Vancouver answers from a Vancouverite

[Sunny AZ Girl]

Just before I set sail for a 22 day Panama Canal cruise - thanks for the thanks - I really enjoy being able to share the wonders of the city of my birth with anyone who wants to come and visit this beautiful City.

 

Cheers

 

Dennis

Have fun! You will be missed. And, I am green with jealousy for your upcoming cruise.;)

[cruiserjanet]

Well, we tried to make it up the Grind but we made a rookie mistake. We were overdressed so we got overheated. We could have made it if we were dressed properly and plan to try again in the future. Capilano was nice and definitely touristy. The transit system in Vancouver kicks Los Angeles transit's hiney.

[scottbee]

Well, we tried to make it up the Grind but we made a rookie mistake. We were overdressed so we got overheated. We could have made it if we were dressed properly and plan to try again in the future. Capilano was nice and definitely touristy. The transit system in Vancouver kicks Los Angeles transit's hiney.

 

You bet it does, and you'll see me on transit tomorrow, suitcases in tow on our way to our cruise...

[goodml]

Thanks to all. Currently on board Norwegian Star in our beautiful SJ suite. Had the bed and breakfast package at Best Western Downtown and it was perfectly fine. Breakfast at White Spot in the hotel was great. Dinner last night was at Cactus Cafe in Yaletown which is walking distance from hotel and very good. Rented a Chrysler 200 and Eminem was right. That's a great car now. :D

 

Anyway, I got side tracked lol. Really just posted to thank the locals for all the great info. Your city is wonderful.

[CanWeGoYet?]

Thanks to all. Currently on board Norwegian Star in our beautiful SJ suite. Had the bed and breakfast package at Best Western Downtown and it was perfectly fine. Breakfast at White Spot in the hotel was great. Dinner last night was at Cactus Cafe in Yaletown which is walking distance from hotel and very good. Rented a Chrysler 200 and Eminem was right.

 

Glad to hear it, I have the BW downtown booked for my cruise - still quite a wait. Will have to see the difference between the cruise transfer package & the bed & breakfast.

Was thinking about having dinner at the White Spot just to keep it simple, but have no idea what is recommended. What was the Cactus Cafe like?

[Putterdude]

The Cactus Club for many years was really more of a bar operation however in recent times they have acquired the services of a very renowned chef and now serve up great meals.

[jasminelee]

Looking for some Vancouver expertise. I am in the process of planning a 2012 Alaska cruise.

One of the ones I like disembarks in Vancouver on Monday, Sept 3-Labor (Labour) Day.

Is this something I want to avoid? Easy enough to pick another date. In which instance, would later in Sept be better for disembarkation? Like after school starts there?

thanks in advance

[ell52]

Looking for some Vancouver expertise. I am in the process of planning a 2012 Alaska cruise.

One of the ones I like disembarks in Vancouver on Monday, Sept 3-Labor (Labour) Day.

Is this something I want to avoid? Easy enough to pick another date. In which instance, would later in Sept be better for disembarkation? Like after school starts there?

thanks in advance

I can't see that this should be a problem. It's a holiday, but most stores and restaurants (other than government agencies, banks) will be open.

[Putterdude]

It will be a holiday but as pointed out by ell52, everything will be open. There will be no parades or major events and ordinarily there is only one ship in port on a Monday, however we won't have knowledge of the 2012 port sked until about February 2012.

[Lyn2005]

Wow, just found this thread and it has a wealth of information! I've done some searching for my questions but haven't found quite the right thing, I apologize if this is a duplicate.

 

We are in the process of booking an Alaskan cruise however we need to verify some info before we can complete it. We are going to be in Parksville for a few days prior to the cruise at a conference. Here are a couple of scenarios:

 

1. Flying to the island and arrive at the Nanaimo airport, renting a car at the airport. We were wondering if it would be possible to return the car to the airport and somehow get to the ferry port at Nanaimo to get across to the cruise ship terminal in Vancouver. How far is it once we get to the mainland from the ferry port to the cruise ship and how do we get there?

 

2. Flying into Victoria, renting a car, returning the car to the airport and take the Pacific Coast bus onto the ferry and right to the cruise ship terminal the morning of the cruise. It's a farther drive from Parksville to Victoria but maybe it would be simpler?

 

3. Taking a ferry from (somewhere) the night before the cruise and getting a hotel in Vancouver that offers a shuttle to the cruiseship.

 

Any info would be gratefully appreciated. We hope to start booking things soon, the cruise is next June.

[Putterdude]

With regard to option 1....that may prove to be the best. Double check on this but I would think that any of the major rental companies would be happy to shuttle you from their downtown Nanaimo location to the Departure Bay ferry terminal which is only 3 to 5 mins from their downtown locations. A ferry from there will put you about a 25 min cab ride from Horseshoe Bay in West Vancouver to Canada Place...plan that your fare will will be in the region of $60. You can take a transit bus from the Horseshoe Bay ferry terminal to within 6 blocks of Canada Place for $5 pp.

Option 2 would not be that great unless you want to spend some time in Victoria.

Option 3 could be combined with option 1....but not necessary if you take an early ferry out of Nanaimo.

There is a 4 option and that is a float plane service such as Harbour Air or West Coast Air from Nanaimo Harbour to Vancouver Harbour....the drawbacks: a fare of about $125 pp and no guarantee that your luggage will be on the same flight as you are on.

[Lyn2005]

Thanks for all your help! We probably are better staying at the hotel at Parksville and taking the ferry the morning of the cruise because we usually get very good rates at the hotel and it has a washer and dryer in the room which would help in getting our clothes ready for the cruise. I've checked prices in Vancouver near the port and they are considerably higher and also some hotels are showing no vacancies. It may just be that it is too far away to book or there is something going on in town (hockey?) on the Saturday night.

 

I think we are getting closer to booking the cruise and will figure the rest out later.

 

Thanks again!

[Kamloops50]

Another option is to find out if there is a bus that goes directly to the cruise terminal from Nanaiamo . Similar to the bus from Victoria .:cool:

[Lyn2005]

Haven't been able to find anything like that by googling. Maybe I'll call the Nanaimo ferry people to see if they can tell me. Thanks.

[Lyn2005]

I actually did just find Islandlinkbus.com, but all I see is a ferry from Departure Bay to Horseshoe Bay so we'd still have to make our way on our own to the cruise ship. Plus it doesn't leave until 10:40 and we'd rather be on our way a little earlier. Will keep trying.

[longislandlady]

Just found this sight loaded with info for our trip to Alaska May 2012. We are looking to book our hotel for 3 nights prior to our cruise. We are looking at the Blue Horizon or the Best Western downtown. Any input on these hotels and which one would you recommend. Any recommendations would be most appreciated.

[ell52]

I actually did just find Islandlinkbus.com, but all I see is a ferry from Departure Bay to Horseshoe Bay so we'd still have to make our way on our own to the cruise ship. Plus it doesn't leave until 10:40 and we'd rather be on our way a little earlier. Will keep trying.

 

It looks like Islandlinkbus.com is probably your best bet. It will get you from Nanaimo all the way to downtown Vancouver. The current drop off points in downtown are Burrard Skytrain Station, Rosedale Hotel and Olympic Village Skytrain Station. Burrard Skytrain station would be my suggestion. It's then either a relatively short (downhill) walk to Canada Place or a very short taxi ride.

Edited October 8, 2011 by ell52

[scottbee]

We are in the process of booking an Alaskan cruise however we need to verify some info before we can complete it. We are going to be in Parksville for a few days prior to the cruise at a conference. Here are a couple of scenarios:

 

1. Flying to the island and arrive at the Nanaimo airport, renting a car at the airport. We were wondering if it would be possible to return the car to the airport and somehow get to the ferry port at Nanaimo to get across to the cruise ship terminal in Vancouver. How far is it once we get to the mainland from the ferry port to the cruise ship and how do we get there?

 

You can probably return it in downtown Nanaimo and just grab a taxi to Departure Bay ferry terminal. (a rental agency like Enterprise may even drop you). Walk on the ferry ($14), then grab the city bus (#258) from Horseshoe Bay to downtown ($3.75; two zones).

 

Also check into the price of flights into YQQ/Comox, which is not much further from Parksville than YCD/Nanaimo.

 

 

2. Flying into Victoria, renting a car, returning the car to the airport and take the Pacific Coast bus onto the ferry and right to the cruise ship terminal the morning of the cruise. It's a farther drive from Parksville to Victoria but maybe it would be simpler?

 

If it's cheaper, it's about a 12-15$ taxi ride from YYJ to Swartz Bay. From there, walk on ($14/ea), then the 620 bus/Skytrain into downtown (change at Bridgeport) for $5/ea. However Parksville -> YYJ is a little over a 2hr drive

 

3. Taking a ferry from (somewhere) the night before the cruise and getting a hotel in Vancouver that offers a shuttle to the cruiseship.

 

Almost all hotels downtown are a $10 taxi ride to the cruise terminal, don't get too worked up about a free shuttle

 

 

 

Also, floatplane service from downtown Nanaimo to downtown Vancouver (2 blocks west of Canada Place) is about $55, which is another option. http://www.Harbour-Air.com

[Lyn2005]

All this info is a great help. As you can see we already booked the cruise, now we have time to think about the details.

 

We are kind of leaning towards the option of renting a car from Budget at the Nanaimo airport and returning it to the Budget location that is near Departure Bay, taking the early ferry to Horsehoe Bay and taking the city bus as suggested. Would that take us near the cruise port? I guess the one concern I have is lugging luggage onto a city bus. Maybe it would be better to get a cab fro Horseshoe Bay right to the cruise ship.

 

If the Islandlink bus was earlier in the day it would be more of an opton.

[scottbee]

All this info is a great help. As you can see we already booked the cruise, now we have time to think about the details.

 

We are kind of leaning towards the option of renting a car from Budget at the Nanaimo airport and returning it to the Budget location that is near Departure Bay, taking the early ferry to Horsehoe Bay and taking the city bus as suggested. Would that take us near the cruise port? I guess the one concern I have is lugging luggage onto a city bus. Maybe it would be better to get a cab fro Horseshoe Bay right to the cruise ship.

 

If the Islandlink bus was earlier in the day it would be more of an opton.

 

Luggage is easy on that bus. If you get off at Granville & Georgia, you're about a 4 block walk to the cruise terminal. If it's pouring with rain take the bus all the way to Stadium station (about 8 blocks further), transfer to Skytrain (using the same ticket) and ride to Waterfront. From there it's 1/2 a block to Canada Place.

[azlerner]

Will be in Vancouver mid Sept. 2012 with our two granddaughters ages 10 and 12. Would like suggestions on where to stay and what activities girls of that age might enjoy.

[Putterdude]

All this info is a great help. As you can see we already booked the cruise, now we have time to think about the details.

 

We are kind of leaning towards the option of renting a car from Budget at the Nanaimo airport and returning it to the Budget location that is near Departure Bay, taking the early ferry to Horsehoe Bay and taking the city bus as suggested. Would that take us near the cruise port? I guess the one concern I have is lugging luggage onto a city bus. Maybe it would be better to get a cab fro Horseshoe Bay right to the cruise ship.

 

If the Islandlink bus was earlier in the day it would be more of an opton.

 

Transit buses are not necessarily built to handle a lot of luggage but as long as you have say one large suitcase and a carry-on each and can handle all of your own luggage by yourselves, you shouldn't have a problem. You will be boarding the bus at the beginning of the route which makes it even easier. There are a number of express buses in to the city from Horseshoe Bay, a link to the schedule is provided below. I have taken the express bus in from Horseshoe Bay myself and it is rather a pretty ride. The walk from the bus stop to Canada place is slightly downhill and is a fairly easy walk. However if you do not want to be schlepping your luggage through the city then the taxi is your option. Incidently, I have often rented from Budget in Nanaimo and have found them to be most accommodating

http://westvancouver.ca/uploadedFiles/Roads_and_Transportation/Public_Blue_Bus_Transit/Online_Bus_Schedule/WVBB-257HB-VE-Weekdays.pdf

Edited October 8, 2011 by Putterdude

[Putterdude]

Will be in Vancouver mid Sept. 2012 with our two granddaughters ages 10 and 12. Would like suggestions on where to stay and what activities girls of that age might enjoy.

 

Without knowing your budget, all I can suggest at this point is that all of the big chains are represented in the downtown core and as downtown Vancouver is very compact all of the hotels are pretty close to one another.

Chains that are represented include Best Western, Sheraton, Ramada, Delta, Coast(2), Fairmont(3),Marriott, Renaissance, Hyatt, Pan Pacific....and the list goes on.

This that a youngster might like to visit would be the Aquarium in Stanley Park, the Science Centre, Granville Island and perhaps the Capilano Suspension Bridge.

[Lyn2005]

What about the Howard Johnsons Downtown? It's coming up at less than $200 taxes in. Do you know anything about it, the area it's in?

 

Thanks!

[Putterdude]

What about the Howard Johnsons Downtown? It's coming up at less than $200 taxes in. Do you know anything about it, the area it's in?

 

Thanks!

 

I would put it in the "just OK category" it is an older property just outside of the Granville Entertainment District but can still get a bit rowdy at night. Instead, check the Best Western - Downtown on Drake St. or the Blue Horizon on Robson St. Alternatively check Hotwire for Vancouver - Downtown, lots of people were getting the Sheraton at the Wall Centre for $135 this year.