Hello,

I am looking for advice on my travel plans this summer. I am flying roundtrip for free (airmiles) to Seattle in August. I have 8 full days to spend in the region and have have these tentative plans so far:

*Arrive Friday Night
*Spend Sat and Sun in Seattle
*Leave Mon Morning for Vancouver-Amtrak Train
*Spend Mon-Fri morning in Vancouver
*Leave Early Friday morning for Victoria (Bus or Ferry)and spend Friday and Saturday day.
*Leave late Saturday (Clipper) back to Seattle and stay in Hotel near the aiport. Leave Sunday Morning.

What do you think? Any better advice here?

Sounds good. The Amtrak train leaves at 7:45 a.m. and the other routes are done by buses. Book early or you will be on the bus. The train goes along the water. Book it now on www.amtrak.com

Get a rental car in Vancouver and drive up to Whistler for the night. The rental car is better than a tour for taking photos.

You don't need a car in Vancouver--use the public buses and Skytrain. You can take the public bus out to Grouse Mountain. This is about a four-hour day trip from Vancouver.

Congratulations on Free miles. Did it take 25,000 miles or 50,000 for the ticket and what airline.

Took 35,0000 miles for each ticket (70,000 miles total). However, I used my CapitalOne MilesOne card and not the airlines.

Thanks for the advice!

We would want more time in Victoria, one of our favorite cities. We were last there in August 2005 for five days and managed to fill all that time with interesting things to see and do, and didn't manage to fit in several things we had planned to do.

We stayed at the Delta Victoria Ocean Pointe which is right on the inner harbor (booked through www.hotels.com), had a free van service which takes guests anywhere around town, and a pier where the little harbor taxis stop.

If you're interested in some of our activities while there, let me know (you can e-mail me if you like) and I will do my best to help.

Hello,
A buddy of mine and I are looking to do a similar trip, we're just unsure of the route we want to take. We're going from August 2nd to the 10th, with a round-trip flight out of Seattle. We're interested in the city atmosphere, but also the hiking/biking natural beauty that a place like Olympic offers.

We're trying to piece together our trip, and were wondering what would be the best itinerary to go by that would provide for the least amount of travel time.

Is there a way to make a triangle out of Seattle/Vancouver/Olympic, or are we better taking separate trips from Seattle to each of them. How long would you suggest in each place?

We're thinking of getting a car 2 days into the trip, that way we only have it for a week and don't have to pay through the nose for extra days.

We're 2 twenty-something guys looking for the hiking/biking/sight-seeing experience in both a natural beauty with a splash of urban nightlife. Any and all suggestions are most appreciated. Thanks!