Vancouver answers from a Vancouverite

[Urban trekker]

PD - yes my guess was close to the final outcome and my day was also long but it was nice to be getting paid for a change - after the vote count I headed to Van False Creek HQ'ers to join in the party - when I got there there was one very large cooler filled with Molson Canadian and when I left it was empty so if this morning posts are a little tipsy you know why.

 

I also got the scoop on the Landis/Cascadia question.

 

They are two separate properties with the former being strata owned units with about 10% available for short term rentals who happen to share the same parking space.

 

The investment people for the Cascadia Hotel have ties to the investment group behind the Delta Hotel group.

 

I also was able to get my hands on one of the Olympic pins that CTV has been giving out when a reporter friend of mine showed up looking for our candidate who had left for the party at the Convention Center - in return for me ensuring that his favorite brand of peanut butter would be available in our coffee shop when our new building opens in a year he gave me his Olympic lapel pin.

 

After a busy five weeks of not doing a lot of cruise related things I can now start planning my Alaskan cruise at the end of Aug.

 

Have a good trip over, enjoy the hotel and your cruise.

 

Cheers

 

Dennis

[familytravelx5]

How about the Park Inn & Suites on Broadway? I know it's location is further from the heart of downtown but they'll allow 5 in one room and their parking price is reasonable. Any input on this one is appreciated. Thanks!

 

_____________________

Jackie

[scottbee]

How about the Park Inn & Suites on Broadway? I know it's location is further from the heart of downtown but they'll allow 5 in one room and their parking price is reasonable. Any input on this one is appreciated. Thanks!

 

The Park Inn is formerly the Fairview. It's in a safe part of town, near a lot of good food on Broadway. You can probably find a lot of reviews by looking up the "Fairview" online. Liquor store and pub in the front, and it's right on a very busy street, but if it's for a one nighter, probably just fine.

[COTINGEY]

How about the Park Inn & Suites on Broadway? I know it's location is further from the heart of downtown but they'll allow 5 in one room and their parking price is reasonable. Any input on this one is appreciated. Thanks!

 

_____________________

Jackie

 

 

We are also a family of five (three adults and two children) and we are staying at the Landis Suites. Good reviews on TripAdvisor. Ut and PD gave it the stamp of approval. We have a two bedroom/two bathroom suite for about $200/night. Parking is $14 and there is a free breakfast. They also have a pool.

 

Happy Sailing,

Robyn

[dusty1117]

Will be in Vancouver when the Sapphire is docked at Canada Place East. Will be taking Sapphire the following week. With our car, can we drive over there in the morning from Richmond and see the ship? What are the restrictions? Where do we park or can we drive by. Is it too crowded and should we just forget it.

 

Avis

[scottbee]

Will be in Vancouver when the Sapphire is docked at Canada Place East. Will be taking Sapphire the following week. With our car, can we drive over there in the morning from Richmond and see the ship? What are the restrictions? Where do we park or can we drive by. Is it too crowded and should we just forget it.

 

 

Downtown parking is expensive, but yes, you can walk around the outside of Canada Place and get a fabulous view of the cruise ships when they're docked.

[springfire]

My family of 5 will be arriving two days before our cruise on the amtrak from Seattle. I was thinking of renting a vehicle over at the amtrak station, they have some great rates, Avis I think but I would rather use the skytrain if all things were equal. I notice the one day pass is $9.00, kids I think was $7.00, I started bidding on some 4 star locations in downtown. First, do you think I will get a hard time from the hotel for trying to put my family of 5 in one room and second, do you think it's more cost effective to rent a car, about $30.00 day plus whatever they charge to park and so forth. Thanks for any input, I have been looking at hotwire and priceline, some nice deals on hotels but have heard I can pay $20 to $25 a night for parking.

[ukbballfan]

My family of 5 will be arriving two days before our cruise on the amtrak from Seattle. I was thinking of renting a vehicle over at the amtrak station, they have some great rates, Avis I think but I would rather use the skytrain if all things were equal. I notice the one day pass is $9.00, kids I think was $7.00, I started bidding on some 4 star locations in downtown. First, do you think I will get a hard time from the hotel for trying to put my family of 5 in one room and second, do you think it's more cost effective to rent a car, about $30.00 day plus whatever they charge to park and so forth. Thanks for any input, I have been looking at hotwire and priceline, some nice deals on hotels but have heard I can pay $20 to $25 a night for parking.

 

If you go with Priceline...they only guarentee 2 people to a room. You'd have to work out the extra's with the hotel you won and I don't like your chances of getting 5 in one room. We have 7 in our party and I won 3 rooms at the Westin Bayshore and I'm worried about getting just one of those rooms with a double bed config.

[familytravelx5]

My family of 5 will be arriving two days before our cruise on the amtrak from Seattle. I was thinking of renting a vehicle over at the amtrak station, they have some great rates, Avis I think but I would rather use the skytrain if all things were equal. I notice the one day pass is $9.00, kids I think was $7.00, I started bidding on some 4 star locations in downtown. First, do you think I will get a hard time from the hotel for trying to put my family of 5 in one room and second, do you think it's more cost effective to rent a car, about $30.00 day plus whatever they charge to park and so forth. Thanks for any input, I have been looking at hotwire and priceline, some nice deals on hotels but have heard I can pay $20 to $25 a night for parking.

 

Robyn--

thanks for the info about the Landis, I'll look into it.

 

regarding the above message, we have the same questions/problems. We really love using Priceline and the money we save but Priceline only guarantees occupancy for two. Here's their spiel:

 

• Your hotel will be confirmed for the dates, area, and star level that you agreed to (or higher star level).
  
• Your reservation will be immediately entered into the hotel's own central reservation system.
  
• Your hotel will be star-rated by priceline according to our rigorous rating system. This means that our hotel staff has researched your hotel, reviewed customer comments and compared star ratings assigned by other rating services. The hotel you get will meet priceline's strict quality standards.
  
• Your hotel will accommodate two adults.
  
• Your credit card purchase will be secure.
  
• Your personal information will remain confidential according to our privacy policy.
  

we've never had an issue of getting two beds but places like Manhattan, NYC they are harder to come by. I don't know if that's the case in Vancouver.

 

We've even considered getting two rooms but then you can't guarantee connecting rooms or even close to each other....

 

 

 

You can look into Hotwire and they sometimes have 'suites' listed as a description. Their prices aren't as good as Priceline but it's another option. That 'usually' works if they have 2 queens & a sofa bed but again not guaranteed (they only guarantee 4 pp)

• Hotwire's hotel partners allow a maximum of 4 occupants per room.
  

We ended up renting a car via Priceline at Seatac for $18/day for a full size BUT we have to pay for parking at Cruisepark & any hotel parking...it was worth it vs. train, shuttles, one-way rentals, taxis etc. Also, we are staying 2 days prior to cruise and another another 5 days after our cruise so we needed alot of transportation....

 

Good luck!

 

___________________

Jackie

[COTINGEY]

We are in beautiful downtown Vancouver. I wish we would have planned to stay a week instead of just three short days prior to our cruise. Anyway, thanks to all of you for your time and consideration in getting this trip planned. We have a nice two bedroom suite (Landis) for our family of five. Ut thanks for your information. Not only do they share a parking lot, but they share a swimming pool and I think the workout room with the Cascadia. I have waved to you from each wnidow since PD shared that you could see this place from your balcony. PD thanks also for all your help. We have ours days mapped out and plan on exploring to the fullest each day. The most pleasant surprise was that the border crossing only took 15 minutes. Boy was I glad we were not trying to get into the USA. That was going to be a several hour wait. And to all you Vancouverite's - HAPPY VICTORIA DAY on Monday. It's ironic that we will be leaving on a holiday from our depature port and arriving on a holiday (Memorial Day). Happy travels to all.

Robyn

[Podie]

I think I am more excited to be visiting Vancouver than anywhere else in this upcoming trip! My father and all his ancestors were Canadian and he was baptized in Vancouver in 1910 so all through life I've wanted to visit.

 

My question of the day concerns Cafe Artigiano. I know there's one right near us (Marriott Pinnacle) at Pender and Thurlow, but does anyone know if they serve food as well as what I read is the greatest coffee in North America?

[Urban trekker]

Robyn - just looked out over to the Landis just now - was trying to see if you might be out there waving but didn't see anything.

 

When I was working on the election on Tuesday at the Cascadia I went by the swimming pool several times.

 

Glad that you are enjoying your visit to our beautiful city and even the weather has been pretty good.

 

Cheers

 

Dennis

[Urban trekker]

Podie - you don't happen to know where your father was baptized do you? I ask because my maternal grandparents arrived in Vancouver in late 1910 with my infant mom in tow - was was only a couple months old when she arrived in Vancouver from her birthplace in Boston.

 

Cheers

 

Dennis

[apostilleus]

Chasty Rose Ballesteros, the new face of Kokanee for 2007, has been in a whirlwind of activities these months but she is not complaining. On the contrary, she’s loving every moment of it…it’s all because she is the reigning 2007 Kokanee Glacier Girl, a big step forward in fulfilling her passion for acting.

A former Winnipegger, now living her life in Vancouver, Chasty Rose, 26, graces the front cover of the 2007 Kokanee Glacier calendar and the month of July spread. The FJ caught Chasty Rose and got her to share her adventure promoting Kokanee, a popular beer named after the Kokanee Glacier in the Kootenays region in Creston, British Columbia where the beer is brewed. The ads centre around the beer’s official mascot, Mel the Sasquatch and follows the storyline of the “Kokanee Ranger” and his unsuccessful attempts to hunt and catch the Sasquatch who is stealing the Kokanee beer.

[cruisin'grandparents]

Not sure if this has been mentioned in previous post but limited time on a computer at moment. Several years ago, we got off a cruise ship and stayed downtown and bought a day senior pass that enabled us to go all over the city and the ferry across to N. Vancouver. This June, we will be arriving in Vancouver but have a hotel booked at airport as leaving early the next day. \is there anywhere in the cruise terminal that we can buy a day ticket or do we have to go to hotel, get a bus back into town and then buy a pass. I am pretty sure you cannot buy it on the bus itself. Any help Vickie, would be appreciated.

Thanks Ann

[dunaldo]

Had a great time in Vancouver and really appreciate all the help and advice from you guys. Did the Vancouver trolley, had dinner downtown and watched part of the hockey game (5/7) then back to the hotel and watched the end of the game at the Press Box on E. Hastings-sat beside the manager-Mitch. Sorry you lost-we actually cheered for you kinda hoping for a Canucks-Penquins final. Maybe next year then I can come to the Shark Club with my Pens jersey. My only regret with my stay there was that I should have had at least one more day.

[Urban trekker]

Good to see that you enjoyed your Vancouver visit and some of our craziness called Canuckmania - I think it might it might be a repeat of last year's final - Detroit and Pittsburgh with Crosby's youth being the deciding factor.

Putterdude is on a cruise so we will have to wait a day or two for his response.

Cheers

Dennis

[dunaldo]

Well my sons (season ticket holders) hope it will be Detroit and we beat them decidedly to get the cup of course but also so Hossa doesn't get a ring because he defected to them to get one.

[CruisinDawn]

[quote name='vickie_bernie']Vancouver is a very safe city and I feel comfortable walking pretty much everywhere at all hours. Note: [COLOR=red][B]I would stay away from the downtown eastside especially at night, this is the Hastings/Main area but most tourists don't go there; however Chinatown is just one block south but during the day you shouldn't[/B][/COLOR] experience any problems.

Note there are lots of homeless people (like most large cities now a days) and you will be asked for change, a polite no sorry will work fine.

Enjoy your stay[/quote]
Just found this thread so I have a bunch of reading to do but wonder about the comment above. We are staying at either the Marriott or Renaissance which are both on Hastings near the cruise port which I understand is at Hastings/Main. Should we not walk to China Town for dinner (night) from our hotel?

Will continue reading this thread, can't wait to hear from all of your VC'ins!

BonVoyage
Dawna

[wrp96]

Question, is there a good place to go to get pictures of the cruise ships either docked at Canada Place or upon sailaway?

I love to get pictures of cruise ships, and would love to be able to do this the day before my cruise (I don't get in until 1pm and have dinner plans that night, so I'm not going to have time for much else pre-cruise anyways).

[Urban trekker]

Canada Place is surrounded by a promenade so you can get up close and very personal for seeing ships berthed there - there isn't really any place to get photos of the ships at Ballantyne pier as it is in the industrial part of the port.

Here's a link to my blog where I posted some pictures of the Carnival Splendor - keep in mind it was on the east side of Canada Place - if a ship is berthed on the west side you will get great pictures from the new convention center walkway.

[url]http://yvrcruiser.blogspot.com/2009/05/carnival-splendor-in-vancouver-at.html[/url]

For sailaway - Prospect Point in Stanley Park is an excellent place or you could walk onto the Lions Gate Bridge on the east side and see the ship coming towards you as it makes it way out of the harbour heading for the open seas.

Hope this helps

Cheers

Dennis

[bqkali]

First of all, thank you to everyone who has responded to all these questions. You're so very helpful!

I have two quick questions of my own...I apologize if they've been asked before, but I'll admit I didn't read all 73 pages of this thread :eek: For reference, my time in Vancouver is brief: I am due to arrive in Vancouver after my cruise around 7am, and hope to be off the ship early so that I can store my luggage at my hotel for the day. I am flying out early the next morning, so I only have about 12 hours in Vancouver.

1. What are some good rainy day activities? Ideally, I'd like to go to Grouse Mountain & Capilano Suspension Bridge for the day, with any remaining time at Stanley Park. Unfortunately, all of these are outdoor activities, so I'm in trouble if it rains!! A little rain doesn't scare me, but if it happens to be pouring, what would you suggest as a good backup plan? The aquarium looks great, but won't take all day so I'd love any other options.

2. Would you recommend staying in the downtown area or in Gastown? Which neighborhood would be most convenient to return to my hotel (by bus) after a day of hiking to freshen up before dinner? I am hoping to be able to walk to dinner somewhere and then call it a night.

Thanks in advance!

[Urban trekker]

There aren't really any hotels in Gastown for the tourist trade so it would be the downtown core.

Cheers

Dennis

[steveww48]

Many thanks to Urban Trekker, PutterDude, and the other kind folks from Vancouver who spend so much time here responding to questions. I've been following this thread closely for about a year, when I first booked our Alaska cruise that is now close at hand. The information posted here is outstanding, and your patience and thoroughness in posting responses have been very notable.

You folks have done your job well, and the Vancouver Chamber of Commerce should be proud of you :) -- because of what I've learned here, we're spending 4 full days in Vancouver prior to our cruise and I expect each day to be full of activities. Instead of rushing through Vancouver a day before our cruise, we're looking forward to a Vancouver vacation [B]and [/B]a cruise vacation. Thanks for all your help!

[gdizzle]

My first post. yeehaa. Driving from Seattle to Vancouver, for a trip on the NCL Sun in June 21. Sails to Alaska, then back to Vancouver.
I am planning on spending 2 nights in Vancouver when we return, 6/28. But not sure of what I can see during that time. I have 2 kids 7,9. We have a car. Any ideas?? Also of a place to stay that might be near nice things. I am frantically searching for a hotel stay that allows me to leave my car, but seems there are very few choices.
Anyone heard of the Listel?? Thoughts?? Any help is GREATLY appreciated.
Thanks for any help and ideas.
gDizzle

p.s. this is first cruise. !!!!!!