What should we do in Vancouver

[Carie Baker]

Hello,
We are going on the Alaska cruise in Aug. We will be arriving the day before at around 10:30 am and our hotel is 2 miles from the Port. Anybody have favorites in the port area we should check out. I know we want to do the Fly Over Canada but since we've never been to Vancouver I don't know what else we need to see. We will be 5 adults and a teenager. We want to stay pretty close to the hotel and port so no treks out to the national parks or anything like that we will be tired. Maybe when we come back before flying out.

Thanks for any ideas you want to share.

Carie

 

[disneyfaninaz]

Stanley Park (within walking distance of Canada Place)
Grouse Mountain (Free shuttle from Canada Place)
Capilano Suspension Bridge (Free shuttle from Canada Place)
Grenville Island

Just to name a few.

 

[lorimay]

We loved Granville Island. There are some great places to grab a bite to eat.
You can also buy tickets for the trolley and see a lot that way.
Vancouver is a beautiful city enjoy !!!!

 

[lbgraves]

IMO if you are going to spend any time in Vancouver it would be a shame to limit your experience to the port area. Grouse Mountain is beautiful and will give you breathtaking views. We recuperated after our cruise. I told the kids we weren't traveling across the country to not see anything. We were all glad we explored.

 

[xlxo]

Hello,
We are going on the Alaska cruise in Aug. We will be arriving the day before at around 10:30 am and our hotel is 2 miles from the Port. Anybody have favorites in the port area we should check out. I know we want to do the Fly Over Canada but since we've never been to Vancouver I don't know what else we need to see. We will be 5 adults and a teenager. We want to stay pretty close to the hotel and port so no treks out to the national parks or anything like that we will be tired. Maybe when we come back before flying out.

It would help if you share which hotel you are staying at. Hope you are not arriving August 2nd in the middle of the Pride Parade.

Here's a possible itinery...

• 10:30am wheels down at YVR
• 11:30am arrive at hotel
• 12pm get over to the Pan Pacific for the free shuttles to Grouse Mountain
• 3:30pm return on the free Grouse Shuttle, but ask to be dropped off at the Capilano Bridge
• 5:45pm return on the free Capilano Shuttle to downtown
• 6:30pm walk over to an evening show at Fly Over Canada. Fly Over Canada ends at 9pm

What do you think?

I strongly recommend looking at adding additional days in Vancouver. It's bigger than all the Alaskan ports combined.... are the kids interested in checking out Storybrooke? Do they like ice cream? Do they like chocolates? Wanna try high tea Asian style (Dim Sum)?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ky8bouLbbB8

 

[Carie Baker]

We are going to be 3 streets back in a direct line from Canada Place... 5 min walk according to the Hotel. I'm all for doing as much as possible. My son and I are traveling with 2 retired couples one member getting over heart surgery. So a lot of walking is out as far as the group goes... If I can arrange for us to go on our own some of the things further away sound amazing. We will be staying the day we get back too and flying out the next day. We won't be there until the 16th of Aug.

 

[Carie Baker]

It would help if you share which hotel you are staying at. Hope you are not arriving August 2nd in the middle of the Pride Parade.

Here's a possible itinery...

• 10:30am wheels down at YVR
• 11:30am arrive at hotel
• 12pm get over to the Pan Pacific for the free shuttles to Grouse Mountain
• 3:30pm return on the free Grouse Shuttle, but ask to be dropped off at the Capilano Bridge
• 5:45pm return on the free Capilano Shuttle to downtown
• 6:30pm walk over to an evening show at Fly Over Canada. Fly Over Canada ends at 9pm

What do you think?

I strongly recommend looking at adding additional days in Vancouver. It's bigger than all the Alaskan ports combined.... are the kids interested in checking out Storybrooke? Do they like ice cream? Do they like chocolates? Wanna try high tea Asian style (Dim Sum)?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ky8bouLbbB8

These all sound amazing. Thank you. What's this about Chocolate? hehe

 

[Carie Baker]

We loved Granville Island. There are some great places to grab a bite to eat.
You can also buy tickets for the trolley and see a lot that way.
Vancouver is a beautiful city enjoy !!!!

Granville Island and the Public Market sound really interesting and just up the alley of the other adults going. Thanks.

 

[Carie Baker]

Stanley Park (within walking distance of Canada Place)
Grouse Mountain (Free shuttle from Canada Place)
Capilano Suspension Bridge (Free shuttle from Canada Place)
Grenville Island

Just to name a few.

These sound great... and I love the Free idea as well.

 

[bcwife76]

Granville Island is a great destination for tourists but can get quite busy (esp on weekends!) and would require a bit of walking. Just a block down from the Canada Place port is Waterfront Station, from there you can catch the seabus a 12 minute ride across the water to North Vancouver. Where it docks there is a market called Lonsdale Quay which is quite smaller than Granville Island but offers some amazing views of the city from another perspective and there are several good places to grab a nice lunch there as well.

 

[emilyann415]

We spent an entire day at Grouse Mountain. Probably don't need the whole day but to try and squeeze it into only an hour or two would feel rushed to me. We did the zip line and that was AMAZING. Best zip line we've ever done. My DD also did the paragliding experience and still talks about it.....

 

[xlxo]

These all sound amazing. Thank you. What's this about Chocolate? hehe

Many visitors arriving in Vancouver may choose to explore a unique local foods and experiences. And then there are kids.....

Vancouver offers some great chocolate shops that have won significant awards. Mink chocolate is a few blocks from the cruise terminal. Bella's offers from great Gelato.

• http://www.vancitybuzz.com/2014/09/vancouvers-mink-chocolates-wins-best-chocolate-bar-world-award/
• http://www.news1130.com/2012/07/08/international-recognition-for-local-gelato-maker/
• http://www.vancitybuzz.com/2015/02/best-independent-chocolate-shops-vancouver/
• http://www.insidevancouver.ca/2011/02/12/top-5-vancouver-chocolatiers-boutique-chocolate-shops/
• http://www.marthastewart.com/909325/visiting-la-casa-gelato-and-tasting-flavors#909325

 

[MouseMomx2]

I have heard wonderful things about the Museum of Anthropology at the University of British Colombia. They have an extensive collection of totem poles and native art.

 

[squirrel]

Granville Island is a great destination for tourists but can get quite busy (esp on weekends!) and would require a bit of walking. Just a block down from the Canada Place port is Waterfront Station, from there you can catch the seabus a 12 minute ride across the water to North Vancouver. Where it docks there is a market called Lonsdale Quay which is quite smaller than Granville Island but offers some amazing views of the city from another perspective and there are several good places to grab a nice lunch there as well.

I use to live a few blocks from Lonsdale Quay. It is a nice little trip over especially for people who have never been on a seabus. They have quite a nice selection of food offerings and some are quite healthy.

 

[TutuWahineLV]

I've done Vancouver several times, both pre and post cruise. It's one of my favorite cities. Fly Over Canada is a MUST....especially if you love Soarin'... Stanley park is within walking distance...but it's a long walk, and that park is HUGE... I'd suggest tickets on the HoHo bus or trolley. Ride it once for the full loop to get a great overview of the city, and decide what would be important to your crew. If you get the 2 day ticket, you will be able to dash down to the Canada Place on departure day..leave the luggage with the porter, and jump on the HoHo right there for some more exploring. There is a great brew-pub just up the street from Canada Place, at the edge of GasTown, calle Steamworks. We love the food there. Vancouver is a great walking city, head to Gastown and explore, you'll love it.

 

[Disneyteachers]

How early can you drop off your luggage?

 

[Carie Baker]

Not sure how early we can drop off stuff, I guess that would be determined by our checking time.

Speaking of food...any good places to eat near Canada place? I remember someone saying something about a place call spaghetti something.

 

[bcwife76]

Not sure how early we can drop off stuff, I guess that would be determined by our checking time.

Speaking of food...any good places to eat near Canada place? I remember someone saying something about a place call spaghetti something.

Olde Spagetti Factory. It's a 10 minute walk from Canada Place, in Gastown. It's alright, not fabulous. Good for families, but if you don't have kids with you there are far better places to eat.

 

[noahdove]

I just emailed my AAA TA and asked her for ideas, why? I have no idea as I knew I
would get many ideas here.. Thank you all.

 

[TutuWahineLV]

Olde Spagetti Factory. It's a 10 minute walk from Canada Place, in Gastown. It's alright, not fabulous. Good for families, but if you don't have kids with you there are far better places to eat.

Food at Spaghetti Factory is ok. It's just down the street from Steamworks. We've done both and would do either one again, if we couldn't find anything new.