A bunch of us are taking a friend up to Vancouver, BC for his BP. We are driving, so we will have cars available, but I doubt we’ll have a designated driver while we are up there. What would be a good area of town to stay in with lots of bars close by and maybe even some good dance (exotic?) clubs. What we want is something that won’t make us break the bank on taxi rides and is withing walking distance of at least a few good bars.
If you have any suggestions on good hotels, not to expensive, to stay in, that would be great as well! So Dopers, where’s the party in BC?
I used to work at the Best Western Chateau Granville, at Granville & Helmcken. It is a mid-range suite hotel, and in a suite with two double beds in the bedroom and a pull-out couch in the front room, they will let you sleep 5 adults. Here is their site for more info.
Ask for Bruce or Ralph when you check in, and tell them what kinds of trouble you want to get into - um, I mean, what types of bars you like. They will be able to direct you to roughly 6 within stumbling distance, and quite a few more within a $10-15 Cdn cab ride.
Oddly, just two weeks ago, I was staying at the very hotel Sinshine mentioned. It’s a nice place. Just up Granville are a bucketful of bars and places to hang out. Back a few blocks towards the bridge are a fair amount of “adult” type places. In fact, there is one right across the street.
Thanks for the suggestion! Unfortunately, that hotel is booked for the weekend. I think we might try the Dufferin (I think). It looks cheap, and to tell you the truth we can fit 6 (it’s only gonna be 6 now) in two of the rooms easily. We’ve done 12 in one room in Vegas.
Does anyone know anything about the Horse Track? Hastings? How far it is, how nice it is? We love to go to the dog tracks her in town, but rarely get the chance to see horses live.
Warning on the Dufferin: it may be low-cost, but it is dangerously close to being a dive. Try the Ramada or Holiday Inn instead; they are all within a 3-block radius of the hotel I mentioned earlier, and roughly competitive rates.
Hastings Park is a pretty decent track, I think; I don’t have much to compare it to, but it is clean, well appointed and probably closer to $30 cab ride from downtown Vancouver. There is another track in Langley, but that is quite a ways out; and better done on your way to the truck crossing into the States.
Thanks for the heads up on the Dufferin. We may go somewhere else now. I’m looking forward to the trip, but I don’t know how in the hell I got saddled with this planning part. It sucks…
I think I’ll check those other two and see what’s available. Thanks again for your help on this!
Gee, I was in Vancouver last week for a stag and wedding…
Most of the clubs in Vancouver are on Granville street. This includes noted strip club the Cecil. Be sure to get a massage from the therapist. (I tell ya, you can’t make this stuff up.)
The Skybar, a little farther north, is a good dance club. $12 cover, and you can arrange in advance to have everyone on the quick-entry list, which I highly recommend. Bar None, in Yaletown (the southeast section of the downtown core) has a lot going for it.
Other peeler bars include the Penthouse and Brandi’s (where Ben Affleck met his doom, IIRC), but those are classy, expensive joints.