Hi there,

My wife and myself are off to Vancouver next week and we’re at a bit of a quandary what to take regards
currency.
Should we still take travellers cheques?
We are taking some cash and credit cards,should I take plenty of cash? Can I use my Visa debit card out there?
What’s the crack with tipping? Seems to be mentioned in all my guide books that you need to tip just about every living soul you come into contact with!
Any recommendations for site seeing/shopping/eating/hotels/bike shops?
Although not riding this trip unfortunately.

Thanks Matt.

I used to travel first class to Vancouver pretty much every other week on business. It was absolute misery I tell thee 😆

One of my favorite cities/places in the world, although not a huge amount of touristy things to do compared with other cities.

I didn’t think anyone used travelers cheques anymore, at least not in North America. I took some cash (a few hundred Canadian Dollars) and just used my debit card in the ATMs to take out money. Never had any problems.

Robson Street is the street for shopping, but it is no 5th/Madison Avenue. Staying on or ideally just off Robson Street nearer to the Museum/Art Gallery is a good central place, but Vancouver is a tiny city so as long as you are not at the extremes pretty much everything is within walking distance.

I generally stayed the Marriot Pinnacle, preferred the Metropolitan. A sales colleague of mine rates the Fairmont very highly. Generally some good deals on Expedia but Vancouver seems to be more expensive than it once was. I would go there for a few days break as the hotels were much cheaper than San Franciso.

Yaletown has some good restaurants (it is not a town just a few streets). I think the Quayside was my favourite. IMO Vancouver is probably the best place for good Suishi outside of Japan – so Japanese places are also worth a try.

It is pretty crap for bars/pubs Opus hotel in Yaletown for pre-dinner cocktails and there is a place near the Fairmont/Art Gallery, but there are a few steam brewery pubs in one on the edge of Gastown and and one in Yaletown easy to find. Otherwise lots of Irish/sports bars.

Cafe Artagino (sp?) is probably my favorite coffee shop in the whole wide world!!!

Places to visit are

Stanley Park,
Grouse Mountain
Gastown
Er there must be others

Bike shops were very expensive when I was last there but that was before prices in the UK rocketed.

Canadians are friendly and laid back. Tipping – probably 15% are per USA, but I can’t really remember. I used to live in NYC so tipping was just second nature to me.

Be prepared to see a lot of vagrants/drug addicts on the streets all over the central areas at night. I found this a little unsettling, not because they were threatening or anything, just because it seems out of character with the rest of the city.

IMO one of the safest places on earth, so no worries wandering around anywhere at night. No doubt the city dwellers think the crime rate is high, but it is all relative.

A word of warning from someone who just spend a couple of weeks in Vancouver/Whistler with a load of friends who live there………

avoid going to any bar that advertises UFC (which is probably about 25% of bars in the whole of BC right now!).

What football is to us, UFC is to young Canadian men. However, watching UFC on TV and getting drunk don’t seem to mix too well.

They breed them pretty big in BC too and the pubs, expecially at kicking out time, can turn into a scene from Fight Club. It’s nuts!

It’s even worse in the resorts, since the city people head up at the weekend, get trashed and then fight with the locals.

I’ve never been harassed so much in any city in the world. It wasn’t like that a few years ago when I was there last, so hopefully it will pass once people realise how rubbish UFC is!!!! 🙂

I have to say that my experience of Van in no way corresponds to that of Peter File, I can only assume that the locals thought that Brass Eye really was a documentary! 😛

I agree about BC guys though, they’re huge although not quite as big as the cowboys (literal and/or metaphorical) in Alberta (it’s all of the Ukrainian blood).
A lot of those small towns in the Lower Mainland and BC Interior have some issues at the moment with drugs, gangs, Hells Angels etc etc
There was a quite a serious gang war in Greater Van/Lower Mainland a couple of years ago which changed perceptions of the place somewhat, but by and large you’re at no risk whatsoever if you’re not part of the underworld.

Even the Downtown Eastside (the very mention of this district would produce audible gasps from some Van residents) isn’t particularly scary. I’ve felt at far more risk in Andover on a Friday night. There were police cruisers every 100 metres or so and I never experienced any violence whatsoever. Maybe things have changed over the last 5 years, but Van always seemed pretty idyllic to me.

MY GOD! I think I better move back to the uk, it sounds so scary!

What Bravo said – I wanted to live there after visiting – it was nearly as cool as Bristol

Nah, seriously, take a credit card – they’re accepted everywhere. Mrs deadly and I went down some what-were-supposed-to-be-dodgy areas and it was fine. People were friendly and chilled.

Tipping – yep – some nights, you feel crucified!

on the tipping thing, i don’t see it being any different from the uk, say about 15% on any meals/taxis and thats about it, and if you avoid the big food chains, its cheap to eat out.

Tip wait staff and bar staff, I never tipped anyone else and wasn’t lynched. I went 3 year ago and would go back tomorrow. Stayed at the Opus in yaletown, great hotel. Also the movie industry round there brings in some great looking ladies! Just wander round and see the city.

Thanks all for your feedback, we are off to meet long lost family, both mine and my wife’s.

Will be in Kamloops and Vernon for 5days to a surprise birthday then back to the city for another reunion.

We’re not really drinkers so no late night bars and clubs to worry about.

Was concerned about tipping but only to do the right thing and also the money issue regarding what to take.

But sorted now by GJP [Gary].

This forum is really a great place for your queries and problems 🙂

Thanks again,

Matt.

Kamloops and Vernon

yum yum Sunpeaks and Silverstar, its a shame your not coming in Summer

Tim Horton’s anyone?

hmm, donuts. TH donuts are ace. Wendy burger much nicer than McDonalds or BK.

Robson Street very cosmopolitan, we stayed at The Listel, which has its own bar & restaurant open to the public. There’s a nice little cafe further along Robson Street towards downtown that does great Eggs Benedict, we ate breakfast there 2 out of the 3 days we were there.

Stanley Park’s nice, Chinatown is also worth a visit if only to sample the food the locals eat. Plenty of ATMs but if you’re with Natwest, tell them before you go as they usually put a block on ATM use in Canada unless otherwise informed.
Gas stations have “pay at pump” but it never works for “international” cards, you always have to go inside. Price of gas, sorry unleaded, was around the 1 dollar a litre mark in summer 2009, when we were paying about a pound a litre, and the exchange rate was about $1.70 to the pound

The Skytrain is pretty cheap too but pretty limited in the routes it covers – more like the Newcastle Metro than the London Underground

Kamloops town centre is pretty compact, but the outskirts seem to go on forever – it’s like a great big train stop. Probably won’t be an issue for you, but we stayed there en-route from Calgary (road trip, best way to see the Rockies) and it was 38deg celsius at 6pm in early August

There used to be a combined Tim Horton’s/Wendy’s in downtown Vancouver, hope it’s still there!

Timbits are the way forward.

greggs donuts are way better than tim hortons, i still can’t figure out what the fuss is about TH!

what, greggs as in paddy from phoenix nights? eeeuuuuwwww

Have good trip Matt, one Alpine residence to another! 😉

no idea what you’re on about although if what i’m thinking is what you mean then eeeeuuuuwwwww toooooo! greggs the bakery!

There used to be a combined Tim Horton’s/Wendy’s in downtown Vancouver, hope it’s still there!

Well, it was still there when I last looked…about 45minutes ago! 🙂

Seeing as no-one else mentioned it so far….TAX!!!! 🙁

Just about every price you see will be BEFORE tax and just about everything has at least 12% slapped on. Generally, the tip in bars and restaurants is 15% of the pre-tax price.

As regards fuel prices, it’s about $1.25 per litre in the Vancouver metro area but drop quite abit outside (eg Squamish if heading N, or Abbotsford if heading E will both be about 10c a litre cheaper). Fuel prices also vary by the time of day and there aren’t any saving to be made by shopping around. Definitely a cartel here!

yum yum Sunpeaks and Silverstar, its a shame your not coming in Summer

Yeah, but plenty of snow at the moment. Bring you ski boots and big, fat powder skis 🙂