Vancouver

[Ricktan]

I thought I saw something on this recently but can't find it now so I'm sorry if recently discussed. I'm booking my flight for R/T Vancouver for Alaska next Sept. I need to pick between a flight that departs at 9:55 am and 12:45 pm. We disembark at 7:00am. I know the later flight gives me more time but puts me starting a 3-hour drive at 10:30 that night vs 8:30 that night. Is it possible to make a 10 am flight??

[Scrapnana]

I just had my TA check with HAL about flights home from Vancouver. HAL would not book anything in the morning, only afternoon flights.

 

9:55 (that's take-off) sounds really early to me.

[CowPrincess]

I thought I saw something on this recently but can't find it now so I'm sorry if recently discussed. I'm booking my flight for R/T Vancouver for Alaska next Sept. I need to pick between a flight that departs at 9:55 am and 12:45 pm. We disembark at 7:00am. I know the later flight gives me more time but puts me starting a 3-hour drive at 10:30 that night vs 8:30 that night. Is it possible to make a 10 am flight??

 

No you arrive at 7 am, if all things go according to plan. You may be able to self-disembark by 7:30 ish if everything goes as expected.

 

Is your first flight within Canada, or do you have to pre-clear US Customs/Immigration at Vancouver airport?

 

I think it is extremely inadvisable to plan a 10 am flight, BUT under some circumstances it might be do-able IF you aren't pre-clearing Customs/Immigration in Vancouver. I would never say "do it" though. I'd be more along the lines of "are you feeling lucky?"

[Ricktan]

So, do you think the 12:45 will work??

[Copper10-8]

12:45 will work and is a lot less stress/anxiety

[CowPrincess]

So, do you think the 12:45 will work??

 

As Copper said, that should work. I checked Vancouver events listings and could not see any races or parades or anything else that would be going on in that area that early in the morning. I would still self-disembark, and grab a cab right away to get to the airport as soon as possible.

[Ricktan]

As Copper said, that should work. I checked Vancouver events listings and could not see any races or parades or anything else that would be going on in that area that early in the morning. I would still self-disembark, and grab a cab right away to get to the airport as soon as possible.

 

Thank you!!

[CGYCruisingFamily]

From downtown to YVR should take you in the ballpark of about 30 minutes in good traffic. Having said that, you never know what will happen in Vancouver with traffic.

 

If you are flying to anywhere in the US you need to check in at least 90 minutes prior to departure. That means for a 9:55 am flight - 8:25 at the absolute latest. I think with docking, clearing customs, picking up luggage then transiting from Canada Place to YVR it will be way too tight. If you are flying to another Canadian destination you might be ok but it is still a minimum of 60 minutes check in.

 

The 12:45 would give you ample time to get off at a bit more of a leisurely rate and to make it to the airport with plenty of time to get checked in, back through customs and security and then to your gate.

 

Another alternative which might give you more options for flying to Georgia is the Bellingham airport which is just south of the Canada US border in Washington State. You would be able to pick up a flight from there to Sea-Tac and from Sea-Tac to Georgia (not sure about the routing though). Also not sure how you can get to Bellingham but I know lots of my friends who live in Vancouver fly out of Seattle or Bellingham because there are options available that arent available in Canada.

Edited November 10, 2015 by CGYCruisingFamily

[Fisherwoman]

I live in Vancouver and have sailed many times. The earliest you may get off is 8 am or later. I would NEVER book a flight before noon. Canada Customs can take a long time to clear. You can check the Port of Vancouver website and see how many ships are docked the same day as you. If there is only one you may get off earlier but I've been held until 8:45 waiting for customs! Do not book anything early. The stress isn't worth it.

[BumperII]

We have sailed out of Vancouver at least a dozen times. Just for the record, we would never consider trying to make either of those flights on disembarkation day.

 

Couple of reasons: Vancouver is a long way to travel. It is a beautiful city with many tourist attractions, beautiful parks, wonderful theater, and plenty of fine dining. From the east coast, that is a long way to go without taking some time to visit.

 

For reasons unknown to me air travel from Vancouver is about twice as expensive as the flight to Vancouver. What we have been doing lately is flying into Vancouver and then flying home from Seattle - Tacoma. Highly recommend taking a little extra time to enjoy both of these cities.

[tooalto]

We are also trying to set up flights for our September cruise from Vancouver. Since we will be visiting relatives in Portland before the cruise , we'll be flying into PDX. Getting to the East coast from Vancouver is not easy. We can fly into Philly or Newark and then drive home but our choices are surprisingly limited. Mostly red-eyes or very early morning flights which would necessitate an overnight.

 

For those folks who fly out of SEA, how do you get there? We're taking the Amtrak from Portland to Seattle and Seattle to Vancouver but haven't thought about going back and flying home from Seattle. That may offer us some better choices.

[xlxo]

Another vote for the later flight or spending a night in the bonus port of Vancouver (it's bigger than all the Alaskan ports combined).

 

Here's a potential timeline.

• 7am boat docks
  
• 7:30am first walk off?
  
• 8am get in cab (if the line is not too long)
  
• 8:30am (it's just over 30 minutes to get to airport)
  
• 11:30am wheels up after breakfast in the terminal post security?
  

As mentioned above, there are lots of things (terminal congestion, customs, traffic congestion) that can mess up your plans on getting to the airport prior to 8:30am.

 

Once you arrive at the airport. US flights recommends 3 hours for check-in, US customs and security checks (weapons [eg ULU's], luggage, carry-on, body, hand, cavity, etc... ).

[Ricktan]

We have sailed out of Vancouver at least a dozen times. Just for the record, we would never consider trying to make either of those flights on disembarkation day.

 

Couple of reasons: Vancouver is a long way to travel. It is a beautiful city with many tourist attractions, beautiful parks, wonderful theater, and plenty of fine dining. From the east coast, that is a long way to go without taking some time to visit.

 

For reasons unknown to me air travel from Vancouver is about twice as expensive as the flight to Vancouver. What we have been doing lately is flying into Vancouver and then flying home from Seattle - Tacoma. Highly recommend taking a little extra time to enjoy both of these cities.

 

We are going into Vancouver 3 days pre cruise. I really want to go home the Sat disembark. I NEED that Sunday to regroup before going back to work. I think I'm going to do the HAL transfer from ship to airport and cross my fingers that I make the 12:45 flight . That puts us back in Atlanta around 10:15 pm.

[avian777]

We are going into Vancouver 3 days pre cruise. I really want to go home the Sat disembark. I NEED that Sunday to regroup before going back to work. I think I'm going to do the HAL transfer from ship to airport and cross my fingers that I make the 12:45 flight . That puts us back in Atlanta around 10:15 pm.

 

Tanya & Rick, I'm almost 100% certain that you'll be able to make the 12:45 pm flight if you use HAL transfers and Luggage Direct. We have done this at least a half dozen times and have never been even a little bit rushed at the airport. Using porters at the airport (if you don't use Luggage Direct) will also speed matters up a lot.

Edited November 11, 2015 by avian777

[Lizzie68]

You should be fine for the 12:45 pm flight. Even factoring in having to be at YVR 90 minutes before, and you should still be fine with an early disembarkation time. As long as there is no delay in the ship getting to port and clearing. If you disembark at 7:30 you'll likely be at the airport by around 9 or possibly before. The earlier flight, however, is totally out of the question.

[Ricktan]

Tanya & Rick, I'm almost 100% certain that you'll be able to make the 12:45 pm flight if you use HAL transfers and Luggage Direct. We have done this at least a half dozen times and have never been even a little bit rushed at the airport. Using porters at the airport (if you don't use Luggage Direct) will also speed matters up a lot.

 

Thank you. Do you telling me how the luggage direct works? I'm all for anything that makes the morning easier.

[avian777]

Thank you. Do you telling me how the luggage direct works? I'm all for anything that makes the morning easier.

 

Here's a link to a site that explains the Luggage Direct and the Bags VIP Luggage Delivery programs:

 

https://www.maketraveleasier.com/holland/services

 

If you cannot open the link, post a note here and I'll get the info to you another way ...

[Ricktan]

Here's a link to a site that explains the Luggage Direct and the Bags VIP Luggage Delivery programs:

 

https://www.maketraveleasier.com/holland/services

 

If you cannot open the link, post a note here and I'll get the info to you another way ...

 

Link works, thanks!! I'll read this tonight....thanks for the help!

[avian777]

Link works, thanks!! I'll read this tonight....thanks for the help!

 

... always a pleasure to deal with upbeat people such as yourselves ... BTW I suggest you look at the Bags VIP Luggage Delivery service too - takes a lot of the baggage hassle out of airline travel and IMO is well worth the cost!!!

[CowPrincess]

I soooooo wish Luggage Direct was available to us .... sigh....