Traveling to Vancouver in two days - Part 6 (Final)

Additional Tips

  • Cab Fares: Staying in Century Plaza - a cab ride should be less than CAD $12 to any of the locations. Chinese Garden was the farthest and it was between CAD $10-12.
  • Mass Transit: Skytrain tickets will work in buses for a transfer (I believe up-to 90 minutes after purchase).
  • Foreign Exchange Transaction Fee: Check your Credit Card to see which ones do not charge a foreign exchange transaction fee. These are between 1-3% and can quickly add-up if your card levies one.
  • Foreign Exchange Rate: You want the best exchange rate possible so try different cards and log-in to your account the next day to understand what exchange rate was provided by your credit-card company. I tried multiple cards (AmEx, Chase Visa and Citi Mastercard) and all had fair, and about the same, exchange rates.
  • Credit Card: Also, inform your credit card company that you will be traveling. Initially, my Chase card did not work here.
  • Mobile Phone: If you are traveling from the U.S.A. and have T-Mobile, they claim to have free data and text in Canada if you are part of their North America plan. Calling is USD $0.20 / minute. My wife had this and she had coverage but I didn’t have the need to test it out so can’t confirm that it did indeed work without additional charges. Also, Google's Project Fi has free, unlimited text and data in 120 countries, including Canada.
  • Guide Book: I referred to Fodor’s Canada.

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