Harbour Cruises

Indian Arm 4 hour tour for only $ 75??? SIGN UP NOW!
This was a wonderful tour, very informative (unfortunately the bartender was the voice over, so when anyone wanted a drink, the commentary stopped. We wished he could have just focused on the commentary, as it was interesting and fun to hear.)
Lunch was much tastier than expected for a buffet on a boat! The chicken was moist and tasty and everything tasted very fresh.
The turnaround is at the falls, which were roaring due to the rain the day before. Just fantastic. A lovely way to spend part of a day in Vancouver.

very enjoyable afternoon! we went up indian arm on a sunday luncheon cruise, parking was easy ($ 14.00 city lot) across from their address. They could make the address more obvious on their confirmation letter but it was easy enough to look up.
The food was a simple, a buffet, well organized and timed. Had a ceasar from the barman/​tour guide, it was good with a crunchy bean pickle and olive garnish.
The maneuvering by the Captain at the end point (Silver Falls) was impressive, he nosed that little cruise ship right in and held the position for photos. I think the boat was half full, mid may, with tourist season approaching the trip could be slightly less relaxed.
i will do it again, from time to time, playing tourist at home can be good.

Enjoy the beauty of Vancouver in style.
Playing tourist for the day, I bought the 1 hour sightseeing tour Groupon for $ 35, which provided a 2 for 1 discount. I had called ahead to reserve but was told that we didn’t need to save a spot for the sightseeing and to just show up 15 minutes before any of the sailings times of 11am, 12:15 pm, 1:30 pm or 2:45 pm.
The staff were very welcoming and friendly. There were only about a dozen people on our trip, so there was lots of room to move around and take photos. We asked where the best place was on the boat to take in view and were told to head to the top deck. We were not disappointed, we got a wonderful panoramic view of Burrard inlet. There was running commentary on the various sites and history of Vancouver. With the wind of the water and the sound of the engine, it was a little hard to hear the commentary while outside, however despite living in Vancouver for many years I still learned several interesting facts from the parts I could hear.
The boat itself was their Riverboat, the Constitution. Despite being the smallest in their fleet, it was quite spacious. It has 3 levels, bathrooms, plenty of seating options and a cash bar with snacks, coffee, beer and wine however we were too busy taking in the view to try out the bar.
The next time I have out of town guests, I’d seriously consider taking them on this tour. I would have liked the tour to have been a little longer but overall it was a pleasant way to spend a sunny afternoon.

My post is a couple of weeks late. We took the Indian Arm Luncheon Cruise on August 14^th. I came across this on the web. I was looking for a short cruise, we could enjoy in either Bellingham, WA or Vancouver, BC. This was not expensive and it was going to a place my family has never been. I could show my family where I kayak in Deep Cove and the little islands I went around. The shore doesn’t give it justice. I wanted to show my sister where Baltar’s house from Battlestar Galactica was. They also used it in Firewall, Elektra, and Blitz. The crew didn’t mention it but they mentioned other famous houses on the way.
The crew was polite. They were very accommodating when I booked on their site. I had questions on how hard it would be for someone that uses a cane and/​or walker. They said if necessary they have wheelchairs available for us to use.
The food was wonderful! The salmon was tender and moist. The chicken was delious. The deserts were not dry. My aunt and sister had seconds.

Did the 1-​hour day cruise back in June after purchasing the Groupon for four people ($ 75 for all four with no lunch).
We boarded on time and loved having the flexibility to walk around the boat to get better views. The views were, of course, fantastic. The boat was clean. The staff was courteous. But, the announcer? I’m sorry, but she was flat out annoying. Not only did she sound robotic but she added inflections to the end of every sentence that she was clearly reading. I don’t know if she was new and she just needed more practice, but the four of us all agreed that she made the tour much less enjoyable than it should have been. Although the views were great, we weren’t able to learn anything about the city since it was so hard to listen to her.
I wouldn’t mind trying the sunset cruise one day, but I hope the tour announcer is someone else.

My kids have been admiring the paddle wheeler (MPV Constitution) from our apartment window for ages, so we figured, why not be tourists in our own town and check it out?
It was a great little tour! Not too crowded, so lots of room to move around, and easy visibility of all of the sights and surroundings. The kids LOVED watching the paddle wheel turn. They were mesmerized by it. It was fun to see our city from the water, and get close to the seaplanes, shipping containers, cargo ships, Sea Bus, and even a bunch of lazy seals lounging on some booms.
The tour is narrated, and you’ll learn a lot about the city, even if you live here. My only complaint was that the speaker volume was overwhelmingly loud. If it was turned down a notch or two, it would have been perfect.
Customer service was excellent, right from purchasing tickets to the staff on board. All in all, a very fun outing. The 9, 5 and 4 year olds loved it. The 18-​month-​olds didn’t get quite as much out of it, but their tickets were free anyway, so no big deal :)

On a bright sunny weekend, the boat wasn’t as busy with tourist as I would expect. Their office is down the ramp on the seawall from Denman Street. A short walk to the left of the office is the line up to the entrances to all their ships. The lunch and dinner cruises are their big attraction. The tourists will flood to those — while the one hour cruise around the Inlet is good enough for some local history.
We didn’t board on time, which meant we would depart a few minutes later. The Constitution is the ship I was on. It’s smaller than the lunch ship, but still cute and spacious.
TIPS: Once you board, head to the upper deck for the best view. the upper deck might have the view, but you will miss out on the commentary from below. The engine is loud and the ship will rock more. Head down to the second level for the commentary and comfy seating. There is a small bar for snacks and beverages, but your free to bring your own.
The tour goes past Vancouver Convention Centre, Jack Poole Plaza, Canada Place, Port of Vancouver, over to North Vancouver where they stop for a few minutes to check out the seals and their pups (bring you cameras and long lens) past the tankers and over to Stanley Park and back to the home deck.

Was disappointed with this night cruise. We went on the dinner cruise and although the boat was beautiful and the scenery was amazing, the food left us hungry and disappointed. They put out a buffet that didn’t really satisfy your appetite. We are vegetarian and they made supper dishes for us which were cold and not tasty. The service tried it’s best but the general feeling amongst the guests — we all were waiting for something more. The price doesn’t substantiate what you get. The boat was only about half-​full the night we went (Wednesday night). There wasn’t much of a show & the whole thing felt anti-​climatic. Overpriced! It’s definitely unique but if you really want to see the town from the water maybe try going on the day cruise and use that extra money to go take yourself out to a nice dinner after.

The tradeoff for going to see the Argonauts take on the Lions was my wife and I going on a dinner cruise around Coal Harbor. After checking in at the ticket counter, we were walked onto the ship. The first level had all of our tables, as well as the bar and the night’s band (a blues duo who also did some covers). The upper level was where everyone was served. Tonight’s dishes were beef sirloin and salmon. We sat and listened to the introductions as the ship cast off.
In hindsight, we chose a terrible night to go on a dinner cruise. Almost immediately after the cruise started, it began to lightly rain. So much for a sunset. The cruise itself was nice. Not to rocky, the blues duo played a wide spread of top 40 tracks, and the food was pretty good. You could go back up for seconds with no one saying anything. The ship got close enough for photo opportunities, but with the darkness, rain and our lack of a tripod, there wasn’t much we could do.
The cruise is a good value for the time and food, just wait for a clear day.

For a gorgeous ride at night, the food could be significantly spiced up.
It was not warm enough inside.
Very bland salmon and boring earthy veggies.
No music either.

— Well-​coordinated loading and seating, prompt and courteous service throughout our cruise — everyone got a window seat — truly an exceptional way to view Vancouver
— Interior was clean, the décor a reflection of a bygone nautical era, painstakingly preserved through abuse and neglect
— Bar menu included drinks like White Russians and Monte Cristo Coffees… an unexpected foreshadowing of the retro buffet that would greet us downstairs
— The wine list had everything one could desire, if one only desires things that typically come in boxes or tetra paks
— The buffet selection — though tasty — was dated and uninspired; picture what the Bradford family on Eight is Enough likely had for dinner on Sundays.

Overall: This can be a good way to see the city. Just know what you’re going to love and hate about the experience.
Best things about the cruise:
1. Seeing Vancouver from the water. Most people don’t get this experience
2. Entertainment. The duo (the guy’s name was Brett) were excellent. The woman has a beautiful voice and their harmony was wonderful
3. The staff are excellent, friendly and professional
Worst things about the cruise:
1. Wine list. Anything that features not one, but two, types of Copper Moon deserves scorn. BC has so many wonderful wineries, and yet Harbour Cruises stocks none of them. You WILL be angry at the wine selection and the liquor manager should be ashamed
2. The food. It’s not awful. It’s what you’d expect from a buffet of this sort. The catering company leaves a calling card on each table in case passengers want to hire it for another occasion. This is not, on the whole, a good idea

I had a bad experience with the dinner cruise. Bad food, two hours being stuck on a boat for a holiday staff party 5 years ago with a company I didn’t feel too fondly over. The food was just horrible that day. Good intentions and I am sure that there has been improvements, however, will have to reconsider in the future company depending.

SUNSET DINNER CRUISE ($ 87 — after tax & grat) on THE CONSTITUTION:
The Constitution is the red, old-​fashioned, paddle wheel boat. It’s the one I had hoped to board, and board it, I did!
Live entertainment: Check! We had the pleasure of being serenaded by a two-​man band (can’t remember their name now), who performed a mix of oldies and top 40s all night long.
Food: Check! We were asked to take turns (per table) approaching the buffet. The buffet consisted of fresh greens, greek salad, pasta salad, roasted carrots & zucchinis, roasted potatoes, rice pilaf, baked salmon and a sirloin roast (carved for you). It was very Greek.
We were only given two slices of beef at first — they explained that there may or may not be enough beef to go around if they gave us any more. Fair enough. We were allowed seconds only after everybody had had a chance to visit the buffet. We thoroughly enjoyed our meal, which was a pleasant surprise for us.
The dessert table served fresh fruit, chocolate cake, carrot cake and blueberry cheesecake. I’m a huge dessert fan, so I pick and choose my desserts very carefully. Unfortunately, I chose not to partake in any of the cakes that night. But, my dinner companions tell me that the cakes weren’t bad.
View: DOUBLE CHECK! Of course, I wanted to spend every spare moment on the top deck of this lovely, old boat. I enjoyed standing head-​on with the wind as the paddle wheel spun and spun away. I also spent a good chunk of my time admiring the paddle wheel. Simply fascinating!
When our cruise ended, we had no complaints at all. As you step off the boat, a plate of chocolate mints and fruity candies await you. What a nice touch to the end of a wonderful dinner cruise.

It’s worth every penny, for about $ 80 you get dinner and a cruise and you get to see vancouver from the sea,
Me and the wife did this in our anniversary last aug.
I’ll defiantly do that again :)

Solid. Good cruise around Van, good staff, clean sailing. The food was good, the live jazz duo was really nice to and even took a few requests! Beautiful views at sunset. Fun with a big group of my friends, but was a little expensive for what you get. Hence a missing star. Make even better food or add something more, free drinks? or lower prices.

Harbour Princess was what we had; the ship has 2 levels with roomy space. It was 4 hrs long trip, along the coast of city Vancouver, they served lunch buffet with flesh salmon steaks and chickens, adding all salads, rice noodles, sweet and more… all very fresh!
The Beautiful views of Vancouver which we will not be able to see at land, beside natural views we also love the Architectures high raises in downtown Van. when this ship got closer by the bridge, the Captain pull out a long horn signal for the bridge to open up high for this ship to go through, the kids were so exited, they all thrill … so cool for them witness with their own eyes.
It was a very relaxing afternoon for all of us, we all love this trip so much and we’d like to come back next time for SUN SET dinner cruise.

The cruise started late because the cruise before us ran late, and therefore our cruise ran late also. So tip — leave extra cushion for plans immediately after.
The spot is sort of hard to find since it’s «501 Denman Street» but it’s actually right tucked into the seawall. We had a groupon, and then bought one extra ticket, so really we got a ticket free.
My husband thought this was going to be super lame, but we had a freaking great time! I learned so much about Vancouver that I never knew, got to drink beer (Great selection surprisingly) and cruise on a boat in the sun. The announcer’s voice was kinda cheesy, but we were all thoroughly impressed by the whole experience.
I’d totally recommend this to anyone who either lives in or is visitng Vancouver. Such a lovely way to spend an hour

I am impressed that even though there were about 5 of us on the 11am harbor tour in the rain they still did the tour the same as they would have as if there were 500!
Good tour.

My GF found Harbor Cruises on Groupon. Months in advance of actually beginning our vacation it seemed a perfectly fine way to kill an hour or two in a city we knew not all that much about. And on the day, lo, it was!
Our harbor cruise was on the Harbour Princess, a two level vessel with seat on top and a cool upper level wing like thingy that I spent the whole cruise on. It took about an hour and was narrated by some dude down by the bar.
Yeah, it’s pretty touristy, but it’s also pretty darn awesome.