Vancouver transfers, what time is pick up at hotel?

[westlab]

We have transfers from airport to hotel (2 days prior to cruise) and then from hotel to ship and ship to airport. The info from HAL indicates that transfers includes a sightseeing tour of Vancouver. It also indicates that we will receive more info at the hotel.

 

Does anyone have know approximately what time we will be picked up at hotel the day of cruise? And what does the tour of Vancouver include? We will be on the Volendam on August 25th.

[RuthC]

And what does the tour of Vancouver include?

I haven't done the tour in a few years, so lets see what I remember (presuming it's the same now).

You get a ride through Gastown, out to Stanley Park, where there's a stop by some totem poles. There's another stop near the bridge where you can buy a snack or a souvenier. IIRC, there was a 3rd stop near the exit from the Park.

One of my tours also took us out to Queen Elizabeth Park, which was very nice.

Can't recall anything else. Maybe someone else can add to this.

[DaveOKC]

Which hotel are you at? If it is the Fairmont-Waterfront or Pan Pacific, you are right at the dock and do not need the transfer from hotel to ship as both places will take your luggage and put it on the ship for you - no charge, just a tip suggested (by me).

 

As to the time of the tour, I think it left around 10 am, but I am certain it depends on the hotel you are at. We did not take it as we have seen most of what the tour involves and we wanted to get right on the ship. I heard it is a good tour though, if you do not mind getting on the ship a bit later than the first boarding.

 

DaveOKC

[Jemima]

The tour is excellent. It includes driving through parts of Vancouver as well as both Stanley Park and Queen Elizabeth park. There are several stops. We have done the tour twice and really enjoyed it both times. If you also have the HAL hotel and transfer at the end of the cruise, the tour will be the same. You can also opt out of the tour, but still have your luggage transported to the ship. You need to see the HAL rep at the hotel and indicate what you are doing.

[luvs2travl]

We have stayed at both the Westin and the Four Seasons (booked through HAL with transfers) and our pick-up time was 10:30AM on the day of the sailing. We had to have our luggage out in the hall by our rooms by 7:00AM for transfer to the ship. We had a 3-day pre-cruise, so our City Tour was a day or two before the cruise. We went pretty much all over downtown Vancouver, through Stanley Park and Gastown. We booked another afternoon lunch cruise on our own, which was just beautiful. We visited the Vancouver Maritime Museum which we also enjoyed very, very much.

 

The day of the cruise, we just went down to breakfast, checked in at the designated Princess check-in area, and then waited in the lobby for the shuttle to come and get us. We encountered several other couples also waiting for the shuttle to go to the ship and it was a nice opportunity to visit & get acquainted before boarding. :)