Golden Toque

Don't know how cozy you want to get with your friends... but the Westin Bayshore, has suites which have a king bed, and a pull-out couch in the separate living area, with more than enough space to add a cot (not sure if they have them there) or stretch out on the remaining portion of the couch which is not pull-out.

d.

countmookle

Stay at the Westin Grand. The suites at the Westin Bayshore are indeed nice and quite spacious, but the location is not as central. I actually prefer the Bayshore location, but I like running in the park, not beer!

Sheraton Wall Centre would also be more central than the Bayshore, but I really don't care much for that hotel.

AB2BC

Westin Grand or the Sheraton Wall Centre would be the ones I would recommend. The Bayshore is a bit out of the way of the action.

SPG Junkie

My choice would be the Sheraton Wall Centre. ^

Hands down, I've usually experienced great service. Upgrade success has been pretty good as well. Certainly, the 1 bedroom and 2 bedroom suits work extremely well with a party of 3. I prefer the South tower, with easy access to the club lounge.

A tradional tourist microbrew would be on Granville Island. It's only about a 10 minute drive at most. It claims to be Canada's first official microbrew. I've been to Vancouver several times, but made it to Granville for the first time this past summer. Great atmosphere and some pretty good restaurants all around.

fs2k2isfun

Thanks for all the suggestions. I booked the Westin Grand and am looking forward to it!

As for the beer question, I found a place called the Alibi Room which looks to be right up my alley.

chanp

Take lots of pics and post up. Vancouver is a great city. I'm thinking about going there for a few days during the olympics.

fs2k2isfun

I'm not going until mid March, so the Olympics will be over by then.

chanp

In your case yes, I read that. It's still a fab city, do take lots of pics. Do a TR if you can.

morerainplease

My favorite beer in town (perhaps because I've only ever seen it in Vancouver) is Killkenny. It's a tasty Irish ale. Also, the Granville Island Brewery has a fun little tour and lots of great beers to taste while you're there. They're not made on the spot (somewhere else in BC, I think), but they have a very limited distribution area so it's still a more or less local experience. Enjoy!

WannaFlyJ

Kilkenny is from Ireland, brought to you from the folks at Guinness.

DCBob

Agree completely. Close to all the nightlife on Davey Street plus generous with full suite upgrades and beautiful city views. Second choice would be Westin Grand - very nice rooms and a bit more upscale than the Sheraton (if that's what you need). Avoid the Westin Bayshore - it's off the beaten track and I don't particularly care for their rooms.

Medved

"Close" or "far" is very relative in Vancouver. You can easily criss-cross all downtown area under an hour. Westin Bayshore is probably 15 min walk from Canada Place (boat terminal) along the seawall (very nice), Westin Grand or Wall Centre about 20 min walk along the streets. It all translates into 5 min by taxi on a weekend. Grand has some city views, Wall Centre -- nice sea, mountain, city views from top (higher the 20 floors). Bayshore -- Stanley Park, sea and mountain view from the Tower and some other rooms. Grand and Wall Centre is close (5 min) to Robson Street where "everything" is happening -- shopping, hanging around, restaurants.
Grand is a more boutique all suites (not very large though) hotel, Wall Centre -- typical glitzy mega Sheraton, Bayshore -- older but more tourist city high end. Important if you are Gold/Plat member -- both Westins have no Plat extras except upgrades -- very slim chance in July-Aug when cruises are around -- highest season in Vancouver. Plat and, if you negotiate sometimes Golds too, get access to Wall Centre Club Lounge and chances of an upgrade are somewhat higher even in July-Aug. That is why this is my pick. If you a re not Plat -- Bayshore for one night if price comparable.
For all three $300 is an overkill though less than $200 is highly unlikely for Jul-Aug. Vancouver hotel crowd is mixed business/tourists so weekends are not usually cheaper. Try AAA rates, pre-paid or promos directly from hotel links off spg.com though most of them are not for one night.
Enjoy "Rio of the North".

susmaryosep

Was trying to book award stay in Vancouver but unable to, due to having 4 people in my group (2 adults and 2 kids).

The booking page showed this:
"Award stays limited to 1 room/ 2 Adults. Please change rooms/ adults to see availability"

All 7 Starwood properties had the same statement. Is there anyway around this?

SPG Junkie

Based on my experience, this is a systemic limitation on the SPG site. Assuming that a 2 double bedded room will suffice, simply book a 2 double bedded room. Depending on what you're looking for will determine which location you should pick. My preference has always been the Wall Centre, but the Bayshore certainly provide a picturesque view.

ajnaro

I would call Starwood to find out what it's all about, but if you don't want to do that trying booking one room for yourself and then, separately, another for the kids. I have booked two separate rooms using my Starwood points without problem in the past but I did it by calling Starwood.