Vancouver Airport to downtown hotel

[croozer]

I'd appreciate any advice from a Vancouver local or someone who knows the city:

 

I'm arriving in Vancouver the day before my cruise and plan to stay at a hotel in the 1400 block of Robson St. It looks like I can take the Canada Line to downtown and get off at the Vancouver City Centre Station. From there, Mapquest says I can walk to my hotel in 16 minutes, that it's only .69 miles from the station to the hotel. Does this sound about right? Am I even looking at the right station to get off the train? Am I being realistic? I will have only one medium-sized rolling bag and no overnighter (maybe a backpack so my hands will be free). Any feedback would be appreciated.

[martincath]

I'd appreciate any advice from a Vancouver local or someone who knows the city:

 

I'm arriving in Vancouver the day before my cruise and plan to stay at a hotel in the 1400 block of Robson St. It looks like I can take the Canada Line to downtown and get off at the Vancouver City Centre Station. From there, Mapquest says I can walk to my hotel in 16 minutes, that it's only .69 miles from the station to the hotel. Does this sound about right? Am I even looking at the right station to get off the train? Am I being realistic? I will have only one medium-sized rolling bag and no overnighter (maybe a backpack so my hands will be free). Any feedback would be appreciated.

Empire Landmark? Goggle has the distance a little further, but there are several possible exits from the station (it's under one of our downtown malls).

 

I would suggest you follow signs toward Robson Street from the station since it'll make life simple on the walk - and you can also board one of our buses if you want to skip the walk, the same transit tickets work on all modes of transport in the system. The number 5 bus stops right opposite your hotel and you could jump on within a block of the mall in either direction along Robson.

 

I really like using the Streetview feature to print or just memorize a couple of landmarks on a first time visit, in case you pop out at a different exit and start walking the wrong way.

[Putterdude]

Your station is indeed Vancouver Centre station from which you will have about an 8/9 block walk. Most of the walk will be level to slightly downhill as you approach the Empire Landmark. There are curb letdowns at each corner to make rolling your luggage at bit easier.

[croozer]

Thanks so much for the information. You're right, the 1400 address is Empire Landmark, but I'm thinking of staying a couple of doors down at the Tropicana. I know it's not as nice and not much to look at, but it's only for one night and I'd like to save a couple of $$. Never having been to Vancouver, I just thought the location was pretty convenient. I was planning on exiting the station onto Georgia St and cutting down to Robson, where it's a straight shot to the hotel. I like walking and I think I can handle the suitcase OK, although I'll feel pretty self-conscious pulling it along. But if it gets too much, I appreciate the info on the bus. After getting settled in, I was thinking of taking a leisurely afternoon stroll down to the pier to see if it's walking distance for the next morning or if I'll need a cab. I'll check out the street view to get my bearings and, just for the heck of it, I'm bringing my GPS, too. Any other comments or suggestion you have will be stored away in my pea-sized brain, too ;)

[croozer]

Thank you...I didn't see your post when I composed and posted my response; must have been a simultaneous occurrence. But I appreciate the double reassurance :) Anything else anyone can tell me would be great, as I'm traveling alone. It's not that I'm not brave, just unfamiliar with the territory :)

[Urban trekker]

Don't feel self-conscious about rolling luggage through the streets - as a native Vancouverite I can say that since the Canada Line came in service there has been a huge increase in people doing this.

 

You can walk from the hotel to the pier but it will be an uphill walk coming back.

 

Cheers

 

Dennis

[croozer]

 

You can walk from the hotel to the pier but it will be an uphill walk coming back.

 

 

Dennis:

 

Okay, I know you said uphill walk, not battle, but maybe this is a metaphor for life. Anyway, I appreciate your info and support. Perhaps on a day before a cruise I won't be the only one rolling along with my luggage on Robson Street.

 

And you make a good point about the trip to the pier and the uphill back--that's why I'm going to try it the day before. If it's easy getting there the day before, I should be fine getting back to the hotel with no luggage and all the time in the world. The next day, I only have to get there with my suitcase and not worry about me and my suitcase getting back :)

 

Thanks again,

Sally

[martincath]

Ditto on UT's statement - and lots of laptop users prefer a rolling suitcase these days too, albeit a tad smaller than the average cruise luggage;-)

 

Re: GPS, you'll have a bit of trouble getting a signal when you pop out downtown. We occasionally lose signal driving along Georgia as the buildings are consistently tall enough that line of sight to satellites can be lost, usually when stopped at the lights is when the GPS gets confused. I'd suggest getting it out while on Skytrain so it can at least reset to your new location - coming from LA it will take a while to adjust, even if it's a shiny new one - and if you lose your bearings, find a street you can see the mountains along that doesn't have lots of tall buildings, turn so the mountains are behind you and you're now pointing south and your GPS should lock back in very quickly.

[croozer]

Good info. Thanks! The last time I used the GPS for walking it was useless anyway, so I'm thinking if I can just wend my way to Robson and watch the street numbers I should be fine. I know this isn't rocket science or brain surgery--maybe it's rocket surgery--and I'm overthinking it. But the more you know...well, you know. I'll keep looking for them mountains for my brain's GPS.

[scottbee]

Thank you...I didn't see your post when I composed and posted my response; must have been a simultaneous occurrence. But I appreciate the double reassurance :) Anything else anyone can tell me would be great, as I'm traveling alone. It's not that I'm not brave, just unfamiliar with the territory :)

 

You'll join the hundreds of people rolling suitcases through downtown that I see downtown every day, it's really not an issue.

 

The only problem we've ever had with taking local transport to a cruise are people in Cruise Critic calling you cheap, or worse.

[croozer]

 

The only problem we've ever had with taking local transport to a cruise are people in Cruise Critic calling you cheap, or worse.

 

Believe me, that's not a problem for me...I just don't care. I'm traveling solo, so I'm already paying double for the cabin, even though I spend plenty and don't eat the second person's food. And if I take a cab, I'm paying for the whole cab, too. Why do that if I can take a train for a few bucks, and feel independent and smart at the same time? I've never been called cheap because of this, but if I were, I really wouldn't care what these people think--they're not my friends and they don't have the mindset to be my friends, either.

[no fuss travel]

Don't worry about taking the bus and Canada Line. We take the bus and Canada Line from our house to the airport every time we fly out of YVR. We made the mistake once of taking a taxi home and never again. We kept watching the meter get higher and higher. Most locals now are taking bus and Canada Line to get to get to the airport as it is way less expensive. When I was downtown earlier this week, I noticed a lot of tourist wheeling their suitcases down the streets to their various hotels, so you will not be out of place. Coming back from the hotel to the ship, turn north on Burrard Street to get down to the waterfront. Will save you some uphill walking and avoid some of the very busy pedestrian traffic on Robson. You will be able to see the water from the corner of Robson and Burrard and though it may not be the most interesting walk as you will be going through the business area of downtown, you can still have some very interesting people watching. Also, if it is a sunny day, you will get a beautiful view of the North Shore Mountains.

[croozer]

I'm going to put that info into my Dropbox so I have it in my phone when I make my recon mission before the embarkation day. If I can find Robson and Burrand (and I should, because they're major) I should be golden. Here in LA, most people never take any form of public transportation and we don't have a train to/from the airport (although there are two spots where you can pick up a Flyaway Bus) but if I can take the train in Prague and Vienna, where I don't speak the language, I should be able to figure out Canada, where people are actually friendly and nice.