What is the latest we must be off the ship?

[Kfrech]

Sailing on the Koningsdam this summer to Alaska round trip to and from Vancouver. We are considering a red eye home that evening to the East Coast. Since we are not in any particular hurry, how late can we can onboard? We’re really just looking to kill some.
 

We are also considering a day room at one of the airport hotels where we can relax a bit, maybe take a nap, etc.

 

Any tips on ways to spend the day?

[Copper10-8]

0930 but that's pushing it where they will be paging you. 0900 is better! I would suggest a day room at the Fairmont Vancouver Airport, nice hotel with easy access to the Skytrain (rapid transit system) if you want to go downtown 

[Krazy Kruizers]

You need to be off the ship by around 9:30 AM as they need to get the ship down to zero count and ready for the next passengers.  

 

Your idea of going to a hotel for a day room for the day sounds great.

[Seasick Sailor]

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Edited December 5, 2019 by Seasick Sailor
wrong thread

[Himself]

The Airport Fairmont sounds like a plan

[Seasick Sailor]

 

Loved:

"A Wok Around Chinatown" 

It's no secret that Vancouver's off-duty chefs love to shop for themselves and choose from the freshest local and exotic fruits, vegetables, seafood, and meats. Chinatown is where they go!. This is a 3.5-hour culinary and cultural walking tour of the colorful & historic Vancouver Chinatown District,.Our knowledgeable guides will showcase a beautiful Classical Chinese Garden, historic Chinatown landmarks, then explore the exotic food, cookware, pastry, tea and herbal medicine shops. A delicious dim sum lunch is also a part of this unique, small-group tour.

 

[Kfrech]

That sounds wonderful!!!

 

I’m so on the fence about what time we should fly home to the east coast and would love to hear some opinions. Ideally, we’d like to be able to get home all in one day, but that’s becoming less and less likely. 
 

We disembark on Saturday and need to return to work on Monday. We will spend 3 days prior to our sailing exploring Vancouver. Here are our options:

 

11:30 departure out of YVR, with a 2 hour connection is Toronto, gets us home at 10:30 p.m. on the same day. 
 

12:30 departure out of YVR, with a 70 minute connection in Toronto, gets us home at 10:30 p.m. 

 

These 2 flights come with their own risks: getting to the airport in a timely fashion and making the connections. They are also crazy expensive. I’m a nervous flyer to begin with, and stressing about this might not necessarily be a good thing. 

 

Our other option: 10:30 p.m flight out, 3 hour connection or 11:30 p.m flight out, 2 hour connection. Both of these get us home at around 11:00 a.m. Sunday morning (with very little sleep). If we go this route, we will definitely get a day room.

 

We definitely can manage the little sleep thing and return to work on Monday. 
 

I’d love to hear what others think. Are there other areas we can explore close to the airport?
 

We’ve looked at flights that connect through Seattle (and even considered going to Seattle) after the cruise, but that does nothing to save us time. 
 

Thank you all so much—these boards are such a wealth of information!

[bEwAbG]

I would take the 11:30a departure with the longer connection if you have to connect in Toronto.  It's only an hour longer in total travel time versus the other flight departing that day, but you'd get a chance to stretch your legs and maybe have time to get a bite of food, too.  You will have plenty of time to get from the ship to the airport for either flight.  It's only half an hour away if you take the airport train.  The reason I would do the Saturday morning flights is that, even if you're a little later in getting home that night, you at least have Sunday to recuperate in your own home.  

 

 

[RocketMan275]

11 hours ago, Kfrech said:

We are also considering a day room at one of the airport hotels where we can relax a bit, maybe take a nap, etc.

We had a similar issue on our Alaskan cruise in September.  We booked a day room at the Fairmont in the airport.  Very nice.  Also, plenty of places to eat in the airport food court.

 

This link may prove useful:

https://www.hotelsbyday.com/en/hotels/canada/vancouver

[Serious Cruisers]

I am a huge fan of a day room when needed! Sleep a little take a nice shower some lunch. Its an awesome way to end a trip.  YVR has so many restaurants, an outlet mall near by, spas, enjoy!!

[Seasick Sailor]

If you are flying into Pearson, I would take the longest connection possible. It can be smooth as a soft creamy butter at times, and yet a nightmare at others. I would definitely not be comfortable with a 70 minute connection. The airport in my opinion is backwards, confusing, security and customs not friendly, and busy, busy, busy!  We've been thru 3 times in 3 years. In September we avoided Toronto entirely and flew into Quebec. 

[Kfrech]

Two years ago we flew to Calgary with a stop in MSP on Westjet—so simple!

 

I wish we could do the same flying to and from Vancouver from Pittsburgh, but the times just don’t work out. 

[martincath]

If you're seriously considering a day room at the Fairmont YVR, then here's a superior-and-also-cheaper option that will also save you time and get you a decent night's kip: book a flight EARLY the next day and overnight downtown at the YWCA hotel. It's cheap, clean, safe, and a great location to walk around the city from.

 

No wasted time going out to YVR to check in and return, no ridiculously overpriced room for a few hours, a full day to spend in Vancouver sightseeing, and by getting a 6-8am flight next day you avoid not only the minimal risk of your ship being delayed into port and missing a flight, but also any risk of long queues at YVR (all those annoying cruisers who head straight to the airport cannot possibly get there before you 😉) and you also get home at a civilized hour.

 

In comparison to a red-eye that's not long enough to actually sleep, arriving home early evening will likely be more productive, and certainly less hassle, than getting home by noon but immediately needing a nap, then trying not to nap too long so you can sleep again at your normal bedtime so you are functional for work next day...

 

Other sensible choice if you have pre-cruise time in Vancouver is to head down to Seattle, as you will get many more flight options from SEA - including nonstops. So you can either do a redeye from SEA or overnight in a cheap hotel there and take an early one next day.

 

 

[Serious Cruisers]

I live in downtown Vancouver, Fairmont YVR is not even comparabie to YWCA.  The Fairmont will come and get all your luggage from your room and take it right downstairs to the check-in counter.  They will let you know if your flight is detailed so you can stay longer in your room.  No need for taxis or public transportation.

 

All depends on your budget

[ger_77]

The latest we've been able to get off the ship was around 9:05, and that was only after our cabin steward called security and they pried my fingers off the door jamb to our cabin.  LOL   Seriously, you can wait in one of the lounges until you're paged, but by that time, they're getting pretty antsy to clear the ship and get on with the preparations for the next sailing.

 

Smooth Sailing!  🙂🙂🙂

[sevenseasnomad]

When we had a red eye out of Seattle in 2014 after an Alaska cruise, HAL offered a shore excursion that not only took care of our luggage but toured the city, starting at 8:30 a.m. and getting us to the airport at 5:30 p.m.  It was a long day but most enjoyable.  We even had reservations at the Space Needle Restaurant for lunch (not part of the tour but used as the free time the tour operator allowed).  By the time DH and I wandered around the airport and grabbed a sandwich, it was time to board. 

 

The excursion was top-notch with only 5 couples.  Our driver and tour guide allowed us to stop and wander around at many of the places we visited.  I don't think there were many parts of Seattle that we didn't see.  Very thorough and comprehensive.    Perhaps a similar excursion, a tour of Vancouver, would be offered on your cruise.  Might that be an option which would interest you?  Trying to offer an alternative that would make it easy for you.

[Kfrech]

I am really leaning towards a day room at the Fairmont. I looked into a few other hotels and although they are cheaper, they only allow you to stay until 5 p.m.; the Fairmont allows you to stay until 8 p.m.

 

We are from Pittsburgh and only Alaska Airlines flies non-stop (only 2 flights per day) to Pittsburgh. If anything, we'd consider going down to Seattle after the cruise, staying overnight in an airport hotel, and flying out the next morning. That would get us home around 4 p.m. on Sunday afternoon. Since I'm a teacher, I don't have to worry about going to work on Monday; it's my husband who I'm considering (he says one day without much sleep won't kill us).

 

I have looked into tours, but many of them are just not long enough. I might have to revisit that idea again.

[DAllenTCY]

It may not be of interest to you, but maybe to some.

There is a casino right next to the YVR Airport.

 

David

[Copper10-8]

51 minutes ago, ger_77 said:

The latest we've been able to get off the ship was around 9:05, and that was only after our cabin steward called security and they pried my fingers off the door jamb to our cabin.  LOL .........................

 

So that was you they told me about...................figures! 

[Seasick Sailor]

3 hours ago, ger_77 said:

The latest we've been able to get off the ship was around 9:05, and that was only after our cabin steward called security and they pried my fingers off the door jamb to our cabin.  LOL   Seriously, you can wait in one of the lounges until you're paged, but by that time, they're getting pretty antsy to clear the ship and get on with the preparations for the next sailing.

 

Smooth Sailing!  🙂🙂🙂

 

I believe we heard about you. Were you screaming "let me stay, I'll wash dishes"?

[ger_77]

12 hours ago, Copper10-8 said:

 

So that was you they told me about...................figures!

I figured you'd get around to hearing about me eventually . . .

9 hours ago, Seasick Sailor said:

 

I believe we heard about you. Were you screaming "let me stay, I'll wash dishes"?

No, that was my husband; his voice goes up dramatically when he whines.  I promised to shine all the shoes.

 

Smooth Sailing!  🙂🙂🙂

[I like vacation]

23 hours ago, Kfrech said:

 

 

These 2 flights come with their own risks: getting to the airport in a timely fashion and making the connections. They are also crazy expensive. I’m a nervous flyer to begin with, and stressing about this might not necessarily be a good thing. 

 

 

Have you looked at HAL Flight Ease for pricing??  Our airfare for our upcoming August TA cruise through HAL was a great price.

[Kfrech]

Can you book with Flight Ease if you’ve transferred your cruise to a TA?

[*Miss G*]

You may want to download Hopper and play with Google Flights to explore your options.  I did an advance search on United and it gives options for non-stop connects out of EWR, ORD, etc.  If you liked the Westjet flight out of Calgary you could also consider a flight to Calgary from YVR and connect from there. 

[Kfrech]

Thank you. I’ve done both of those. I’m also being picky with the airports that we connect through. I’m really going to have to consider all options.