Vancouver June 2020 before and after: here's where we're staying

[Kellie in Texas]

Next June, we're staying one night pre-cruise at the Auberge Vancouver Hotel.  A bit pricier than what we normally do, but it's convenient to Canada Place for embarkation the next morning.  (The Pan Pacific and Fairmount were either not available or waaaaaayyyyyyy out of our price range!)  

 

Post-cruise, we are staying two extra nights and --  at @martincath's recommendation -- we're staying at the YWCA Vancouver Hotel.  Very pleased to have both of these reservations made.  Now all we needs is flights. 

[martincath]

I hope you enjoy both hotels Kellie, and your cruise in-between. If you're looking to squeeze a few bucks extra value from the food budget to make up for the pricier stay at Auberge, it's not just handy for the pier but also <200yards away from Moose's Down Under (a fun Aussie bar, with a good value brekky and dinner menu - including of course kangaroo in various forms, including the possibly-unique 'roo'tine Poutine!) and even closer to Scoozis if you want something just a wee bit fancier for brekky that's still an awful lot cheaper than your hotel. You'll also walk right past Timmy's on the way to the pier, if you want to go full-on Canadian.

[Kellie in Texas]

Thanks -- again! -- @martincath.  I'll be compiling lots of notes closer to time. 

[mitz18]

On 9/10/2019 at 4:42 PM, martincath said:

I hope you enjoy both hotels Kellie, and your cruise in-between. If you're looking to squeeze a few bucks extra value from the food budget to make up for the pricier stay at Auberge, it's not just handy for the pier but also <200yards away from Moose's Down Under (a fun Aussie bar, with a good value brekky and dinner menu - including of course kangaroo in various forms, including the possibly-unique 'roo'tine Poutine!) and even closer to Scoozis if you want something just a wee bit fancier for brekky that's still an awful lot cheaper than your hotel. You'll also walk right past Timmy's on the way to the pier, if you want to go full-on Canadian.

 

We are looking at (a) Marriott Pinnacle (W.Hastings), Westin Grand (Robson) or Westin Bayshore.  Any thoughts on these?
TIA

 

 

 

[martincath]

34 minutes ago, mitz18 said:

We are looking at (a) Marriott Pinnacle (W.Hastings), Westin Grand (Robson) or Westin Bayshore.  Any thoughts on these?
TIA

The Bayshore is the least central - it's ideal for Stanley Park, but if you are looking to explore the city generally rather than just exploring the park that makes it slightly worse located than the other two. Pinnacle is closest to the pier - an easy walk even with luggage - and the fancy shopping bit of Robson. Personally I'd say the Grand is the most convenient for touring about on foot, as it's right at the edge of Yaletown and also closer than the others to Chinatown & Granville Island, and depending exactly where in Gastown you go also as good or better than the Pinnacle. Best choice of nearby restos too, though both of the others also have more than ample selections within say 10minutes walk.

 

Right now the Bayshore is also on strike, and while that'll be resolved one way or another by next June the owners are a Condo builder who are only operating the hotel until they can persuade the city to let them densify the site enough with new condo towers to maximize their profits... so succeed or fail, if the strike causes the hotel to take big enough losses it may be worth demolishing it sooner and 'only' putting up 2 extra towers on the site under the current municipal code! So unless the Bayshore is an awful lot cheaper than the other two, I'd be looking at them.

[mitz18]

2 hours ago, martincath said:

The Bayshore is the least central - it's ideal for Stanley Park, but if you are looking to explore the city generally rather than just exploring the park that makes it slightly worse located than the other two. Pinnacle is closest to the pier - an easy walk even with luggage - and the fancy shopping bit of Robson. Personally I'd say the Grand is the most convenient for touring about on foot, as it's right at the edge of Yaletown and also closer than the others to Chinatown & Granville Island, and depending exactly where in Gastown you go also as good or better than the Pinnacle. Best choice of nearby restos too, though both of the others also have more than ample selections within say 10minutes walk.

 

Right now the Bayshore is also on strike, and while that'll be resolved one way or another by next June the owners are a Condo builder who are only operating the hotel until they can persuade the city to let them densify the site enough with new condo towers to maximize their profits... so succeed or fail, if the strike causes the hotel to take big enough losses it may be worth demolishing it sooner and 'only' putting up 2 extra towers on the site under the current municipal code! So unless the Bayshore is an awful lot cheaper than the other two, I'd be looking at them.

 

Great info thanks.  Think I'll avoid Bayshore and look at the Grand.  Our flight out is around noon so not worried about flight out as much as general location and quality of hotel.

 

Thanks again for your detailed reply

 

 

[xlxo]

On 9/23/2019 at 4:12 PM, martincath said:

Pinnacle is closest to the pier - an easy walk even with luggage - and the fancy shopping bit of Robson.

fyi... The Pinnacle is also by the labour disruption.  It would not be a preferred hotel at this time.

 

https://www.straight.com/news/1304531/picket-lines-go-three-downtown-vancouver-hotels-hyatt-regency-pinnacle-vancouver-and

[martincath]

7 hours ago, xlxo said:

fyi... The Pinnacle is also by the labour disruption.  It would not be a preferred hotel at this time.

 

https://www.straight.com/news/1304531/picket-lines-go-three-downtown-vancouver-hotels-hyatt-regency-pinnacle-vancouver-and

Wrong Pinnacle - it's the Pinnacle Harbourfront that's on strike, according to the Union concerned anyway. That's the hotel that used to be the Renaissance. The Marriott Pinnacle is also unionized IIRC - I have a friend who worked there - but I believe only the Four Seasons is at any immediate risk of a further spread of this particular strike action as it's only focused on the fancy hotels. Another good reason to stay at the Y 😉

 

[snplw]

We are coming into Vancouver in Sept.2020.  Doing a day long tour then taking train down to Seattle.  Any thoughts on staying near the train station?  Not comfortable doing either of the backpackers places right at the station.  We are 50+, and will have at least 2 carry-ons.  Plus the kicker would really like a shuttle to the station at 4-5AM.  Thanks all.

[ell52]

2 hours ago, snplw said:

We are coming into Vancouver in Sept.2020.  Doing a day long tour then taking train down to Seattle.  Any thoughts on staying near the train station?  Not comfortable doing either of the backpackers places right at the station.  We are 50+, and will have at least 2 carry-ons.  Plus the kicker would really like a shuttle to the station at 4-5AM.  Thanks all.

 

I wouldn't be comfortable doing the backpackers hostels either.  They've been trying to make the area a bit more 'upscale' with some trendy restaurants, but it's not an area I'd want to spend a lot of time in. 

 

There are no shuttles to the train station but downtown Vancouver and the city centre are quite compact.  You'd be much better off finding a hotel downtown and taking a taxi to the train station in the morning. As mentioned in the above posts, the YWCA hotel is a good choice if you're trying to watch your budget. Do a search on Tripadvisor to narrow down some preferences within your price range and posters here can give you more specific feedback.  

[martincath]

13 hours ago, snplw said:

...Any thoughts on staying near the train station?  Not comfortable doing either of the backpackers places right at the station.

Aside from hostels, there's nowhere to stay within an easy walk with luggage of the station so the Y is one of the closest hotels as well as a great deal. A cab should be $10, maybe even less given the lack of traffic that time of day. Shuttles in downtown hotels are rare but they do exist - the Hampton Inn for example will shuttle you to places in downtown, so that could work - but generally if you compare a hotel with a shuttle to one of the same quality without, you save more than enough staying elsewhere to have paid for cab and then some. Of course if you have Hilton points, the Hampton might be a preferred spot anyway so the shuttle is then a nice bonus...

[mitz18]

On 9/25/2019 at 8:51 AM, martincath said:

Wrong Pinnacle - it's the Pinnacle Harbourfront that's on strike, according to the Union concerned anyway. That's the hotel that used to be the Renaissance. The Marriott Pinnacle is also unionized IIRC - I have a friend who worked there - but I believe only the Four Seasons is at any immediate risk of a further spread of this particular strike action as it's only focused on the fancy hotels. Another good reason to stay at the Y 😉

 

 

And Vancouver use to be such a nice relaxed city. 😏   I'm going to pick your brain one more time please.  In 2017 we stayed at Delta Suites on W.Hastings - how does that compare with the Marriott Pinnacle on Hastings?

 

TIA

 

 

[martincath]

1 hour ago, mitz18 said:

And Vancouver use to be such a nice relaxed city. 😏   I'm going to pick your brain one more time please.  In 2017 we stayed at Delta Suites on W.Hastings - how does that compare with the Marriott Pinnacle on Hastings?

 

TIA

Living in the city, I virtually never stay in hotels so I can't in good conscience comment on quality of rooms, comfiness of beds, housekeeping etc. I will note that the Delta is now run by Marriott though, so odds are that there isn't much qualitative difference on the service side of things!

 

Location-wise I'd choose the Delta every time as it's right on the edge of Gastown for good dining (and our most historic 'hood, though as past visitors you likely did the 'Water Street Drag' already to the Steam Clock and Gassy Jack statue!) and closer to Yaletown & Chinatown. Pinnacle is still far enough from the pier and English Bay that you'd likely bus or cab to those, so Delta being further probably isn't a factor. Walking to the pier is pretty much the same distance too, but collecting wine en route is much easier at the Delta as you can walk right past the BCL in the Harbour Centre, only half a block of backtracking if you use the street instead of walking through the food court, compared to an extra ~600 yards walking from the Pinnacle.

[compozer]

We will be cruising in June and our flight gets in at 9:30 pm.  By the time we get our luggage it will probably be 10:15 and 12:15 our time back home.  I have originally want to book a hotel close to port but I think we are going to be exhausted and probably would like a hotel near the airport so we can crash.   Our grown son will be joining us so there are three of us.   

 

Number one: I need to find the hotel...     I just looked up the PanPacific.  With taxes, that is over $550 for the night.  Pricey.  If we were getting in early in the afternoon, I would not mind but that seems like too much just to sleep.  

 

Number two:   figure out how to get to port.   Taxi, Uber, or train.    We love trains but not sure if we should bother - Probably have at least one suitcase and carry on each.   How easy is it to get the train?  Do we need to go back to the airport from the hotel?  or is that too much of a hassle.    And how far is away from the port is the drop off location?        I have a feeling the taxi will be the easiest.     

 

There are three ships in port that day so we figured we would wait until 1 to head over.

 

Thanks you so much for any suggestions.

[LEtue]

15 hours ago, compozer said:

We will be cruising in June and our flight gets in at 9:30 pm.  By the time we get our luggage it will probably be 10:15 and 12:15 our time back home.  I have originally want to book a hotel close to port but I think we are going to be exhausted and probably would like a hotel near the airport so we can crash.   Our grown son will be joining us so there are three of us.   

 

Number one: I need to find the hotel...     I just looked up the PanPacific.  With taxes, that is over $550 for the night.  Pricey.  If we were getting in early in the afternoon, I would not mind but that seems like too much just to sleep.  

 

Number two:   figure out how to get to port.   Taxi, Uber, or train.    We love trains but not sure if we should bother - Probably have at least one suitcase and carry on each.   How easy is it to get the train?  Do we need to go back to the airport from the hotel?  or is that too much of a hassle.    And how far is away from the port is the drop off location?        I have a feeling the taxi will be the easiest.     

 

There are three ships in port that day so we figured we would wait until 1 to head over.

 

Thanks you so much for any suggestions.

Keep watching the Pan Pacific!  About 3 months before I cruised in August the price came down to $233 US before taxes.  I have seen that in past years too but I couldn't take advantage.   This year I booked a hotel that would work as back up with the intent to cancel if needed (and I did).  I will always stay at the Pan Pacific before future cruises out of Vancouver because the room was so comfortable and the location too good to beat.  Loved the luggage service to the port and not needing an additional taxi in the morning to get to the pier.  We also arrived on a late flight (9:30 pm) but arrived at the hotel before 11 pm and were well rested the next morning while enjoying a Starbucks coffee downstairs before boarding the ship 

[martincath]

16 hours ago, compozer said:

We will be cruising in June and our flight gets in at 9:30 pm.  By the time we get our luggage it will probably be 10:15 and 12:15 our time back home.  I have originally want to book a hotel close to port but I think we are going to be exhausted and probably would like a hotel near the airport so we can crash.   Our grown son will be joining us so there are three of us.   

 

Number one: I need to find the hotel...     I just looked up the PanPacific.  With taxes, that is over $550 for the night.  Pricey.  If we were getting in early in the afternoon, I would not mind but that seems like too much just to sleep.  

 

Number two:   figure out how to get to port.   Taxi, Uber, or train.    We love trains but not sure if we should bother - Probably have at least one suitcase and carry on each.   How easy is it to get the train?  Do we need to go back to the airport from the hotel?  or is that too much of a hassle.    And how far is away from the port is the drop off location?        I have a feeling the taxi will be the easiest.     

 

There are three ships in port that day so we figured we would wait until 1 to head over.

 

Thanks you so much for any suggestions.

Firstly yes, the PP or other luxury hotel seems like a total waste of funds - any hotel with a comfy bed is all you need to get decent sleep, so definitely save the cash.

 

Airport vs downtown though isn't as clear-cut when it comes to speed of getting there! Airport hotels are either a) just as expensive as a fancy downtown hotel but walkable thus very fast to access (there is ONE physically present, the Fairmont, and it ain't cheap); or b) a shuttle ride away, which means not just the distance (closest hotels are within 10mins drive, but some 'airport' hotels are ten+ miles away and take at least as long as a downtown hotel to drive to) but also the factor of where is the shuttle when you want it?

 

Just collected someone else? Sorry, you're waiting at least 20, could be almost an hour, before it comes back - and then you have the drive time! At the hotel but switched off, but the only designated driver that shift is on break/on the loo/dealing with something else right now? At least as long as the drive time, plus remainder of break/magazine article reading/other task completion away. Absolute best case - en route to airport to get someone else but hasn't arrived yet or leave as soon as you call them - is the only way a shuttle will definitely beat a cab to downtown!

 

Given that late evening = zero traffic = cab will be fast, it will probably be faster to get to a downtown hotel than to many of the airport hotels unless the cab queue is loooooong. And as multiple other locals have commented over the last few days on another thread, waiting more than a a few minutes is unusual even when the queue of people looks long as they load multiple cabs simultaneously.

 

SkyTrain, given the 20min frequency late at night and the pretty minimal discount for 3 people, would not be what I'd recommend for you the night you arrive (even if you get a great rate at the casino hotel, River Rock, a cab for 3 is cheaper than SkyTrain despite the hotel being right next to Bridgeport Station).

 

Next day, I can guarantee no matter how tired you are on arrival you will wake up annoyingly-early thanks to that time difference. So your body will be raring to go to breakfast probably 6am local time - by all means board late (3 ship day I'd personally suggest leaving it until at least 2pm, in fact closer to 3pm as the tighter you cut the margins the faster the boarding experience) but you will want to use the morning, not lose it. A downtown hotel means you can leave your bags in the room, go Do Stuff, come back for them, check out, drop them at the pier, go for lunch, then return to the pier after walking Gastown to get the obligatory tourist snaps of the Steam Clock and Gassy Jack. Leaving this until last means you remove the risks of sightseeing further away, e.g. bad traffic, delaying your return to the pier.

 

3 adults - I'd look at the Condo Hotels like Rosedale on Robson, Times Square Suites if you have two rooms on the ship, but if you're already planning to be living in the one room onboard you may as well save even more money and do it precruise too to get used to snoring, sharing a bathroom etc. The YWCA offers triple rooms, this would undoubtedly be your cheapest option either downtown or at the airport for a one night hotel stay - or whatever downtown hotel offers a 3 bed room for the cheapest rate on your date if you can't bring yourself to 'stay at the Y' no matter how well-reviewed it is!

 

One of the many beauties of Vancouver is that ALL downtown core hotels are a short, cheap cab ride from the pier if they aren't walkable. Even the most distant possible - the Sylvia, which might work well for you as they have some odd room sizes like 3s & 5s too - is maybe $15, with most $10 or less.

 

If you did decide to stick to an airport hotel, then if you use the hotel shuttle to get dropped at SkyTrain you will avoid the AddFare from Sea Island (only the 3 stations there charge it, including the airport, and while there is one other hotel - Pacific Gateway - on Sea Island, it's still closer to the mainland SkyTrain stations than back to the airport). That means $4.25 each or less to get downtown by train, compared to a metered cab of $35-40 from most airport hotels. Uber etc. MIGHT be operating, but given the new legislation enabling the concept requires that all drivers have Taxi/Limo licenses and that the minimum price is the same as current minimum cab fares but they are allowed to charge Surge rates, the only sensible time to use any Uber type service will be when there are no cabs available as you won't save a penny, in fact you'll often end up paying more as Uber will of course bring in Surge pricing when cabs are scarce!!!

Edited September 28, 2019 by martincath

[kazu]

I see a lot of recommendations for Pan Pacific and I get the ease to get on the ship and the views but unless it drops in price (and I am watching) it’s pretty pricey.

 

There’s a convention in town when we are there at the convention centre so I picture a pretty busy, business like atmosphere at the hotel?

 

We tend to do boutique hotels in Europe and found the Loden which seems to have everything we want/need.  Close to everything and not far from the port.

 

I never see anyone talk about the Loden on the ports boards (I’ve been reading).  What am I missing?

[martincath]

32 minutes ago, kazu said:

I never see anyone talk about the Loden on the ports boards (I’ve been reading).  What am I missing?

It's small, not cheap, not part of a popular chain for points, and of course the single biggest reason is that CC only makes up a teeny fraction of cruisers, who make up only ~10% of tourists, so CC is bluntly a terrible resource for reviews of anything but the largest and most popular hotels (which skew heavily toward 'right next to the pier' or 'affordable' when it comes to questions on the boards, and the Loden is in neither category).

 

It's a VERY well-reviewed hotel on TripAdvisor, Expedia etc. (much more relevant resources for hotels); the location is indeed good, and it also gives free bikes to guests which is a nice little bonus, especially since there's a bike lane right outside; the hotel owns a London Cab which it shuttles you around in (but with a cab costing <$10, if the car's already booked when you want it on embarkation day just walk or cab instead of waiting); Tableau downstairs is an independent resto but frankly those are almost always better than an actual 'run by the hotel' resto anyway - and they provide room service to the hotel. So if you're happy with the price on your dates I'd have no reservations about booking.

[kazu]

1 hour ago, martincath said:

It's small, not cheap, not part of a popular chain for points, and of course the single biggest reason is that CC only makes up a teeny fraction of cruisers, who make up only ~10% of tourists, so CC is bluntly a terrible resource for reviews of anything but the largest and most popular hotels (which skew heavily toward 'right next to the pier' or 'affordable' when it comes to questions on the boards, and the Loden is in neither category).

 

It's a VERY well-reviewed hotel on TripAdvisor, Expedia etc. (much more relevant resources for hotels); the location is indeed good, and it also gives free bikes to guests which is a nice little bonus, especially since there's a bike lane right outside; the hotel owns a London Cab which it shuttles you around in (but with a cab costing <$10, if the car's already booked when you want it on embarkation day just walk or cab instead of waiting); Tableau downstairs is an independent resto but frankly those are almost always better than an actual 'run by the hotel' resto anyway - and they provide room service to the hotel. So if you're happy with the price on your dates I'd have no reservations about booking.

 

Thanks kindly, martincath.

 

the reviews on TA are outstanding.

I sent one email off with a question and the response was wonderful.

 

Much appreciated 😄 

[Schmoe38]

We were recently in Vancouver for a sailing to Hawaii and had one of the best hotel experiences ever at the Fairmont Pacific Rim.

 

 We booked based on location and ratings... and were very happy we did. This Hotel is modern, clean and the staff were all very accommodating and professional. We walked downtown for a variety of shopping ( drugstores, Marshalls, Nordstroms, plus plus), had a Tim Hortons and Starbucks VERY close along with some good restaurant options. Lots to do in the Hotel and area. 
 

The icing on the cake occurred when it was raining the day of embarkation. We were perfectly prepared to walk to the cruise port as it was a very short distance. The hotel offered a courtesy car service to take us to the port. We were taken to the port in a luxury BMW.
 

The most impressive moment was when we offered the driver a tip for his services. He kept saying to us that it was not necessary. We could have left the car without having paid a cent and that was all right with the driver and the hotel. We were very appreciative of how we were treated at the hotel and a tip was definitely in order. We definitely came to a reasonable compromise.

 

There’s no question you will pay a premium to stay in a hotel of this calibre. To us, it’s a “no brainer” and we will most certainly return.

 

Randy

Edited October 19, 2019 by Schmoe38