wakaluk35

We will be traveling to Vancouver this July for 3 days of our honeymoon. We are attempting to find accommodations in the West End or Downtown areas for under $150 a night. As we will be staying at higher end hotels for the rest of our honeymoon, luxury is less of a concern for these 3 days. We are more concerned with finding a nice, clean hotel in a good location for seeing the sites of Vancouver. On the cheaper end we are considering the Barclay Hotel and the Robsonstrasse Hotel. Any thoughts on these 2 hotels? I have seen mixed reviews for both. We are also considering the Moda Hotel and the Victorian Hotel. Any thoughts or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. We can't wait to see Vancouver!

NorthwestMale

Is it taboo to use Priceline.com at any point during one's honeymoon??

Given your expression of having anted-up for the rest of your trip, I thiiiiiiiink you should use Priceline for the three nights in Vancouver and help your budget that way.

Downtown Vancouver is relatively compact with water on most sides, so no spot is too far removed from the middle of everything. Plus it is mostly flat, so that doesn't hurt either.

You might even get lucky and find you land lodging worth considerably more than you pay.

I'm sorry if Priceline is taboo for one's honeymoon. I'm unrefined that way.

chinglish

For that price range, you should check out vbro.com for short term apartment rental. There are some nice condos in downtown posted there - most are 3 nights minimum in the summer time. Don't know about availability, they book up fast in the summer!

wakaluk35

Thanks for the replies!

I checked out vbro.com and there appear to be a lot of really nice places on there, unfortunately in high season they are all out of our price range.

I looked into the name your own price thing on priceline.com and I may end up trying it but the risk is that we would get a place that is not in the location that we would like. You can choose an "area" but the downtown area on there extends beyond the area that we would like to stay in. Anyway, like I said we may try it but there is that risk.

Any more suggestions or thoughts on the above hotels would be welcomed.

sludick

You won't go wrong if you bid for a 4* place in downtown Vancouver.

Are you familiar with Priceline bidding strategies? If not, go to www.biddingfortravel.com, and all will be explained there, with help as well. As NorthwestMale said, downtown is compact, and all the 4*s are in good areas. Be careful that you don't add in the airport as a free rebid, though -- that's the only other area with a 4* hotel.

We've used Priceline a lot for downtown Vancouver, and have never paid over $150 yet for a 4*. One thing, though -- you are going in high season, and you might not win anything until shortly before you go. So reserve something that can be cancelled, as a backup.

Congratulations on your upcoming nuptials and honeymoon!

wakaluk35

Alright! We just may go that route. We will also be in Victoria at the end of our honeymoon 2 weeks later. Any idea about using priceline for Victoria??

wakaluk35

sludick

Thanks for the website. It is very helpful!

sludick

Victoria will be pricier than Vancouver. We won the Victoria Marriott Inner Harbour (4*) last fall - 2 rooms, 1 night. I think we paid $150-155 a night (July will be higher, and you may have real problems getting anything at peak season). If you do bid, I've heard you should stay at the 4* level there as well, because there's one or two 3* that are not so well-liked or situated. By and large, though, I have my best luck with 4* anyway.

By the way, it is not uncommon for it to take me 2 or 3 months of bidding before I get the price I want. Don't be discouraged on the first couple of tries.

AndrewDavid

wakaluk35,
In the West End u might want to try the Blue Horizon (newer more central) or The Sylvia ( shabby but clean and on the beach or at least across the road)
Kimpton Group has a property around the corner from the Blue Horizon as well

congrats
AndrewDavid

NorthwestMale

Hi again,

It was my feeling that your own potential resistance was the biggest hurdle about Priceline.

You will find that the downtown core of Vancouver is quite suitable for completely rolling the dice as to "FOUR-star" accommodations via Priceline.

I expect that somebody somewhere lands a spot sliiiiiiiiightly outside of the bullseye of their personal ideals, but once you've been to Vancouver... seen the fairly compact, mostly flat downtown... and considered the usually forgiving weather and reasonable public transportation... well, you'd clearly decide that it was worth taking the tiny chance of having to hike a couple/few extra blocks from somewhere.

Keep your honeymoon affordable that way, and I just think that SOME amount of randomness thrown-in won't hurt your memories in a reasonably 'controlled' way such as Priceline.

Good luck!