1 full day in Vancouver / Going to Aquarium / Any other suggestions?

[Look2Sea]

Have 1 full day and night in Vancouver

 

Plan to visit Vancouver Aquarium?

I guess it depends on the person, but how much time for the aquarium?

 

Any suggestions on other activities to do, in addition to the aquarium?

[dustyroad]

dont miss a chance to tour stanley park. it is a gorgeous place and very interesting. take a carriage ride or just walk along the sea-wall for awhile. you wont regret it. also if you take the farry across the bay and get on a bus you can go too grouse mt. or suspension bridge. they are both worth going too. do a search of vancouver and it will give you some help in deciding what to do and how to go about it. also at the bottom of the forum page go to west coast. you will find a ton of info on vancouver especially from vancouveritte ( spelling ). have fun. i love vancouver and wish i were going in the near future.

[gsarnow]

If you are at all active, I would rent a bike on Denman Street near the entrance to Stanley Park and ride around the park...it is the most breathtaking ride you will ever take and it is completely flat...

[Look2Sea]

Thank you dustyroad and gsarnow :)

 

I was wondering if it is possible (time wise) to do the aquarium and

Grouse Mt / suspension bridge in one day.

 

The biking in Stanley Park is also a good idea.

[Lois R]

Granville Market:D:):D:)...all kinds of food and stuff...its a neat, neat

place!

I went with a friend and had lunch at a restaurant called "Bridges" which

is right on the Marina. The food and the location were absolutely

wonderful!

[franl24fan]

I was in Vancouver in May for 4 days. I spent about 2 hours at the Aquarium and that was more than adequate. It is a very nice place, but not that big. I loved Stanley Park, it is spectacular. One option would be a city tour thru West Coast Sightseeing, the one I did was about 4 hours and we went thru Stanley Park and over to Granville Island, plus other stops. Be careful around Gastown, there is a very rough neighborhood right next to Chinatown.

[vbmom87]

Thank you dustyroad and gsarnow :)

 

I was wondering if it is possible (time wise) to do the aquarium and

Grouse Mt / suspension bridge in one day.

 

The biking in Stanley Park is also a good idea.

 

You surely can visit the aquarium and Grouse in a day. Get to the Aquarium early and then head over to Grouse.

 

We ended up spending our day in Vancouver at Stanley park. We did the Aquarium...stayed several hours. Then we had lunch at the park and then drove all around stopping at the main points. We spent a long time at the tennis courts just observing the baby herons. We ended up leaving the park about 5:00 p.m. Had we wanted to head to Grouse Mountain, or anywhere else, we easily could have left Stanley Park after the Aquarium. It is all a matter of setting priorities. We all have different interests.

[dustyroad]

Thank you dustyroad and gsarnow :)

 

I was wondering if it is possible (time wise) to do the aquarium and

Grouse Mt / suspension bridge in one day.

 

The biking in Stanley Park is also a good idea.

 

yes, it is possible. on my first cruise to alaska leaving vancouver in 2003 i took a tour with land/sea tours ( i dont know if they are still in business ) but it was a wonder tour for about $55 american $$'s then. we toured stanley park, granville market, the bridge and took the tram halfway up the mt. they picked me up at my hotel by the airport on the morning of my cruise and dropped me off at the pier to get on the ship. you would need taxi's, buses or ferry's or rent a car too get too all these on your own, but they are wonderful things to do and duable. i hope you can do all the things you want to do . i love vancouver and would love to go back for a whole weeks vacation. dont forget that next year they have the summer olympics. it will be very busy then and hotels will be at premium costs and rooms will be very hard to get. but it would be a awesome event to see.

[Urban trekker]

"i took a tour with land/sea tours ( i dont know if they are still in business )"

 

Yes there are still very much in business.

 

Cheers

 

Dennis

[nadonative]

Oh...take the False Creek ferry to Granville Island! It is soooo neat! Public Market there and lots of shops, great food and arts, etc. You can buy an all day pass on the ferry and go to the Maritime museum, Granville Island, Yaletown, Plaza of Nations, Science World and the Aquatic Center. Or you can pick and choose where you go for a one-way price.

Stanley Park is amazing....you can spend the entire day there. The 2010 winter Olympics will be in Vancouver and the place is hopping getting ready for it. So much to see. We just got back home July 2. Alaska cruise then 3 days in Vancouver. We didn't stop for a second!

[Sugar&Buddy]

Based on comments this thread, Vancouver seems accessible with public transportation. We also have one full day and are considering HoHo trolley. Is this our best option? I believe ticket price includes False Creek Ferry transfer.

[admiral nelson]

I thought HoHo was a bit pricey but if you want to make multiple stops it may be a bit quicker than the bus system. Or, get a bus map in advance and time out your schedule and stops.

As for places to see -- we went to the anthropology music at the University of British Columbia and loved it. Beautiful totems and some good explanations of what you're seeing. UBC is about a 25-minute ride out of town on the bus and there are numerous routes serving it. We took the # 44, an express that stopped right outside the Sutton Place hotel: http://www.ubc.ca/about/directions.html

Granville Island would be great for a breakfast -- just nosh your way through the Farmer's Market.

[admiral nelson]

Sorry. Guess I've got a case of the monday mornings.

[Sugar&Buddy]

I thought HoHo trolley a bit pricey also. There website states $35 (no reference to Canadian when other tours they offer specifically say "Canadian dollars"), however, when I called they said it was $35 Canadian and exchange would be made automatically on credit card.

 

We will be having breakfast on the ship day of disembarkation but Granville sounds fantastic for lunch.

[minus]

There is so much to do in Vancouver and the public transportation is cheap and convenient. Biking in Stanley Park is great. The favourite thing that my boyfriend and I did was take a bus to Deep Cove and rent kayaks. It was a beautiful drizzly day and we saw bald eagles and gorgeous scenery!

[Urban trekker]

"bus to Deep Cove and rent kayaks"

 

Yes Indian Arm is a sort forgotten part of our local tourist possilibities.

 

Cheers

 

Dennis

[scottbee]

I thought HoHo was a bit pricey but if you want to make multiple stops it may be a bit quicker than the bus system. Or, get a bus map in advance and time out your schedule and stops.

As for places to see -- we went to the anthropology music at the University of British Columbia and loved it. Beautiful totems and some good explanations of what you're seeing. UBC is about a 25-minute ride out of town on the bus and there are numerous routes serving it. We took the # 44, an express that stopped right outside the Sutton Place hotel: http://www.ubc.ca/about/directions.html

Granville Island would be great for a breakfast -- just nosh your way through the Farmer's Market.

 

I seriously doubt that the HoHo is quicker than the local buses. The HoHo only runs every 15-30 minutes, most of the major bus routes in Vancouver are every 6-10.

[Look2Sea]

Thanks for all the ideas :)

 

Tentative plan:

Staying at Westin Bayshore

Walk to Vancouver Aquarium

Explore Stanley Park using Stanley Park shuttle

Granville Island

Downtown area (Robson Street, maybe Gastown)

Back to Westin Bayshore

 

Trying to figure out logistics after leaving Stanley Park.

Won't have a car. Probably won't do the HoHo trolley.

Either will use public transportation or take a taxi.

 

Does anyone know what bus to take? Or cost of taxi?

Is it best to go to Granville Island first and then the downtown area?

 

Where do you catch the False Creek Ferry to Granville Island.

Is there a bus that goes there from Stanley Park?

Or where would you take the taxi to catch the ferry?

 

 

Alternate plan would be to visit Capilano Suspension bridge and/or Grouse Mountain after Aquarium and Stanley Park.

 

But I am thinking that the Alaska cruise will provide a lot of natural beauty so it may be better to see more of the city area.

 

Has anyone ever taken bus or taxi from Stanley Park to Grouse Mountain and Capilano Suspension bridge?

[Look2Sea]

Have you visited The Lookout at Harbour Centre Tower?

Glass elevator / 430 feet in 40 seconds / 360 degree views of Vancouver area

 

Would you recommend it?