Category Archives: Transportation

Romantic Dinner on Accent Cruises

So we bought a deal for $39 per person for an evening boat ride with buffet dinner from one of the deal sites. We were lucky and had great weather that day. While waiting for the boat to depart, you can enjoy the view of Granville Island and the downtown on the top deck under the blue sky.
The staff were did their job but weren’t highly mannered or energetic per say.

idearabbit-accentcruises

idearabbit-accentcruises2

Dining area

idearabbit-accentcruises3

Everyone taking photos of the great viewidearabbit-accentcruises4

Up on top deck

idearabbit-accentcruises5

idearabbit-accentcruises6
After dinner, enjoying the sunset on the top deck. It can get a bit windy, but very romantic.

The bathrooms were a bit odd. Extremely cramped. The stalls were raised on a higher level, so not wheel-chair accessible. Also, the stalls are covered with curtains. Weird and insecure…didn’t like it…luckily, I only had to go once.

The boat ride was wonderful. We got to see the downtown passing on the right hand side as the sun began to set on the left side. We went along West Vancouver, where we could check out some expensive large houses in a way you wouldn’t normally be able to see.

The dinner was buffet. Not a lot of selection:, B.C. Salmon, filet of breast of chicken, greens, salad, steamed vegetables,  tortellini marinara and French baguette, but the taste was overall pretty good for a buffet. We felt a little intruded since our table was right by the buffet, and had traffic coming and going, but once everyone was settled, we got to enjoy our meal and the view with peace.

I find the regular price of $89 a bit too expensive, especially for the quality of the food being served and the boat itself. I think $45-60 would be a more reasonable rate, though I realize that keeping a boat that large at Granville Island must be expensive, not to mention the consumption of pricey fuel. If you’re looking to dine somewhere not on land, this might be worth checking out!

Taste:      Price for Value: (for the deal price)

Atmosphere:      Service:
Location:

One Night Cruise with Holland America Line to Seattle

I’ve always heard about this great deal, so for my birthday, I booked the over night trip to Seattle with 3 other friends.

Warning: this post is heavy with photos! :P

Cost per person with double occupancy was only $143.96 CAD – including all taxes and fee that’s paid upfront to CruiseAbout. Later, you’ll also be charged onto your credit card for gratuities at $11.50 per person/per day. You can purchase professional photo (taken before you board the ship) later that day for $20. Yah, it’s a bit expensive, but since it was to celebrate my birthday and my first time on a cruise, it seemed appropriate.

The cruise was departing at 4:45pm, but we were lined up around noon as embarkation started at about 11:30am. We got on and were allowed to start feasting on all the food which is included in the fee. Don’t be late! Everyone must be onboard no later than 90 minutes before departure!

idearabbit-cruiseseattle

YAH!!! I was so excited for my first cruise trip. Oh!!! so much food!!

idearabbit-cruiseseattle2

What should I get?

idearabbit-cruiseseattle3

Time for lunch! :D

idearabbit-cruiseseattle4

Nice decor inside

idearabbit-cruiseseattle5

Thirsty? They’ve got everything from tea, coffee and juices. Soda and alcohol are extra.

idearabbit-cruiseseattle6

More…pasta and jello~

idearabbit-cruiseseattle7

idearabbit-cruiseseattle8

Look at all those desserts! :D

idearabbit-cruiseseattle9

idearabbit-cruiseseattle10

idearabbit-cruiseseattle11

Salad~

idearabbit-cruiseseattle12

More salad~ :D

idearabbit-cruiseseattle13

View out the window. Canada Pacific Place as we went for departure.

idearabbit-cruiseseattle14

Fruits time!

idearabbit-cruiseseattle15

Small room, but good enough. We are only there to sleep at night. Otherwise, the rest of the time is spent elsewhere.

idearabbit-cruiseseattle16

We go out on deck to enjoy some sun as the ships starts to move :)

idearabbit-cruiseseattle17

Nobody was swimming in the pool…but oh well, relaxing time!

idearabbit-cruiseseattle18

Hallway and elevator

idearabbit-cruiseseattle19

Some ice cream in the sun :D

idearabbit-cruiseseattle20

Going underneath the Lion Gates Bridge

idearabbit-cruiseseattle21

Bye bye Vancouver!

idearabbit-cruiseseattle22

We come back down for some dessert :)

idearabbit-cruiseseattle23

idearabbit-cruiseseattle24

The doors to the dining area. We wait until it opens.

idearabbit-cruiseseattle25

Nice fine dining room.

idearabbit-cruiseseattle26

Soup

idearabbit-cruiseseattle27

Salad and Salmon

idearabbit-cruiseseattle28

Main entree – Chicken.

idearabbit-cruiseseattle29

idearabbit-cruiseseattle30

The sun goes down and the dining area is more romantic.

idearabbit-cruiseseattle31

Time for dessert!

idearabbit-cruiseseattle32

Tiramisu~

idearabbit-cruiseseattle33

Entertainments/shows in the evening

idearabbit-cruiseseattle34

The next morning, we have breakfast and arrive in Seattle around 10:30am.

After we got off the ship, we spent the day in downtown Seattle until around 3pm and took the Quick Shuttle to Vancouver $40.85 per persoidea-rabbit_mascot-blissn. I was super happy with the trip. I think an overnight cruise is the best (even though I’ve never had anything longer), but the length is perfect. The buffet style is great since you can go and eat whenever you want, as much as you want. The quality is ok for your typical, average buffet. There are different stations that have different kinds of cuisines, like pasta for Italian, sushi for Japanese and so on. So you’ll never get bored eating the same stuff. I was pretty much eating most of the time on the ship…lol.

The fine dining was pretty good. We got to sit by the window, so we were able to watch the sea and the sky gradually turn into the night sky. With a price that usually would only include a hotel room in Vancouver for overnight, this is an AWESOME deal. I hope to do it again – next time I’d like to treat my parents :)

These great trips are only offered in May, so book now with Cruise About!!!

 Taste: carrotcarrotcarrot   Price for Value: carrotcarrotcarrotcarrotcarrot

Atmosphere: carrotcarrotcarrotcarrot    Service: carrotcarrotcarrotcarrot
Location: carrotcarrotcarrotcarrotcarrot

Air Transat Service and Food

So my trip to Germany begins – with Air Transat food! lol :D

I’ve heard some bad reviews about Air Transat from people, but I haven’t had a problem with them. Back in May of 2008 I flew from Vancouver to London, then from Paris back to Vancouver for $660 – taxes and fees all included! Just ridiculous how cheap they were. It was a promo, and so glad I took it. My parents flew out from Calgary on the same dates and they paid much more than $1000 each with Air Canada.

idearabbit-airtransat

Bye bye Vancouver!!

I hear that the storage above the passengers are flimsy and can fall down. So far, I’ve never seen that, so can’t say much about it. People say that the seats are too small, and not enough leg room. Being a really skinny Asian, I haven’t had any problems. I haven’t really noticed it either. My German company did complain he seemed cramped.

idearabbit-airtransat2

Cool spaceship-like future club-like lights!

For this trip, for the first time in my life, I was seated at the very very back of the plane. There seemed to be less seats, and more room. Both ways, we had the aisle seats. One the way to connecting city Calgary, we were able to seat ourselves by the window and check out the view. Once we couldn’t see anything, we were busy playing games on the tablets attached to the seats.

One the way back, there were even more space and I was able to take up 2 seats and curl up for a little rest.

Many complain about the food – the quantity and quality. For me, it was perfect. I haven’t flown with Air Canada in ages, but growing up, I always found the meals to be too big. When I don’t move much, and very stressed (yes, I have plane-phobia), I don’t have much appetite. I do keep reminding myself to hydrate myself often since I’m dehydrated on land most of the time.

idearabbit-airtransat3

Chicken tray

On our way to Germany, I had the pasta with chicken in cream sauce. It came with some vinegar salad, bun, and a sweet snack. The main dish was something like out of those frozen meals you can buy and put it in the microwave. But what do you expect? You’re flying for less than $900 roundtrip in May! I told me complaining company if he’d rather pay $1500 with Air Canada for some ‘better’ food. When I got back to work, my Hong Kong coworker said “I don’t care about the food, you’re just flying to your destination. You’re not going on the plane to dine.” I completely agree. I would rather save $500 on my plane and use it to dine at my destination – and $500 can go a long way (if you don’t dine at some fancy restaurant that costs that much in one dining!).

idearabbit-airtransat4

Beef tray

However, on the return flight, it was a bit disappointing. By the time the flight attendants came to the very last portion of the plane, they were out of choices. They only had beef left. I was actually ok with that since I was thinking of getting the beef this time to try it out. Again, nothing spectacular, but I’m just more worried about the plane landing safely back home lol.Travel Around the Globe with our Special Flight Deals! Save an Extra C$15* with Promo Code GLOBE15. Hurry!

For breakfast, it looked like the flight attendants were pulling carts of baguettes. I was kind of hoping we would get them – something fresh and light. However, they ran out, and the last 7 or 8 rows had a slice of pizza in sealed plastic. Ah! I am not a fan of pizza – except ones that Sheepie can make from scratch :)

In conclusion, well, don’t expect too much from the food. You’re getting a super good deal for the flight, and if you’re flying to Europe, I highly recommend flying with Air Transat! They usually don’t need promos – their prices are always good and hard to beat! The service is pretty good, although Sheepie complained about the terrible German translations on flight…lol. Check in was hassle free – online check in is available in Vancouver, so we didn’t have to line up to check in our luggage! That was really good cuz we nearly had a heart attack when we saw the line up for regular check in (where we first started to line up cuz we weren’t too sure). In Germany, online check in wasn’t available, but the actual line up was very short for luggage, so no problem!

If I can fly from point A to B safely without too much turbulence for a great price, that’s all that matters to me :P (yes I do have extreme fear of flying…lol)

Service:      Cost:

Atmosphere:     Cleanliness: