Vancouver hotel and airport question

We will be staying two extra days in Vancouver post cruise. We have enough Hilton Honors points to cover both nights. We definitely plan on staying in the Hampton Inn the first night but our plane departs at 6 AM. Would you advise us to stay at the Airport Hilton for the second night or would we be okay staying in town and traveling early to the airport?

In order to enjoy two full days in Vancouver we would prefer to stay in the Hampton Inn both nights but have no idea how far away the airport is or how difficult it will be to get a taxi at 4 in the morning. With that in mind, how early should we get to the airport, leaving Vancouver to Seattle? I'm assuming it is relatively quick through Passport Control?

We will be staying two extra days in Vancouver post cruise. We have enough Hilton Honors points to cover both nights. We definitely plan on staying in the Hampton Inn the first night but our plane departs at 6 AM. Would you advise us to stay at the Airport Hilton for the second night or would we be okay staying in town and traveling early to the airport?

In order to enjoy two full days in Vancouver we would prefer to stay in the Hampton Inn both nights but have no idea how far away the airport is or how difficult it will be to get a taxi at 4 in the morning. With that in mind, how early should we get to the airport, leaving Vancouver to Seattle? I'm assuming it is relatively quick through Passport Control?

Airport is about 8 miles south of downtown. Should be no problem to get a taxi at dark o'clock in the downtown core, Vancouver is a big city.

Yes, stay at the hampton.....

• 6am wheels up
  
• 3am arrival at YVR. 3hr is the recommended time. But I've pushed my luck with 2.25 hours. Your call if you want to risk getting stuck with check-in and security congestion.
  
• 2:15am depart Hampton by cab (budget 35 minutes to the airport)
  

Vancouver cabs run 24hrs. However, if you are leaving Friday, Saturday or Sunday morning... there can be a cab shortage when the bars are closing at that time of the night. Best to call at 1:50am to secure a cab.

Yes, stay at the hampton.....

• 6am wheels up
  
• 3am arrival at YVR. 3hr is the recommended time. But I've pushed my luck with 2.25 hours. Your call if you want to risk getting stuck with check-in and security congestion.
  
• 2:15am depart Hampton by cab (budget 35 minutes to the airport)
  

Vancouver cabs run 24hrs. However, if you are leaving Friday, Saturday or Sunday morning... there can be a cab shortage when the bars are closing at that time of the night. Best to call at 1:50am to secure a cab.

Actually you can't get through US immigration & customs until 4:30am at YVR so it's pointless leaving the hotel that early. Cab will take a half hour or less at that time of day, traffic is not an issue. If you're an old-school 'check-in at the airport in person' kind of person then perhaps leave at 3:45am so that by the time you check in and get through pre-screening you won't have to wait before they open the US area.

Personally I'd leave the hotel at 4am, so that the initial lineup of tourists who don't know this and turned up at 4am or earlier for their 6 & 7am flights have all filtered through pre-screening and US I&C by the time you roll in to the airport at 4:30am.

I really want to thank all of you for your speedy replies. I booked the Hampton Inn today and I'm glad I did - there was a banner across the top of the website proclaiming "Hurry! This hotel is booking out fast" I secured a room for the two nights and now we are all set to explore Vancouver. I hear it is just a wonderful city and it will be a perfect ending to our vacation.

Thanks for the advice on the airport as well - especially the info that passport control doesn't even open until 4:30. We are leaving on a Friday so maybe we'll get there at 4:15 to be on the safe side.

now we are all set to explore Vancouver. I hear it is just a wonderful city and it will be a perfect ending to our vacation.

2 days? Some need 2 weeks to see everything in the area...

txO8VK4LaLQ ZLL6du--lQA vIvtsz1b60Q Gcyt8Xdvsgs

I recommend Grouse Mountain and the Capilano Suspension Bridge for your first day off the ship. Free shuttles outside the cruise terminal.

Which day are you arriving? We can provide some seasonal suggestions.

xlxo -"YVR 3hr is the recommended time. But I've pushed my luck with 2.25 hours. Your call if you want to risk getting stuck with check-in and security congestion".

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Yes - the recommended YVR Departing Cruise Passenger for USA/International Flights does show a 3hr before departure airport arrival time. But - the breakout of those three (3) hours per the YVR website for a smooth transit through YVR includes...

- 1 hour to complete US Customs Declaration Card, Check-In, Proceed Through Security & US Customs Border Inspection.

- 1 hour to Pickup Duty-Free, Souvenir and Food Items.

- 1 hour to Proceed To Gate and Relax Before the Flight Home.

So - this timeline allows 2 hours for purchases, gate walk and relaxing? Is the 3 hour prior to departure a bit ideally padded? I think most disembarking cruise passengers want to know how much time should be allowed from ship to airline gate - without the extra activities - for realistic advance planning.

With one (1) cruise ship at Canada Place on a Wednesday...taxi to the airport...and a 1245PM Delta flight YVR/MSP - what's the latest we need to be at the airport? Agree - we do not want to miss our flight. Really would appreciate some input.

On a single ship day you should be fine getting to the airport 2 hours before departure - in fact on most days you'll end up through security, immigration, customs and at your gate within an hour of arriving at YVR. Personally I would be very comfortable aiming for a 2 hour pre-flight arrival on a single ship day.

But with a 12:45 flight unless you are DESPERATE to see some very specific thing in town and simply cannot imagine leaving without doing so why would you take the risk of getting to the airport as late as possible? You simply don't have time to spend the morning sightseeing - you basically have the luxury of not needing to worry about being the first people off the ship.

Remember that you have to go through Canadian customs & immigration at the pier, then travel to the airport, then go through US C&I plus regular security. There are a lot of potential bottlenecks, any one of which could add an hour to your trip.

The 3/2/1 YVR suggestion allows for at least one thing to go badly awry and still make your flight; even the recommended-by-most-airlines 2 hours before flight time at the airport has padding built-in so that 99%+ of people compliant with it will make their flights; but there have been horror stories of three hour queues at security in the past, and it doesn't take much Google-fu to find times when YVR issued official announcements about changing their recommendation to arrival FIVE hours before flight time due to anticipated business.

It's your last day - will it really benefit your stress levels to spend an extra hour on a ship with everything but breakfast shut down than to get going to the airport and after you have jumped through all the hoops grab a coffee or second breakfast there with all the hassles behind you?

martincath - On a single ship day you should be fine getting to the airport 2 hours before departure - in fact on most days you'll end up through security, immigration, customs and at your gate within an hour of arriving at YVR. Personally I would be very comfortable aiming for a 2 hour pre-flight arrival on a single ship day.

But with a 12:45 flight unless you are DESPERATE to see some very specific thing in town and simply cannot imagine leaving without doing so why would you take the risk of getting to the airport as late as possible? You simply don't have time to spend the morning sightseeing - you basically have the luxury of not needing to worry about being the first people off the ship.

Remember that you have to go through Canadian customs & immigration at the pier, then travel to the airport, then go through US C&I plus regular security. There are a lot of potential bottlenecks, any one of which could add an hour to your trip.

The 3/2/1 YVR suggestion allows for at least one thing to go badly awry and still make your flight; even the recommended-by-most-airlines 2 hours before flight time at the airport has padding built-in so that 99%+ of people compliant with it will make their flights; but there have been horror stories of three hour queues at security in the past, and it doesn't take much Google-fu to find times when YVR issued official announcements about changing their recommendation to arrival FIVE hours before flight time due to anticipated business.

It's your last day - will it really benefit your stress levels to spend an extra hour on a ship with everything but breakfast shut down than to get going to the airport and after you have jumped through all the hoops grab a coffee or second breakfast there with all the hassles behind you?

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Excellent - great info... thanks very much. Just to clarify - we have stayed in Vancouver a number of times, love the city, people & Pan Pacific - but we have never flown out of YVR. We do not plan on any disembarkation day sightseeing & we will try to get off the ship without self-assist luggage as early as possible directly to YVR. But with the ship "scheduled to arrive" at 730AM and the earliest Independent Arrangements White 1 Lounge Meeting Time of 835AM - maybe we'll be off the ship at best by 900AM. The 3 hr prior-to thing would mean we need to be at the airport by 945AM for the 1245PM flight (boarding 1215PM). IF the airport process is actually two (2) hours - that means we would need to be at the airport by 1045AM - which I agree ... is a bit less stressing. And - yes...I'll be checking with Guest Services once on-board. Any other thoughts? Again - thank you.

Excellent - great info... thanks very much. Just to clarify - we have stayed in Vancouver a number of times, love the city, people & Pan Pacific - but we have never flown out of YVR. We do not plan on any disembarkation day sightseeing & we will try to get off the ship without self-assist luggage as early as possible directly to YVR. But with the ship "scheduled to arrive" at 730AM and the earliest Independent Arrangements White 1 Lounge Meeting Time of 835AM - maybe we'll be off the ship at best by 900AM. The 3 hr prior-to thing would mean we need to be at the airport by 945AM for the 1245PM flight (boarding 1215PM). IF the airport process is actually two (2) hours - that means we would need to be at the airport by 1045AM - which I agree ... is a bit less stressing. And - yes...I'll be checking with Guest Services once on-board. Any other thoughts? Again - thank you.

One a one, or even two, ship day regular I feel confident in saying that almost all the regular local posters would be comfortable stating that any flight after Noon is just fine and recommend disembarkation around 8am.

Since it's just one ship taxi queues will be shorter, plus security, immigration, customs at both pier and airport will be also. Unless something goes awry with the ship such that you arrive later than planned I would not be concerned about missing your flight.

Book in for that first independent group and enjoy a civilized breakfast - you'll probably end up at your gate closer to 10:45am than 12:45pm, but if so you'll be relaxed and able to enjoy wandering around the airport a bit (we have a lot of art pieces and spots to watch planes) or hit the shops & restaurants.

If you get ridiculously unlucky and there is a some huge delay, just identify yourselves to the airport staff with your flight time - they don't *want* people to miss flights so fast-tracking through queues happens all the time for folks who could make a flight if they weren't stuck at the back of the line...

martincath - Got it!! and - good advice on alerting airport personnel for "Fast-Tracking" IF we are running late. Hopefully all will go well. Do appreciate your help - thank you.

People get worked up about how busy YVR airport could be with more than one ship in port.

YVR is a busy airport, in summer about 2m passengers/month. That's 64,000/day. When you have two 2,000 passenger ships are in port, and assuming every passenger arrived and left on the same day (4000 deplanements, 4000 enplanements) , you're still only talking about just 12% of the airport's passengers traffic being cruise passengers.

(and there are a lot of people who don't come/go by air, I'm doing a worst case here)

Having an extra ship in port really isn't going to make that much difference.

^No disagreement SB - it's the three and now for the first time 4 ships all at Canada Place days that give me the willies, mostly at the pier of course as everyone has to come & go there; at least in the past with Ballantyne to overflow to there was more total physical space available for the pier-based C&I lineups, plus some cabs and buses were going to a different place instead of all bottlenecking at the entrance to Canada Place.

I'd expect the usual complaints of terribly slow security in May for the first batch of 3 ship days combined with relatively new security staff; but I would really, really not want to be one of the guinea pigs on September 20th for the first 4 ship day since Ballantyne ceased operation!

2 days? Some need 2 weeks to see everything in the area...

txO8VK4LaLQ ZLL6du--lQA vIvtsz1b60Q Gcyt8Xdvsgs

 

I recommend Grouse Mountain and the Capilano Suspension Bridge for your first day off the ship. Free shuttles outside the cruise terminal.

 

Which day are you arriving? We can provide some seasonal suggestions.

I know - two days is definitely not enough but unfortunately we have to get back. We are going to be gone for a total of two weeks. I think we eventually will have to dedicate a vacation just for Vancouver and BC.

Thanks for the youtube videos and for the advice. Any other advice on Vancouver will be very much appreciated. We are going to be there on a Wednesday (disembark from the Coral Princess) and a full day Thursday - June 24th and 25th.

Thanks for the youtube videos and for the advice. Any other advice on Vancouver will be very much appreciated. We are going to be there on a Wednesday (disembark from the Coral Princess) and a full day Thursday - June 24th and 25th.

Hmm...

• You are leaving a week before Canada Day fireworks and Olympic Cauldron lighting. That would have made the trip special.
  
• You are there at the tail end of the Fifa Womens matches. Hotel rooms should be easier than earlier in the month. The June 26 semi final match is not held in Vancouver. But the finals 2 weeks later will. I would still start looking at hotel rooms anyways to avoid surprises.