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

[LDM]

Yes, it's assigned for you, it will say on the bottom of your dining ticket and your server will remind you (several times) the night before.

Excellent! Thank you.

One more sleep!

Is anyone else boarding tomorrow as well?

 

[HiMagicFan]

Excellent! Thank you.

One more sleep!

Is anyone else boarding tomorrow as well?

Ohhh! Have fun! I just need to wait two more weeks and then it will be my turn.

Has anyone heard about the merchandising? Did they replenish?

 

[HiMagicFan]

We got a "deal" on Big Bus, and it was a mistake. It stops running at 5pm. That was a horrible surprise. I also did not like the "odd" route that it took, though I'm told the other routes are similar. There is also the Pink Bus, which donates some profits to breast cancer research.

Thanks for the heads up on the 5pm bit. For that day we just plan to ride and maybe get off once or twice.

I thought the routes were OK but you had to figure out where to get it so you were riding where you wanted without being on it too long (we were at Club Intrawest at Sheraton Wall Centre so there were a few places we could get on it).
We are at the Sheraton Wall - where would you recommend getting on? My understanding is you can get on anywhere and pay the driver. I hope so cuz Mom and Dad can't walk that far.

The biggest complaint we had about it was that one it was sunny and they had a lot of open cars running...the next day it was raining and they STILL had the open cars running. The comment we got from the tour guide (sometimes they do have LIVE guides on the bus...it's all pretty random- we had live guides 2x and the rest were taped) was "hey you'da been mad if we had the closed busses yesterday!?"...really? that was their response to the wet seats that were not even being wiped off!!!!!!
Would NOT do the Big Bus next time...I'd try the trolly...

Well, that doesn't sound good about the open cars. Were there any seats that were covered? Mom can't take the sun for very long so will need covered seating.

I only did the bus because of the great groupon deal but am slowly wishing we had just decided there what we wanted to do. But thanks for the tips!

 

[HiMagicFan]

We enjoyed our time at the aquarium and took advantage of the dolphin and whale shows. We don't live near any aquarium and felt it was money well spent.

We took the Trolley company bus and were very happy with it. No open bus for us.

TK

Glad to have your opinion. I am looking forward to the shows. Not too happy to hear that the bus is so open - was kinda thinking there was an open upstairs and covered downstairs.

 

[Shanny145]

Jealous! No I am going on the 23rd sailing....we will be getting on as you are getting off. Have a super wonderful time with tons of pixie magic!

 

[WDWLVR]

We did the big bus and enjoyed it. We bought our tickets the night before from the concierge at the hotel (Pan Pacific). Caught the big bus right out front. The front half was covered while the back half was open. We had beautiful weather so sat in the open areas. When we got to Stanley Park we were told we could get off and get on the other big bus waiting for a trip around Stanley Park and that it was included in our ticket. We loved this. After the tour we got back on the regular big bus and took that to the aquarium stop. Found out we got a discount for buying our aquarium tickets on the bus. This not only saved us some money but saved us having to wait in a long line. It was great. We live right outside of Chicago which has a magnificent aquarium including Beluga whales. We still loved the Vancouver Aquarium and were glad we stopped. After it was a hop back on the big bus for a tour of the rest of the city.

 

[HiMagicFan]

We did the big bus and enjoyed it. We bought our tickets the night before from the concierge at the hotel (Pan Pacific). Caught the big bus right out front. The front half was covered while the back half was open. We had beautiful weather so sat in the open areas. When we got to Stanley Park we were told we could get off and get on the other big bus waiting for a trip around Stanley Park and that it was included in our ticket. We loved this. After the tour we got back on the regular big bus and took that to the aquarium stop. Found out we got a discount for buying our aquarium tickets on the bus. This not only saved us some money but saved us having to wait in a long line. It was great. We live right outside of Chicago which has a magnificent aquarium including Beluga whales. We still loved the Vancouver Aquarium and were glad we stopped. After it was a hop back on the big bus for a tour of the rest of the city.

Just wanna be sure I am not confused. You did the Big Bus (not the vancouver trolley co or the pink bus) and you were able to sit in covered areas (although you sat in the open part) and you could buy the aquarium tickets on the bus. Do I have this right?

I am surprised to read that you were able to get on the stanley park trolley as it is a different co from the big bus - it is affiliated with the vancouver trolley co. so I want to be sure i was reading you correctly. Because if you were able to get on the stanley park trolley without the $10 cost I am gonna be a very happy camper! Unless there is a bus that goes around stanley park that I don't know of? Hmm

 

[stsomewhere]

Jealous! No I am going on the 23rd sailing....we will be getting on as you are getting off. Have a super wonderful time with tons of pixie magic!

We are on the 23rd cruise,too!

 

[Shanny145]

We are on the 23rd cruise,too!

WhooHoo!!!!!!

 

[WDWLVR]

Just wanna be sure I am not confused. You did the Big Bus (not the vancouver trolley co or the pink bus) and you were able to sit in covered areas (although you sat in the open part) and you could buy the aquarium tickets on the bus. Do I have this right?

I am surprised to read that you were able to get on the stanley park trolley as it is a different co from the big bus - it is affiliated with the vancouver trolley co. so I want to be sure i was reading you correctly. Because if you were able to get on the stanley park trolley without the $10 cost I am gonna be a very happy camper! Unless there is a bus that goes around stanley park that I don't know of? Hmm

Yes we took the Big Bus and it looks like a big old school bus. The front half was covered and the back half was open. Our bus looked like this.

We did not get on the Stanley Park Trolley. Instead we got another Big Bus. The first one we were one only made two stops in Stanley Park. One right when you entered and one near the aquarium. The second bus just goes around Stanley Park and makes two 15 minutes stops, one at the Totem Poles (where there is also a rest room and gift shop) and one at Prospect Point (again where there is a rest room, gift shop and some places to get ice cream, etc.). The whole tour around Stanley Park took about an hour. We were then back at the first Stanley Park stop and got on the regular Big Bus. Hope that clears things up. At both buses we just had to show our original ticket.

Our driver on the regular Big Bus (not the Stanley Park one) was also able to sell us discounted tickets for the aquarium. I don't remember the actual savings (a couple of dollars) but getting them there and not having to wait in line was great.

 

[disneymath]

Our big bus experience was similar to wdwlvr's ... We didn't do the aquarium but did the included park tour. Big bus has multiple types ... Traditional fully covered school bus types, the half open ones and traditional double decker ones ... We rode the first two types and saw the third.

 

[lbgraves]

Glad to have your opinion. I am looking forward to the shows. Not too happy to hear that the bus is so open - was kinda thinking there was an open upstairs and covered downstairs.

Just so you aren't expecting a real show for either the dolphins or the whales where they have a set choreographed show and they jump out of the water and through hoops, they don't do that there. The "shows" are basically the trainers going to the tank and checking the animals out. They do a few tricks like nodding and turning around in place. When we were there one of the dolphins jumped out of the water one time. This was the case for both the dolphins and the whales. I understand their reasons for doing this and the animals are still cute to see.

 

[dkmjgal]

We absolutely LOVE Vancouver! As excited as I am to be getting on the Wonder in a little while I will miss this city...we definitely want to come back. I highly recommend the Vancouver Trolley..buy the 1st day get the 2nd day free. The tour guides are full of information and they run every 15-20 minutes. Stanley Park is not to be missed...it's beautiful!
We look forward to coming back to Vancouver!

 

[rosiep]

I am just loving the customer service of Canada!

I had really wanted to stay at the Pan Pacific for an upcoming cruise, but I just couldn't swallow the price. I ended up using Hotwire and got the Sheraton Wall Center. Wrote them yesterday to ask about an airport shuttle, and while they don't have one, their response was immediate and thorough. I was really impressed! They listed several options and prices. When I wrote back to thank them for the quick reply, they wrote me again and thanked me!

It's funny cause I also visited the Vancouver Airport website and was extremely impressed with it's layout and user friendliness. I wrote their customer service department to compliment them and they wrote me back too!

 

[HiMagicFan]

Yes we took the Big Bus and it looks like a big old school bus. The front half was covered and the back half was open. Our bus looked like this.

We did not get on the Stanley Park Trolley. Instead we got another Big Bus. The first one we were one only made two stops in Stanley Park. One right when you entered and one near the aquarium. The second bus just goes around Stanley Park and makes two 15 minutes stops, one at the Totem Poles (where there is also a rest room and gift shop) and one at Prospect Point (again where there is a rest room, gift shop and some places to get ice cream, etc.). The whole tour around Stanley Park took about an hour. We were then back at the first Stanley Park stop and got on the regular Big Bus. Hope that clears things up. At both buses we just had to show our original ticket.

Our driver on the regular Big Bus (not the Stanley Park one) was also able to sell us discounted tickets for the aquarium. I don't remember the actual savings (a couple of dollars) but getting them there and not having to wait in line was great.

Our big bus experience was similar to wdwlvr's ... We didn't do the aquarium but did the included park tour. Big bus has multiple types ... Traditional fully covered school bus types, the half open ones and traditional double decker ones ... We rode the first two types and saw the third.

Thank You Both Very Very Much!
This will definitely help me with planning! I appreciate the information. Looking forward to my time in two weeks!

 

[HiMagicFan]

Just so you aren't expecting a real show for either the dolphins or the whales where they have a set choreographed show and they jump out of the water and through hoops, they don't do that there. The "shows" are basically the trainers going to the tank and checking the animals out. They do a few tricks like nodding and turning around in place. When we were there one of the dolphins jumped out of the water one time. This was the case for both the dolphins and the whales. I understand their reasons for doing this and the animals are still cute to see.

Ahhh...thanks for the heads up. I was kinda expecting a "show". Appreciate all your information.

 

[HiMagicFan]

We absolutely LOVE Vancouver! As excited as I am to be getting on the Wonder in a little while I will miss this city...we definitely want to come back. I highly recommend the Vancouver Trolley..buy the 1st day get the 2nd day free. The tour guides are full of information and they run every 15-20 minutes. Stanley Park is not to be missed...it's beautiful!
We look forward to coming back to Vancouver!

Whoo Hooo

You're on the Wonder...You're on the Wonder

Have a great time and looking forward to your comments after.
One question if you get this while you are on board. Would be interested to know if the navigators have changed a lot since the first cruise and how the merchandise is (replenished?).

Have a blast!

 

[staffieri]

Staying at Grouse until 1:45 on the day of the cruise is cutting it pretty close. I would do the sightseeing stuff on Grouse, then leave and have lunch on the Ship.

I was told it was an 30 minutes away. I was planning on taking a taxi and giving us an hour being at the boat no later then 3pm. The lumber jack show doesn't start until 12:30. SO we were going to leave after that. So bummed we arrive late Monday. It doesn't give us much time. And our flight our it the day we get back at 4pm.

You need to be careful about your timing when leaving here. We were on the last free shuttle of the day back to Canada Place, but it left at 5:20 and it took us nearly an hour to get back. It had been a much shorter time to drive there that morning. This was on a Sunday. It also took us around 45 minutes once we got in the line for the tram to get to the bottom. You need to be on the ship no later than 4 pm. If you will have to go to the hotel, get your luggage the trek to Canada Place, I wouldn't plan on staying up there past. You would need to get in the line to go down by then. We were there from 9:30 until we got in line at 4:20. We ate lunch in the lodge, but I don't know what time it opened.


This is helpful info. We were going to be taking a taxi there and back. I called the mountain and they explained this was possible. We will be there on Tuesday. But didn't think about line to take tram down. How long was just the tram ride? Wondering if there will be lines for it on a Tuesday at 1:15. Any more info is great. Was really trying to make this happen.

This is our plan so far from info I have received. Might have to change it and not go.

8:30 taxi there. Leave luggage at baggage claim at hotel.
9:10 There. Meet Paraglide Tour
10:00 Me and DS Paraglide. Grandma and DD look around
11:00 Everyone look around see bears
11:45 Eat
12:30 Lumberjack show
1:15 Tram
1:45 at base of mountain
2:00 Taxi it stops by hotel and then takes us to Boat.

 

[HiMagicFan]

I was told it was an 30 minutes away. I was planning on taking a taxi and giving us an hour being at the boat no later then 3pm. The lumber jack show doesn't start until 12:30. SO we were going to leave after that. So bummed we arrive late Monday. It doesn't give us much time. And our flight our it the day we get back at 4pm.

This is our plan so far from info I have received. Might have to change it and not go.

8:30 taxi there. Leave luggage at baggage claim at hotel.
9:10 There. Meet Paraglide Tour
10:00 Me and DS Paraglide. Grandma and DD look around
11:00 Everyone look around see bears
11:45 Eat
12:30 Lumberjack show
1:15 Tram
1:45 at base of mountain
2:00 Taxi it stops by hotel and then takes us to Boat.

1. Will keep my fingers crossed for you that your plan works.
2. If you plan to get to the ship by 3p you are gonna miss our gathering!

Yeah it is too bad that you won't have a lot of time there.

For me ~ that is cutting it close (I would be very nervous ~ am nervous now for you). Especially when not knowing if there will be traffic, weather or accident delays coming back. I don't mean to be a downer but I don't want you to miss the ship!!!!! Gotta have all our friends on board.

 

[HiMagicFan]

12:30 Lumberjack show
1:15 Tram
1:45 at base of mountain
2:00 Taxi it stops by hotel and then takes us to Boat.

Just a thought ~ wonder if the Mountain has lockers for you to store luggage? Then you could go straight to the ship from the mountain.

If push came to shove, I would consider a plan b about not doing the show since you also don't know for sure if you will make it on the tram down the mountain. I understand sometimes the lines can be long.

I am NOT trying to rain on your parade BUT am trying to help you with a plan B ~ just in case.
Just tell me if you have had enough of my "help" ~ no problems.