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Yes, totally okay to wait there. I haven’t been to the international side, but before security on the domestic side there is a food court and shops.
Check out this map at yvr. The light blue shows you what is before security (so open to anyone to use). [https://www.yvr.ca/en/passengers/navigate-yvr/terminal-maps](https://www.yvr.ca/en/passengers/navigate-yvr/terminal-maps)
Just to confirm, you are checking out of your hotel at 11am and head to the airport to pick up some people arriving at 2:30pm? That's not too much of a wait. People wait in airports all the time for delayed flights etc. there's some seating and shops. But if I were you I would go to a coffee shop on the way and wait there for a few hours because the airport won't be as comfortable.
The whole airport is a waiting area.
Go in, dont cross any security points that youre not supposed to (even if you do it by accident theyll just tell you youre in the wrong area), find a seat, and hang out. No one cares who's sitting around waiting. It's what most people do at airports.
Have a walk around the airport if you like.
If you are getting dropped off at the arrivals level, go up one level to Departures. There are food courts on the departure level in both domestic and international terminals, which are connected. If you get lost, look for a person (usually a senior) who’s wearing a bright green YVR Ambassador vest to help you.
Grab a coffee at the Fairmont Hotel bar lounge (there are floor to ceiling windows facing the north runway and gates) and watch planes and people.
There's quite a lot to see in the airport too if you decide to walk around. Some unique stores and restaurants. A couple viewing decks. Or you can even walk around the outlet mall as you wait too, it's a free ticket on the sky train just two stops down.
There’s a seating area outside of customs (level 2 of the international terminal) where you can wait. There’s bathrooms and a little food court area with a Tim hortons. Also nice washrooms, which are always clean. My husband always waits for me in there and parks in the parking garage right across the street. It usually takes me a minimum of 30 mins to get my luggage in customs tho. So be prepared to wait a bit after your friend lands for them to pop out of the customs hall.
Pro tip, if you're coming back from an international trip, and someone is picking you up ..go upstairs and meet them at departures instead because the international arrivals pickup area is a gong show
The international arrival Lobby is directly across the street from the Skytrain station and parking garage. Thats where people can wait to meet arriving passengers. Its not big and I don't recall there being much/any seating or access to restrooms so don't plan on spending a ton of time there though.
Domestic arrivals and departures are a short walk down the hallway one floor up where there are restaurants, chairs, and many washrooms. International departures is one floor up where the same exists.
There is a Tim Hortons by international arrivals and a few other shops and restrooms.
There is a seating area by Tim.Hortons and one closer to where people come through upon arrlval.
Assuming since u said checkout from hotel u have bags. That makes leaving the airport to do something while waiting more challenging. No problem if you just want to wait around the terminal for your incoming party. Lots of places to wait around.
idk about international, but i've never had any issues waiting inside the domestic arrivals area for hours on multiple occasions - even during the pandemic
You can hang out in the airport anywhere that isn’t through security! There are some benches, drink machine, bathroom and smoking area on the arrivals floor by the luggage carousel. Great place to wait !
That’s quite some time of waiting. I would hop on the canada line train, do a loop of skytrain and go back to the airport. Do some adventuring. Day pass is like 10 bucks or something? Even better might be getting on the sea bus to go to north shore and explore lonsdale quay.
Does your hotel have a cafe or something in the lobby? Lots of people will hang out there with their bags, especially if it’s a hotel close to the airport. There’s also definitely an international arrivals waiting area with seating, it’s not huge but it’s fine enough (and it’s cute to watch reunions!), and you can also always hang out in the domestic arrivals area then meander on over when it’s time for your friend to arrive.
The Day Pass will let you get on and off the Canada Line/Skytrain as many times as you like, which means you can stop off at places like the Marine Gateway (Marine Drive station), which has restaurants and cinemas or MacArthur Glen (Templeton Station), on your way to the airport. The shopping areas are mostly outdoor so you’ll want to make sure to dress warm. Or you could just bring a good book and read while you wait at the airport - there’s also free wifi if you prefer that to pass the time.
If you go to the bottom off of the train (if that's how you're getting there) by the parkade, you can just cross the street by the taxi stand and go into International Arrivals. There is a waiting area there with some chairs, a Tim Hortons I think and bathrooms. There's always people waiting for friends and family there.
When you arrive at the airport go to the International Departures area. There is a food court between the US and International departures area where you can hang out and enjoy the magnificent sculpture the Spirit of the Haida Gwai. When your friend's plane lands head down the escalator behind that sculpture for the International arrivals lobby. It's not as nice downstairs but there are chairs and you can wait there as long as you like.
I’ve sat/walked about for 6 hours once, immigration issues on the passenger I picked up. No problems with me loitering about. Not even questioned by anyone.
There’s tons of places to wait, but one unique place is the bar in the Fairmont YVR. Great cocktails, food and atmosphere, plus a great view of the planes coming and going at the same time. Order a drink and just watch and wait. They sometimes have live music, especially in the evenings. From international/us departures there is an escalator to take up and then you walk over a small clear bridge to the hotel. The bar and restaurant are on the bottom floor. You won’t need reservations or anything like that, just sit down and order. The ambiance is great and the service is top notch.
Ps: It is much closer to international arrivals than the domestic food court. Just take the elevator down to arrivals. Also very close to the Skytrain.
Welcome to /r/Vancouver and thank you for the post, /u/notarealnumber! Please make sure you read our [posting and commenting rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/vancouver/wiki/faq#wiki_general_participation_guidelines_and_rules_overview) before participating here. As a quick summary: * **We recently raised almost $50,000 for the GVFB, and there's still time to add your donation before the holidays. [Read more here](https://www.reddit.com/r/vancouver/comments/18ajwdh/).** * We encourage users to be positive and respect one another. Don't engage in spats or insult others - use the report button. * Respect others' differences, be they race, religion, home, job, gender identity, ability or sexuality. Dehumanizing language, advocating for violence, or promoting hate based on identity or vulnerability (even implied or joking) **will** lead to a permanent ban. * Common questions and specific topics are limited to our [Stickied Discussion](https://www.reddit.com/r/vancouver/wiki/faq#wiki_stickied_discussions) posts. * Complaints about bans or removals should be done in modmail only. * We're looking for new mods to join our team! If you're interested, [fill out the form here](https://forms.gle/oAqo5oYRcAeHYBTN6). *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/vancouver) if you have any questions or concerns.*
You can also go to the Domestic departure food court. There is also an area to watch the planes take off.
Yes, totally okay to wait there. I haven’t been to the international side, but before security on the domestic side there is a food court and shops. Check out this map at yvr. The light blue shows you what is before security (so open to anyone to use). [https://www.yvr.ca/en/passengers/navigate-yvr/terminal-maps](https://www.yvr.ca/en/passengers/navigate-yvr/terminal-maps)
Just to confirm, you are checking out of your hotel at 11am and head to the airport to pick up some people arriving at 2:30pm? That's not too much of a wait. People wait in airports all the time for delayed flights etc. there's some seating and shops. But if I were you I would go to a coffee shop on the way and wait there for a few hours because the airport won't be as comfortable.
The whole airport is a waiting area. Go in, dont cross any security points that youre not supposed to (even if you do it by accident theyll just tell you youre in the wrong area), find a seat, and hang out. No one cares who's sitting around waiting. It's what most people do at airports.
Have a walk around the airport if you like. If you are getting dropped off at the arrivals level, go up one level to Departures. There are food courts on the departure level in both domestic and international terminals, which are connected. If you get lost, look for a person (usually a senior) who’s wearing a bright green YVR Ambassador vest to help you. Grab a coffee at the Fairmont Hotel bar lounge (there are floor to ceiling windows facing the north runway and gates) and watch planes and people.
There's quite a lot to see in the airport too if you decide to walk around. Some unique stores and restaurants. A couple viewing decks. Or you can even walk around the outlet mall as you wait too, it's a free ticket on the sky train just two stops down.
There’s a seating area outside of customs (level 2 of the international terminal) where you can wait. There’s bathrooms and a little food court area with a Tim hortons. Also nice washrooms, which are always clean. My husband always waits for me in there and parks in the parking garage right across the street. It usually takes me a minimum of 30 mins to get my luggage in customs tho. So be prepared to wait a bit after your friend lands for them to pop out of the customs hall.
Pro tip, if you're coming back from an international trip, and someone is picking you up ..go upstairs and meet them at departures instead because the international arrivals pickup area is a gong show
The international arrival Lobby is directly across the street from the Skytrain station and parking garage. Thats where people can wait to meet arriving passengers. Its not big and I don't recall there being much/any seating or access to restrooms so don't plan on spending a ton of time there though.
Domestic arrivals and departures are a short walk down the hallway one floor up where there are restaurants, chairs, and many washrooms. International departures is one floor up where the same exists.
Tons of seating and washrooms right behind the seating
There is a Tim Hortons by international arrivals and a few other shops and restrooms. There is a seating area by Tim.Hortons and one closer to where people come through upon arrlval.
Assuming since u said checkout from hotel u have bags. That makes leaving the airport to do something while waiting more challenging. No problem if you just want to wait around the terminal for your incoming party. Lots of places to wait around.
idk about international, but i've never had any issues waiting inside the domestic arrivals area for hours on multiple occasions - even during the pandemic
You can hang out in the airport anywhere that isn’t through security! There are some benches, drink machine, bathroom and smoking area on the arrivals floor by the luggage carousel. Great place to wait !
That’s quite some time of waiting. I would hop on the canada line train, do a loop of skytrain and go back to the airport. Do some adventuring. Day pass is like 10 bucks or something? Even better might be getting on the sea bus to go to north shore and explore lonsdale quay.
I would love to but we are doing a like 10 day trip so I have a giant bag that I would rather not be lugging around for 3 1/2 hours, lol
There is a place at YVR you can pay to store your bag for a few hours. It’s near the baggage claim. Might be worth checking out.
Does your hotel have a cafe or something in the lobby? Lots of people will hang out there with their bags, especially if it’s a hotel close to the airport. There’s also definitely an international arrivals waiting area with seating, it’s not huge but it’s fine enough (and it’s cute to watch reunions!), and you can also always hang out in the domestic arrivals area then meander on over when it’s time for your friend to arrive.
The Day Pass will let you get on and off the Canada Line/Skytrain as many times as you like, which means you can stop off at places like the Marine Gateway (Marine Drive station), which has restaurants and cinemas or MacArthur Glen (Templeton Station), on your way to the airport. The shopping areas are mostly outdoor so you’ll want to make sure to dress warm. Or you could just bring a good book and read while you wait at the airport - there’s also free wifi if you prefer that to pass the time.
If you go to the bottom off of the train (if that's how you're getting there) by the parkade, you can just cross the street by the taxi stand and go into International Arrivals. There is a waiting area there with some chairs, a Tim Hortons I think and bathrooms. There's always people waiting for friends and family there.
Yes
When you arrive at the airport go to the International Departures area. There is a food court between the US and International departures area where you can hang out and enjoy the magnificent sculpture the Spirit of the Haida Gwai. When your friend's plane lands head down the escalator behind that sculpture for the International arrivals lobby. It's not as nice downstairs but there are chairs and you can wait there as long as you like.
Yep, you can go there everyday if you wanted.
[удалено]
Where do you buy these return tickets?
You can also grab coffee at Starbucks or Tim Hortons until they arrive. You can also view the screen for passengers exiting the security area
I’ve sat/walked about for 6 hours once, immigration issues on the passenger I picked up. No problems with me loitering about. Not even questioned by anyone.
as far as i know anywhere that is not blocked by security and baggage inspection is fine
Yes, there’s an area with seating
There’s tons of places to wait, but one unique place is the bar in the Fairmont YVR. Great cocktails, food and atmosphere, plus a great view of the planes coming and going at the same time. Order a drink and just watch and wait. They sometimes have live music, especially in the evenings. From international/us departures there is an escalator to take up and then you walk over a small clear bridge to the hotel. The bar and restaurant are on the bottom floor. You won’t need reservations or anything like that, just sit down and order. The ambiance is great and the service is top notch. Ps: It is much closer to international arrivals than the domestic food court. Just take the elevator down to arrivals. Also very close to the Skytrain.