Disembarking in Vancouver

[NJcabanas]

Hello Everyone! I need some more logistical advice for my inside passage cruise. I've decided to go to Victoria for a couple of days after leaving the Volendam this summer. Haven't made a reservation as yet, but I think I want to take one of the float planes from Vancouver Harbour to Victoria Harbour. What is the earliest I can expect to disembark and catch a flight on say Harbour Air? Should I book this flight on my own or is this an arrangement I should try to make through HAL? If the ship is late, are these small air carriers lenient about rebooking or refunds? Would appreciate any helpful hints from those who've had to go through this scenario. I have picked up so many great ideas from the HAL and Alaska boards!:D Thanks to you all.

[jhannah]

Under normal conditions, the ship will disembark everyone by 10:00. You'll probably be off earlier than that. But yes, the ship can be late for a variety of reasons. I have no experience with the harbor flight operators, but hopefully someone will be along soon to help you.

[Copper10-8]

Hello Everyone! I need some more logistical advice for my inside passage cruise. I've decided to go to Victoria for a couple of days after leaving the Volendam this summer. Haven't made a reservation as yet, but I think I want to take one of the float planes from Vancouver Harbour to Victoria Harbour. What is the earliest I can expect to disembark and catch a flight on say Harbour Air? Should I book this flight on my own or is this an arrangement I should try to make through HAL? If the ship is late, are these small air carriers lenient about rebooking or refunds? Would appreciate any helpful hints from those who've had to go through this scenario. I have picked up so many great ideas from the HAL and Alaska boards!:D Thanks to you all.

 

Sounds like a great way to end a cruise and get to Victoria. I would do it in a heartbeat! HAL will not make those kind of reservations for you; you will have to book it on your own. Looks like Harbour Air flies to Victoria on the half hour so booking a flight from 10:20 on should work for you. I would contact Harbour Air about the rebooking scanario. You might have to pay extra if you were to miss your flight. Don't know how much luggage you'll be bringing off the ship with you however be aware that some of those seaplanes are not real big i.e. the DHC-2 Beaver and/or DHC-3 Otter and have a limited cargo capacity. Just another question to ask when you contact them. Have a great cruise and an awesome trip to Victoria!

[garydm]

After one of our Alaska cruises, we rented a car in Vancouver and took the ferry over to Victoria, stayed a few days, then took another ferrry to Washington State and on into SeaTac. Very nice trip.

[Waxer]

Garydm,

 

We were planning (unimaginatively) to drive from Seattle to Vancouver. Can you post details on your ferry crossing via Victoria? That sounds like a lot more fun.

 

Everyone - we have to meet my elderly parents in Seattle; our TA advised us not to take a train or bus to Vancouver; how would *you* make this pre- and post-cruise "commute"?

 

Thanks, in advance

[Copper10-8]

Garydm,

 

We were planning (unimaginatively) to drive from Seattle to Vancouver. Can you post details on your ferry crossing via Victoria? That sounds like a lot more fun.

 

Everyone - we have to meet my elderly parents in Seattle; our TA advised us not to take a train or bus to Vancouver; how would *you* make this pre- and post-cruise "commute"?

 

Thanks, in advance

 

Check out this thread for transportation to and from Victoria/Vancouver Island including ferries from Washington State

http://www.bctravel.com/travel.html

[Tobintemp]

As mentioned in a previous post, there is a baggage allowance with Harbour Air - 25 pounds. West Coast Air and Helijet also have the baggage limitation as well.

[sail7seas]

That is REALLY traveling light. How does one do a 7 day cruise and then a post cruise stay with 25 pounds of luggage? The handbag I drag around with me everyday probably weighs about 8 pounds!!! ;)

 

[cruisequeen10]

There are many flights with Harbour Air throughout the day to Victoria. It costs approximately $100 per person each way. The planes only hold around 10 passengers. Don't know how much luggage is allowed. The website is www.harbourair.ca . The information should all be there. If not, there are phone numbers.

[Sopwith]

For those not in a hurry the ferry is a beautiful cruise through the islands (as if you haven't done enough cruising already). The ferries go every hour during the summer, and there is a bus service on the ferry from downtown Vancouver to Downtown Victoria. The whole trip takes about 3 hours, the sailing time is 1:35.

 

See www.bcferries.com and www.pacificcoach.com and enjoy.

 

Neil

[NJcabanas]

Thank you all for your help on my question, especially the “heads up” on the baggage weight limit. I am a frequent business flier and can usually live up to a week out of a smallish carry on. However, vacation usually requires at least one checked bag weighing about 50 pounds for the three of us. (Always seem to wind up taking out a pair of shoes or something to get that weight to 49.5;) ) Judging by the threads I’ve been reading about the range of clothes we may need on this inside passage cruise, we may have to have two largish bags. Thanks for the links to the websites; looks like Harbor Air and West Coast will also take “freight” for a fee and that may save us. I now have my list of questions for making the phone calls.

 

Thanks Neil in Vancouver for the info on Pacific Coach. We had planned to take them from Victoria back to Vancouver, as we will have more time at the end of our Victoria stay. If we can’t resolve the issue of the excess baggage, Pacific Coach will get some round trip passengers. So looking forward to seeing this area again. We went to EXPO 86 in Vancouver. At that time, there was a high-speed hydrofoil that traveled from Vancouver harbor to Victoria harbor and we took the BC ferry Victoria to Vancouver. I can't wait to see this area again and to travel on the Volendam!:D