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Car rental from Vancouver to Seattle


cruisin'mama
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I hope you have a pretty late flight, it may be only a 2.5 hour drive but the border crossing can be unpredictable.

 

If you haven't booked the flight yet may I suggest taking the train down? It's really quite lovely and Seattle's a great place to putter around for a bit, see the sights if you like.

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I hope you have a pretty late flight, it may be only a 2.5 hour drive but the border crossing can be unpredictable.

 

If you haven't booked the flight yet may I suggest taking the train down? It's really quite lovely and Seattle's a great place to putter around for a bit, see the sights if you like.

 

 

 

We haven’t booked our flights yet. We’ve done the train before from Vancouver to Seattle and loved it, but it required an overnight stay since there’s no early train ( after we dock). We hope to get a car by 9am and head out.

 

 

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We haven’t booked our flights yet. We’ve done the train before from Vancouver to Seattle and loved it' date=' but it required an overnight stay since there’s no early train ( after we dock). We hope to get a car by 9am and head out.

 

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We looked at one time about renting a car to drop off in the US but some agencies didn't seem to have that option of a Canadian rental leaving the car in the US.....just a heads up.

 

The US Border can be very busy too depending on the time and date etc. So, there could be a wait there. Or take the Quick Shuttle from Canada Place to Seattle?

http://www.quickcoach.com/schedule/cpp.htm

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I did it once using a free day with National.

 

 

 

I just did some research and since we’re arriving at Canada Place on a Sunday, the car rental places there ( Pan Pacific) are closed. We’d have to probably get to YVR to get a car which makes it a lot more complicated! Ughh!

I guess I’ll look into Quick Shuttle...

 

 

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I'm surprised that the car rentals right at the pier would be closed - Sunday is ALWAYS a busy cruise day. Tue and Thu tend to be the 'no ships in port' days.

 

There are plenty of downtown offices, which do generally open Sundays just with shorter hours - given how compact Vancouver's downtown core is you're looking at a few bucks in a cab at worst. Your problem with this isn't finding a company that will let you do it, but finding one that will give you a good price this far ahead. I find that agencies tend to add drop fees to one-way rentals booked long in advance, which can be hefty.

 

Make sure you get a refundable rate, and keep checking. As your cruise date approaches the drop fees should reduce and disappear, once the different companies get more data on how man y folks want to take cars in each direction.

 

In an ideal world for every Seattle drop there would be a corresponding Vancouver drop - but that's not going to happen for every agency. So shop around, using a comparison site like Kayak or Expedia - even better Costco if you're a member - so you can compare all the companies and both downtown and airport locations.

 

Also, if you have internet access onboard, you can even try to score a FREE rental - someone has to move those cars which get dropped in Vancouver back to Seattle if not enough folks want to rent the other way! Rather than load them on a truck or pay a professional driver, it's more and more common to instead farm out the relocation of vehicles to Joe Q Public through sites like Transfer Car...

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I just did some research and since we’re arriving at Canada Place on a Sunday' date=' the car rental places there ( Pan Pacific) are closed. We’d have to probably get to YVR to get a car which makes it a lot more complicated! Ughh!

I guess I’ll look into Quick Shuttle...

 

 

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There is a Hertz close by in the Fairmont Pacific Rim. It's walking distant from the port.

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I've done this on numerous occasions, in both directions. I've used Avis, Budget, Hertz and National, both from the two airports and from city locations, or a mix of the two.

 

As you're heading to southern California, presumably you're okay with a late afternoon or early evening departure. (Much harder for people flying east, due to the time difference.)

 

If you'd like some recommendations on taking a more scenic route than just heading down I-5, say so.

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I guess maybe I’m looking too early. I looked at the Hertz at the Fairmont and even though it’s listed hours include the time I’d want to rent, when I do a mock booking, it tells me that’s it not open when I want to rent...

Hardy look I would love your advice! I figure the earliest flight I’d try to book will be 5-6pm just Incase we hit a snag at the border. Scenic routes are right up my alley, thanks!!!

 

 

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I guess maybe I’m looking too early. I looked at the Hertz at the Fairmont and even though it’s listed hours include the time I’d want to rent' date=' when I do a mock booking, it tells me that’s it not open when I want to rent...

Hardy look I would love your advice! I figure the earliest flight I’d try to book will be 5-6pm just Incase we hit a snag at the border. Scenic routes are right up my alley, thanks!!!

 

 

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If you want to use Hertz try search for one of their retail outlets instead of a hotel counter. That might work better this far out.

 

There is one at

 

Hertz

1270 Granville St, Vancouver, BC V6Z 3B2

Quite a bit closer to the pier is Hertz sister company Thrifty.

Thrifty/Dollar

413 Seymour St, Vancouver, BC V6B 3H5

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I've done this on numerous occasions, in both directions. I've used Avis, Budget, Hertz and National, both from the two airports and from city locations, or a mix of the two.

 

 

 

As you're heading to southern California, presumably you're okay with a late afternoon or early evening departure. (Much harder for people flying east, due to the time difference.)

 

 

 

If you'd like some recommendations on taking a more scenic route than just heading down I-5, say so.

 

 

 

Thank you!! I will take any recommendations that you have and I appreciate your help!

 

 

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Thank you!! I will take any recommendations that you have and I appreciate your help!

Okay' date=' I'll give you two alternatives.

 

Option 1 is via Chuckanut Drive and Whidbey Island. Map - https://goo.gl/maps/ETidbFDm9UA2 I've included places on the map that you could pick and choose.

 

Steveston is Vancouver's fishing port and has a nice waterfront. The town is used in the filming of the "Once Upon a Time" TV series.

 

White Rock is a funky old-fashioned seafront town with a couple of the-real-thing fish and chips places.

 

Fairhaven is Bellingham's old town, with numerous cafes and galleries. It's where the Alaska ferry departs, FWIW.

 

Chuckanut Drive (aka WA 11) is a pretty road that follows the water with good views and a couple of restaurants or oyster farms.

 

Deception Pass is the narrow gap between Fidalgo and Whidbey Islands. The tide passing through the channel can be very impressive, sometimes close to scary. There are great views both from the bridges and the beach below.

 

[img']http://gardyloo.us/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/083b-2.jpg[/img]

 

096b-2.jpg

 

Coupeville and Langley are both very pretty waterfront villages, with numerous pubs, galleries and cafes.

 

The ferry from Whidbey to Mukilteo runs quite often. Mukilteo is a cute waterfront town with a very pretty lighthouse next to a cool driftwood-covered beach, perfect for a picnic.

 

20140531_3Ha.jpg

 

Take WA 526 to I-5 to head south to Seattle and the airport. You'll pass the Boeing Everett plant, home of the big jets and the biggest building in the world.

 

Option 2 - Inland. Map - https://goo.gl/maps/wzDXChYLRtH2

 

Head east to the TC 1 freeway, then cross at the Aldergrove border station and stop in Lynden, a pleasant community very proud of its Dutch heritage -

 

LyndenWindMillByJuliusReque.jpg

 

Follow WA 9 south through very nice rural countryside, usually with excellent views of the Cascades. Stop in Arlington, a very pleasant town, or especially in Snohomish, where the downtown area is full of antique stores and nice cafes and pubs.

 

Continue south to Monroe, then follow WA 203 south through the beautiful Snoqualmie Valley to Snoqualmie Falls. See the falls, then the drive to Seatac takes around 45 minutes.

 

54362602-926d-11e7-bffb-e19aa243e391-1020x680.jpg

 

Either of these options are all-day, but if you plan an evening departure from Seatac, both are easily managed if you get away promptly in the morning from Vancouver. Of course if you had another night available that would be ideal

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Thank you so much!! That waterfall is calling my name! So do you think if we took option #2, we could get to SeaTac by 5:00 including the border crossing, for a 7:00pm flight?

 

I appreciate all the effort you put into showing me different options!

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Thank you so much!! That waterfall is calling my name! So do you think if we took option #2' date=' we could get to SeaTac by 5:00 including the border crossing, for a 7:00pm flight?

 

I appreciate all the effort you put into showing me different options![/quote']

You could probably make it, but it would depend on when you can actually get away from Vancouver. Since you'd be driving on a Sunday morning southbound, I don't think the delay at the border would be very bad; if it was later in the day while the weekenders are heading south, it might be a bit worse, but you'd be traveling before that.

 

If it made you nervous, you could just skip the Lynden and Arlington parts and still have a nice drive by heading south on I-5 to US 2 in Everett, then heading east to Snohomish and south to Monroe and on to the falls. Map - https://goo.gl/maps/vS4NsWAv7kC2 . That would cut some time from the drive. Or, in a pinch, you could skip Snohomish too, and just follow I-5 south to I-405, then down I-405 to I-90, out to the falls and back. Map - https://goo.gl/maps/VnkxK4Y9g3M2 .

 

By the way, I've included Twede's Cafe on the second map. Don't know if you ever watched the Twin Peaks TV show, but both the Salish Lodge (the lovely hotel overlooking the falls) and Twede's Cafe in North Bend played key parts in weird series. Stop for a piece of cherry pie and damn fine coffee on your way to the airport.

 

Note there's also a collection of old locomotives and train cars on a siding between the falls and "downtown" Snoqualmie, which might be of interest to train buffs. https://www.trainmuseum.org/ Snoqualmie itself is a nice little town, also fairly picturesque.

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You could probably make it, but it would depend on when you can actually get away from Vancouver. Since you'd be driving on a Sunday morning southbound, I don't think the delay at the border would be very bad; if it was later in the day while the weekenders are heading south, it might be a bit worse, but you'd be traveling before that.

 

If it made you nervous, you could just skip the Lynden and Arlington parts and still have a nice drive by heading south on I-5 to US 2 in Everett, then heading east to Snohomish and south to Monroe and on to the falls. Map - https://goo.gl/maps/vS4NsWAv7kC2 . That would cut some time from the drive. Or, in a pinch, you could skip Snohomish too, and just follow I-5 south to I-405, then down I-405 to I-90, out to the falls and back. Map - https://goo.gl/maps/VnkxK4Y9g3M2 .

 

By the way, I've included Twede's Cafe on the second map. Don't know if you ever watched the Twin Peaks TV show, but both the Salish Lodge (the lovely hotel overlooking the falls) and Twede's Cafe in North Bend played key parts in weird series. Stop for a piece of cherry pie and damn fine coffee on your way to the airport.

 

Note there's also a collection of old locomotives and train cars on a siding between the falls and "downtown" Snoqualmie, which might be of interest to train buffs. https://www.trainmuseum.org/ Snoqualmie itself is a nice little town, also fairly picturesque.

 

 

 

This just keeps getting better.... I have a son who has Down Syndrome and will be with us and he loves trains! I will forgo other stops so that he can spend some time there!!! Thank you!!!

 

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

There is no way that I would rent a car and drive back to Seattle to catch a plane on the same day. Seattle is a nightmare to drive through and in (even on the weekend). There are too many unknowns: 1) When for sure can you disembark? 2) How long will it take to rent the car? (even pre-reserved can take quite a while to go through the process) Recently, with reservations, it took us about 45 minutes in Ontario, California and there were just a few people waiting and about 45 minutes in Fort Lauderdale 3) What will we really have time to see? Under normal circumstances, it is a 3.5 hour drive and 145 miles. How long to get across the border?

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Last fall we booked a rental car from Alamo, right at the cruise terminal in Vancouver, dropped it off in Seattle. We were in line around 9am and waited at least an hour, if not longer, to get to the front of the line to be helped. Anyone who said their pickup time was later than around 10:30 am had to come back until their actual rental time, as they were waiting for cars to be dropped off before they could give people cars. Aside from the long wait, it was super convenient. If you do it, make sure you pick a morning pickup.

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There is no way that I would rent a car and drive back to Seattle to catch a plane on the same day. Seattle is a nightmare to drive through and in (even on the weekend). There are too many unknowns: 1) When for sure can you disembark? 2) How long will it take to rent the car? (even pre-reserved can take quite a while to go through the process) Recently, with reservations, it took us about 45 minutes in Ontario, California and there were just a few people waiting and about 45 minutes in Fort Lauderdale 3) What will we really have time to see? Under normal circumstances, it is a 3.5 hour drive and 145 miles. How long to get across the border?

It's not that your points are not relevant - but that they ALSO apply to the other options folks have! Time getting off the ship and border crossing time apply to EVERY transportation option. Time to actually get the car may be shorter than queues for airport luggage drop and security that you don't need to worry about in a car. Even a cruise shuttle, that waits for everyone before leaving instead of say QuickShuttle that leaves at 9am whether you are on it or not has issues - it leaves when the LAST people are on board, so if anyone gets caught up at CBSA processing you all wait.

 

Buses at the border can have horrendous wait times, worse than cars as they have no option which crossing to use - when driving you can choose from 3 other crossings that could save time. If anyone on your bus gets secondary questioning, the whole bus waits... and waits... and waits, until they are approved or rejected. In your own car - you get through or you don't, and everyone ahead of you who gets tapped for Secondary has to drive over to the car park which means no big delays for folks waiting behind.

 

Lastly, what to see - whatever you want that you have time for! Obviously if the border takes forever, you drive straight to Seatac (NB: buses also have to suffer with Seattle traffic, and unlike cars MUST make their stops so they are limited in options to avoid traffic. So if you have 2+ folks to use HOV lanes, cars are always at least as fast as buses in Seattle!). If it's all going smoothly, you make stops, or have fun on Chuckanut Drive, or whatever.

Every choice has issues - it's best not to do the transfer same day regardless of how you do it. More time in Vancouver is always the best choice;-)

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I was addressing the specific concerns of the OP and how I would be processing the points of concern if I was the OP. I live in Washington state. Of course these would be relevant points for thousands of cruisers.

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I was addressing the specific concerns of the OP and how I would be processing the points of concern if I was the OP. I live in Washington state. Of course these would be relevant points for thousands of cruisers.

I appreciate the fact that you're trying to help the OP, but as someone who drives (and trains and flies) through the Seattle area on a very regular basis I noted that your concerns do not factor in the similar issues of other modes of transport. I don't mean to directly offend you, but your points are simply not unique to renting a car - hence my post above.

 

Unless you have actually used all the various different methods available you have no relevant comparative experiences to talk about; and to be totally fair, even folks like me who have used all the various options have only our personal (limited) experience to quote from so our advice is also open to debate. There is NO definitively best way to do this trip, or else it would be common knowledge - and likely priced a lot higher than other options!

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Wow, just wow.

Happy Sailing.

I owe you an apology. Re-reading my second reply, it went way too far - disagreeing with you is one thing but I crossed the line into basically invalidating your opinion entirely which was not fair. I am sorry for having done so and will endeavor not the repeat that mistake.

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  • 3 weeks later...

We cruised fro Hawaii to Vancouver in April/May 2016. Got off the ship (Solstice) at 0830, walked into Canada Place, took the well marked elevator down to the National rental desk & jumped into our little SUV. Off we went to Seattle, wish I’d had these lovely options then, we zipped right onto I5 & headed south. Our trusty GPS only spoke French, hmm, this is a problem & it’s only in kilometers; oh yay now I’ll also be doing math. Flew along, guess I wasn’t speeding (speedometer was only in kilometers too [emoji849]) too badly as I wasn’t stopped until we got about a mile from the border crossing & came to a screeching halt that lasted over two hours. We finally got our turn in the box & proceeded to SeaTac. We arrived at SeaTac at about 2:45 but it wasn’t a fun & leisurely journey. Next time (Sep 2019 taking Eclipse to Hawaii from Vancouver) we’ll either fly straight into Vancouver or take the train up from Seattle.

 

FYI we didn’t have a drop off fee on the car. We rented on a Friday. I’m from Boston originally & Seattle drivers can be a bit aggressive.

 

 

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Whatever you decide, I hope you give yourself plenty of time on I-5. I regularly travel for work from the Kitsap Peninsula to Bellingham, WA. Part of my journey involves the Ferry but the longest and most tedious part of the journey is right around Arlington/Marysville. I have been stuck in traffic there, sometimes for 45-60 minutes at a time. I would also make sure to leave enough time for airport security at Seatac. Sometimes I zip right through and other times I stand there for 30-45 minutes. Happy Travels!

 

 

Also have you checked options for flying out of the airport in Bellingham?

Edited by Sweetnspicy
Forgot to add!
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