**** Vancouver FAQ Thread **** A few updates in main post!

[GrtWtNorth]

so now i am on a hunt for a fairly cheap hotel near the airport.
Any suggestions out there?? prefer something $100 or less

Sandman Hotel is very close to that rate. (I'd be nervous about any hotel offering significantly cheaper rates -- check trip-advisor.) Sandman Hotel Vancouver Airport has free shuttles every half-hour.

 

[BLTOH]

Sandman Signature Hotel - this is a really fun resort style hotel because it has a HUGE 250' waterslide indoors! There is also a gorgeous outdoor pool with nice cushy loungers all around. This is a full service hotel.


Can someone give me more information on this hotel. any pictures of the water slide? common prices? how close to the airport? is water slide included or separate price? their web site isnt giving me much info

 

[poohj80]

Sandman Signature Hotel - this is a really fun resort style hotel because it has a HUGE 250' waterslide indoors! There is also a gorgeous outdoor pool with nice cushy loungers all around. This is a full service hotel.


Can someone give me more information on this hotel. any pictures of the water slide? common prices? how close to the airport? is water slide included or separate price? their web site isnt giving me much info

I can't find any pix or mention of a waterslide on the hotel web site. Can you point me in the right direction?

 

[GrtWtNorth]

I can't find any pix or mention of a waterslide on the hotel web site. Can you point me in the right direction?

The signature hotel web site looks like it was done by a professional PR firm who didn't know much about the location or clientèle. Flashy, but not very informative. But I digress...

I found a couple pictures of the waterslide in the hotel profile on Expedia. The second photo in the slideshow illustrates the indoor pool with the slide splash-down area. About 3/4 of the way through the images is another photo that shows a large section of waterslide looping around the parking lot. (The start and end of the slide are indoors, but most of the slide is outdoors.)

FYI Sandman is a chain of hotels based in British Columbia. The bulk of their hotels are in BC and Alberta, with a token one or two in other provinces. Their historic (multi-generational) reputation is mid-quality hotel, good quality motel. Their move into higher end signature resort business is new, and from the reviews on Trip Advisor, it seems that they are doing a reasonably good job of meeting or exceeding customer expectations. That said, my own personal experience has been with friends and family staying at the non-signature Sandman Vancouver Airport a half-block away. All were staying at the end of a west-coast vacation and flying home early the next day -- they just wanted a place with a good restaurant or bar (Moxies in the lobby has both) and comfortable beds. A good price and convenient airport shuttles made their decisions no-brainers.

 

[BLTOH]

The signature hotel web site looks like it was done by a professional PR firm who didn't know much about the location or clientèle. Flashy, but not very informative. But I digress...

I found a couple pictures of the waterslide in the hotel profile on Expedia. The second photo in the slideshow illustrates the indoor pool with the slide splash-down area. About 3/4 of the way through the images is another photo that shows a large section of waterslide looping around the parking lot. (The start and end of the slide are indoors, but most of the slide is outdoors.)

FYI Sandman is a chain of hotels based in British Columbia. The bulk of their hotels are in BC and Alberta, with a token one or two in other provinces. Their historic (multi-generational) reputation is mid-quality hotel, good quality motel. Their move into higher end signature resort business is new, and from the reviews on Trip Advisor, it seems that they are doing a reasonably good job of meeting or exceeding customer expectations. That said, my own personal experience has been with friends and family staying at the non-signature Sandman Vancouver Airport a half-block away. All were staying at the end of a west-coast vacation and flying home early the next day -- they just wanted a place with a good restaurant or bar (Moxies in the lobby has both) and comfortable beds. A good price and convenient airport shuttles made their decisions no-brainers.

would you happen to know the price range of each hotel. i kind of found prices around $130 for the sandman signature but that is for a stay in the next month. was looking at the signature for the waterslide aspect for dd and i did find that they had many restaurants there or close by and i like the shuttle service to the airport.

 

[BLTOH]

FYI, your ordeal isn't over once you're on the plane. Expect to spend an hour of your layover in Toronto collecting your luggage, transferring terminals, and going through the US-bound passenger and luggage screening process. You basically go through US customs and immigration at the Toronto airport, prior to departure. This way, most flights from Canadian cities to US cities are treated like US domestic flights, and passengers are not required to go through customs and immigration upon landing on US soil. This also means that you will have to go through the US flight screening and boarding (US rules: shoes off for security, security staff need to see your boarding pass and photo ID, but airline staff at the gate only need to see your boarding pass).

ok thank you soo much for this info. i was unaware of the customs thing in toronto. but now i have a few more questions on that. i already booked our airline and we have a layover of 1hr 15min in toronto. their website says min 1hr 10min. for a connecting flight. now this was the airlines schedule and not what we scheduled. Will they wait for us if there is an issue? i ask as my step mom has metal plates in her ankle and hip and even though she will be carrying the xrays and drs slips it may hold us up a bit longer at security.and she may be a bit slower on the walking end. is the layout of toronto airport fairly compact or is it spread out that we will be running to make it to our connecting flight? is it possible to have like two of us go collect our luggage and move it to the connecting baggage area while the rest of us go on to the gate where we need to be? I would hope that since the airline made this small time frame for connecting flight that we should be ok and not have to worry about missing our connecting flight but want to make sure.

 

[Anjelica]

Pan Pacific opened up their bookings through at least May 2011 next year. Their promotions on their website only go through December 2010 BUT if you call they have the promotion rates good through at least May 2011 (I didn't check further than May as that is all we needed). But we got the Family Package where you get one room get the second room 50% off. That seems to be the best deal for those needing more than one room if staying at Pan Pacific.

For two rooms without tax it came out to $508.50 CAD.

 

[princess81499]

Pan Pacific opened up their bookings through at least May 2011 next year. Their promotions on their website only go through December 2010 BUT if you call they have the promotion rates good through at least May 2011 (I didn't check further than May as that is all we needed). But we got the Family Package where you get one room get the second room 50% off. That seems to be the best deal for those needing more than one room if staying at Pan Pacific.

For two rooms without tax it came out to $508.50 CAD.

I was able to book the 3 nights before our July 12th cruise the other night. The room was $239 CAD a night.

 

[Anjelica]

I was able to book the 3 nights before our July 12th cruise the other night. The room was $239 CAD a night.

That's a very good rate. Unfortunately we are staying on Memorial Day weekend and most of the hotel rates we have found are 10-20% higher than the rest of the weeks of the summer.

 

[smb6]

Pan Pacific opened up their bookings through at least May 2011 next year. Their promotions on their website only go through December 2010 BUT if you call they have the promotion rates good through at least May 2011 (I didn't check further than May as that is all we needed). But we got the Family Package where you get one room get the second room 50% off. That seems to be the best deal for those needing more than one room if staying at Pan Pacific.

For two rooms without tax it came out to $508.50 CAD.

Thanks for the info! We also need two rooms, so the second room 1/2 off would be great. But we will be there two nights and I was looking to spend about $500 for both nights, not just one..... I think we may have to book elsewhere even though this one is my first choice....

 

[DisneyCruiser2008]

I was able to book the 3 nights before our July 12th cruise the other night. The room was $239 CAD a night.

$239 per night seems like a good rate, especially this far out... was this a special or something?

ETA -- I just called and booked... I inquired about a AAA discount and the charge for 1 room with 2 double beds (City View) was $199 per night Friday/Saturday and $159 per night Sunday/Monday .... ($828.68 total for 4 nights with taxes)... June 10, 11, 12, 13 ... Seemed like a great deal. If you have AAA, make sure to ask about the discount....

 

[GrtWtNorth]

i already booked our airline and we have a layover of 1hr 15min in toronto. their website says min 1hr 10min. for a connecting flight. now this was the airlines schedule and not what we scheduled. Will they wait for us if there is an issue? i ask as my step mom has metal plates in her ankle and hip and even though she will be carrying the xrays and drs slips it may hold us up a bit longer at security.and she may be a bit slower on the walking end. is the layout of toronto airport fairly compact or is it spread out that we will be running to make it to our connecting flight? is it possible to have like two of us go collect our luggage and move it to the connecting baggage area while the rest of us go on to the gate where we need to be? I would hope that since the airline made this small time frame for connecting flight that we should be ok and not have to worry about missing our connecting flight but want to make sure.

I'm not going to lie. This could be a bit of a challenge. I'm not sure there's much you can do now, but definitely ask about what service the airline can provide to help you with your transfer in Toronto. Given your MIL's ankle and hip, they should provide you with handicapped golf-cart shuttle service to help you navigate the terminal(s) without her walking speed being an issue. They may offer additional service to help you transfer your bags to the US TAS / customs and immigration screening area. I'm not sure there is any value in splitting up your party, as you need to have all your bags together and enter the US customs and security zone as a group.

Toronto is a sprawling airport, with multiple terminals. However, since they demolished Terminal 2 and modernized Terminals 1 and 3, I think passengers flow through more efficiently. However, it's still highly likely that you will have to transfer between terminal (check your flight information -- it should indicate indicate the terminals for arrival and departure flights. However, there is now a rail link system connecting the terminals, likely similar to what is at Orlando International Airport.

Will they wait for you if there's an issue? Perhaps. But in my own experience, they don't. Toronto is a very busy airport and they like to keep things on schedule.

My only experience with this in Toronto was coming back from Orlando, going through Canadian customs, and catching a connecting flight to another Canadian city in 2005. We were exhausted, and the airport seemed huge and unorganized. We had to take a bus between terminals, and I can't remember exactly where we had to pick up and drop off our luggage, but it seemed like a hike. It's likely better now, but I've avoided these types of connections ever since.

You are probably right to trust Air Canada, but if you want to ask more detailed questions about connecting in Toronto, you should make a new post on either the Canadian Trip Planning & Community Board or the Transportation Board. The Canadian board might get you better results because many of the bloggers on that board are very familiar with the Toronto airport.

 

[princess81499]

I found a great flight home, but it leaves at 10:50 PM after the cruise. Where do you suggest I book a hotel room close to the airport for the day so we can relax, swim and shower before heading to airport?

 

[princess81499]

$239 per night seems like a good rate, especially this far out... was this a special or something?

ETA -- I just called and booked... I inquired about a AAA discount and the charge for 1 room with 2 double beds (City View) was $199 per night Friday/Saturday and $159 per night Sunday/Monday .... ($828.68 total for 4 nights with taxes)... June 10, 11, 12, 13 ... Seemed like a great deal. If you have AAA, make sure to ask about the discount....

THANK YOU for this info! I was going to call and add Fri night due to finding a great airfare rate, now with the AAA discount my total price is about the same as before!

 

[BLTOH]

I'm not going to lie. This could be a bit of a challenge. I'm not sure there's much you can do now, but definitely ask about what service the airline can provide to help you with your transfer in Toronto. Given your MIL's ankle and hip, they should provide you with handicapped golf-cart shuttle service to help you navigate the terminal(s) without her walking speed being an issue. They may offer additional service to help you transfer your bags to the US TAS / customs and immigration screening area. I'm not sure there is any value in splitting up your party, as you need to have all your bags together and enter the US customs and security zone as a group.

Toronto is a sprawling airport, with multiple terminals. However, since they demolished Terminal 2 and modernized Terminals 1 and 3, I think passengers flow through more efficiently. However, it's still highly likely that you will have to transfer between terminal (check your flight information -- it should indicate indicate the terminals for arrival and departure flights. However, there is now a rail link system connecting the terminals, likely similar to what is at Orlando International Airport.

Will they wait for you if there's an issue? Perhaps. But in my own experience, they don't. Toronto is a very busy airport and they like to keep things on schedule.

My only experience with this in Toronto was coming back from Orlando, going through Canadian customs, and catching a connecting flight to another Canadian city in 2005. We were exhausted, and the airport seemed huge and unorganized. We had to take a bus between terminals, and I can't remember exactly where we had to pick up and drop off our luggage, but it seemed like a hike. It's likely better now, but I've avoided these types of connections ever since.

You are probably right to trust Air Canada, but if you want to ask more detailed questions about connecting in Toronto, you should make a new post on either the Canadian Trip Planning & Community Board or the Transportation Board. The Canadian board might get you better results because many of the bloggers on that board are very familiar with the Toronto airport.

thank you. i will go and check out the other two links. the flight home is a 2 hour delay so little more relaxed there. i have printed all the stuff from the toronto airport website on connecting flights and all and trying to get a layout of what we need to do. might have to inquire with the airport on transporting stepmom if she is still having issues with walking by time flight happens.

 

[smb6]

The Sandman Signature Hotel looks really promising. I just pulled up the website and then looked it up on hotels.com. It is only 3 starts, but has good customer reviews, looks nice, and has an early bird rate of $115. per night. Like the other poster said, it does show a few water slides. Unfortunately, the rates for next year are not out yet; but I pulled it up under a few different dummy dates and the rate seems to be consistent, so I expect that same rate will be fairly accurate for May 2011 also.

 

[princess81499]

It's official - airfare is booked out of JFK (awesome direct price to Vancouver - thanks to my DIS friends). PanPacific is booked for the 4 nights before cruise (added an extra night when I called back and added AAA the price went down alot).

Now just need to find some sort of day room since we have a very late flight home.

 

[smb6]

It's official - airfare is booked out of JFK (awesome direct price to Vancouver - thanks to my DIS friends). PanPacific is booked for the 4 nights before cruise (added an extra night when I called back and added AAA the price went down alot).

Now just need to find some sort of day room since we have a very late flight home.

Congrats! I am hoping to have flights booked soon, but there is no good price in sight.....

 

[DisneyCruiser2008]

THANK YOU for this info! I was going to call and add Fri night due to finding a great airfare rate, now with the AAA discount my total price is about the same as before!

Glad to help. That was one one the best AAA discounts I have ever gotten on a room.

 

[DisneyCruiser2008]

It's official - airfare is booked out of JFK (awesome direct price to Vancouver - thanks to my DIS friends). PanPacific is booked for the 4 nights before cruise (added an extra night when I called back and added AAA the price went down alot).

Now just need to find some sort of day room since we have a very late flight home.

Hey Patty -- I was reading some Trip Advisor reviews on the Pan Pacific, and someone said the hotel let them store their luggage there for the day when they got off their ship (even though they had stayed at the hotel BEFORE their cruise and were flying out the night the cruise ended)... You might call the hotel and ask them if they would do this for you?