February 24, 2006 | Tips from Us >
Richmond, Dining
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This past Tuesday my friend dropped into town and decided to stay at the Fairmont YVR the other night, I had my hesitations to visit her because of the cost for parking. A good thing for her, she was one of my best friends so I didn't mind sacrifing parking fees. I rolled up to Gateway Valet & Concierge at the hotels entrance and asked the valet what my options were for parking in order to visit a guest at the hotel. He offered valet at $15/hour or go into the economy lot and park for $10 for the entire evening. Well, as the thrifty person I am, I went for options 2. All you need to do is bring your parking stub with you after parking your car and take it to the front desk and ask to pre-pay your ticket with them. You must get the room number of the guest staying at the hotel and the fee will be applied to the guest's room. Just make arrangements with your friend/family to pay him/her the $10 and voila, parking guaranteed, at least, til the next morning and as a bonus, you have in-and-out privilages! I didn't get the procedure on the in-and-out privilages but they take your license plate so there is something in place, just ask the cashier upon exiting. One concern I had was that, at night, the economy lot looked dark and far but when walking from the parking lot to the hotel, it wasn't as far as I thought. Just follow the pedistrian paths, the signs and as long as you walk in the lit areas, you'll feel safe. Another great thing about the economy parking lot is that the main lit area was wide, turfed and was covered for those rainy Vancouver days! Two notes on the hotel for visitors and travellers: 1) If you have down time before your international/US flight, go to the bar in the hotel for a drink where you can listen to the catchy music stylings of the bar's pianist and enjoy some complimentary spicy trail mix while sitting in comfy couches/chairs. 2) This hotel is also a great place to stay if you have a really early flight the next day and you have no one in