and have fun!

We stayed at the Pinnacle downtown. Price was right, and we could walk (with luggage) to the pier to get to the ship. No problems at all. Very close to waterfront, etc.

We will only have one day so we are going to devote that day to seeing Stanley Park and then have dinner at Five Sails. We are staying at Pinnacle Harbourfront but I would recommend Pan Pacific if in budget.

If we had more time, I would love to see the Capilano Suspension Bridge and Granville Island.

Some idea of your budget and preferences would really help OP - while as a local I don't stay in hotels, I could recommend dozens of restaurants and activities. Vancouver has a tremendous variety of places to eat and things to do - without knowing more about you & your traveling party, the best 'Joe Q Public' advice is to check Tripadvisor for the most popular across-the-board options.

Go to pg 3 of this forum you'll find 2 other threads for Vancouver hotel suggestions. Many responses so lots of good info.

I would look on the West Coast Departures board, where Vancouver is discussed extensively, or the Canada (Pacific) board. Vancouver is not in Alaska.

Thank you so much! I'm not stupid. I realize Vancouver isn't in Alaska but thought the more friendly cruise critic posters might help.

Blocked.

Go to pg 3 of this forum you'll find 2 other threads for Vancouver hotel suggestions. Many responses so lots of good info.

Thank you so much. I will.

Off to Trip Advisor I go. I'm just so used to the very helpful Princess cruisers when I post on that board. I was just asking about your favorites. That is it. Didn't think I needed to fill out a survey form.

Bye bye.

Off to Trip Advisor I go. I'm just so used to the very helpful Princess cruisers when I post on that board. I was just asking about your favorites. That is it. Didn't think I needed to fill out a survey form.

Bye bye.

Vancouver has a lot of downtown hotels that are close to the pier. Vancouver can be pricey. The most convenient is Pan Pacific as it is at the pier. You literally take an elevator down to your ship and you can leave your luggage in your hotel room and they will transport it for you. You pay a premium for this hotel but the views are amazing.

I have also stayed at Renaissance, Hyatt and Fairmont Pacific Rim (extremely nice and even more pricey than Pan Pacific). There are 2 other Fairmonts downtown. One directly across from the pier (Fairmont Waterfront).

You will find Vancouver full of world cuisine (especially Asian), very clean and the locals extremely nice and helpful.

Stanley Park is a main attraction here. There is a hop on hop off trolley which is a good way to get a feel for the city.

Take the hop on hop off bus in Vancouver. It is reasonable and goes to Stanley Park and a drop off right near Granville Island the. You can take a small shuttle ferry back to the main land which is included. Taxis were reasonable so you could stay a little further from the port. We stayed at a Holiday In. Downtown and bought our hop on hop off tickets at the hotel The bus stops right across the street. We bought a two day pass used one day prior to cruise and second day the day we came back from the cruise. You can leave your bags at the port and they will take the. To the airport for you for a small price. The. Keep them in the arrival area secured till you pick them up to fly home. Vancouver is realy day to get around. enjoy,

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Anyone know anything about Times Square Suites? We have booked 3 nights there pre-cruise. The ratings we saw were good. It's on Robson and close to Stanley Park. We have a rental car that we will drop off at Pan Pacific, so getting to the terminal is not an issue. Seems to be condo's that are rented out, as there are kitchens and washer/dryers in each unit.

Thanks for any input.

Kathy

^Other than the location, no direct experience - but several other visitors have reported positively. It is a 'condo hotel' format, and I believe underground onsite parking is also included which is a definite plus (and unusual!) for downtown hotels. Depending where you visit, that car may be more hindrance than help - most attractions are downtown, expensive to park at (and sometimes hard to even find parking nearby), and finding your way around can be a hassle with one-ways and pedestrianized streets. GPS units occasionally glitch on Georgia/Cordova/Robson corridors downtown due to many highrise buildings.

If you're visiting out of town attractions the car could be handy, e.g. enabling the quieter and more informative Lynn Canyon bridge to be visited for free instead of the ferociously-touristy and gift-shoppy Capilano for $40pp. Steveston and Sea-to-Sky highway attractions are much more easily visited by car too - UBC campus for MOA & Beatty museums, Queen Elizabeth Park & Van Dusen also faster to get to, but probably 95% of everything else in Vancouver is more conveniently visited (and cheaper!) on foot, by transit, or even by cab. Plus property theft from cars is endemic around here - if you leave anything visible through a window, even in the middle of the day there's a very good chance you'll come back to a smashed window and your stuff gone (car parks at out-of-town attractions are also targeted).

Personally I only ever recommend a car rental for a part of your stay - if used strategically one or two days can get you to all of the 'better by car' spots. Unless you have disabled/elderly folks that can't walk around easily, why pay for car, insurance, gas, parking etc. to visit things that are easily walked to or have free shuttles the rest of the time?

^Other than the location, no direct experience - but several other visitors have reported positively. It is a 'condo hotel' format, and I believe underground onsite parking is also included which is a definite plus (and unusual!) for downtown hotels. Depending where you visit, that car may be more hindrance than help - most attractions are downtown, expensive to park at (and sometimes hard to even find parking nearby), and finding your way around can be a hassle with one-ways and pedestrianized streets. GPS units occasionally glitch on Georgia/Cordova/Robson corridors downtown due to many highrise buildings.

 

If you're visiting out of town attractions the car could be handy, e.g. enabling the quieter and more informative Lynn Canyon bridge to be visited for free instead of the ferociously-touristy and gift-shoppy Capilano for $40pp. Steveston and Sea-to-Sky highway attractions are much more easily visited by car too - UBC campus for MOA & Beatty museums, Queen Elizabeth Park & Van Dusen also faster to get to, but probably 95% of everything else in Vancouver is more conveniently visited (and cheaper!) on foot, by transit, or even by cab. Plus property theft from cars is endemic around here - if you leave anything visible through a window, even in the middle of the day there's a very good chance you'll come back to a smashed window and your stuff gone (car parks at out-of-town attractions are also targeted).

 

Personally I only ever recommend a car rental for a part of your stay - if used strategically one or two days can get you to all of the 'better by car' spots. Unless you have disabled/elderly folks that can't walk around easily, why pay for car, insurance, gas, parking etc. to visit things that are easily walked to or have free shuttles the rest of the time?

Thank you so much for the valuable information.

We (2 couples) are flying in on Sunday before the cruise (Wednesday embarkation) and figured it would be easier to rent the minivan at the airport and return to the cruise terminal upon embarkation. The cost wasn't that bad for the convenience. Including the $15 CAD nightly cost for parking in the garage, the van will cost us almost $100 per day. But what you hit on what was a concern of mine regarding parking, etc. I see a Hop On, Hop Off available, as well as city bus? From what I read, a cab from Times Square Suites to the port shouldn't be more than $15-$20?

We planned on stopping at Queen Elizabeth Park and VanDusen Botanical Garden on the way into Vancouver from the airport, but now I am concerned about the safety of all our luggage left in the minivan while we are there. We figured that we would do best with a rental car for our trip on the Sea to Sky Highway to Whittier, Grouse Mountain and Lynn Canyon (and still researching for other points of interest out of Vancouver city).

We also plan to see Stanley Park, Granville Island, Vancouver Lookout and possibly Chinatown. Any other suggestions are appreciated. I've tried to include interests from others' posts but nothing is set in stone..

Our flight is due in at YVR on Sunday @ 11:12am, so we will have 1/2 day on Sunday, all day Monday & Tuesday, and then possibly Wednesday morning to explore the area. How would you arrange the itinerary with & without the rental for our visit? Any help is appreciated.

Thanks,

Kathy

Thank you so much for the valuable information.

We (2 couples) are flying in on Sunday before the cruise (Wednesday embarkation) and figured it would be easier to rent the minivan at the airport and return to the cruise terminal upon embarkation. The cost wasn't that bad for the convenience. Including the $15 CAD nightly cost for parking in the garage, the van will cost us almost $100 per day. But what you hit on what was a concern of mine regarding parking, etc. I see a Hop On, Hop Off available, as well as city bus? From what I read, a cab from Times Square Suites to the port shouldn't be more than $15-$20?

We planned on stopping at Queen Elizabeth Park and VanDusen Botanical Garden on the way into Vancouver from the airport, but now I am concerned about the safety of all our luggage left in the minivan while we are there. We figured that we would do best with a rental car for our trip on the Sea to Sky Highway to Whittier, Grouse Mountain and Lynn Canyon (and still researching for other points of interest out of Vancouver city).

We also plan to see Stanley Park, Granville Island, Vancouver Lookout and possibly Chinatown. Any other suggestions are appreciated. I've tried to include interests from others' posts but nothing is set in stone..

Our flight is due in at YVR on Sunday @ 11:12am, so we will have 1/2 day on Sunday, all day Monday & Tuesday, and then possibly Wednesday morning to explore the area. How would you arrange the itinerary with & without the rental for our visit? Any help is appreciated.

Thanks,

Kathy

Sorry for delay replying, offline yesterday. You have taxi pricing correct. With tangible numbers to compare ($100 a day - I assume you mean per 24hrs, so $300 total from Sun PM to Wed AM? Did you mean USD or CAD though?) it should be pretty easy to figure out $ savings by ditching the car. If it's CAD$300ish, still cheaper to rent for only one day and use transit/shuttles/even HOHO - if you meant calendar days not 24hr periods, and USD not CAD, then US$400ish makes cutting back on the rental even more of a no-brainer.

First - every airport rental has an unavoidable hike in fees of approx 20%. While it's not impossible that supply & demand means you can find a cheaper rental at the airport, that extra fee makes it very unlikely to be cheaper than a downtown rental except for one-ways to Seattle (where avoiding a fixed drop-off penalty is much more important).

Second - your transportation costs while in town. A HOHO ticket for 4 adults will run approx CAD$180 all-in, but - this includes a visit to the Lookout (normally $15pp). There are various discount booklets available - the better ones at cost e.g. the 'Entertainment Book' which runs about $50 for Vancouver (NB: prices are already dropping as we're into 2017 - stocks do run out, but they go as low as $10 if you risk waiting until right before you visit!) and includes tons of 'buy one get one' deals so you'd need 2 to get the best value. The more focused City Passports ($25 - but occasionally Groupon resell them for $15pp) would probably be ideal for you as they include mostly the higher end things that tourists have actually heard of and many want to visit, rather than padding with bajillions of obscure places like the EBs.

Roughly-speaking, even if we include a day on a HOHO, your total 'instead of renting the minivan' travel will run (all in CAD):

1. $31+tip for minivan cab to hotel on May 14th (NB: hotel is wrong side of Denman - since front door is on Robson, this means it's in the Stanley Park $37 zone. BUT - Kintaro Ramen, literally across the street, is in Downtown $31 zone, so say this is where you're going to!)
   
2. $180 for 4 adult HOHO tickets on May 15th or 16th
   
3. $50 for a one-day rental (Fullsize car, SUV - no need for lots of luggage space for day trips - are both available for $33-42 incl tax for day rentals May 15 or 16 approx 8am-6pm from downtown agencies)
   
4. ~$20 incl tip for minivan cab from hotel to pier on May 17th
   

Total of approx CAD$285 (plus gas for 1 day). If you skip the commentary aspect of HOHO - which you wouldn't get in your rental car either of course! - a Day Pass on transit will cost a whopping $9.75pp and gets you almost 24 hrs of access to all buses, SkyTrain, SeaBus in Vancouver and neighbouring municipalities. I would not recommend transit to your hotel from YVR though - there's a $5 surcharge on tickets bought at the airport, and nearest SkyTrain is far enough walking to your hotel would be a real hassle. Buses do go right past, but they have zero room for large bags.

As to an itinerary - with an on-site carpark available at low cost, I'd be tempted to actually rent the day you arrive but NOT at the airport (or at least compare airport-rental-with-downtown-drop and see how it compares to inbound cab fare plus a 1.5 day rental to see which is cheapest - I'm confident downtown will be cheaper) and visit QEP/VD the day your arrive as you planned, then keep the car overnight and drive up Sea-to-Sky next day (from my price-checking, should run about CAD$80 total depending on car).

QEP/VD en route from the airport is an efficient route, but does have the element of danger to your stuff in a minivan (open trunk easily seen through windows). While statistically it's not as bad as the peak downtown zone for 'smash & grabs' from cars, in tourist season multiple cars are sometimes hit in car parks with high popularity like QEP (it's large with multiple road entrances and even easier to leave on foot since there are no fences to surrounding streets). I'd be more than willing to give up the efficiency of visiting on the way to or from YVR for the safety of getting your bags to hotel whether you take a cab to hotel/check-in/rent a car/return to QEP or rent a minivan at YVR/go to hotel/ check-in/return to QEP.

Either way, it's a solid pick for your first afternoon, as you get to stretch your legs while walking around some nice gardens - and you'll avoid fighting weekday traffic on your first day driving in unfamiliar territory. A couple of hours in each is usually enough, so you'll be easily able to visit both (NB: do VD first, since they close long before the park) and have time to get back downtown for dinner; or treat yourselves to a meal in Seasons, IMO the best restaurant view in the city. Food is good, does suffer from being more expensive than equivalent-quality food somewhere without a view, but the view is pretty durn awesome.

Back at the hotel, perhaps take in Fly Over Canada if you are still all awake? It's right at the pier - so you can check out the area without cruise crowds. Walking from your hotel is about a half-hour, <1.5 miles, not great with bags on embarkation day but possibly just fine for you without luggage tonight.

Your Sea-to-Sky & Whistler day will be looooong if you also include Grouse & Lynn. To be frank, I'd ask what you plan to achieve by visiting Whistler - if it's just to look at nice mountains, then the views up the highway are far better than anything you get in Whistler itself. The village has almost zero architectural, historical or cultural value with the one worthy exception of the SLCC (great cafe with bannocks & game meat, and exhibits that are IMO superior to anything 'native' in the AK ports) and even that pales to insignificance compared to MOA in Vancouver.

If you're planning actual activities that you need to be in Whistler to do - Peak to Peak gondola, bear tours, downhill-only mountain biking (for lazy fit people) then great. If it's the views, then turn around partway up the Sea-to-Sky - at least go as far as Squamish, and while a lot of locals feel that both Brandywine and Alexander Falls are worth seeing, Shannon Falls is most popular, a little south of Squamish, and super-close to the highway with extensive parking (NB: this is another spot with posted signs warning of theft from cars, so take your daypacks with you even though it's just a few hundred yards to the falls & back). Even cutting it back like this, I'd be inclined to split this day into Sea to Sky plus ONLY Lynn Canyon.

Grouse has free shuttles from downtown, right by the pier, so it's easy to do that separately (in fact it's an ideal thing to do on embarkation morning - drop bags at terminal, get shuttle, have lunch at Grouse, head back on shuttle arriving c. 2pm, board ship; this will pretty much guarantee saving you at least an hour of waiting around in queues compared to boarding earlier). Britannia Mine Museum is my fave attraction on the whole Sea to Sky - it's fun, educational, and is a pretty spectacular building in scale and shape (many movies & TV shows have used it since it closed) and it works better than Grouse for this day - it's right on the route and rental car is the only practical way to visit for most.

Also - if the Peak to Peak was on your Whistler plan, perhaps the Sea to Sky gondola would be acceptable instead? Again close to Squamish, and has a suspension bridge high up at the top you can dare to cross. More variable views than P2P, plus a bridge, for lower cost.

Your other site that is of marginal usefulness with a car is Stanley Park (parking is for the entire park - so you can stop at every car park, walk around nearby parts, get back in car and move it to the next one; lather, rinse & repeat) and all-day parking even in tourist season is only $13. However, you are so close to the park that frankly walking, or even better cycling, is the best way to see it. Bikes can go anywhere that you can walk and the best-value rental spot near the park is literally next door to you - EzeeRiders on Robson.

With late evenings in May, walking through the park after dinner is quite feasible. There are lights on parts of the Seawall - once it's actually getting dark I'd stick to those areas. Despite a recent uptick in crime very recently it's generally a very safe place crime-wise, but it's very large and forested so it's really easy to get lost especially in the dark. You're paying for a hotel, so it'd be a shame to have an impromptu camping experience! Depending on your timing Sunday, you might feel it's worthwhile driving around the park on your way back from QEP - e.g. if you want to take sunset photos so you don't have to walk from the far side of the park to your hotel in twilight.

So with all that waffly reasoning above, here's a summary of the actual plan as suggested by me:

Sunday 14th

1. Cab from YVR to hotel
   
2. Rent car downtown, go to VD then QEP
   
3. Choice - dinner in QEP, or back downtown to hotel then walk to dinner
   
4. Optional - sunset drive into the park (NB: just pay for parking by the hour, $3.50, instead of all day) or FlyOverCanada, or Lookout. Since your bodies are 2 hours ahead today, good idea to try to stay awake until at least 9pm to adjust (FOC is conveniently open until 9pm!)
   

Monday 15th

1. Sea to Sky Highway Day - on the road early! Britannia, Shannon Falls, Squamish for lunch
   
2. Do Lynn Canyon on the way BACK, not outbound. Outbound you'll be driving with some of the rushhour commuters on the highway, VERY slow!
   
3. Drop rental car (depending which agency, this may have to be as early as 5:15pm but Enterprise is good until 6pm)
   
4. After dinner, walk into the park or FlyOverCanada or Lookout, or go boozing;-)
   

Tuesday 16th

1. Possible HOHO Day, Bike rental Day, or Transit DayPass Day - I'll do the attractions clockwise, since that's the only way HOHOs go...
   
2. Stanley Park - if you haven't already seen enough of it the Trolley and WestCoast both include multiple stops. If you are HOHOing, do take advantage of the included ticket for the little ferries - the bit of the drive you skip is relatively boring, with the only stops of interest at the 'mini-campus' of Museums (Maritime, City, Space Centre). If you do want to see one or more of these, stay on the HOHO instead of taking the ferry to...
   
3. Granville Island - depending how many bits of the park you get off at, or if you visit Museums, it could be a good lunch time as you arrive or during your stay. Lots of dining options here, many restos at various prices plus a food court. If you get takeout food, sit outside on the waterfront and be entertained by a busker while you eat.
   
4. Chinatown - aside from just wandering and eating, best actual site here IMO is Dr Sun Yat-Sen garden. Best of it's type anywhere outside Suzhou, China. Free park in similar but much less authentic style next door if you want to catch the vibe, see if you feel the paid admission is worthwhile. Visit on the hour for no-extra-charge guided tours.
   
5. Gastown - while you didn't mention it, no visit to Vancouver is complete without it. While the streetlamps, Steam Clock etc. are actually very recent (to entice tourists!) it is the oldest part of the city with many buildings of over a century (that's a HUGE deal for this neck of the woods). More bars & restos than you can shake a stick at, and several Generic Crappy Tourist Stores for souvenirs. Less extensive selection (small stuff like magnets, no T-shirts & fleeces) is available much cheaper in the big mall in Chinatown at Yokoyaya 'dollar store' (most items are $2) along with many weird & wonderful Japanese knickknacks.
   
6. Lookout - if you are HOHOing and get a free ticket, you need to wait until after starting HOHO to visit this. Dinner is quite passable, and it's the least jacked-up rotating restaurant I've ever visited for food quality vs price.
   
7. Other option - Grouse for dinner and sunset views over the city. The Observatory (very swank) gets you a free ride up on the gondola - so compare the menu pricing with the regular Grouse admission charges to see what the value is like for your group! If you do decide to do this and were HOHOing, don't wander about Gastown to save a little time.
   

Wednesday 17th

1. Cab to pier to drop bags at approx 9:30am
   
2. Take free shuttle from outside to Grouse if you didn't do it last night; if you did then walk down into Gastown for the morning and have a leisurely pootle around. Lunch on land somewhere nice, then head to the pier no earlier than 2pm; 3pm if you can tolerate the stress. You are unfortunately boarding on a dreaded 3-ship day, which means massive queues for Security and CBP - the only time you are not fighting with the other 2 ships passengers is at cruise check-in, since there are 3 different lines involved (Celebrity and HAL plus you).
   
3. Seriously - the only way to avoid 90min-3 hour queues is to show up as late as possible (but no later than 90mins pre-departure!) Folks who start lining up as soon as bag drop opens (10am or earlier) will obviously get on board first, but they will wait around until some time between 11am and 11:30am before boarding even begins; 11am-1pm is peak queue time anyway, but with the extra volumes of 3 good-sized ships it will stay busy until at least 2pm. Personally I'd aim for a 3pm arrival if your ship leaves at 5pm, still well outside the 90min cutoff but with the best possible chance of all the queues being minimized.
   

OK - I think I covered all your planned sites plus a couple of extras, and warned of appropriate traffic/boarding busy periods. Anything else? Restos, likeliest places to find a decent Sazerac or La Lousiane? ;-)

Sorry for delay replying, offline yesterday. You have taxi pricing correct. With tangible numbers to compare ($100 a day - I assume you mean per 24hrs, so $300 total from Sun PM to Wed AM? Did you mean USD or CAD though?) it should be pretty easy to figure out $ savings by ditching the car. If it's CAD$300ish, still cheaper to rent for only one day and use transit/shuttles/even HOHO - if you meant calendar days not 24hr periods, and USD not CAD, then US$400ish makes cutting back on the rental even more of a no-brainer.

 

First - every airport rental has an unavoidable hike in fees of approx 20%. While it's not impossible that supply & demand means you can find a cheaper rental at the airport, that extra fee makes it very unlikely to be cheaper than a downtown rental except for one-ways to Seattle (where avoiding a fixed drop-off penalty is much more important).

 

Second - your transportation costs while in town. A HOHO ticket for 4 adults will run approx CAD$180 all-in, but - this includes a visit to the Lookout (normally $15pp). There are various discount booklets available - the better ones at cost e.g. the 'Entertainment Book' which runs about $50 for Vancouver (NB: prices are already dropping as we're into 2017 - stocks do run out, but they go as low as $10 if you risk waiting until right before you visit!) and includes tons of 'buy one get one' deals so you'd need 2 to get the best value. The more focused City Passports ($25 - but occasionally Groupon resell them for $15pp) would probably be ideal for you as they include mostly the higher end things that tourists have actually heard of and many want to visit, rather than padding with bajillions of obscure places like the EBs.

 

Roughly-speaking, even if we include a day on a HOHO, your total 'instead of renting the minivan' travel will run (all in CAD):

1. $31+tip for minivan cab to hotel on May 14th (NB: hotel is wrong side of Denman - since front door is on Robson, this means it's in the Stanley Park $37 zone. BUT - Kintaro Ramen, literally across the street, is in Downtown $31 zone, so say this is where you're going to!)
   
2. $180 for 4 adult HOHO tickets on May 15th or 16th
   
3. $50 for a one-day rental (Fullsize car, SUV - no need for lots of luggage space for day trips - are both available for $33-42 incl tax for day rentals May 15 or 16 approx 8am-6pm from downtown agencies)
   
4. ~$20 incl tip for minivan cab from hotel to pier on May 17th
   

Total of approx CAD$285 (plus gas for 1 day). If you skip the commentary aspect of HOHO - which you wouldn't get in your rental car either of course! - a Day Pass on transit will cost a whopping $9.75pp and gets you almost 24 hrs of access to all buses, SkyTrain, SeaBus in Vancouver and neighbouring municipalities. I would not recommend transit to your hotel from YVR though - there's a $5 surcharge on tickets bought at the airport, and nearest SkyTrain is far enough walking to your hotel would be a real hassle. Buses do go right past, but they have zero room for large bags.

 

As to an itinerary - with an on-site carpark available at low cost, I'd be tempted to actually rent the day you arrive but NOT at the airport (or at least compare airport-rental-with-downtown-drop and see how it compares to inbound cab fare plus a 1.5 day rental to see which is cheapest - I'm confident downtown will be cheaper) and visit QEP/VD the day your arrive as you planned, then keep the car overnight and drive up Sea-to-Sky next day (from my price-checking, should run about CAD$80 total depending on car).

 

QEP/VD en route from the airport is an efficient route, but does have the element of danger to your stuff in a minivan (open trunk easily seen through windows). While statistically it's not as bad as the peak downtown zone for 'smash & grabs' from cars, in tourist season multiple cars are sometimes hit in car parks with high popularity like QEP (it's large with multiple road entrances and even easier to leave on foot since there are no fences to surrounding streets). I'd be more than willing to give up the efficiency of visiting on the way to or from YVR for the safety of getting your bags to hotel whether you take a cab to hotel/check-in/rent a car/return to QEP or rent a minivan at YVR/go to hotel/ check-in/return to QEP.

 

Either way, it's a solid pick for your first afternoon, as you get to stretch your legs while walking around some nice gardens - and you'll avoid fighting weekday traffic on your first day driving in unfamiliar territory. A couple of hours in each is usually enough, so you'll be easily able to visit both (NB: do VD first, since they close long before the park) and have time to get back downtown for dinner; or treat yourselves to a meal in Seasons, IMO the best restaurant view in the city. Food is good, does suffer from being more expensive than equivalent-quality food somewhere without a view, but the view is pretty durn awesome.

 

Back at the hotel, perhaps take in Fly Over Canada if you are still all awake? It's right at the pier - so you can check out the area without cruise crowds. Walking from your hotel is about a half-hour, <1.5 miles, not great with bags on embarkation day but possibly just fine for you without luggage tonight.

 

Your Sea-to-Sky & Whistler day will be looooong if you also include Grouse & Lynn. To be frank, I'd ask what you plan to achieve by visiting Whistler - if it's just to look at nice mountains, then the views up the highway are far better than anything you get in Whistler itself. The village has almost zero architectural, historical or cultural value with the one worthy exception of the SLCC (great cafe with bannocks & game meat, and exhibits that are IMO superior to anything 'native' in the AK ports) and even that pales to insignificance compared to MOA in Vancouver.

 

If you're planning actual activities that you need to be in Whistler to do - Peak to Peak gondola, bear tours, downhill-only mountain biking (for lazy fit people) then great. If it's the views, then turn around partway up the Sea-to-Sky - at least go as far as Squamish, and while a lot of locals feel that both Brandywine and Alexander Falls are worth seeing, Shannon Falls is most popular, a little south of Squamish, and super-close to the highway with extensive parking (NB: this is another spot with posted signs warning of theft from cars, so take your daypacks with you even though it's just a few hundred yards to the falls & back). Even cutting it back like this, I'd be inclined to split this day into Sea to Sky plus ONLY Lynn Canyon.

 

Grouse has free shuttles from downtown, right by the pier, so it's easy to do that separately (in fact it's an ideal thing to do on embarkation morning - drop bags at terminal, get shuttle, have lunch at Grouse, head back on shuttle arriving c. 2pm, board ship; this will pretty much guarantee saving you at least an hour of waiting around in queues compared to boarding earlier). Britannia Mine Museum is my fave attraction on the whole Sea to Sky - it's fun, educational, and is a pretty spectacular building in scale and shape (many movies & TV shows have used it since it closed) and it works better than Grouse for this day - it's right on the route and rental car is the only practical way to visit for most.

 

Also - if the Peak to Peak was on your Whistler plan, perhaps the Sea to Sky gondola would be acceptable instead? Again close to Squamish, and has a suspension bridge high up at the top you can dare to cross. More variable views than P2P, plus a bridge, for lower cost.

 

Your other site that is of marginal usefulness with a car is Stanley Park (parking is for the entire park - so you can stop at every car park, walk around nearby parts, get back in car and move it to the next one; lather, rinse & repeat) and all-day parking even in tourist season is only $13. However, you are so close to the park that frankly walking, or even better cycling, is the best way to see it. Bikes can go anywhere that you can walk and the best-value rental spot near the park is literally next door to you - EzeeRiders on Robson.

 

With late evenings in May, walking through the park after dinner is quite feasible. There are lights on parts of the Seawall - once it's actually getting dark I'd stick to those areas. Despite a recent uptick in crime very recently it's generally a very safe place crime-wise, but it's very large and forested so it's really easy to get lost especially in the dark. You're paying for a hotel, so it'd be a shame to have an impromptu camping experience! Depending on your timing Sunday, you might feel it's worthwhile driving around the park on your way back from QEP - e.g. if you want to take sunset photos so you don't have to walk from the far side of the park to your hotel in twilight.

 

So with all that waffly reasoning above, here's a summary of the actual plan as suggested by me:

Sunday 14th

1. Cab from YVR to hotel
   
2. Rent car downtown, go to VD then QEP
   
3. Choice - dinner in QEP, or back downtown to hotel then walk to dinner
   
4. Optional - sunset drive into the park (NB: just pay for parking by the hour, $3.50, instead of all day) or FlyOverCanada, or Lookout. Since your bodies are 2 hours ahead today, good idea to try to stay awake until at least 9pm to adjust (FOC is conveniently open until 9pm!)
   

Monday 15th

1. Sea to Sky Highway Day - on the road early! Britannia, Shannon Falls, Squamish for lunch
   
2. Do Lynn Canyon on the way BACK, not outbound. Outbound you'll be driving with some of the rushhour commuters on the highway, VERY slow!
   
3. Drop rental car (depending which agency, this may have to be as early as 5:15pm but Enterprise is good until 6pm)
   
4. After dinner, walk into the park or FlyOverCanada or Lookout, or go boozing;-)
   

Tuesday 16th

1. Possible HOHO Day, Bike rental Day, or Transit DayPass Day - I'll do the attractions clockwise, since that's the only way HOHOs go...
   
2. Stanley Park - if you haven't already seen enough of it the Trolley and WestCoast both include multiple stops. If you are HOHOing, do take advantage of the included ticket for the little ferries - the bit of the drive you skip is relatively boring, with the only stops of interest at the 'mini-campus' of Museums (Maritime, City, Space Centre). If you do want to see one or more of these, stay on the HOHO instead of taking the ferry to...
   
3. Granville Island - depending how many bits of the park you get off at, or if you visit Museums, it could be a good lunch time as you arrive or during your stay. Lots of dining options here, many restos at various prices plus a food court. If you get takeout food, sit outside on the waterfront and be entertained by a busker while you eat.
   
4. Chinatown - aside from just wandering and eating, best actual site here IMO is Dr Sun Yat-Sen garden. Best of it's type anywhere outside Suzhou, China. Free park in similar but much less authentic style next door if you want to catch the vibe, see if you feel the paid admission is worthwhile. Visit on the hour for no-extra-charge guided tours.
   
5. Gastown - while you didn't mention it, no visit to Vancouver is complete without it. While the streetlamps, Steam Clock etc. are actually very recent (to entice tourists!) it is the oldest part of the city with many buildings of over a century (that's a HUGE deal for this neck of the woods). More bars & restos than you can shake a stick at, and several Generic Crappy Tourist Stores for souvenirs. Less extensive selection (small stuff like magnets, no T-shirts & fleeces) is available much cheaper in the big mall in Chinatown at Yokoyaya 'dollar store' (most items are $2) along with many weird & wonderful Japanese knickknacks.
   
6. Lookout - if you are HOHOing and get a free ticket, you need to wait until after starting HOHO to visit this. Dinner is quite passable, and it's the least jacked-up rotating restaurant I've ever visited for food quality vs price.
   
7. Other option - Grouse for dinner and sunset views over the city. The Observatory (very swank) gets you a free ride up on the gondola - so compare the menu pricing with the regular Grouse admission charges to see what the value is like for your group! If you do decide to do this and were HOHOing, don't wander about Gastown to save a little time.
   

Wednesday 17th

1. Cab to pier to drop bags at approx 9:30am
   
2. Take free shuttle from outside to Grouse if you didn't do it last night; if you did then walk down into Gastown for the morning and have a leisurely pootle around. Lunch on land somewhere nice, then head to the pier no earlier than 2pm; 3pm if you can tolerate the stress. You are unfortunately boarding on a dreaded 3-ship day, which means massive queues for Security and CBP - the only time you are not fighting with the other 2 ships passengers is at cruise check-in, since there are 3 different lines involved (Celebrity and HAL plus you).
   
3. Seriously - the only way to avoid 90min-3 hour queues is to show up as late as possible (but no later than 90mins pre-departure!) Folks who start lining up as soon as bag drop opens (10am or earlier) will obviously get on board first, but they will wait around until some time between 11am and 11:30am before boarding even begins; 11am-1pm is peak queue time anyway, but with the extra volumes of 3 good-sized ships it will stay busy until at least 2pm. Personally I'd aim for a 3pm arrival if your ship leaves at 5pm, still well outside the 90min cutoff but with the best possible chance of all the queues being minimized.
   

OK - I think I covered all your planned sites plus a couple of extras, and warned of appropriate traffic/boarding busy periods. Anything else? Restos, likeliest places to find a decent Sazerac or La Lousiane? ;-)

WOW!! Thank you so much!! I never would have asked anyone for such a detailed itinerary. I was just looking for some help, but you have meticulously outlined our whole Vancouver adventure!! You have covered most of what I had planned and then some. I will definitely recheck our rental options, as with the options that you listed, I agree that we don't need the car for in and immediately around Vancouver. We may only need the car for going up the Sea to Sky Highway. Since we are planning on checking at least our bags into our hotel prior to going to QEP & VD, would we maybe be able to catch a bus going back to QEP?

We both purchased the City Passports from Groupon yesterday, as they were running a 1/2 price offer and each passport was only CAD$7. So, we are set for that! HOHO discounts plus more.......Yay!

I saw that there are a few different ferries at Granville Island. Are any of these worth the time? If so, any preferences?

You have been such a wealth of information. Thanks again!!

Kathy

I saw that there are a few different ferries at Granville Island. Are any of these worth the time? If so, any preferences?

There are two ferry operators with similar routes...

• False Creek or Granville Island Ferries http://www.granvilleislandferries.bc.ca/
  
• Aquabus http://theaquabus.com/
  

Thoughts?

• Aquabus has some ships that can carry bicycles
  
• the two operator's tickets are NOT interchangeable. They are competitors. Tickets sold on board.
  
• can be super busy in the afternoons
  
• not part of public transit.... they cost extra.
  
• if you board at Granville Island.... take the ferries to their furthest Eastern points for a tour of all the buildings along the creek. When at the end.... you may try to walk to Granville Island or ride the subway back downtown
  
• not to be confused with Joe's BBQ https://joesbbqboat.com/
  
• want more water experiences? Check Harbour cruises that take you around Burrard Inlet... http://www.boatcruises.com/tour.php?pv=p3
  
• there's also the SeaBus https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SeaBus
  
• I should also mention an Orca whale watch ferry to Victoria....
  http://princeofwhales.com/vancouver-tours/
  

Comments in red

WOW!! Thank you so much!!

You're welcome

 

Since we are planning on checking at least our bags into our hotel prior to going to QEP & VD, would we maybe be able to catch a bus going back to QEP?

You can take transit to QEP but it's going to be a hassle. QEP is quickest gotten to/from using SkyTrain and bus - but bus tickets don't transfer except to other buses! A Daypass for just 2 rides is really poor value, paying twice to board the bus and again to board SkyTrain is still cheaper - BUT there's also the issue of exact change, in CAD, for buses. So if you manage to get fistfuls of CAD coins & small notes it's cheapest to bus to VD (any Robson bus, transfer to 17, $2.75pp, about 45mins) then walk to QEP then come home on a Cambie bus transferring to one of several downtown routes (again $2.75pp, this time about an hour). You can pay for more than one ticket at once on buses - so for 4 of you, sticking $11 in and asking for 4 tickets is much easier than having everyone with exactly $2.75 each!

Google Maps fully integrates transit routes in Vancouver, including specific date timetables, but mid-May isn't open yet so check back in a month for best routes & times on May 14th. If you have a dataplan you can use here, there are live updates available on Translink's mobile site (http://m.translink.ca/). The hassle of exact change requirement on buses, bus transfers at different stops depending on exact time of day being best, combined with the Compass Card rollout problems (long story really short - buses don't work properly with the new Swipe On and Off system, so there's now a single Bus Zone at all times. This means that you can use a Compass Card to move from mode to mode, but a one-shot ticket bought on a bus is JUST for buses - no SkyTrain, no SeaBus) makes for overall major annoyance from your hotel - if you're close to SkyTrain the system works well, but starting by bus without a reloadable Compass Card (ideal for locals, not so much for visitors) makes it frustrating.

 

A cab would cost about $25+tip each way - likely less than a car rental + gas + overnight parking now I think about it. A DayPass for 4 of you avoids the exact change/bus vs SkyTrain issues, and would be $39 if bought downtown rather than at the airport. One last transit thought - is anyone over 65? If so, DayPasses are $7.75 and individual transit tickets $1.75pp - cheaper overall, but also 5 rides rather than 4 to make a DayPass better value!

We both purchased the City Passports from Groupon yesterday, as they were running a 1/2 price offer and each passport was only CAD$7. So, we are set for that! HOHO discounts plus more.......Yay!

Great deal - HOHO alone will save the entire price of purchasing!

I saw that there are a few different ferries at Granville Island. Are any of these worth the time? If so, any preferences?

Unless you're taking bikes or wheelchairs, False Creek Ferries (they've never operated under Granville Island name - that's just the parent company that bought them over in '82 and set up the website in the 90s) are the superior choice to Aquabus (created by an ex-FCF employee for Expo '86) since they have an extra stop at the Maritime Museum and a larger fleet so a slightly more frequent service. FCF tickets were the ones given out on HOHOs in the past. The 'Cyquabus' RORO format boats are only used by Aquabus and are MUCH better for wheelchairs & scooters and more convenient for bikes due to no steps or tiny doors to awkwardly carry your bike through - so if you decide to ride around the sites rather than HOHO, take Aquabus.

 

If you want to spend more time on the water, there are boat, kayak, and paddleboard rentals on Granville Island. Also http://www.whalesvancouver.com/trips-rates/ whalewatching tours that are a tad more practical and a fraction of the price of PoW's Victoria transfer service - but unless you cut out a big chunk of sightseeing, a whalewatch isn't on the cards - not this trip anyway!

You have been such a wealth of information. Thanks again!!

No problemo.

Kathy

There are two ferry operators with similar routes...

• False Creek or Granville Island Ferries http://www.granvilleislandferries.bc.ca/
  
• Aquabus http://theaquabus.com/
  

Thoughts?

• Aquabus has some ships that can carry bicycles
  
• the two operator's tickets are NOT interchangeable. They are competitors. Tickets sold on board.
  
• can be super busy in the afternoons
  
• not part of public transit.... they cost extra.
  
• if you board at Granville Island.... take the ferries to their furthest Eastern points for a tour of all the buildings along the creek. When at the end.... you may try to walk to Granville Island or ride the subway back downtown
  
• not to be confused with Joe's BBQ https://joesbbqboat.com/
  
• want more water experiences? Check Harbour cruises that take you around Burrard Inlet... http://www.boatcruises.com/tour.php?pv=p3
  
• there's also the SeaBus https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SeaBus
  
• I should also mention an Orca whale watch ferry to Victoria....
  http://princeofwhales.com/vancouver-tours/
  

Thanks. We are also looking at the Harbour cruises, not sure of time factor here. We have been given some really good information and are trying to get it all plotted.

Comments in red

Thanks again for all of your wonderful guidance! I will definitely need to put the pen to the pad and figure out what works best for us. So much information! We are not looking to spend more $ than we need to, but we figure our time there is worth something so it's time (and hassle) will figure in for sure. And yes, we have one person over the 65 mark so that may help some.

The harbour cruises, are they worth the time & money? Not particularly interested in those with food involved, but would possibly love the views. Sunset seems most appealing on the water.

Thanks,

Kathy

I'm familiar with the Indian Arm cruise that goes with a significant distance in Burrard inlet. I'll let others comment on the dinner cruises if they visit the same locations.

If you don't want the food.... a trip on the Seabus is an affordable option.

I'm familiar with the Indian Arm cruise that goes with a significant distance in Burrard inlet. I'll let others comment on the dinner cruises if they visit the same locations.

 

 

If you don't want the food.... a trip on the Seabus is an affordable option.

Thanks, we will take a look that option. The expense is not the deciding factor on a dinner cruise, we just haven't had that much luck with the quality of food on these types of tours.

The harbour cruises, are they worth the time & money? Not particularly interested in those with food involved, but would possibly love the views. Sunset seems most appealing on the water.

I have to say that I've never been impressed with any of the 'local cruise' options, whether it's been for dinner/drinks/dancing or just seeing the sights. I really don't know why Vancouver sucks so badly at this - even just sticking to North America we've done dozens of such trips in Boston, Chicago, Halifax, NYC, Quebec, Seattle, Toronto and I've thoroughly enjoyed most of them; but here they've been universally underwhelming for everything except the very specific niche of whale watching.

There are so many cheap options to just see the views - like the FCF/Aquabus 'round trips' or SeaBus over to North Shore and back - that I had foolishly-in-hindsight assumed that the pricier cruises would have quality commentary from well-informed experts on local history etc., or at least offer decent food/bands if it's a dinner cruise affair. Let's just say that I've been solidly disappointed by every one out of Vancouver I've tried - even when I was paying heavily-discounted Groupon prices the value simply wasn't there. HOHO driver-guides sound less scripted than the cheesey, uninformed, or just out-of-date crap the harbour cruises spew out - and the food is basically school cafeteria level...

The only remaining flavour of 'cruise' I haven't gotten around to yet - and do hear good things about them, it seems to check off my boxes - are the First Nations canoe excursions e.g. through takayatours.com (NB: I can't personally vouch for them yet, I'm been trying to persuade the missus to take some kayaking lessons first so we'd be comfortable out paddling around).

Personally I'd try to do sunset on the SeaWall around Stanley Park/English Bay, or even better with drink in hand at a bar overlooking them;-)