Do we need a rental can in Vancouver/Victoria?
 

We are going to Vancouver and Victoria in September. How hard is it to get around without a car there? If we used public transportation, would we end up wasting a lot of time and spending almost just as much money?

You don't 'need' a car in Vancuver/ Victoria but especially in Vancouver the attractions are well apart from each other and public transportation can be cumbersome involving transfers, ferries, rapid transit as well as busses.<BR><BR> In Victoria, except for Butchard Gardens most of the 'must sees' are located within easy walking distance of the inner harbour. Getting from Vancouver to Victoria is a snap by Pacific Coach Lines downtown to downtown service including the ferry.<BR><BR>If like many people you have a poor sence of direction and are not great with maps then I would reccomend using the very good tourbus facilities, (like the Vancouver Trolley Company), and public transit occaisionally. But there's no getting around the fact that having a car gives you a great deal more flexibility. <BR><BR>I hope I havn't made your decision even more difficult now.

If you are staying in the City Center most of the sights such as English Bay and Stanley Park, Robson Street, and the Big Shopping Malls are all in walking distance. But to go to the outlying areas yes I would rent a car or do an organized bus tour.<BR><BR>Here is an Idea check out www.ParkRoyalHotel.com it is on the North Shore and has easy access to bus for downtown and city center plus you are a block from major shopping mall, and Ambleside Beach. From there you can use the West Van Bus system to get to Whytecliff Park and and Horseshoe Bay and you are close to Capilano Bus system that takes you to Grouse Mountain and the Fish Hatcheries. You can organize your own tours. Buses are cheap regular and easy to use. <BR>West Van has a wonderful sea walk easy to walk up to Ambleside Village and Dundarave Village and lots of good restaurants. I find the food better and less expensive than the city center.<BR>Has to be you are catering to the suburban crowd who could easily eat at home.

When you are on the Beach at Ambleside you look directly across to Stanley Park and Lions Gate Bridge. The little hotel I drink at the local pub is wonderful because it sits on the river and has a garden. To get to the City Center is about 10minutes by bus which the connection is a block away. I do not take my car downtown because parking is expensive and street parking is hard to find.

I guess in terms of Victoria, it depends on what sorts of things you want to see and do. It's true that many of the must-see spots are along the Inner Harbour and easily accessible on foot. But for me, one of the charms of Victoria is that it's on Vancouver Island, and that's such a lovely area to explore - which is hard if you don't have a car. I've been there numerous times and we're still discovering new areas that we haven't seen before. This trip's discovery was the Esquimalt Lagoon, which is only a few minutes' drive from where we were staying but we hadn't even known it was there until we drove around one evening and found it. It's a beautiful bird sanctuary with a view of the mountains and the ocean - peaceful and lovely. If we'd stayed in the touristy areas, we'd never have found it.