Vancouver BC hotels near cruise terminal?

[QShip]

I looked and looked for hotels in Vancouver, but found only very expensive lodgings anywhere close to the port or downtown. We will be arriving early enough to spend a couple of days enjoying the city, so expense can add up quickly.

 

Our solution was Hostel World on Granville. We have never stayed in a hostel, but checked one out when we were in Ireland and it looked like a lot of fun. For us it will be just another adventure and an interesting way to start our cruise. We are looking forward to meeting young travelers from all over the world and learning from them.

 

We have a private room with private bath, so for us it is more like a hotel than the traditional hostel, though there are a lot of hostel-like dorms, multiple room baths, etc. It is quite well rated with good reviews.

 

Will report back with our experiences.

[martincath]

Does that extra charge apply only to those boarding at YVR. Does it also apply if I board at, say, the casino stop? I'm considering parking near YVR and riding the Canada Line to the cruise terminal.

Just for clarity, in case anyone else joins this thread late without reading back - 4774Papa's post is just plain incorrect.

 

xlxo's info is fundamentally accurate on numbers - although the terminology is incorrect (base fare is always zoned; during offpeak travel the whole system is treated as a single Zone; the only actual surcharge is the Airport AddFare which only applies from the three stations on Sea Island itself. If it's true that the cheapest fare is the base, then that would be Zero for under 5s, with every other age group facing a surcharge based on age!)

 

Qship - pack earplugs. Even if your fellow travelers are well-behaved and don't make noise overnight, you're in the heart of the city's official party zone - pubs & clubs abound on Granville, and you'll hear many drunken conversation below your windows into the wee small hours. Did you check the YWCA hotel? It's not much pricier than the hostels around town and will provide a much, much quieter environment preferable experience... the only crowds you have to worry about are from events in the stadium, and even the latest of those are done & dusted with all folks gone by ~11pm, whereas Granville St only gets louder from about that time as the drunks start rolling out to head home.

[Floridapenny]

Has anyone stayed at the Hampton Inn on Robson? It appears to be equidistant from the cruise terminal and the Pacific Central Train Station. I will be arriving by train the day before my cruise, and looked for a hotel to which I could walk from the train station and cruise terminal.

[martincath]

^While I haven't stayed in it, I'm very familiar with the area and the routes from the railway station on foot (it's pretty much my wife's daily commute).

 

As long as you can handle dragging/carrying bags for a mile it's feasible to walk to the Hampton - the tricky part is the elevation change from the railway. Your main options include an elevator outside Costco (least effort, but a couple of blocks out of your most direct route), a staircase by the stadium (least distance, but hard to wheel bags up steps so you'll have to carry them approx 3 stories up), a sloped sidewalk from Main St up onto the Viaduct (about as out of the way as going via Costco, and you have to walk past a couple of very skeevy bits), or roundabout routes along the Seawall or through Downtown EastSide (the latter with several very skeevy bits).

 

If you're coming in on the noon train and the weather's OK, walking is fine - personally I'd head for the Seawall to maximise the pleasantness of the walk - no steps, just some fairly gently sloping streets. Due to construction, Google has some errors - this map gets you to Pacific at Cooperage Way/Smithe, and despite the lack of continuity on Google you can actually walk right up Smithe, it does not deadend for pedestrians only cars. Follow Smithe to Beatty, turn right and it's 1 block to Hampton. About 200 yards further than the most direct route, but avoids the stairs and all skeevy bits, plus a bonus of Seawall walking.

 

If it's the midnight train, take a cab - ditto if the weather sucks. Much easier to go astray in the dark, and while it's all relative the nightlife gets a bit gritty even a block or two away from the 'nice bits' in several spots around the station area.

 

To the pier is a doddle compared to the first leg - straight up Robson to Howe, turn right and follow to the pier. While Cambie to Cordova to Howe is ~20yards shorter, it runs right past Victory Square which can be a bit of a challenging site for many visitors with rough sleepers always present. If you're happy with the grittier side of urban life though, the architecture around the square is excellent and very historic for the region.

[Floridapenny]

If you're coming in on the noon train and the weather's OK, walking is fine - personally I'd head for the Seawall to maximise the pleasantness of the walk - no steps, just some fairly gently sloping streets. Due to construction, Google has some errors - this map gets you to Pacific at Cooperage Way/Smithe, and despite the lack of continuity on Google you can actually walk right up Smithe, it does not deadend for pedestrians only cars. Follow Smithe to Beatty, turn right and it's 1 block to Hampton. About 200 yards further than the most direct route, but avoids the stairs and all skeevy bits, plus a bonus of Seawall walking.

 

Thanks for the reply, map and directions. I will be arriving on the noon train. I will play it by ear when I arrive, depending on weather and how I feel. Although I pack light, I am pretty sure I do not want to carry my rollerbag up 3 flights of stairs.

[xlxo]

With luggage.... I would cab it for $10. That 25 minute walk is not through the pleasant part of town.... day or night.

[martincath]

With luggage.... I would cab it for $10. That 25 minute walk is not through the pleasant part of town.... day or night.

That's the most-obviously-not-a-local thing you've posted in quite some time xlxo. As a visitor your first-hand knowledge of hotels and attractions certainly provides a useful viewpoint for other visitors, but please don't return to your early habits of trying to one-up those of us who actually live here and walk these streets almost daily. If you genuinely believe the route I supplied is one that people should be warned away from walking in daytime, then you must visit us even less often than I had assumed you did because your knowledge of the area is at best many years out of date.

 

 

The walking route I provided takes one past multiple outdoor art installations, through three parks, along the seawall, past a metric buttload of multi-million condo developments, and avoids literally any remotely-skeevy area. You'll almost certainly also pass fewer beggars on that entire route than you do within a block of Waterfront Station - usually two working cars stopped at the lights where Terminal meets Main then Quebec, and occasionally one at Robson & Beatty.

 

The only reason I even gave the caveat about nighttime walking is in case a visitor unfamiliar with the area, like yourself, does something silly like turn right out of the station instead of left and ends up following Station Street up behind the Ivanhoe - even then the bikers who hang there now are more likely to be dentists and accountants than Angels; this is one of the most-gentrified blocks in the city over the last couple of years with multiple trendy restos blocking sidewalks with patrons willing to wait long periods for tables.

 

 

Still, the Cobalt SRO and the backpacker hostels do make for some interesting neighbours at times - hence the slightly-longer route along Terminal instead of National to the Seawall. As actual locals know, one block frequently makes a very detectable difference in the vibe of the 'hood in Vancouver.