BlaakLane.com books Vancouver Pacific Central Station car service at a fixed fare shown before you confirm. Enter your VIA Rail or Amtrak Cascades train; the chauffeur follows its real arrival, meets you curbside in the station's front loop off Station Street, and drives you downtown, to Canada Place, YVR, the BC Ferries terminals or Whistler.
Booking a Pacific Central pickup
In the reservation engine, pick Vancouver Pacific Central Station, add the train and date, your destination and a vehicle class. You see the fare before you confirm and it does not change afterwards. Add a mobile number: phones often switch networks near the border, and the chauffeur needs to reach you.
Vancouver trips are assigned by our 24/7 dispatch desk in Toronto to a vetted local affiliate from the LimousineWorldwide.Directory network, contracted to the BlaakLane.com written standard. Passenger transportation in British Columbia is licensed by the provincial Passenger Transportation Board, and your confirmation shows the operator, chauffeur and vehicle.
Trains and coaches at the station
- VIA Rail: the Canadian, the transcontinental train to Jasper, Edmonton, Winnipeg and Toronto, with fewer weekly departures in winter. See VIA Rail.
- Amtrak Cascades: trains to Bellingham, Seattle and Portland. Allow time for United States border formalities on southbound trips; see Amtrak Cascades.
- Intercity coaches also depart from the station.
- SkyTrain: Main Street-Science World station on the Expo Line is across Thornton Park, run by TransLink.
Rocky Mountaineer trains do not use Pacific Central; they leave from their own station on Cottrell Street, a few minutes away by car. We book pickups and drop-offs there as well.
The building and the front loop
Pacific Central is the 1919 neoclassical building with the red neon sign, set back from Main Street behind Thornton Park at 1150 Station Street. The front doors open onto a driveway loop with taxi bays and short-term drop-off space, and there is surface parking beside the building. The platforms are behind the station, and passengers from the Canadian and the Cascades walk straight through the waiting room to the front.
Cars can stop in the loop to pick up and set down, subject to signs; when it is full, the chauffeur waits on Station Street and pulls in as you come out, sending the exact spot by text.
Standard pickup and optional inside meet
Curbside pickup in the loop is the standard service. The chauffeur does not come into the waiting room unless you add meet and greet. Add-ons are only available in selected locations, and the booking engine confirms whether an inside meet can be added at Pacific Central for your train.
Following the train
The Canadian is a long-distance train that can arrive hours behind schedule after freight delays in the Rockies, and Cascades trains sometimes wait at the border. We track the actual arrival and time the car to it. The first 15 minutes after the train is in are included; after that, waiting runs in 15-minute blocks at the rate in your booking.
Luggage from a long journey
Passengers leaving the Canadian often collect checked bags from the baggage area inside the station, which can take 15-30 minutes. With four or more large cases, book an SUV (six bags) or a Sprinter Van (12 small bags); a sedan takes two.
Pacific Central to YVR, Canada Place and downtown
| Destination | Distance | Typical drive |
|---|---|---|
| Vancouver International (YVR) | about 15 km | 25-45 minutes |
| Vancouver Harbour Flight Centre (seaplanes and helicopters) | about 4 km | 10-20 minutes |
| Canada Place cruise terminal | about 4 km | 10-20 minutes |
| Downtown and Coal Harbour hotels | 3-4 km | 10-20 minutes |
| Vancouver Convention Centre | about 4 km | 10-20 minutes |
| BC Place and Rogers Arena | about 2 km | 5-10 minutes |
See the YVR page for terminal pickup rules, the Harbour and YVR FBO pages for private flights, and Canada Place for Alaska cruises, which sail mainly from May to October.
Intercity trips from Vancouver
| Route | Distance | Typical drive |
|---|---|---|
| Tsawwassen ferry terminal (for Victoria) | about 35 km | 35-60 minutes |
| Horseshoe Bay ferry terminal | about 20 km | 30-45 minutes |
| Whistler | about 125 km | 1 h 45 - 2 h 15 on the Sea-to-Sky Highway |
| Seattle | about 230 km | 2 h 45 - 4 h, plus border wait |
| Kelowna | about 390 km | 4 - 4 h 45 |
See Whistler, Victoria and Seattle. For cross-border drives, every passenger needs a passport or other accepted document. Book as intercity transfers.
Which class to book
- Standard Sedan and Luxury Executive Sedan: one or two travellers, two bags, downtown or YVR.
- Executive First Class Sedan (Maybach): a senior executive arriving on the Cascades.
- Standard Black SUV and Executive Black SUV: six passengers and six bags; the right car for Whistler in ski season.
- Sprinter Van: 12 passengers for a tour group coming off the Canadian.
- Sprinter Luxury Jet Van: seven with carry-ons for a working trip to Seattle.
- Luxury Stretch Limo (eight seats) and Party Bus (14 seats): for galas, concerts and celebrations.
Browse the fleet; check rates for what is included.
Weather, events and accounts
From October to March, the Sea-to-Sky Highway requires winter tyres or chains, and rain is frequent across the city. The cruise season and major events at BC Place fill hotels. Destination Vancouver lists the calendar. Tour operators can read cruise lines and ports, and firms can use corporate accounts. More on the city: chauffeur service in Vancouver.
Cancellation terms
More than 72 hours before pickup, cancelling is free. Within 72 hours, 10 %; within 48 hours, 50 %; within 24 hours or a no-show, 100 %.
Getting to a departing train
For departures, the car is timed so you reach Pacific Central with the margin the railway asks for: VIA Rail asks passengers on the Canadian to arrive well ahead to check baggage, and Amtrak Cascades passengers bound for the United States should allow extra time for border formalities. The chauffeur sets you down in the front loop, next to the doors. If you are coming straight from a cruise at Canada Place or a flight into YVR, give us both reference numbers; flights are tracked, and the included waiting at the airport is 60 minutes on international arrivals and 30 minutes on domestic ones.
