How to get from cruise ship terminal to Vancouver airport?

[bluetiger9192]

My cruise ship (HAL Statendam) arrives on Sunday, 6/13 at 7am; I need to catch a flight from Vancouver airport at noon. We have a group of 4. What is the cheapest way to get from the cruise ship terminal to Vancouver airport?

 

I saw from the other treads that the public transportation is possible but I couldn't find a schedule or the pick-up location for the public bus/train/etc. If anyone can direct me to where I can find that info, that would be great.

 

Will I have enough time to wait for the public transportation (given my flight is at noon)? If not, would a taxi (for 4 people) be the cheapest alternative? If so, how difficult would it be to find a taxi once the ship docks? Unfortunately, I won't have a working cell phone in Vancouver to call for a cab once I get on land.

[LaurieCM]

There are always cabs at the terminal- you won't need to phone. When we went we used a Princess transfer and won't do it again- with them we had to get our luggage at the airport and then go to the airline for paperwork and then through Canadian customs, US customs, and airport security. It was a nightmare. It took forever and we ended up running through the airport in our socks (no time to put our shoes back on). Get off the ship as early as you can- we had given our correct flight time, next time I'll claim an earlier flight. Good luck. We loved our 15 day Arctic Explorer cruisetour. Alaska is fantastic.;)

[1Alaska]

There will be a slew of taxis right at the pier. No problems getting to the airport quickly.

[katmai]

For public transit:

Walk a short block to skytrain waterfront station. (Look for signs.)

Take the Canda line ($2.50 on weekend) to YVR-airport. It takes 26 minutes.

The ticket vending machines take cash and credit/debit cards.

 

http://tripplanning.translink.ca/hiwire?.a=iScheduleLookupSearch&LineName=999&LineAbbr=999

[Ron AKA]

As previous poster says, the Canada Line light rail transit system is likely the fastest, and certainly the cheapest way to get there. Use their trip planner to get an estimate on time and directions.

 

http://tripplanning.translink.ca/hiwire

 

Put Transportation Centers in the Select from popular locations field. You will be departing from Canada Place and going to Airport-YVR.

 

This system was significantly upgraded for the Olympics, and I'm sure Vancouver will appreciate your use of it. Also street traffic depending on the time of day can be a real pain as there is no real freeway route from downtown to the airport.

[Putterdude]

The Canada Line is an excellent option so long as you all have a reasonable degree of mobility and can handle you own luggage. You are going to be on a very tight schedule as it is not likely anyone will be off the ship much before 8:00 and you will need to clear Canadian customs at Canada Place and then US customs at the airport, if you are returning to the US. The Canada Line takes 25 minutes to get from the Waterfront Station to YVR plus you are going to need 5 to 7 minutes to get from Canada Place to the station and a similar amount of time to get to your airlines check-in counter at YVR. My advice would be to self disembark. Remember if the flight is to the US you need to be at YVR a full 2 hours pre-flight time to clear security and US customs.

If the Canada Line is not to your likeing then there will be a cab-line at Canada Place....depending how early you are off the ship the line could be 30 mins or so and then the drive to YVR is about 35 mins. Your fare will be about $35. As there are 4 of you, you will need a mini-van cab and that may take a few extra minutes to come along.

[Ron AKA]

Putterdude makes a good point if you are pressed for time. I also said auto traffic was a problem in Vancouver. I have always traveled there in business hours, and I suspect it is much better on a Sunday AM. So a taxi is likely not nearly as slow as it can be during rush hour. Another issue is the times that the direct Canada Line runs. If you just make a run, then it still likely will beat the taxi. If you just miss it, then not at all likely.

[Putterdude]

The Canada Line runs every 12 mins from Waterfront Station to YVR, the travel time is 26 minutes. Even if a person just missed one of the trains it will likely still be faster then a taxi as there will be a wait in the cab-line for a taxi at Canada Place that could run 30 mins or so. The real issues with the Canada Line are to have reasonable mobility and be able to handle all of ones luggage by themselves...if you have those abilities the the Canada Line wins both on price and time.

[travelbug11]

There is also the Vancouver Shuttle $15.00 pp to the left of the taxis and limos. You can buy your tix before you walk out the door or call ahead 604-841-2121