Flying to Seattle instead of directly into Canada saves
approximately $100 per person and your can drive to Vancouver,
and then ferry to Victoria. Victoria Ferries are one hour without a car
or 2 to 3 hours with your car on a slower boat. Approximate cost is $25
per person round trip. If you chose to drive to Vancouver it is about 1
and 1/5 hours and is and easy drive.
SEATTLE
We stayed at the Mariott Courtland West Lake car service was $35 flat
for a 20-min drive to West Lake from the airport. This area is on the
outskirts of downtown about a five-minute drive to the Space Needle and
10 minutes to the Pikes Peak Market or Downtown proper. Rooms were not
worth the money and were not up to usual Marriott standards. The lake
was beautiful and it was fun to watch the Victoria seaplanes and yachts
on it. Not much to eat around here, so we walked in to Pasta Fresca
just west of us on the lake. Thought we were going to have a sandwich
but were surprised by the Chef who sits at your table, asks about your
likes and dislikes, and tells you not to worry you are in for a good
dinner. What you are in for is a nicely prepared 4 course Mediterranean
style dinner and a $40 per person ticket, not too expensive for what
you get, but you get it whether you want to or not.
We took the shuttle to the Public Market in the morning. This is a must
see. We ate shellfish, chowder and seafood at Cutters. This is a great
place to eat and had a nice glass of wine while looking at the sound,
the park, the buskers, the bums, the tourists and the locals, what a
mix. Kind of like Boulder Colorado with a rain forest. Walked into the
Public Market and was amazed at the selections of seafood, fresh
vegetables, gorgeous flowers and creative marketing. What a fun place
to spend hours. It is absolutely amazing how inexpensive things are
there. I guess it’s the first stop for goods, before the middleman gets
his hands on them. If we lived near here, we would have fresh flowers
filling every room of our house continuously. A bouquet of flowers,
that would cost $50.00 any day of the week back home, sells for about
$6.00 here.
VANCOUVER
An easy 1½ hour drive to the border. At the crossing you will be amazed
by the flowers and grandeur of Canada. You pull up to a tollbooth type
lane and the border patrol will ask you some stupid questions. It
occurs to me that they are trained to determine by your reaction
whether you are a hardened criminal or a nervous tourist worthy of
bringing the mighty vacation $ in to their country. You will need a
birth certificate and drivers license or a passport to make entry. I
understand that after January 2006, you will need a passport to make
entry into Canada and Mexico. As you drive into Vancouver you will be
amazed at the shear size of the city which is set on the waterfront
with mountains majesty all around it. The sky scrapers and homes are
floor to ceiling glass “DON’T THROW ROCKS IN VANCOUVER!" Wherever you
decide to stay you will want to be on or near Robson St. this is the
heart of the city and you will spend many hours walking up and down
it. We stayed at The Wedgwood Hotel, just off Robson at 845
Hornby St. This is a top class boutique hotel that is independently
owned and well worth the extra $. We stayed 2 nights. I recommend the
Belaggio Deli on Hornby and the other side of Robson for breakfast.
Enjoy the ethnic stands along Robson for lunches and try the baguettes
and the crepes. Pam had her hair done one block east of Robson and two
blocks south. Michelle did a great job and gave her some good beauty
tips. Color and a haircut $100 CAD, a good value when you use your
credit card and get charged .37 less per $. The next day we went
to Granville Island, we drove there and were lucky to find parking. You
are better off to take one of those small bath tub ferries. This island
is a must see and has lots of arts and craft shops, restaurants and
farm stands. It even has a brewery. We ate the fish and chips at a
specialty shop and although the fish was extremely fresh, we found the
batter to be greasy. Break your day up with a trip to Stanley Park and
bring your camera, and then spend your evening checking out the water
front walkway.
WHISTLER MOUNTAIN
Drive across the Lions Gate Bridge (No Toll) on the Sea to Sky Highway.
You are in for one of the most spectacular drives you have ever had,
and that is a great compliment from a couple of Colorado lovers. Your
mind plays tricks on you as you wonder how you are driving up the
mountains, and the sea is coming with you. Whistler won the honor of
hosting the 2010 winter Olympics and is preparing by blasting the Rocky
Mountains for a wider highway. You are sure to run in to some
construction along the way, but it is worth it. The town of Whistler
reminds us of Vail Colorado and also has a pedestrian only village. The
pricey choice for lodging is the world famous Fairmont Hotel but we
chose to stay at the Delta Hotel. This was a great place to visit, but
we felt like we were back home, so decided to stay for just 2 days. We
asked a few locals, where we could find a good restaurant and every one
had the same answer. The Rimrock is one of the best restaurants we have
been to in many years. Make sure to try it and you will be as happy as
we were. Service, Food and atmosphere were perfect! Order their
signature desert and prepare for a most pleasant surprise.
VICTORIA
Head back towards Vancouver and catch the ferry at Horseshoe Bay. Be
prepared to put you car in a long line and wait for it to load for a
couple of hours. Bring snacks and drinks and reading materials with
you, as you will be most comfortable waiting with your car. There is a
restroom available, (washrooms as the Canadians call them) and a small
village at the end of the line. If you get there early lock your car
and walk towards the village and there will be a blackboard telling you
what time to get back to your car. The ferry to Victoria will cost you
½ a day of your vacation time, so make an adventure of it. Once loaded
on the ferry you will leave your car and go up to the observation
decks. There is comfortable seating inside and out and even a cafeteria
.If you are hungry or not be sure to try the chowder on the ferry.
There is no alcohol served on board (Do I hear flask anyone?) This ride
will take you about 90 minutes and you will arrive at Nanaimmo. The
drive to Victoria from there is about one hour. If you do not have your
car, you can buy a bus ticket and get on the bus right on the ferry.
We stayed at 3 different hotels all around the Inner Harbor of
Victoria. The first night at the Laurel Point Inn, this is a slightly
out of time Japanese style hotel in a beautiful harbor setting. Well
worth the price and be sure to get a harbor view room on a high floor.
The bar downstairs serves a full menu with pleasant service and prices
that will make you feel like you got a great bargain. Try the Banana
Pecan desert.
Vancouver was mostly Asian and Canadian with a feel like you are in
Hong Kong. As native New Yorkers, we can truly say it is a world Class
City, right down to the hustle and bustle. Victoria is much more laid
back and will make you think you have landed in Europe. The people are
from every where and even people from Vancouver love it as a vacation
destination it seems. Where Vancouver prides themselves on upscale
clothing stores and night life like Manhattan, Victoria will greet you
with lush floral displays, winding streets, and leisurely strolls past
interesting antique and craft shops. Along with the standard tee shirt
and gift shops that will please the hordes of cruse ship vacationers
that pull in to the harbor. We found Victoria to be much more civilized
than Vancouver and it was nice not to be approached by so many street
bums, as in Vancouver and Seattle.
The second day we took a drive to Sooke up the western side of the
island, this is undeveloped with many, bed & breakfasts and a good
day trip as well. We elected to go back to the city for its wonderful
restaurants and an over night stay in a downtown hotel, The Executive
House. The Executive House is a plain high rise building, with decent
rooms on the 17th floor. We had an awesome bathroom with an indoor
garden all around the big Jacuzzi tub and a TV to watch while soaking,
along with a lovely balcony that over looked the whole city all the way
to the sea. A great photo opportunity. The bed and the blankets were
not that comfortable and the rooms were not cleaned by mid afternoon
the next day, so we checked out. Prices are much better than other
hotels on the harbor though and worth your consideration if saving some
money is your priority. The hotel bar, downstairs is an authentic
English Pub with great oysters and perogies. There is live music on
weekends seems like a local place.
We then checked in to the Grand Pacific Hotel right next to the
Parliament Building on the Inner Harbor. We took a drive 15 kms.
to Sidney. Sidney is a small boating community that we both enjoyed
immensely. We walked on the docks and drooled over the beautiful yachts
and smiling owners that were from all over the world. This is where we
would consider living if we were ever to move to Canada. We
walked through the downtown Sidney area and enjoyed the treats in the
great bakeries there. Back to Victoria for a stroll, some shopping and
a great Caribbean dinner at the Reef. This restaurant is very
popular with the younger crowd as a DJ spins Reggae music while you
eat. We couldn’t help notice that Victorian teenagers all look like
models. Very well kept children with beautiful clothes and clean cut
looks.
Back to the Grand Pacific Hotel, which boasts the latest and greatest
everything. It is directly across the street from the Black Ball Ferry
which will take you to Port Angeles, WA USA. Although the hotel
offers free underground parking we learned to put our car in the ferry
line at approximately 8:00 PM and left it there for the morning load
up. They do not sell advance tickets and by 8:30 AM you can buy your
tickets only if you are already in line. They say the line for the
10:30 ferry is full by 8:00 AM. You will not use your car to go
anywhere in the city of Victoria. You will only need it to visit out
lying towns. Mode of transportation is typically foot, ferry, horse
drawn carriage or ricshaw. This was our favorite place to visit and
next time we would fly in to Seattle and take the Victoria Express, a
passenger only ferry that takes about 1 hour to get to Victoria. No
need for a rental car. We will return soon as there is so much more to
explore here. We will also add some new information to this article,
each time we go. This is a vacation that we will experience as often as
possible. Hope to bump into you there soon!
» left by Matt Baker from Philadelphia (2 years 278 days ago.)
Very useful information. Just booked our trip to the NW and the hints will be used. Thanks! Respond to this comment
» left by Matthew Lombardi(1,938) (2 years 196 days ago.)
Hi Matt, I see you planned a trip to the great NW and considered my travel tips. Hope they were usefull. My wife and I have since relocated to Birch Bay just below the BC border and love our trips in and out of Canada. I have also just returned from a 2 week consultation in your fair city. I was consulting an alarm firm in Media and got plenty of side trips in. "How about that South Street seen. Ihad my first great cheese steak at Jims and loved my time there.
Regards,
Matthew Respond to this comment
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Article added to SearchWarp.com on Saturday, November 05, 2005 View other articles written by Matthew Lombardi(1,938)
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