Vancouver accommodation advice...

[Guest Kirsteen]

Calling all Vancouver-in-the-know people,

 

This Vancouverophyte needs a few pointers with respect to finding some good places to stay for the short-, and possibly long-term, in Vancouver.

 

Unfortunately, only ever having passed through Vancouver en route to Whistler, I have an embarrassingly miniscule working knowledge of the geography of the city and its various areas. Vancouver seems wonderfully interspersed with water, bridges, islands... quite alien, but very welcoming, to this TO resident.

 

In any case, there's a good chance that I may be nipping out to Vancouver in the next few weeks to visit some of the research facilities (BC Institute for Women & Children's Health) as well as meet with a few individuals in the Obs/Gyn Research Dept. However, I'd love to use the weekend to simultaneously check out the sights and sounds of Vancouver's culture, and digging wee, boutique hotels over massive hotel chains, was wondering if anyone happens to know of any in the Vancouver area? A quick search on the net has proven fruitless thus far.

 

Also, with respect to real estate in Vancouver (this is thinking way, way ahead) I understand that Point Gray and Kitsilano are close to the uni. and would make ideal spots for setting up shop. However, I've also heard about a couple of supposedly funky areas such as Gastown and Yaletown. Does anyone have any insights as to what these places are like, and where they're situated relative to the university? Ideally, if I move out there, I'd prefer to be a short hop from the university as opposed to driving massive distances to class every day. Although, with respect to Gastown and Yaletown, if they are neat areas and if they happen to be close to the teaching hospitals, then that would be positive.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

Cheers,

Kirsteen

[Guest Ian Wong]

If the BC Institute for Women's and Children's Health is the Women's and Children's Hospital complex (and I can't think of anything else that it could be), then you're in a pretty central area.

 

If you take W&C Hospital as the center point, then UBC is off to the extreme west, and downtown is directly north and across the water (you'll need to go over a bridge).

 

Point Grey is basically a synonym for the UBC grounds. It's the furthest west living area in Vancouver. If you live in Pt. Grey, driving further west to UBC takes about 5 minutes. Driving east to W&C Hospital will probably take you about 15 minutes per day. Lots of students live here, and it's primarily a residential area.

 

Kitsilano is the zone directly adjacent to Pt. Grey, so it's just a little east of Pt. Grey, but still is on the far west side of Vancouver. This area has quite a bit more commercial activity; lots of little stores lining the main streets. Lots of students live here as well. Driving west into UBC is probably around 10 minutes, and drving east to W&C is about 10 minutes as well.

 

Both Gastown and Yaletown are located in the downtown part of Vancouver, which is directly north of W&C Hospital. You also need to cross one of the bridges to enter downtown.

 

Yaletown is right on the border between downtown and the rest of Vancouver. As soon as you go over the bridges into downtown, you've entered into Yaletown. There's a number of condos in this area, and lots of shopping nearby on Granville Street and at the Pacific Mall. There are lots of clubs in this area. The downside is needing to cross a bridge every day to get into either UBC or W&C Hospital. Rent would also be more expensive here. I'd estimate that commute-time would probably be 20-25 minutes or so to either UBC or W&C Hospital not because Yaletown is far away, but because you'd be fighting traffic.

 

Gastown is buried deep within downtown. Lots of apartments, tons of local shops, a number of bars and clubs. Rent would be pricey here as well. Commute time would be even longer, say 30 minutes to either UBC or W&C Hospital. Again, you'll need to cross bridges to get to either destination.

 

Speaking personally as someone who likes the small-city environment, and can't stand sitting in traffic (although your from Toronto, so you'd laugh at what I call "traffic"), I'd look for accomodation in Kitsilano. It's a great area to live, it's centrally placed between UBC and W&C Hospital, there's enough students living in that area to sustain all sorts of neat shops and restaurants. If you live there and have a car, you can be in downtown Vancouver in a 15 minute drive.

 

Another area to consider that you haven't yet mentioned is Kerrisdale. It's basically a smaller version of Kitsilano, and is situated south of both UBC and W&C Hospital. It's also located roughly the same distance from both of those locations as Kitsilano, so a 10 minute drive should see you into UBC or W&C Hospital. There's one central commercial strip in that area, and everything else is suburbia and residential living.

 

As far as hotels and stuff go, I don't have any idea. Perhaps try here, and click on Alternative Housing Options.

 

www.housing.ubc.ca/

 

You also might be able to find something through our BC portal.

 

www.mybc.com

 

Good luck! (and why aren't you studying now???)

 

Ian

UBC, Med 3

[Guest Katie]

www.mls.ca is a really useful site. Just type in your specifications (price, location, number of bedrooms, etc) and it'll give you all the matches with pictures.

 

I live way out in the suburbs now, but personally I would love to live in Kerrisdale or Kits for the shopping and the location. Kerrisdale's a bit for the older people though. Point Grey is too far from shopping (for me) and Gas Town/Yaletown are really too far away if you're attending UBC. For all the extra driving, I'd rather just visit those areas now and then.

[Guest Kirsteen]

Hi guys,

 

Thanks for the tips. Katie, I haven't checked out your link yet, but I think I may have come across something similar last week and there seemed to be a large number of condos available in Vancouver West. One of the beauties of living and owning a place in TO is the pleasant shock that you receive when looking at real estate prices anywhere else in this country! I'll give it a go though.

 

Regarding real estate, is Vancouver, like Toronto, undergoing a loft craze? Are there any loft-y condos available anywhere near or around Vancouver West that you guys know of? A loft could provide a good, spacious epicenter for meds studying/post-exam celebration activities!

 

Cheers again,

Kirsteen