We will be spending three nights in Vancouver in May before our Alaska cruise. Any hotel suggestions in the vicinity of the port? Favorite tings to do, must sees, day trips?
Posted by
Maryland, USA
533 posts
You don't say what your budget is, so this may not be your cup of tea, but the YWCA Hotel is an excellent inexpensive option. (It really is a hotel, not a hostel, and men are more than welcome.)
I highly recommend the Granville Island Public Market, the source of by far the best strawberries I've ever tasted. (I was there in late June. I'm not sure when strawberry season starts in that neck of the woods.)
Posted by
Atlanta
5235 posts
Pan Pacific if the budget will handle it. Great location, excellent breakfast, and is within walking distance of the tram station from the airport.
Posted by
8322 posts
We stayed at the Hotel Metropolitan that is about 6 blocks from the cruise terminal. Cost was about $150 US per night.
After we did a Rockies bus tour, we came back for two days and stayed at the Pan Pacific for two nights, cost was more than double the Metropolitan.
I suggest for one or two days, go with Pan Pacific, for a longer period, check out the Metropolitan.
Posted by
Camano Island, WA, usa
1526 posts
There are tons of Hotels in Vancouver...just look for one that suits you on the on-line lists. Near Stanley Park or English Bay are the quieter areas.
We stayed in one of the guest suites in the dorms at UBC one time...it was a little sparse but was half price compared to others but a ways from downtown. However, UBC is an excellent day trip destination for the Anthropology Museum which has a World Class Collection of Northwest Native Arts...an easy bus ride. There is plenty of shopping on Robeson. Stanley Park is great for walks and people watching. Gas Town is the old town part of Van with restaurants and galleries. The Vancouver Art Gallery is good. Bring lightweight rain gear for your walkabouts or carry a pocket umbrella. I live 75 miles south and May is either glorious or rainy. You will have missed the tulips in April but the iris will be in bloom. You can go out for a Whale Watch boat ride. You may have Humpbacks, Grays or Orcas...wear a knit hat...that won't blow off.
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32363 posts
sporter,
I stayed at the Ramada Downtown Limited last summer, and talked to several groups staying in the hotel that were in Vancouver to connect with a cruise. It's within easy walking distance to Waterfront Skytrain station (connection from the airport) and also the cruise terminal.
There are lots of hotels in the downtown area, so you'll have a wide choice depending on your budget. If necessary take a Taxi to the cruise port. If you have a more "generous" travel budget, here are a few suggestions you could consider....
- Sutton Place (one of my favourites but definitely at the high end of the scale).
- Rosewood Hotel Georgia (completely renovated not too long ago and also very posh).
- Fairmont Hotel Vancouver
- Wedgewood Hotel
- If you don't mind pushing through a few demonstrators, you could also stay at the brand new Trump Hotel.
Things to do - where to begin......
- Shopping - lots of posh stores in the downtown area including at the Pacific Centre Mall and further down towards the water. There are also some high end stores such as Gucci, Louis Vuitton and that sort of thing.
- Stanley Park
- Capilano Suspension Bridge
- Day trip to Victoria via Harbour Air or Helicopter
- Also check this - https://www.tourismvancouver.com/events/seasonal-events/?gclid=CIfS35_Y19ICFQdrfgodnysM5w
Posted by
Olympia, WA, USA
6713 posts
The Pan Pacific is right on top of the cruise terminal and a spectacular view of the harbor. Way out of our price range. We stayed at the Chateau Granville, at Granville and Helmcken, a Best Western property, and liked it fine. Another place we enjoyed, higher cost, was the Hotel Le Soleil on Hornby St, a few blocks' walk from the terminal.
Gastown and Chinatown are very close to the terminal. The Sun Yat Sen Chinese garden is very special. Stanley Park, in the other direction, is beautiful and very large. (A few years ago a big windstorm blew down a lot of its trees, and someone was trapped in the middle of the park for several days, unable to get out.) The English Bay waterfront is also very pretty. The University of BC Anthropology Museum has a great collection of totems and other exhibits. There are good narrated harbor cruises that might make your ship's departure and return more interesting. Across the harbor, reachable by the Sea Bus ferry, is North Vancouver with Capillano Canyon and its suspension bridge -- not for the faint hearted.