What time to book flight out of Vancouver after cruise?

[sprockie]

Can you tell me what you would recommend for a post cruise flight time?  I've done as early as 11:30 in Fort Lauderdale, but we haven't been to the Vancouver airport.  

[RocketMan275]

1 hour ago, sprockie said:

Can you tell me what you would recommend for a post cruise flight time?  I've done as early as 11:30 in Fort Lauderdale, but we haven't been to the Vancouver airport.  

Have you checked flight times?  We cruised out of YVR a couple of years ago and there were very few flights that worked.  Most were far to early in the AM.  If I were to do Vancouver again, I would book a room for the night and catch a flight the next morning.

[DougH]

Definitely not before 12 noon, for me 1-2 pm is the sweet spot

[Northern Aurora]

Given the schedule of our preferred airline we stay overnight at a Vancouver airport hotel and fly out the next day.  And US citizens need to remember that they clear US Immigration before departure.

Edited January 14, 2023 by Northern Aurora
Clarify sentence

[3girlsmom]

I think the answer depends on several personal factors such as physical fitness, familiarity with the airport, frequent flyer status,  etc. For someone who has mobility issues and no priority at check-in or security, I wouldn't book a flight before noon for sure. 

There's a WestJet flight from YVR to SNA at 11:15 am. After a few occasions of getting to YVR for our much later flight WITH connections  : (  and passing the WestJet gate and noticing we would've had no problem making that non-stop flight, we finally tried it and it was great!  But.... we are physically able to do the early luggage self carry-off, roll our bags the several blocks to the Skytrain and wrangle them on the ride, plus we've been fortunate to have priority getting off the ship as soon as it was cleared. At the airport we have TSA Global Entry and are familiar with the airport and the automated machines.

The last 2 times we flew home from YVR on that 11:15 flight, we made it to our gate with over an hour to spare before boarding. It was fabulous to be home so early!

If you are flying roundtrip in and out of YVR but haven't been there before, I think it's still do-able. Just take notes when you arrive where you will go for check-in, where the Skytrain is, how to get to the train station from the ship etc, so you don't have any surprises. I assume you could also arrange a driver and make it, but I wouldn't rely on an Uber or taxi and you never know what the street traffic will be.

Good Luck!

[DEBCAT65]

1 hour ago, 3girlsmom said:

I think the answer depends on several personal factors such as physical fitness, familiarity with the airport, frequent flyer status,  etc. For someone who has mobility issues and no priority at check-in or security, I wouldn't book a flight before noon for sure. 

There's a WestJet flight from YVR to SNA at 11:15 am. After a few occasions of getting to YVR for our much later flight WITH connections  : (  and passing the WestJet gate and noticing we would've had no problem making that non-stop flight, we finally tried it and it was great!  But.... we are physically able to do the early luggage self carry-off, roll our bags the several blocks to the Skytrain and wrangle them on the ride, plus we've been fortunate to have priority getting off the ship as soon as it was cleared. At the airport we have TSA Global Entry and are familiar with the airport and the automated machines.

The last 2 times we flew home from YVR on that 11:15 flight, we made it to our gate with over an hour to spare before boarding. It was fabulous to be home so early!

If you are flying roundtrip in and out of YVR but haven't been there before, I think it's still do-able. Just take notes when you arrive where you will go for check-in, where the Skytrain is, how to get to the train station from the ship etc, so you don't have any surprises. I assume you could also arrange a driver and make it, but I wouldn't rely on an Uber or taxi and you never know what the street traffic will be.

Good Luck!

We are flying out of Vancouver in Sept and just starting our research.  Our flight leaves at 1:45, so we are not worried about time, just the logistics of getting to airport.   We are just starting our research, however, to get to airport, would we take the Canada Line, route from Waterfront Station (Downtown Vancouver, to YVR?  We have never been to Vancouver before.....P.S., we used to live in Foothill Ranch, not too far from Newport.  

[Ashland]

We just did this on our RCI Alaska itinerary this past September. We had no trouble making a noon flight. However to assure that this is what we opted to do. We were an extended family with 4 adults and 2 kids 5/8. We did self assist and took the elevator from the terminal upstairs to the Pan Pacific Hotel walked out to the curb and our private transportation was waiting.

 

Even if there would have been just the two of and there have been several times debarking at this port we have never had trouble with a noon flight time.

Edited January 15, 2023 by Ashland

[3girlsmom]

1 hour ago, DEBCAT65 said:

We are flying out of Vancouver in Sept and just starting our research.  Our flight leaves at 1:45, so we are not worried about time, just the logistics of getting to airport.   We are just starting our research, however, to get to airport, would we take the Canada Line, route from Waterfront Station (Downtown Vancouver, to YVR?  We have never been to Vancouver before.....P.S., we used to live in Foothill Ranch, not too far from Newport.  

Hi ex-neighbor DEBCAT65  : )  Yes you take the Canada Line route right to YVR. You simply walk the 0.2 miles from the port to the train station. I found a lot of hints about the best way to walk there on Cruise Critic. It's very simple just don't go in the wrong entrance. On the street you pass what I recall looks like a subway entrance with stairs going down, you don't want that one. Go to the main entrance of the Waterfront train station where you can buy your tickets from machines right inside the lobby. There was an agent there to help if needed.

You stay on until you reach the last stop which is the airport. Super easy and inexpensive. I believe the ride is about 25-30 minutes long and trains leave every 5-7 minutes. 

[Urban trekker]

Just a note of caution 3girlsmom - it's every second train that goes to YVR - the other train goes into Richmond town center - if you do screw up and take the wrong train and you realize this before you get to Bridgeport station - you can exit your train there and wait for the next train to take you to the airport.

You don't actually have to buy a ticket from the ticketing machine anymore - at the fare gate just tap your credit card and the gate should open. Also it is now possible as of this week to use a Canadian linked debit card for payment.

Dennis

[shofer]

On 1/14/2023 at 7:38 PM, DEBCAT65 said:

We are flying out of Vancouver in Sept and just starting our research.  Our flight leaves at 1:45, so we are not worried about time, just the logistics of getting to airport.   We are just starting our research, however, to get to airport, would we take the Canada Line, route from Waterfront Station (Downtown Vancouver, to YVR?  We have never been to Vancouver before.....P.S., we used to live in Foothill Ranch, not too far from Newport.  

We were leaving Alaska ending in Vancouver and booked the transfer through the cruise line which was Princess.  Our flight was at 10:30 AM and Princess handled it like champs. Our TA confirmed it through Princess as to the earliest they would handle.  Everyone on this site was naysaying we would never make it.  Canadian Customs met us at the gangplank to check our passports for our "entry" into Canada.  Our bus actually arrived before our luggage but by just a few minutes.  We had acquired Global Entry cards but there were only a few people at Customs for leaving Canada and we were at our gate 1/2 hour before boarding.

[em-sk]

On 1/14/2023 at 9:29 AM, sprockie said:

Can you tell me what you would recommend for a post cruise flight time?  I've done as early as 11:30 in Fort Lauderdale, but we haven't been to the Vancouver airport.  

 

Depends on where your heading.   If you staying in Canada and heading back east I would go for a flight leaving around noon.  

 

 

 

 

 

[SuzieQ521]

Hello:

 

We are looking into a Princess Cruise, 3 nights from SF to Vancouver in late April.

 

The ship is supposed to arrive back in Vancouver at 7:30 a.m. on a Monday; in looking at return flights to SF, there are some 12 p.m./12:30 p.m. flights on WestJet, Air Canada or United (right now they are all about same price).

 

We would be self disembarking with our own luggage off the ship so I think those flight times are feasible? Do you think it would be faster to do the train or find a ride share/taxi? I assume that the train would be less expensive?

 

Thanks 

[swanhaven]

37 minutes ago, SuzieQ521 said:

Hello:

 

We are looking into a Princess Cruise, 3 nights from SF to Vancouver in late April.

 

The ship is supposed to arrive back in Vancouver at 7:30 a.m. on a Monday; in looking at return flights to SF, there are some 12 p.m./12:30 p.m. flights on WestJet, Air Canada or United (right now they are all about same price).

 

We would be self disembarking with our own luggage off the ship so I think those flight times are feasible? Do you think it would be faster to do the train or find a ride share/taxi? I assume that the train would be less expensive?

 

Thanks 

I say train will be faster and is less expensive for sure. To mirror what's been said, just go to the Canada Line at Waterfront Station (just around the corner from the port) and hop on the train labelled YVR.

Super easy trip and about 1/2 hour.

Edited January 29, 2023 by swanhaven

[martincath]

2 hours ago, SuzieQ521 said:

H...in looking at return flights to SF, there are some 12 p.m./12:30 p.m. flights on WestJet, Air Canada or United (right now they are all about same price).

 

We would be self disembarking with our own luggage off the ship so I think those flight times are feasible? Do you think it would be faster to do the train or find a ride share/taxi? I assume that the train would be less expensive?

SkyTrain would run CAD$4.45pp for adults; $3.05 for >65s if you use the ticket vending machines to buy a Concession fare. On a weekday, you do need to specify how many Zones you are traveling through - 2 to the airport. If you each have credit cards with tappable chips (VISA/MC anyway, not AmEx) you can avoid the TVMs though and just tap your card on the faregate when you enter and exit the station - system will do the math and charge you for the correct number of zones.

 

So yes, absolutely cheaper than a cab - given that traffic in the morning is mostly the opposite direction though, a metered cab ride (approx. CAD$35) might be quicker if there's no queue to board it. April being start of season, quite often only one ship is in port and if you self-disembark from the only ship the odds of hopping right into a cab go way up.

 

Personally I'd be taking a later flight though - even if you have to get home for work next day, why not take advantage of a half-day here? Compared to SF we are dirt-cheap for fine dining! Make a booking right now for one of our new Michelin starred restos at 5 or 6pm, have a fabulous meal before heading to YVR for a late evening flight. Stash your bags for the day and see a few sights too!

[SuzieQ521]

31 minutes ago, martincath said:

SkyTrain would run CAD$4.45pp for adults; $3.05 for >65s if you use the ticket vending machines to buy a Concession fare. On a weekday, you do need to specify how many Zones you are traveling through - 2 to the airport. If you each have credit cards with tappable chips (VISA/MC anyway, not AmEx) you can avoid the TVMs though and just tap your card on the faregate when you enter and exit the station - system will do the math and charge you for the correct number of zones.

 

So yes, absolutely cheaper than a cab - given that traffic in the morning is mostly the opposite direction though, a metered cab ride (approx. CAD$35) might be quicker if there's no queue to board it. April being start of season, quite often only one ship is in port and if you self-disembark from the only ship the odds of hopping right into a cab go way up.

 

Personally I'd be taking a later flight though - even if you have to get home for work next day, why not take advantage of a half-day here? Compared to SF we are dirt-cheap for fine dining! Make a booking right now for one of our new Michelin starred restos at 5 or 6pm, have a fabulous meal before heading to YVR for a late evening flight. Stash your bags for the day and see a few sights too!

Thank you so much! Very helpful information. 

 

We love Vancouver (been three times before) but unfortunately we would need to get back to get our son in the SF area where my parents are watching him. We are from Vegas so would likely be flying back there the next day from the Bay Area.

 

May I also ask if you would choose West Jet or Air Canada back to SF (both about the same price?). We flew West Jet a few years ago and it was fine (I believe it is equivalent to our Southwest airlines which we fly often).

 

Thanks

 

[martincath]

29 minutes ago, SuzieQ521 said:

Thank you so much! Very helpful information. 

 

We love Vancouver (been three times before) but unfortunately we would need to get back to get our son in the SF area where my parents are watching him. We are from Vegas so would likely be flying back there the next day from the Bay Area.

 

May I also ask if you would choose West Jet or Air Canada back to SF (both about the same price?). We flew West Jet a few years ago and it was fine (I believe it is equivalent to our Southwest airlines which we fly often).

 

Thanks

 

Ah, OK, I assumed you were from somewhere in the Bay area if that's where you were flying to - although Vegas ain't cheap for good food these days either!

 

If price is similar, AC does offer more than WJ - including nonstop flights which is a huge win on a short route like YVR-SFO. The time wasted by transferring on a flight this short can easily double your travel time; having skimmed WJs options for Mondays in April some of their routes are maddeningly indirect - almost 4 hours with a very tight connection time in Seattle is the best they offer, compared to 2.5hrs nonstop on AC... that's a total no-brainer!

 

But check US airlines too - some of the AC/WJ flights will be codeshares, maybe you collect points and booking the same flight via United or Delta might earn you more than on their Canadian partners.

 

 

Edited January 29, 2023 by martincath

[em-sk]

1 hour ago, SuzieQ521 said:

Thank you so much! Very helpful information. 

 

We love Vancouver (been three times before) but unfortunately we would need to get back to get our son in the SF area where my parents are watching him. We are from Vegas so would likely be flying back there the next day from the Bay Area.

 

May I also ask if you would choose West Jet or Air Canada back to SF (both about the same price?). We flew West Jet a few years ago and it was fine (I believe it is equivalent to our Southwest airlines which we fly often).

 

Thanks

 

 

 

Both WestJet and Air Canada are about the same.  There are non-stop flights with both airlines.

 

Air Canada partners with United and you can credit miles to your United loyalty program.

 

WestJet partners with Delta in the US and you can credit miles to the Delta program if you collect miles. 

 

[martincath]

5 hours ago, em-sk said:

Both WestJet and Air Canada are about the same.  There are non-stop flights with both airlines.

Not to SFO until April 30th according to WestJet... no use to this poster who has a Monday flight in late April, since the first Monday nonstop this year is on May 1st.