martincath

We are mobile but wonder if we would see some other interesting sights/landmarks on the loop.

 

Yes - check the trolley website for details of what you see on each of their loops. But watch for your timing - if you literally just ride the route without getting off you'll do fine (but might want to consider a regular bus tour from Landsea or others rather than a HOHO) but if you are hopping on & off at a few spots, the trolleys run about 20minutes apart - and they do run full in high season, so you might have to wait for the next one.

 

If you will also have time after you return from your cruise, then buying your HOHO in advance online gives you a second day of use free (you trade in your printed-out invoice to the driver when you board for two separate tickets plus a map, some vouchers for discounts around town etc.) - you can use it up to 2 weeks after your first day.

 

If you're just looking at spending the morning pre-cruise though, and primarily want to see the park, then a better value option would be the Park Shuttle - it's run by the trolley company, has more stops inside the park (15 if memory serves rather than the 6 on the red loop) and is just $10 as opposed to the $35+ for a one-day general HOHO.

 

Local transit bus #19 will get you to the park for $2.50 cash fare (less if you're seniors, buy a book of 10 tickets etc.) or a cab to/from the pier should be about $10.

^ What PD said :)

 

And just in case you might be doing some touring around pre- or post-cruise, since you like White Spot here's the link to their locations: http://whitespot.ca/locations.htm

I have booked the Sheraton Wall Centre for this Friday night prior to our cruise departure Saturday. We will arrive at YVR around 11:30a.m. We would like to take the Skytrain from the airport to the hotel. Which station is closest to the hotel and how far will it be to make the walk to the hotel from the station? Also, we'd love any suggestions for breakfast Saturday morning near the hotel.

Vancouver City Centre Station is the closest, and it's on the Canada Line you'd be taking from the airport. Distance on foot is approx 750 metres/800 yards - you will be underground at this station and need to follow signs onto the street (I'd head for the Robson Street end of the underground area, then turn right along Robson and left down Hornby - there's an entrance to the hotel right next to Starbucks).

 

Scottbee has some excellent pictures of the Canada Line, not sure if they include City Centre station - but I'm sure he'll be along to recommend which signs to follow soon.

 

As to breakfast next morning, you're close to the Twisted Fork on Granville - which has people queueing for up to an hour for brunch on weekends - or the Denny's on Davie if you want something a bit more traditional.

I concur (and heartily) with SBs recs of Alibi & St Augustines. The former has the best beer selection in the province, if not all of Canada; the latter can be too loud when busy but their food makes up for the volume...

Martincath, Dad and I are planning on having plenty of beer and cocktails too - in fact our first stop will likely be the Granville Island brewery! However, I appreciate all of the additonal options for wine.

While you're on Granville Island also consider Dockside in the G.I. Hotel. I find them much more focused on lagers which isn't my thing, but if you or your dad prefer lighter beer styles it might be right up your alley. And it's just a few minutes drunken stagger between here and GIB ;)

...Also any suggestions on eateries on Granville Island?

I usually avoid recommending anywhere I haven't eaten personally, but Edible Canada have a long history of excellent event dining and I've heard nothing but good about their recently-opened bistro. It's the only place downtown that only uses duck fat for their fries (if anyone knows different, please correct me!). They're all about local & organic produce.

 

I think UT meant the Sandbar rather than -piper; there's also Cats Social House (comfort/pub cuisine but with quite a West Coasty focus) as a cheaper alternative. My personal fave in terms of bang-for-your-buck is the student kitchen at PICA, Bistro101 - quality food and service from well-supervised students.

... Does anyone have suggestions for restaurants near the Westin Bayshore? We are not huge seafood fans (but it is not completely out of the question). My dad is also not super fond of Asian (even though I love it all). We both like pub and gastro pub type food as well as Greek and Italian. The restaurant must have beer or wine! <snip>

 

However, I tried looking at the various restaurant menus to see if there was a good place to sample several glasses of BC wine. While most had a couple of options, do you have any suggestions for a place that might have a more extensive list where I would be able to sample more than one or two?

 

Lift as already mentioned fits your food req; they have several local wines by the glass - I don't think you'll find a better selection in a more convenient location for the Westin. If you're willing to go a bit further for your wine sampling there are a couple of good by-the-glass lists in Yaletown - George (better-known for cocktails, but a lengthy wine list with high proportion of locals by the glass), Hamilton Street Grill (a very good value steakhouse with a surprisingly large local by-the-glass list), or Hidden (inside the Westin at Robson & Homer - not very well-hidden at all actually...) for example. I especially enjoy ending the evening in Hidden as the clientele mostly disappears after 7pm - it's extremely 'hotel business guest' focused - so you can easily get a comfy seat, interesting nibbles and very well-priced port.

 

You also mention beer above - personally I think the craft beer scene in BC is significantly better than the wine (not that we don't make good wines, but our beer is truly world-class). Almost every bar in Vancouver has at least a couple of 'micro-macros' on draft - like Granville Island or Whistler breweries - and both Rogue and Steamworks, conveniently located downtown, have a wide variety available (both owned by same folks, but the latter is brewed in-house where the former brings in other breweries products from all over BC, WA & OR). I would eat in Rogue but not in Steamworks - too inconsistent.

 

You could also consider one of our Izakayas - Hapa West End and Guu Robson are close to the Westin. Order for your dad - despite the Japanese names you can get pork chops, chicken wings, sausages and other acceptable-to-unadventurous-western-guys food. If he eats rare steak, try beef tataki - and if he likes that, order tuna tataki. It worked on my dad;)

 

Hope this helps!

I have to catch an Amtrac bus from RR station in Vancouver at 1150 Station St.

Would I be better off taking a taxi from Canada Place or ride the skytrain?

 

How far is the skytrain station from Canada Place?

 

Thanks in advance. This will be Tuesday, May 15 at 10am.

 

Greg

Better - depends... I assume you can manage all your bags or you wouldn't be asking about taking transit.

 

A cab from Canada Place will almost certainly be $10 or a little less (by 10am traffic rush-hour should be almost over). Assuming you don't have to wait for one (if you're among the earliest off the ship you won't wait; I've heard people mention up to 30 minutes when multiple ships are in dock) you'll be there in under 10 minutes.

 

A Skytrain ticket would be $2.10 if you have bought a book of 10 or $2.50 if you're paying cash. Main Street Skytrain station involves crossing the road and walking through a small park - call it one city block - to reach Pacific Central train station, and unless you find the entrance SB mentioned to get into Waterfront Skytrain station near the pier you'll be walking about 3 blocks to the platform, whether under- or over-ground. Both the Expo and Millennium lines run through Main Street so you won't wait more than 2-3 minutes for a train, then it's 6 minutes on the train.

 

In short - if you jump right in a cab you'll probably get there a couple of minutes faster; more than a few minutes wait for a cab means the skytrain is quicker. If there are four of you a cab is basically the same price; if it's just you the Skytrain saves you c.$7-8.

 

The part of the Skytrain that rides along the waterfront past Scienceworld also gives a very nice view across False Creek, so I'd give the Skytrain the win on aesthetics:)

 

What's better? That's up to you!

[quote name='trinaM']Hi dennis,

the place I am staying is on Richards in the downtown core(Van)
I am looking for a good poutine. also other good "cheap" eats .. thanks.[/quote]
Unless you're down at Richards & Davie then [URL="http://frenchies-diner.com/home/"]Frenchies[/URL] should be the most convenient - it's between Richards & Homer. If you are near Davie, then [URL="http://www.fritzfries.ca/"]Fritz[/URL] will be closest (it's on the third block along from Richards).

You also asked about Frites - the only actual Belgian menu I know downtown is [URL="http://www.chambar.com/"]Chambar[/URL], which is a dinner-only semi-fancy joint. You can sit at the bar and order appies, which includes IMHO the best poutine in town, but stray onto the entrees and you won't find much of anything for less than $25-30. Very tasty, but not cheap.

Cheap eats downtown - noodle places abound everywhere, Japanese/Chinese/Vietnamese/Fusion based and all will feed you pretty well for $10 or less a big bowl. My favourite is the premium pork broth at [URL="http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/14/1602269/restaurant/Yaletown/Ramen-Jinya-Vancouver"]Ramen Jinya[/URL], 270 Robson St (2 blocks off Richards).

Izakayas (= Japanese Pub serving small nibbly plates of a wide variety of foods) are also common throughout downtown Vancouver; local chains with a great rep include [URL="http://hapaizakaya.com/"]Hapa[/URL] and [URL="http://guu-izakaya.com/"]Guu[/URL].

A tremendous cheap meal can be had at [URL="http://lataqueria.ca/"]La Taqueria[/URL] - original branch at 322 West Hastings St is just over a block off Richards. Just a little further down Hastings at Victory Square (huge war memorial is easy to spot) you'll find the main branch of [URL="http://nuba.ca/"]Nuba[/URL], a Lebanese resto (have the cauliflower, even if you normally hate the stuff - it's sooooooo good).

Anywhere on Richards you won't be too far from Yaletown - while there are some pretty pricey restos there, you can also find some bargains. [URL="http://www.hamiltonstreetgrill.com/"]Hamilton Street Grill[/URL] always places among the top few steakhouses in the local newspaper/magazine annual awards and is half the price of Gotham; [URL="http://www.cachebistro.com/"]Cache[/URL] offers a very good value table d'hote dinner for $35; Hapa Izakaya has a branch here.

If you don't mind walking through somewhat sketchy areas, then the non-touristy parts of Gastown offer some options too - [URL="http://saveonmeats.ca/"]Save On Meats[/URL] diner is outrageously cheap (one of the best burgers in town for $6, a breakfast sandwich & coffee to go for $3.48) and [URL="http://www.deaconscorner.ca/"]Deacon's Corner[/URL] is often praised as serious value for breakfast/lunch (caveat - I find the service randomly surly/slow and the kitchen rather heavyhanded with salt; they're right across the road from the [URL="http://www.alibi.ca/"]Alibi Room[/URL] though which is hands-down the best pub for craft beer in town - heck, pretty much anywhere in Canada).

If that doesn't do it for you, give a more detailed breakdown of $ you want to spend and genre of food preferred and we'll go from there...

You are correct Yenta, ignore my post 2 above. I wish Editing lasted at least 24hours instead of 20minutes!

I guess the port were listening to the demands...

 

Baggage Storage 6am to 5pm $4 per bag (scroll to bottom of page)

Does anyone know if a mobility scooter can ride on the ferry? I could not find anything on their website and they don't have anyone answer the phone.

The Cyquabus ferries can definitely handle wheelchairs - they're designed for roll-on & -off for wheelchairs and bikes - but it's probably best to check with them by email about a scooter: service@theaquabus.com

Edit: Cyquabus is just what the Aquabus people call their bike & wheelchair accessible design, it's the same company/tickets/everything except the layout of the vessel!

We will be driving from Vancouver to Seattle. What is the process at the border? What do we need besides our passports? How long does the process take? Thanks anyone who can help.

 

~Marilyn

Assuming you're a US Citizen without a criminal record (NB: this *does* include DUIs, minor drug possession charges etc.) then the process is usually pretty simple: show correct ID, answer the CBSA officers questions politely and be welcomed to Canada.

 

On the logistical side, here's a link to the estimated border wait times and admissibility rules. You should be able to find a detailed list of what you can't bring on the CBSA website too - but if all you have is going to go on the cruise with you there shouldn't be any problems.

 

If you dig around on the site you can find an exportable database to crunch the numbers yourself, but quiet times are early mornings, late evenings, and early afternoon on weekdays. There are helpful signs as you approach the border giving wait times at both the Peace Arch and Pacific Highway crossings - unless PH is showing 15+ minutes less delay don't bother rerouting as it adds at least 10 minutes extra driving.

 

Barring the queue at the border, you'll either be on your way within 2 minutes of talking to the officer or sent to secondary screening which can take many minutes to hours.

 

As to the queue - we've been able to drive right to a booth at times, waited over an hour at others, it's always going to be a crapshoot but if you go very early/very late most likely you'll be waiting less than 15 minutes. Unless it's a holiday weekend when all bets are off!

This may have been too dumb of a question to respond to, but I will cross my fingers & hope that some kind soul will try to answer it anyway.

 

I've read that there is more than 1 HOHO bus for Vancouver, the Vancouver Trolley is the one with live narration (instead of a recording). I want to try to take this bus instead of the others - what is their route or what would be the closest place for me to get to a pick up point? I am staying at the Best Western on Drake.

Actually I did already answer you... I suggest you Follow a thread that you add a question to, so you'll get an email summary with the text of the replies in. To tweak the old quote "There's no such thing as too dumb a question, but not listening when you get an answer..." ;)

Wonder if that means you have to have a train ticket to use it. Or do they restrict what you can store? We will just have normal luggage.

Both - you need a ticket, photo ID and can't store anything that isn't allowed in checked baggage on a train (though that's probably not an issue). Maybe you could get lucky and they won't ask for a ticket, but I wouldn't try it until after you've tried the Fairfmont (and it's literally downstairs, so easy to try if the Fairmont won't help).

Given the immense logistical issues involved in disembarking your cruise and embarking the next on the same day, I just can't imagine the ship being willing to hold your luggage!

 

Suggestion - go to a hotel in the part of town you're planning to explore and ask the doormen to store your bags for the day. Tip in advance;)

 

The Fairmont (Queen/Le Reine Elizabeth) is close to the port, has excellent service and a couple of very good restaurants; you could try the "We're planning to have lunch here but we'd like to walk around a bit first, is it OK if we store our bags?" angle. Unfortunately their *really* good restaurant, the Beaver Club, is only open for dinner but the buffet in Le Montrealais isn't terrible value - especially the Brunch if you happen to be there on a Sunday.

Thanks for the note Dennis - hopefully the trolley company will amend their website soon to confirm whether there will still be a stop there or where the new one will be, as it's still listing the Cascadia right now...

... Where do I catch the Vancouver Trolley, if this is the one that has live narration?

We will be staying at the Best Western downtown on Drake...

 

Nearest stop is the Quality Inn at Drake & Howe, just one block from your hotel.

 

Although since they split the route into two loops during high season it might be more efficient to go to the Cascadia (Hornby, between Drake & Davie, about 2&1/2 blocks) if you want to do the Red Loop (Stanley Park & West End) rather than Blue (Yaletown/Chinatown/Gastown & Granville Island).

 

Right now the route map on the website is still Winter; end of April should see the Summer one appear with the loops shown - don't worry, it's not very complicated and there's no extra charge for the tour.

Another thumbs up for the YWCA Hotel - before we moved to Vancouver it's where we stayed on vacation here. Next door to the Georgian Court, around the corner from the Hampton - full kitchens available if you want to make your own breakfasts etc. and profits go to support a worthy organization.

 

Taxi to downtown from cruise port - if your luggage is manageable you can walk off the ship right into downtown! From Canada Place to YWCA on foot is less than 1 mile: Google Map

 

HOHO inside Stanley Park - if you're repositioning you might be outside the operating dates of the $10 park shuttle (Jun 1 - Sep 3) http://www.vancouvertrolley.com/tour/stanley-park-shuttle

...Hop on & off leaves Canada place at 9:00...2 1/2 hour tour. get off second time around at aquabus station to Granville Island...Stay a couple of hours, come back to downtown, check out the street food vendors....would like to have a good moderately price chinese dinner. Is the agua bus tour, up the creek, an option or even doable? ...

Answered your other post re: moderate Chinese food (I also agree w/Scottbee that Sun Sui Wah has great food - but I find their service extremely variable).

 

Unless the Vancouver Trolley HOHO has changed since last summer, you'll get one free False Creek Ferries ticket you can use to get to Granville Island - and they remind you about the ticket as you approach the nearest stop to the ferry.

 

HOHO also has a stop where you can walk to GI, so if you time your visit right you won't even need to buy extra ferry tickets (go on ferry, come back on HOHO or vice versa). Touring on AquaBus or FCF is quite possible, both do a 40min cruise down to Science World at the end of False Creek and back (right now FCF is $10, AB $11).

 

You can also rejoin your HOHO route at the Edgewater Casino/Plaza of Nations via ferry - ask the ferry or casino staff to point you to the HOHO stop. Even if it wasn't your second go-around, you only miss one stop (Yaletown Roundhouse) between GI and Edgewater on the HOHO doing this.

We will be getting in to Vancouver late, around 11pm on a sunday night. Catching a taxi to the Best Western on Drake. Any recommendations for a restaurant that will be open that time of night still that is reasonably close by? Prefer close enough to walk (if it's just a block or so & if it's safe to do so at this hour) but we could take a taxi.

 

How close are we to Chinatown? I'm not picky about what sort of food, just good and not terribly expensive.

 

Fritz will definitely be open (until 2:30am!). Definitely fits your Close, Good and Not Terribly Expensive criteria. And Poutine is a very Canadian thing, must be tried at least once... :)

Hi Everyone

Looking for your feedback on these hotels please.

 

Holiday Inn Express Richmond

Holiday Inn Express Vancouver (east side)

Hampton Inn

Sandman Airport

Best Western

 

I see the Holiday Inns and Hampton are 3 star and the others are 2 stars. Are any of these in a section of town we don't really want to be in?

 

We are driving from Seattle so we can enjoy the scenery. Will have all day Friday to enjoy Vancouver and then sail away is saturday. Thanks for the help and any suggestions

Robin

 

Living here I haven't stayed in any of them, so I'll stick to location info:

None of them are actually *in* a notorious area. HI Express Richmond and Sandman Airport are far from downtown; if you want to maximize your time doing things I'd recommend staying closer in.

 

HI Vancouver same deal - it's closer in distance but has no rail access. If you're happy driving around in your car then it might work out OK for you but traffic can be a real bear in Vancouver at rush hour. You'd pass through the 'worst' part of town as you're driving along Hastings - never heard of carjackings though so you'll be safe! In fact you'll be much more dangerous to the local street people than vice versa - there have been many pedestrians hit by cars along that corridor. Be alert for very low speed zones, traffic cameras, police and more than a few people just wandering out into traffic...

 

The Hampton is in a great location for walking around downtown core - it's a wee bit sketchier at that end of Robson than along in the West end but there's plenty of pedestrian traffic at all hours, I've never felt uncomfortable (I lived a couple of blocks from the Hampton until Xmas 2011).

 

BW has multiple locations: Downtown & Chateau Granville are in 'party central' so expect lots of street noise, but close to everything downtown; the Sands is ideal for English Bay/West End, also has lots of bars & restaurants around it; Uptown is convenient for Main St (many small shops & restos) and walkable to False Creek & Chinatown; the Albercorn near the airport you're back to 'far away from everything'

 

Personally I think the Hampton is the best of this bunch.

I'm with SB on this one - from their website:

 

Q. Does Quick Shuttle provide service between Bellingham and Seattle?

A. Quick Shuttle specializes in cross border transportation. Your trip must cross an international border.

*edit: sorry, didn't see PDs had replied while I was typing this. Still, confirmation from the service provider hopefully ends this cleanly!

It's probably just a 'someone in the office forgot the pay the webhost at due date' situation - their Twitter feed was active yesterday and the sudden failure of such a publicly visible local service visible should have hit the local news stations within a few hours!

 

BTW PD, OP said 'FC Ferries' (which I assume was short for False Creek) not 'BC Ferries' :)

Thank you I didn't realize there are 2 HOHO's, the Trolley and the Bus. The Trolly doesn't go to Grouse Mtn., at least I don't think they do. The cost for the bus for 2 days is $40 for seniors and the add on for Grouse Mtn. is $79. I am not sure if it also sts at the Capillano Bridge also, it doesn't say online. But it sounds like it uses public transportation. Here is what they say:

Grouse Mountain is the perfect place to plan a day-date with Big Bus. Simply hop off at stop #2 downtown, catch the SeaBus to the North Shore and take the #236 right to the hill.

 

What do you think just get the 2 day pass on either the trolley or bus or the add on of Grouse Mtn.?

 

 

Linda

While I personally would be more inclined to do as SB suggests (daypass and a good guidebook is pretty much my default plan in any new city), I'll assume that you considered transit and would rather take HOHO for whatever reason.

 

First - you're correct that Trolley doesn't go to Grouse, but neither does Big Bus. In fact, Big Bus doesn't even go to Capilano Bridge whereas the Trolley does. Cap bridge is on the road to Grouse - you can very easily find the public transit bus (which is what the #236 in your cut & paste above refers to).

 

Trolley lump together both the bridge and Grouse as 'North Shore Attractions' and the price includes entry tickets to both (normally $35.95 & $27.95 for Seniors), but also a free shuttle of their own to the bridge. You would need to pay for transit tickets between bridge & Grouse (or get a cab, hitch a ride from passing strangers, etc.)

 

Big Bus sell you bridge or Grouse as separate add-ons plus you need to take transit from downtown rather than just between the bridge and Grouse.

 

Both companies *include* the entry tickets to the stated attractions in the price quoted, they are not 'add on' prices to the HOHO fare (your wording above seems to indicate you think you're paying $40 and $79 each - actually it's $74 on Big Bus for Grouse + HOHO, $68 for Cap Bridge + HOHO, or $107.75 for both + HOHO with Trolley).

 

I've never done Big Bus so cannot comment on quality of commentary etc., but did do Trolley when my parents came to visit last year - enjoyed it, and the extra stops in Stanley Park combined with it costing a few bucks less make it seem better value IMO. Especially considering that they will actually shuttle you to the bridge, from where it's nigh-impossible to screw up taking transit to Grouse! Taking Seabus isn't difficult, but there are several buses that connect at various stops around the pier on the north shore - something else you need to worry about!

 

As to what is best for you - assuming you would already be doing a HOHO, then simply add up the prices of entry tickets to the attraction(s) you want to see. If it's cheaper as a package, buy the package. If it's not cheaper, get the basic HOHO, buy tickets separately for the attractions.