My friend and I, both in our early 50s, went on this cruise together - did not bring along the husbands nor the kids. My friend has been on approximately 7 cruises and I have been on 20+ cruises. This is our second time on Royal Caribbean, have sailed Carnival many times, Princess, as well as cruises other lines (some no longer in business).

Pre-Cruise: We flew Cathay Pacific Airlines, on their one non-stop flight a day from JFK to Vancouver. It was supposed to leave at 11:00 p.m. but left a half-hour late. Besides that minor detail, the airline was great. We were given our choice of 3 different hot and good tasting meals, blankets and pillows, headsets if you chose to watch one of the nice assortment of recently released to DVD movies, and later the cabin attendants brought around glasses of juice and water. On the return flight we had the same, in addition to a snack of peanuts and soda. Added bonus, we were allowed two checked pieces of luggage and one carryon at no additional cost. I would definitely recommend this airline.

My friend used her timeshare points and booked us for two nights at Rosedale on Robson Hotel. The cab from the airport was $27.00 plus tip. It was a nice little one bedroom apartment conveniently located downtown. We took a cab to the Ballantyne Pier, which cost around $15.00 plus tip. A good part of that fare accumulated from the entrance of the pier gate to the dropoff point due to a slow moving line. Buses were given priority. Read more