We live about an hour from Seattle and this video has me wanting to take an Amtrak ride up to Vancouver for a weekend, staying at the YWCA hotel. We stayed there in June 2022 and I can confirm they’ve done a lot of upgrades since, from what I see in your video. That being said, we still had a fabulous stay in 2022! We were only there about 24 hours prior to our DCL cruise and haven’t made it back but want to explore the city.
My 87 year old mother and I flew in to Vancouver in June of 2015 for an Holland America cruise, and stayed on the north side of the stadium at a Hampton Inn. Unfortunately about 12:30 in the morning we were awakened by the fire alarm going off. There ended up being a fire in a dumpster which was placed by the return air vent outside, so after an hour or so we could go back in. What was so cool about being by BC Place is that 2 weeks later, the US Women’s National Soccer Team won the World Cup there. It is certainly a unique looking stadium! Hope you had a great trip; will keep watching.
Rule of Thumb: AMTRAK will be late. However, train fans say, "Oh boy! we get to ride the train for a longer time!" Things to do in Vancouver: Stanley Park, Capilano Suspension Bridge, Lions Gate Bridge, and serendipity walk about of random districts. If you have time, ride out to Whistler, or rent a car and ride ferries to random islands.
Oh Amtrak..it just tries so hard, but the shared rails just make on time travel so difficult. I LOVE the mission of that hotel. Thank you for sharing it! I had no idea something like that existed. And I'm lucky here in southeast Michigan that I have a Tim Hortons about a mile from my house. We're an hour or less from Ontario, soooo....❤️🇨🇦🍁🥌
The stadium, BC Place, has an interesting history. First built with a fabric dome roof held up by air pressure, so that the doors had to be airtight when closed. They replaced it with the posts and suspension wires you see now, because the power bill for the pressure fans was enormous!
Cute YWCA hotel! I’d consider foregoing our free Hilton Diamond point stays to book that hotel next time we visit! Note that the Seattle to Everett leg of the train is subject to mudslides on the track during the Fall/winter/Spring, and they will put you on the bus anyway.
AmtrakCascades never runs on time haha. I still love taking the train though. You were looking at BCPlace where our football and soccer teams play. Thanks for supporting the YWCA! The hotel is what pays my salary, and I see how impactful our programs are everyday, and I love working for the organization.
I take the train from MI to Chicago often (as did my daughter when she was living there) and it is often late - but I really enjoy it. It's easy to move around, lots of legroom and comfortable seats. My husband and I are looking at an Alaska cruise and some start in Vancouver. It would be fun to fly to Seattle and take the train. We haven't spent much time in the Northwest. Thanks for sharing this video. The YMCA hotel looks great too!
This is real fun. I’m on the Royal Princess out of Vancouver leaving the day after you, but I also started in Seattle to head to Amtrak to go to Vancouver! Neat for the overlap.
Cool video, so I actually am from where Amtrack runs through Glacier Park in Montana, tbh Amtrack is mostly late, sometimes hours and hours late. So don't be in a hurry if you want to ride the train lol
A few questions: Were there any other stops in Canada before Vancouver? Was customs at the border or upon arrival? How long did customs take? The train from the US to Toronto stops are Niagara Falls on the border for customs. Generally, it take 20 minutes into Canada, but they allow over an hour causing passengers to wait in a crowded waiting room with very few seats. On the way back, US Customs makes passengers wait up to a half hour before even getting started. It makes the trip by AMTRAK/VIA almost twice as long as driving.
Alaska cruise in 2025 and we are PLANNING! Atlanta to Seattle and then train to Vancouver! So I am following along and taking notes! I am sure you mentioned in last vlog (will go back and check) - where did you stay in Seattle that was so close to the train station?!
I’ve been enjoying our trip thus far. I’d like to do the train ride once, thank you for taking us along. We will be flying from San Diego to Vancouver in July to board our cruise to Alaska. It’s beginning to feel real. This is our 3 attempt , 1st time the cruise line went bankrupt, 2nd time covid hit. It’s looking like all systems go for July. I’m excited for you to cruise Alaska, you Alaskan’s! One question, binoculars, do you bring some, what size works well or do I just bring camera and phone?? Thank you 🌷❄️
Hi did I see that Sherri is carrying a LV purse? Was that purchased for the fancy cruise? Looking forward to seeing your cruise experience. I have seen a few images on Instagram
Did the train have to pullover for the freight trains? Took the train from Toronto to Vancouver and all the freight trains have priority over the passenger trains. Many many hours delayed.
Do you mean platform 8? Do you still want to drive a train? The Wi-Fi is not great on trains because signal between towns and areas especially in rural areas. Great hotel too.
Can I ask why you stayed in Seattle instead of flying from AK to Vancouver? Is it a better price doing the flight/train or did you want to spend time in Seattle. We are doing a cruise next year with my son and his wife. They live in Fairbanks so wondering about travel to Vancouver from AK. Loving your vlogs!
Is it bad to say as a Canadian that is do not like Tims coffee at all 😮. I have taken the bus from Seattle to Vancouver! We live near Niagara Falls Canada and to fly in the US is way cheaper so we drove from home to Buffalo airport, then flew to Seattle then bus back to Canada which was really confusing for the boarder people when we were on the bus.
The name of the building you were looking for is BC Place, it's home of Vancouver Whitecaps FC and BC Lions ( football team - CFL) it's fun to see you visit à little, maybe one day you'll try the Rocky Mountaineer Train, going across the Rockies, or maybe you guys will do a fall cruise and visit our east coast 😊😊
The Old Dutch brand of chips are so much better than Lays. Same with Old Dutch Arriba Zesty Taco and Nacho Cheese tortilla chips are far superior to Doritos.
Living in Seattle, taking the Amtrak is the last thing one would do to get to Vancouver. It takes sometimes 3X longer than driving and, at times, you can fly in a floatplane and be there in 40 minutes. If you want to go insane because you could walk or ride your bike faster than taking the train, do so. However, if your time is important -- drive or fly.
When it comes to cruising, always arrive a day or two before you set sail 👌🏼!!
Have stayed at the YWCA many times. Good call! Enjoy your cruise
Such a great hotel, and we love their mission!
We live about an hour from Seattle and this video has me wanting to take an Amtrak ride up to Vancouver for a weekend, staying at the YWCA hotel. We stayed there in June 2022 and I can confirm they’ve done a lot of upgrades since, from what I see in your video. That being said, we still had a fabulous stay in 2022! We were only there about 24 hours prior to our DCL cruise and haven’t made it back but want to explore the city.
My 87 year old mother and I flew in to Vancouver in June of 2015 for an Holland America cruise, and stayed on the north side of the stadium at a Hampton Inn. Unfortunately about 12:30 in the morning we were awakened by the fire alarm going off. There ended up being a fire in a dumpster which was placed by the return air vent outside, so after an hour or so we could go back in. What was so cool about being by BC Place is that 2 weeks later, the US Women’s National Soccer Team won the World Cup there. It is certainly a unique looking stadium! Hope you had a great trip; will keep watching.
Rule of Thumb: AMTRAK will be late. However, train fans say, "Oh boy! we get to ride the train for a longer time!" Things to do in Vancouver: Stanley Park, Capilano Suspension Bridge, Lions Gate Bridge, and serendipity walk about of random districts. If you have time, ride out to Whistler, or rent a car and ride ferries to random islands.
Oh Amtrak..it just tries so hard, but the shared rails just make on time travel so difficult. I LOVE the mission of that hotel. Thank you for sharing it! I had no idea something like that existed. And I'm lucky here in southeast Michigan that I have a Tim Hortons about a mile from my house. We're an hour or less from Ontario, soooo....❤️🇨🇦🍁🥌
Thank you for this! I would love to take this train trip at some point.
All looks amazing! Thanks for taking us along! I can't wait to see the cruise videos!
The stadium, BC Place, has an interesting history. First built with a fabric dome roof held up by air pressure, so that the doors had to be airtight when closed. They replaced it with the posts and suspension wires you see now, because the power bill for the pressure fans was enormous!
This was so great! Thanks for sharing!💕
Cute YWCA hotel! I’d consider foregoing our free Hilton Diamond point stays to book that hotel next time we visit!
Note that the Seattle to Everett leg of the train is subject to mudslides on the track during the Fall/winter/Spring, and they will put you on the bus anyway.
I’m all caught up and can’t wait for your luxury cruise experience vlogs! Wonderful on the hotel for a cause for YWCA.
The fun has begun 😂 Thanks for sharing 🙏🏼😉
AmtrakCascades never runs on time haha. I still love taking the train though.
You were looking at BCPlace where our football and soccer teams play. Thanks for supporting the YWCA! The hotel is what pays my salary, and I see how impactful our programs are everyday, and I love working for the organization.
Have a great cruise, loved the train ride!
Thanks for the tour of Vancouver very nice place stay safe.
I take the train from MI to Chicago often (as did my daughter when she was living there) and it is often late - but I really enjoy it. It's easy to move around, lots of legroom and comfortable seats. My husband and I are looking at an Alaska cruise and some start in Vancouver. It would be fun to fly to Seattle and take the train. We haven't spent much time in the Northwest. Thanks for sharing this video. The YMCA hotel looks great too!
Happy cruise! Can’t wait to see the videos! ❤️❤️
This is real fun. I’m on the Royal Princess out of Vancouver leaving the day after you, but I also started in Seattle to head to Amtrak to go to Vancouver! Neat for the overlap.
I’ve never ridden on a train before but I have always wanted to. 😊
Love the video.
Woohooo cruise cruise cruise cruise.
U r the best tour guide be safe
I have taken the train to Vancouver several times. Works great. I would take early morning train instead of afternoon for better on time services.
So Glad you got a room at the YWCA. It has always been booked up for the dates I have tried.
I just took that train this past Monday May 13th, not too many delays. I took the morning train.
I'm not sure if you know, but the big arena was BC Place, Rogers Arena was the one you passed in the taxi!
Enjoy! We are on Royal Princess July 13 leaving from Vancouver. We are riding the Princess bus from Seattle to Vancouver. Second time we’ve done this.
Cool video, so I actually am from where Amtrack runs through Glacier Park in Montana, tbh Amtrack is mostly late, sometimes hours and hours late. So don't be in a hurry if you want to ride the train lol
Thank you for the video 😊
Love the train commentary. Adam, you need to get a tripod of some sort to save your arms! Can’t wait to see the vlogs from the cruise. ❤
A few questions:
Were there any other stops in Canada before Vancouver?
Was customs at the border or upon arrival?
How long did customs take?
The train from the US to Toronto stops are Niagara Falls on the border for customs. Generally, it take 20 minutes into Canada, but they allow over an hour causing passengers to wait in a crowded waiting room with very few seats. On the way back, US Customs makes passengers wait up to a half hour before even getting started. It makes the trip by AMTRAK/VIA almost twice as long as driving.
Alaska cruise in 2025 and we are PLANNING! Atlanta to Seattle and then train to Vancouver! So I am following along and taking notes! I am sure you mentioned in last vlog (will go back and check) - where did you stay in Seattle that was so close to the train station?!
The hotel in Seattle was the embassy suites pioneer square! It was SO convenient for the train!
@@LeggLife THANK YOU!!
I took the Empire Builder back to my home state of Wisconsin from Seattle in A bedroom sleeper.
How was that trip? Would love to do that someday!
@@LeggLife it was great! Lots of scenery!
I’ve been enjoying our trip thus far. I’d like to do the train ride once, thank you for taking us along. We will be flying from San Diego to Vancouver in July to board our cruise to Alaska. It’s beginning to feel real. This is our 3 attempt , 1st time the cruise line went bankrupt, 2nd time covid hit. It’s looking like all systems go for July. I’m excited for you to cruise Alaska, you Alaskan’s! One question, binoculars, do you bring some, what size works well or do I just bring camera and phone?? Thank you 🌷❄️
You also need to consider Vancouver Island.
Hi did I see that Sherri is carrying a LV purse? Was that purchased for the fancy cruise? Looking forward to seeing your cruise experience. I have seen a few images on Instagram
Did the train have to pullover for the freight trains? Took the train from Toronto to Vancouver and all the freight trains have priority over the passenger trains. Many many hours delayed.
BNSF owns the tracks so the freight trains have priority over the Amtrak trains.
The answer is yes in Canada
You’re stretching your departure out sooooo long I can hardly stand it 😜hurry up hurry up ❤
Can you please talk about how Customs and Immigration were handled on the Amtrak Cascades?
Do you mean platform 8? Do you still want to drive a train? The Wi-Fi is not great on trains because signal between towns and areas especially in rural areas. Great hotel too.
Amtrak uses tracks owned by BNSF and the freight trains have priority over the Amtrak trains.
What was the hotel price?
Can I ask why you stayed in Seattle instead of flying from AK to Vancouver? Is it a better price doing the flight/train or did you want to spend time in Seattle. We are doing a cruise next year with my son and his wife. They live in Fairbanks so wondering about travel to Vancouver from AK. Loving your vlogs!
Is it bad to say as a Canadian that is do not like Tims coffee at all 😮.
I have taken the bus from Seattle to Vancouver!
We live near Niagara Falls Canada and to fly in the US is way cheaper so we drove from home to Buffalo airport, then flew to Seattle then bus back to Canada which was really confusing for the boarder people when we were on the bus.
BC Place. Outside the YMCA hotel.
The name of the building you were looking for is BC Place, it's home of Vancouver Whitecaps FC and BC Lions ( football team - CFL) it's fun to see you visit à little, maybe one day you'll try the Rocky Mountaineer Train, going across the Rockies, or maybe you guys will do a fall cruise and visit our east coast 😊😊
“Legglike”: it’s not Legglife but it’s similar. 😂
Martin Thomas Martinez Nancy Hernandez Jennifer
The Old Dutch brand of chips are so much better than Lays. Same with Old Dutch Arriba Zesty Taco and Nacho Cheese tortilla chips are far superior to Doritos.
Living in Seattle, taking the Amtrak is the last thing one would do to get to Vancouver. It takes sometimes 3X longer than driving and, at times, you can fly in a floatplane and be there in 40 minutes. If you want to go insane because you could walk or ride your bike faster than taking the train, do so. However, if your time is important -- drive or fly.