Seattle to Vancouver post cruise shuttle

[Jcol5786]

Hello,

 

Next May we will be doing an Alaska cruise on RCI which leaves from Vancouver and returns to Seattle. We are looking for the easiest way to get back to Vancouver after we disembark. This will be on a Saturday and we will be docked at pier 91. I see that there is a shuttle service called Quickshuttle that appears to have a pickup time of 9:20am which will take us back and drop us off at various downtown Vancouver locations. The schedule for this service isn't set yet for 2024 so it may not even be availalbe for this day. If it is available is this our best option? Does anyone know if RCI offers a return shuttle?

Any suggestions will be appreciated.

 

Thanks

[Glaciers]

If you don’t mind spending the day in Seattle to explore a bit, Amtrak has a 7pm departure to Vancouver. It’s a relaxing ride with good views along the coast.

[Jcol5786]

Thanks for the suggestion but exploring might be difficult when we have our bags to drag around. That's why I'm looking for something near the pier.

[Glaciers]

Quick Shuttle may be your best bet since they pick up at Smith Cove. @Ferry_Watcher may have suggestions here.  There’s always luggage storage at the Purple Store next to Pike Place Market.

[Ferry_Watcher]

Prior to this season, (2023), we would always see the Quick Shuttle bus swing thru Pier 91 to see if there were passengers waiting.  This season, we saw the bus early in the season, but I don't recall seeing it lately.  You might want to check with the Quick Shuttle folks and see if they only stop at Pier 91 if they know that there are passengers waiting to be picked up, or if you need to take a cab or Uber to another location to catch the bus.

 

 

21 hours ago, Glaciers said:

Quick Shuttle may be your best bet since they pick up at Smith Cove. @Ferry_Watcher may have suggestions here.  There’s always luggage storage at the Purple Store next to Pike Place Market.

[Jcol5786]

On 8/12/2023 at 12:16 PM, Ferry_Watcher said:

Prior to this season, (2023), we would always see the Quick Shuttle bus swing thru Pier 91 to see if there were passengers waiting.  This season, we saw the bus early in the season, but I don't recall seeing it lately.  You might want to check with the Quick Shuttle folks and see if they only stop at Pier 91 if they know that there are passengers waiting to be picked up, or if you need to take a cab or Uber to another location to catch the bus.

 

 

Thanks for this Ferry_Watcher. Their online calander does not go out to May 2024 yet but I will check with them as we get closer to our sail date. If Quick Shuttle ends up not being an option what would be our next best option to get back to Vancouver?

[Meander Ingwa]

Amtrak

Fly

Flixbus

Grayhound

[CoW mAn]

The Amtrak train is a lovely trip and spacious smooth ride but doesn't run frequently but that would be my choice

[GTJ]

On 8/11/2023 at 7:22 AM, Jcol5786 said:

Next May we will be doing an Alaska cruise on RCI which leaves from Vancouver and returns to Seattle. We are looking for the easiest way to get back to Vancouver after we disembark. This will be on a Saturday and we will be docked at pier 91. I see that there is a shuttle service called Quickshuttle that appears to have a pickup time of 9:20am which will take us back and drop us off at various downtown Vancouver locations.

Prior to the pandemic Quick Coach Lines had operated a more extensive schedule: in 2020 it had planned to operate five daily trips, and a sixth trip on weekends (Friday through Monday). It did not, however, provide service to pier 91. In the present post-pandemic era, the company is operating four trips on weekends only (Thursday through Monday, except one trip that operates on Wednesdays instead of Thursdays). It has been during this post-pandemic era, in 2022, that bus stops were added at piers 91 and 66 in Seattle. These are service levels for the summer season, which runs from the beginning of May through the end of September.

 

For the year 2024 I would anticipate that Quick Coach Lines will be operating at least as much service as it has been operating this year (meaning, at least four trips), and that is is possible that an additional trip or two could be added to the schedule. It is possible that the bus stops at piers 91 and 66 were added as experimental stops, and could be deleted for the 2024 season. However, if these stops were not adequately performing, I would expect that they would have already been deleted by now, without having been operated now for two years straight. Additionally, I note that the winter schedule has includes a stop at pier 66, and that the winter schedule, with a stop at pier 66, has been published through the end of April 2024.

 

From all of this I would expect that the summer 2024 schedule will offer a pick-up from pier 91 on Saturdays at 9:30 a.m., arriving in Vancouver at the Holiday Inn at 2:10 p.m., at Waterfront station at 2:20 p.m., and at Canada Place at 2:30 p.m. This is speculative, but I would give it 85 percent probability. Should service not be continued at pier 91 in summer 2024, then you would need to travel elsewhere in Seattle to board a motorcoach or train back to Vancouver. Most of these other services would pick up in downtown Seattle (to which there exists public transportation service, albeit a bit clumsy to access).

[jkmmah]

I am doing this for the first time next month. I am very much looking forward to it.

 

For those who can advise, how much time should I allow in leaving our SeaTac area hotel in the morning to get to the downtown Amtrak station for the morning train? I want to have plenty of buffer if needed.

[GTJ]

30 minutes ago, jkmmah said:

For those who can advise, how much time should I allow in leaving our SeaTac area hotel in the morning to get to the downtown Amtrak station for the morning train? I want to have plenty of buffer if needed.

How do you anticipate traveling to King Street station? By bus? By train? By automobile? Otherwise? From where will you be starting, and how much access time will there be from that starting location to the location from which your transportation will departing? The time required can vary substantially based on these variables.

[jkmmah]

39 minutes ago, jkmmah said:

I am doing this for the first time next month. I am very much looking forward to it.

 

For those who can advise, how much time should I allow in leaving our SeaTac area hotel in the morning to get to the downtown Amtrak station for the morning train? I want to have plenty of buffer if needed.

Sorry. I meant to post this in a different thread.