Will be attending a meeting at the Conference Center on the harbor, and was wondering how these hotels compare -- both on general quality and proximity (walking time) to the Conference Center. Also have a possibiity of staying at the Waterfront Fairmont, but would like to be close enough to shopping areas so my wife can be entertained while I'm at my meetings. Are any of these hotels within an easy walk of Stanley Park or, in the other direction, Chinatown? To good restaurants? Am open to other options in the area, but need to keep below US$200. Thank you.

Forgot to mention that we'll be there the last week in September -- so I don't know if rain will be a factor in mobility. Would like not to have a car, but to rely on walking and public transportation, instead. Also -- just realized I typed too fast and of course I'm referring to the Marriott "Pinnacle" with 2 "n"s!

The Waterfront and the Hyatt are both close to shopping.The Hyatt is more central,but it is only abou four blocks to the waterfront. It is probably a 15 min walk to Stanley Park. I'm not sure where the Pinnacle is.

We have stayed at both and the Hyatt is more centrally located for shopping at the Pacific Center, The Bay and Sears. Rain is ALWAYS a possibility as it is in Seattle or Portland....this is the Pacific Northwest! Both hotels offer umbrellas. You can easily walk to Stanley Park or Chinatown.
Price is apparently not a problem but why not use Priceline? Our last stay at the Hyatt was for $48 on priceline and in August, at the height of the tourist season, we only paid $60 at the Bayshore Westin. Hope you and your wife enjoy your trip!

Thanks for your responses. I've done a search for reviews of these hotels on the Net, and came across many references to extremely low rates for these hotels through Priceline. Unfortunately, the folks sponsoring my attendance at the meeting can't use Priceline for various reasons, so I've gotten the best rates I could, directly from the 3 hotels. All, interestingly, are within a few dollars of each other.

The fact that the Hyatt, especially, seems to go so cheaply on Priceline, is one of the things that made me have doubts about that hotel. Between the Pinnacle and the Hyatt, are there any significant pros and cons? If the location of the Pinnacle -- near the water -- makes that an especially attractive location, then my wife says she won't mind being closer to the shopping. We were last in Vancouver a few summers ago, the weather was beautiful, and I vaguely recall this area -- but will the likelihood of rain cast a gloomy pall over the city by the end of this month? Is it like Seattle or Portland by then, never coming out of the drizzle?

You mentioned that you had looked at hotel reviews. Did this include www.tripadvisor.com where the Pinnacle is rated no.7 with 33 user reviews, the Bayshore no.12 and the Hyatt reviews are a little mixed but nothing too derogatory. As "Leuk" pointed out it is only a four block walk to the waterfront from the Hyatt. The walk to Stanley Park along the waterfront is very scenic and takes about 20 minutes depending on how far you want to venture into the park. I personally like the Hyatt as it is close to shopping as I mentiones and also only two blocks to all the great shops on Robson street. I think I already covered the subject of the "liquid sunshine". I have also stayed at the 5* Four Seasons hotel and it is in the same area.

I had seen some of the Tripadvisor reviews, but based on your comments, I looked at them more systematically just now. It seems like the Hyatt got very mixed reviews, despite the fact that most of the reviewers got their rooms for very little on Priceline! I wonder if Priceline buyers are generally more demanding? I had thought they'd be less so. In any case, the Tripadvisor reviews for the Marriott Pinnacle are definitely a step up, and our third possibility, the Fairmont Waterfront has the best reviews by far -- almost all superlatives. Based on this, we're now leaning toward either the Pinnace or the Waterfront.

I appreciate your point that we're in fact talking about the Pacific Northwest, and I understand the concept of lots of rain. But I don't really understand what's meant by "liquid sunshine" in this context. Does this mean that -- by the last week of September -- we can expect almost constant drizzle or gloomy clouds? Or is it something that comes and goes, with intermittent periods of sunshine and blue skies, such as we experienced the summer we were there? And does the real "liquid sunshine" season really begin by the end of September?

Thanks for your assistance.

Don't fret over a little rain. Do like a real Pacific Northwestener, go to a covered market, snuggle up with the paper in a coffeeshop, camp out in a bookstore. Go walking in Stanley Park in your rainproof jacket.
I lived in Seattle for 12 years and I haven't melted yet.

We're really not fretting about the rain! Just want to know what to expect, as it could affect my wife's preference to be either near the water or closer in to shopping and museums at the Hyatt. I'll be in meetings all day, anyway. Our concrete questions are simply these: 1) Is it already the rainy season by the end of September?, and 2) At that time, is it likely to be consistently wet, or is the pattern one of intermittent rain showers rather than one of consistent drizzle? Thanks again, for any further reflections on our hotel questions, or answers to these weather questions.

Well, late September is usually very nice and pleasant. If it did rain, it's usually just showers, not a downpour, then the sun could come out. It could be just cloud cover and the mountains won't be visible.

Thanks for the info on the weather. It sounds like Vancouver should still be very pleasant for walking when we'll be there. We'll remember to pack our rainscoats!