This blog post was made in collaboration with the Listel Hotel. All my opinions are my own.
Living in Washington, Vancouver B.C. is just a few hour drive away! To be honest, I haven’t actually spent any time in Vancouver, rather driven through it to get to Whistler. Since the borders opened, I decided to take a quick weekend trip to Vancouver B.C. with a few girlfriends for a last minute holiday getaway.
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Where is the Listel Hotel located?
Address: 1300 Robson St, Vancouver, BC V6E 1C5, Canada
The Listel Hotel is located right on Robson street and is a great central hotel to be able to walk to a lot of places. It takes about 20 minutes to walk to the waterfront to get to Granville Island, about 10 minutes to walk to the waterfront / Christmas market and about 25 minutes to walk to Rogers arena.
How to get to the Listel Hotel
🚗 By Car:
If you live in Washington or in B.C., then traveling to the Listel by car is the easiest. To drive over the U.S. / Canada border, there are additional requirements at the moment.
- You are required to be fully vaccinated
- You are required to have a negative PCR test taken within 72 hours of border crossing (they do even check the time so make sure its taken less than 72 hours before)
- You are required to fill out details on the ArriveCAN app and show the receipt at the border
Driving back from Canada to the U.S.: No negative test or any other additional requirements
Requirements are always changing, so make sure you are referring to the following website for the most up to date information.
🚝 By Train:
Amtrak is another great way to get to Vancouver. There are daily trains that leave from the Seattle area as well as around Canada. The Amtrak station in Vancouver is just a few miles from the Listel so you can take an Uber ride from there.
✈️ By Plane:
There are daily flights out of the U.S. and Canada to Vancouver. From Seattle it is about $160 round trip and the flight is about 1 hour gate to gate. From the airport, its about a 30 minute drive or 42 minutes on the Translink via the Canada line.
Some highlights from my stay at the Listel Hotel
🏢 The Hotel
- What room did I stay in: We were booked in a 2 queen gallery floor room.
🛎️The Staff
The staff was super helpful upon check-in and always greeted us when we came and went. They also made sure to ask us if we wanted a refill on our wine during the wine happy hour from 5-6PM.
⛰ The Location
I can’t say enough good things about the location! The Listel is located on Ronson street, which is right in the middle of so many good places to eat and drink! We parked our car at their on site parking garage and were either able to walk to everything or take an Uber to get around.
🏋️♀️Amenities
- On site restaurant (The Forage), which is convenient if you want an evening night cap
- Still and sparkling water taps on each floor. The sparkling water was a nice touch as I tend to crave it when traveling. Bring your water bottle!
- Wine happy hour from 5 – 6PM daily
- On site parking (for an additional fee), but in and out privileges
- Local art on display throughout the hotel and in the hotel rooms
- Robes in the rooms!
What are things you can do near the Listel?
Forage
Address: 1300 Robson St, Vancouver, BC V6E 1C5, Canada
Forage is the restaurant at the Listel. OMG! What a great place. Everything is made using local ingredients and the alcohol is all local. We went for drinks the first night and everyone really loved the FORAGE 75: Bizou + Yukon bubbles, Victoria Spirits ‘Empress’ gin, fresh lemon
We came the next morning for brunch and it didn’t disappoint.
What to order:
- Two Rivers turkey sausage hash – roasted vegetables, free-range eggs, watercress pesto, toast
- Free range eggs benedict, twice cooked potatoes, hollandaise, house made back bacon
- House corned bison brisket hash, fried eggs, chopped kale, sauerkraut, IPA mustard hollandaise, toast
- Get a caesar cocktail – vodka, Walter clamato juice, spicy house pickled beans
Watch a Canucks hockey game
Address: 800 Griffiths Way, Vancouver, BC V6B 6G1, Canada
We had tickets to see the Canucks play against the Arizona Coyotes. Unfortunately, the game was postponed due to an increase in cases. Rogers Arena is only a few miles away from the Listel so we were planning to grab an Uber.
Granville Island
I’ve had Granville Island on my list for quite awhile so I was happy to visit. From the Listel, it is a nice 20 minute walk down to the Aquatic Center Ferry dock. A small foot ferry comes every 5 minutes to take you over to Granville. The ride is roughly 7 minutes. You pay on board and cash or card are accepted. We paid about $2.75 USD per person one way. It was a cool way to see Vancouver.
Here are a few places I recommend checking out on Granville:
- Wander through the food stalls
- There are a few buildings that have stalls full of food, fresh produce, fresh seafood and more!
- Granville Island Brewery
- Address: 1441 Cartwright St, Vancouver, BC V6H 3R7, Canada
- What to order: Poutine, pretzel, wings, West Coast IPA, Peach Sour
- Granville Distillery
- Address: 1494 Old Bridge St, Vancouver, BC V6H 3S6, Canada
- What to order: Espresso Martini
- MAKE Vancouver
- Address: 1648 Duranleau St, Vancouver, BC V6H 3S4, Canada
- This was the cutest store. There were so many trinkets and things I wanted to buy!
Stanley Park
Address: Vancouver, BC V6G 1Z4, Canada
I still haven’t made it to Stanley Park. It was raining most of the weekend when we were there, but it is still a place I recommend you check out. Stanley Park is less than a 5 minute drive from the Listel and it’s beautiful in all seasons. There are beaches, parks and the aquarium.
CRAFT Beer Market
Address: 85 W 1st Ave, Vancouver, BC V5Y 3K8, Canada
CRAFT Beer Market has 8 locations across several Canadian provinces. My first visit to CRAFT was their downtown Calgary location. If you like beer, you have to come here. They have a TON of beer on tap.
Barnside Brewing
Address: 6655 60 Ave, Delta, BC V4K 4E2, Canada
We ended up stopping here right after we crossed the border (Douglas crossing). This is such a cute brewery in an old barn. It is small inside, but they do have a lot of indoor seating. We got a few pints, a tasting flight, a charcuterie board and their pretzel.
Earnest Ice Cream
Address: 1829 Quebec St, Vancouver, BC V5T 2Z3, Canada
We got ice cream at Earnest even though it was 20 degrees outside. I definitely recommend getting an affagato (espresso shots and ice cream – choose your own flavor!). I ended up getting an affagato with salted caramel ice cream.
Danbo Ramen
Address: 1333 Robson St, Vancouver, BC V6E 1C6, Canada
Apparently this is the most popular ramen spot in the area. The Listel hotel is right across the street from Danbo and for a day we watched a constant line outside. Our last night we braved the line for some ramen. Luckily, we only waited for about 20 minutes in line. Once we got inside, they had so many dividers to separate you into your own sitting area.
Christmas Market
Address: Jack Poole Plaza, 1055 Canada Pl, Vancouver, BC V6C 3G3, Canada
This is a seasonal market that runs November through December, but it is only a 10 minute walk from the Listel! There are a bunch of vendor booths as well as a whole court of food (think schnitzel, brats, pretzels, perogies, and more!). Don’t forget to also get a German beer or glühwein (warm, spiced wine).
Vancouver Coal Harbour
Address: 1075 W Waterfront Rd, Vancouver, BC, Canada
A beautiful waterfront walk near the cruise ship terminal!
Capilano Suspension Bridge
Address: 3735 Capilano Rd, North Vancouver, BC V7R 4J1, Canada
I haven’t made it to Capilano yet, but it is one of the more popular things to do when in Vancouver. Visits will be about $50 CAD and allows you access to many bridges suspended in the trees. It’s even better in the winter when the bridges are decorated with Christmas lights.
Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge
Address: 3690 Park Rd, North Vancouver, BC V7J 3K2, Canada
If you want to experience a suspension bridge, but don’t want to pay to see it, then the Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge is a good alternative. I am not sure if they decorate the bridge for the holidays, but I was there a few years ago in October and it was cool to check out!
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