travelingpink

We are arriving September 5 to the 8th. On the 8th, we go to the fairmont Hotel Vancouver.p for one night. We are looking at the Holiday Inn Vancouver (Broadway) for the first 3 nights (we have points). We also have 3 nights held at the hotel blu ($827). Any thoughts? We read lots of good reviews on the holiday inn, but still wondered if we would be too far for touring (hop on, hop off, etc).

Not knowing what your criteria are exactly it's very hard to compare pricing/availability - with 14 people is it 7 couples, do some folks need a single room, are there kids who need to share a room with adults etc? Basically what's the breakdown of the 14 into 'sleeping units'?

 

If you haven't actually compared every possibility yet - then do yourself a huge favour and check the YWCA Hotel. It's not only going to be even cheaper than any of the above, it's better-located than all of them too (and with full kitchens that enable further money-saving by eating brekkie, making packed lunches etc. if $ is a big factor). With rooms from solo to 5 people, with and without private bathrooms (and some rooms with 'Jack & Jill' shared bathroom concept so 2 semi-private doubles effectively become a 2-bedroom apartment), it's likely to be the most flexible way to accommodate a group that has a mix of singles, couples, and family units.

 

But assuming that you've already done due diligence and considered all the alternatives and only those three meet your needs - the Silvia is the best of these three by far.

 

Burrard is loud - it's opposite the largest ER in the province and ambulances come & go 24/7, and many patients (including those in the psychiatric wings) like to shop in the Seven Eleven under the motel. This is where my diabetes clinic is, and I have more than once seen a patient wander over with their IV stands, ass hanging out the back of their hospital gowns, to buy smokes or snacks (in-hospital gift shop is of course over-priced). It might be all hipsterified with trendier decor these days, but it was and remains fundamentally a very old motel in structure - soundproofing is minimal.

 

Ramada Downtown is another old building and right on the edge of the least salubrious parts of the city - unless all 14 of you are comfortable seeing homeless folks, beggars, drug-deals, hookers etc. it's not ideal. The block with the hotel itself is OK, a little scruffy, but even one block east and things get grittier. If you're all grown-ups from another urban environment then it might be fine for you.

 

Silvia is in the nice English Bay area, palm trees outside, beautiful sunset views from many of the rooms, lots of bars & restos close by. While it's further than the others to Gastown/Chinatown/Yaletown, it's the closest to Stanley Park, and they went through extensive renovations ~2 years ago IIRC. Whiole it's yet another old building, it's a standalone building of more substantial nature than either of the other two options. Hands-down this would be my pick from the three you mention, unless pricing was radically different.