- Restaurants |
- Nightlife |
- Shopping |
- Coffee & Tea |
- All
Granville Island Water Taxi
Category: Hotels & Travel Transportation Taxis Taxis [Edit]
1311 Howe StSte 102
Vancouver, BC V5N
Neighbourhood: Downtown
(604) 484-8497
- Hours:
Mon-Fri 6 am - 7 pm
Sat-Sun 9 am - 7 pm
5 reviews for Granville Island Water Taxi
5 reviews in English
-
Review from Marc D.
Vancouver, BC
7/23/2009
* Vancouver Vice *
Ok, so we wanted to go to Bowen Island for the day and starting looking into the options.
It was either BC Ferries or Granville Island Water Taxi.
To take the ferries you have to get all the way out to Horseshoe Bay, which either means catching a long bus ride from downtown or driving (including dealing with the Lion's Gate Bridge traffic) and paying a lot for parking. The ferry by itself costs about $18 round trip and then you have parking, bus, hassle, etc. on top of that.
Enter Granville Island Water Taxi. It leaves from the convenient dock near the False Creek Ferry portion of the Granville Island docks. It costs only $25 round trip to Bowen Island. It was a no brainer.
You can book reservations easily online for any of their trips (which generally run every 90 minutes or so).
The boat is much smaller than a ferry and only holds 12 passengers.
You definitely feel the speed - as the captain revs up the engines the front half of the boat lifts out of the water. Picture Miami Vice but instead of loud neon suited cops there are a bunch of west coast laid back types with their bicycles and dogs. Vancouver Vice.
From GI to Snug Cove it only took about 25 minutes. It could have taken that long just to get across the Lion's Gate bridge!
We had a lovely day out on Bowen Island: http://www.yelp.ca/lis...
This is DEFINITELY the way to go. I'll have to get a neon jacket and get the full Miami Vice feeling next time! Or then again - maybe not. -
Review from Tinella T.
Vancouver, BC
8/13/2009
This is a good option if you go for a day trip to Bowen Island. It is convenient, fast and fun :)
For the round trip think twice before making reservation for your way back. We reserved our back trip for 6:45 p.m. and we were already bored in Bowen at 2 p.m., and there was no way to take earlier GI Water Taxi, because all seats were busy (we were four people). I also saw some guys waiting and getting angry that they were trying to book seats but no one in call center of GI Water Taxi responded (it was Sunday afternoon)
But for sure if I go to Bowen Island next time, I take my bike (they are welcome on board of GIWT) and take GI Water Taxi. So much better than going to Horseshoe Bay.. -
Review from caroline s.
Burnaby, BC
9/15/2009
I took the GIW out to Bowen Island with my family (husband and two son's aged 6 & 2). The six year old thought it was a lot of fun, bashing hard into the waves with the sound of the noisy engine - what a thrilling adventure he had! But my 2 year old grew tired and very upset within about 10 minutes of the very fast, noisy and white knuckle ride.
We thought there should be a warning to the elderly, people with bad backs/necks and children under the age of 6 (or if they're of a nervous disposition) that there's a risk of injury. It's a ride which resembles the velocity and jarring of a rollercoaster, so we decided to take the calming ferry back to Horseshoe bay and pay $40 back to our car on Granville Island, rather than see terror on our two-year olds face again.
As for my husband and I - we will gladly go on it again to enjoy our favourite retreat from city life - just without the kids. -
Review from Karin F.
North Vancouver, BC
12/27/2010
The company has been bought by English Bay Launch in 2009 and there service has been even better since then. The skippers are fun and friendly and they give you the choice between the fastest route and the scenic route (that is still faster than BC Ferry). I love the option to leave straight from Coal Harbour in the evening. I just recommend you book your seats in advance as many Bowen Island commuters rely on this taxi and some of their trips can sometimes be fully booked. Check the English Bay Launch website for more details.
-
Review from Vanessa G.
6/20/2010
Well this is a great option for those downtowners that don't have time to wrestle with getting to Horeshoe Bay and getting and waiting in line. Why not hop of the taxi at Granville Island and be on Bowen within 30 minutes? I have heard many good things about this boat ride, and i have taken it once and boy was it rough! It took longer due to the whip lashing large waves. I guess that can be the price you pay for convenience.
What i would do if i were you is take the taxi to Bowen island for $15 and then walk on the return (which is free). I am all about deals and that works out pretty good when you factor in the time you save.
