kloozie

My 2 cousins and I plan to visit Vancouver in August for 2 or 3 days. One cousin will be driving up from Washington so we will have a car. What are your recommendations for must see tours attractions and hotels that include breakfast but are not super expensive? We would also like to spend an additional day in Victoria to see the gardens and possibly experience the High Tea at the Hotel Victoria. Is it possible to leave the car at the ferry terminal in Vancouver overnight so we don't have to pay for the car? Is there a reasonably priced hotel in Victoria you can recommend? Any information you can give me would be wonderful so we can plan our itinerary. Kloozie

tomfuller

You don't need a car in Vancouver. There is good public transport around the city and a HOHO bus that runs through Stanley Park.
To get from Seattle to Vancouver take the Amtrak train or bus and you don't have to worry about the car while you are away from it.
There are two HI Hostels in Vancouver. One has a much better kitchen than the other.
There is also a HI Hostel in Seattle that is within walking distance of the newly remodeled King St. station.
(Former American Hotel).

sundriedtopepo

Hi kloozie, Vancouver in August is glorious! It is also the most expensive time of year for hotels, in an already expensive city.
If you are American, then you will get much better value for your dollar in BC with the exchange rate.
I don't know about hostels, but I would suggest looking for something on airbnb, and don't leave it too late. If you find something close to a Skytrain station then you could stay a little out of the downtown core for a lot cheaper. Parking in Vancouver is also very expensive.
I am guessing you are a lot younger than I am, so not sure of your interests, but there are lots of things to do here, Gastown, Granville Island Public Market, the beaches in Kitsilano, hipster shops and restaurants around Main street from Broadway to around King Edward Ave., walk the seawall for miles or rent bicycles and tour Stanley Park.
Also last summer there was a zipline in Queen Elizabeth Park, or you can take the Skyride to the top of Grouse Mountain for views/restaurant.
There are also seasonal events taking place, depending on when you are here.
You can leave your car at the ferry terminal parking lot for a price. Google BC Ferries parking.
Sorry don't know anything about Victoria hotels.
Hope this helps!

sundriedtopepo

Just noticed in another post what your age group is
So probably no ziplines, however Queen Elizabeth Park is quite nice, and so is VanDusen Gardens, which is a botanical garden, very large and shady, many great specimens, but not all decked in annuals like Butchart Gardens.It's on Oak Street at 37 Ave.
We also have a very nice Aquarium in Stanley Park that might interest you.
Coal Harbor is a beautiful place to enjoy the scenery of Vancouver, with lots of restaurants, the seawall, the cruiseship terminal, and mountains as a backdrop to it all.
The Georgian Court Hotel is a nice little hotel just across from BC Place with decent rates, and often has specials on Travelzoo.
I think you mean the Empress Hotel in Victoria for high tea, btw. don't forget to reserve ahead.

Sam_Salmon

"hotels that include breakfast but are not super expensive?"

Try the Kingston or Sunset Suites.

http://www.kingstonhotelvancouver.com/

http://www.sunsetinn.com/

Just be prepared to pay a lot more than you thought for everything this place is busy, popular with international travellers, & overall expensive.

eliztravels2

It looks like the OP isn't paying attention, but I will make my Vancouver hotel suggestions for the benefit of others reading this thread.

When we are trying to keep our budget under control we like the Buchan, which has some rooms with private bath, others with shared facilities which are quite acceptable. It attracts a mixed clientele: young people, seniors like myself, and occasionally families. Staff always friendly and helpful. No breakfast, but coffee in the lounge and within a five minute walk of numerous coffee shops and cafes on Denman. On a quiet residential street and very close to Stanley park. Stayed there last in August 2015.

For something more upscale we like Times Square Suites on the corner of Denham and Robson. It books up quickly, and has a kitchen so you can make your own breakfast.

pirouette

For high tea in Victoria I think you mean the Empress Hotel. It is part of the Fairmont chain and if you are on a budget, you may wish to rethink high tea as it is not inexpensive. You should book in advance because August can be busy. I spent a week at the Empress a couple of years ago and watched walk in tourists leave disappointed when they were turned away for high tea.

kloozie

Thank you to all who have replied to my inquiries. All the suggestions have been very helpful. We have narrowed down our lodgings to either the Cambie Lodge B&B or the Rosedale on Robson Suite Hotel. Any information you can offer would be very welcome. We did decide to forgo the high tea because of the expense. We are considering the foodie tour in Gastown. If anyone can comment on this please do. Thank you. Kloozie

Fodorite018

Just to give you another hotel option, take a look at the O Canada House in Vancouver. We stayed there a couple weeks ago and loved it! The breakfasts were amazing, and there is free parking too. We drove up from Seattle, so had our own vehicle. We parked it and never needed it, which we knew. But it was nice to have it for our drive up and back. We were in the Penthouse Suite, which has two king beds, so that should work for your group. It was huge!!!

We did not do the food tour, but we did eat in Gastown and found a couple of great places. The Flying Pig was fantastic for happy hour. We wished we had another night so we could have dinner there, it was that good. Then Jules Bistro was excellent! Also ate at Al Porto, which was good, but just nowhere near the same level as Jules.

Yes, tea at the Empress is not cheap, but there is so much food that you do not need another meal that day! So that might be worthwhile for you then, budget wise. You definitely need reservations, and we thoroughly enjoyed it.

sundriedtopepo

Rosedale on Robson is good value, in a great location, among all the restos and shopping in Yaletown, close for walking and transportation.

The Cambie Lodge is in a great location too, for transit. About 1 block from the Skytrain which will take you right downtown in about 5 minutes.

sundriedtopepo

Rosedale on Robson is advertising $16 a day for parking. That is very reasonable in downtown, if that's correct. You probably won't be using your car much here.