Flying into Victoria

[Moparop]

Right now, flights are about $150 cheaper per person for our northbound Alaska cruise if we fly into Victoria Island instead of Vancouver. What would be the best way to get a family to Vancouver for a cruise? What kind of cost would we be looking at?

[cruiseryyc]

First off, it's Vancouver Island.

 

Check out the bus from downtown Victoria to downtown Vancouver, actually I think they have a bus that goes to the cruise terminal.

 

It's called the BC Connector, google it.

[zqvol]

Right now, flights are about $150 cheaper per person for our northbound Alaska cruise if we fly into Victoria Island instead of Vancouver. What would be the best way to get a family to Vancouver for a cruise? What kind of cost would we be looking at?

 

It is going to cost at least $65 per person (from the Victoria Bus Terminal and you will have to pay to get to there from the airport in Victoria) to get to Vancouver, and it is going to take at least 4 hours. Is the cost difference worth 4 hours of time that you could spend exploring Vancouver?

Edited August 12, 2016 by zqvol

[cruiseryyc]

Here is the link to the bus information. Please note that it leaves Victoria at 7:30 in the morning to meet the cruise ships departing Vancouver later in the day; so in order to do this, you will have to arrive in Victoria at least one day prior your cruise.

 

http://bcfconnector.com/

 

Or you could fly into Victoria, take the shuttle from the airport into downtown, catch a bus to Vancouver and overnight in Vancouver.

 

You could also look at flying from Victoria to Vancouver but that would eat up the $150/person you're trying to save.

 

Another option would be to rent a car and take the ferry across, but again that is eating into the money.

[mapleleaves]

Victoria to Vancouver is about 4-5 hrs.

Victoria is on Vancouver Island, not the mainland, so it's a 30 minute drive from Victoria to the ferry terminal, then a 90 minute ferry crossing (beautiful ride), then another 30 minute drive to Vancouver. Add to that, 30 minutes wait time to board the ferry and another 30 to offload.

Victoria is a beautiful place to spend an extra day though!

 

Did you look at flights to Seattle? Seattle is 3-4 hours away but a rental car makes it a cheap and easy transfer for a family. Other options include Amtrak train, Amtrak bus, Quick Shuttle, Greyhound, Bolt bus, cruiseline transfer.

 

Look into Alaska Airlines credit card that has a companion pass for $100.

[martincath]

I don't understand why anyone would recommend the 30km drive to Victoria only to get back on a bus that drives you back the same road before continuing on to Swartz Bay. Swartz Bay is beyond YYJ in the opposite direction from Victoria - total waste of time unless of course you choose to extend your vacation with time pre-cruise on the island.

 

Tickets for BCF connector bought onboard the ferry cost $44pp (adults, less for kids/students, so without knowing the exact makeup of your family impossible to give an exact price). Ferry tickets for walkons are approx $18pp, again cost varies by age. BCFconnector will drop you at the Pan Pacific Hotel (i.e. right at the pier), or pretty much any other hotel around downtown, as well as the bus station, airport etc.

 

Getting from YYJ to the Swartz Bay ferry terminal is best done by cab, approx 10km and $30 per carload, actually a bit cheaper than from airport to downtown here in Vancouver so you can consider that a wash if you'd cab from YVR to a downtown hotel.

 

All that said - there's no way in heck I'd recommend even considering a 'day of' arrival at YYJ. Even with perfect timing, no delays, all connections perfectly matched, you're looking at wheels down to arriving in Vancouver of at least three and a half hours. This means you have to budget for a hotel - you should anyway though, arriving day of from the USA with two sets of immigration & customs to get through plus the usual cruise security queues makes it MUCH riskier than a same-day flight to a US port.

 

If you did do this, consider whether you'd rather spend the pre-cruise time on the island, or in Vancouver.

 

As suggested already though, Seattle-Vancouver is comparable time and while the border crossing adds a little hassle, not having to use a ferry saves a lot of hassle. Cost is actually less too if you take train, Bolt, or Greyhound (Quickshuttle, being priced in USD at almost $60pp, is a little more expensive but very convenient with pickup right at SEA so no need for cabs to downtown).

[VennDiagram]

I have to mention that sometimes the ferries from the island to the mainland stop running (bad seas, fog....) Not often, but often enough that I wouldn't fly to Victoria to get to Vancouver.

[Moparop]

Thanks for all of your help and suggestions. Seattle is actually the most expensive place for us to fly into of our options. We are a family of 5, two adults, a 12, 11, and 7 year old. Because we've got kids and would be jumping multiple time zones, our plan is to come in a day or two ahead and tour as much as they have stamina for. I haven't researched the island in comparison to the city as far as what we'd want to do. If we spent time on the island, my plan would definitely be to get to Vancouver the night we board the cruise.

[Pamthecat]

Victoria to Vancouver (Canada Place)

 

BC Ferries run between Vancouver Island and the mainland. The Swartz Bay terminal is on the Island about 30 minutes from Victoria - it goes to the Tsawwassen terminal about 30 minutes from Vancouver. Whole ferry trip is 1hour and 35 minutes.

 

There is public transportation to the ferry from Victoria - about $5.00.

You can walk on to the ferry - about $20.00

 

On the other side , there is a translink public transportation bus that can take you directly from the Tsawwassen ferry terminal to the Skytrain. The Skytrain then goes to Waterfront Station which is about a 5-10 minute walk to the cruise ship terminal. Bus is $5.50 and Skytrain isn't much more. The whole bus/skytrain thing will take about 1+ hour. Google Translink for details

 

There is another connector bus that you can catch either in Victoria or you can buy tickets directly from the driver when you are on the ferry. I don't think the busses are on every ferry crossing. Some of these busses are cruise ship connectors and others are just busses that go downtown.

 

A cab can take you from Tsawwassen directly downtown for about $60 in about 30 minutes. You can reserve a large cab or a limo for a bit more $, but not much. This will take your whole family and luggage.

[Coral]

If you decide to fly into Victoria (Vancouver Island) - please spend a few days here. It is gorgeous and many things are worth seeing.

[martincath]

Good call on adding public transit info Pam for these travelers who are watching their budget - but some errors in your info and a hefty caveat - none of the buses on the island or mainland are set up for luggage, and unless the bus is quiet (i.e. spare seats) it's possible that they will be forbidden to board unless all luggage fits on their laps/under legs: it's unlawful to place luggage blocking aisles or wheelchair spaces on any transit vehicle.

On the other side , there is a translink public transportation bus that can take you directly from the Tsawwassen ferry terminal to the Skytrain. The Skytrain then goes to Waterfront Station which is about a 5-10 minute walk to the cruise ship terminal. Bus is $2.75pp, $1.75 for seniors/<14s and Skytrain is same price on weekends/evenings, or $5.50/$3.75 weekdays <6:30pm. The whole bus/skytrain thing will take about 1+ hour. Google Translink for details Since Compass card debacle, buses are now all One Zone at all times but no longer allow transfer onto Skytrain, so they would have to pay for two sets of tickets to do this trip - still cheaper than a Day pass though.

A cab can take you from Tsawwassen directly downtown for about $60 in about 30 minutes. Even with no traffic at all, this is not even close to correct - it's a minimum drive time of 45mins even with a driver who flouts speed rules, and a fare of at least $80+tip to the downtown core. If they arrive during evening rush hour, tunnel will be just one lane and that fare could easily go up by 30% or more.

 

You can reserve a large cab or a limo for a bit more $, but not much. Also incorrect - by law all taxis charge the same price in the entire Lower Mainland and do not charge a reservation fee. They can charge wait time if you book them for time X and don't show, but more likely they'll just go pick up someone else if you're late unless they can reach you by phone and you agree to start the meter and pay wait time of approx $32/hr.

 

Limos can and do charge 'meet & greet' fees which include some wait time, and since the legal minimum fee is $75/hr, min 1 hr, would be likely cheaper than a cab for a small group; but diff size limos have higher minima so for 5 people with cruise luggage 6pax rates of $90/hr are more relevant.

[mapleleaves]

I'm beyond surprised that it's cheaper to fly into Victoria than Vancouver or Seattle.

Which airline has this fare? and what is the routing ?