YVR Airport & Sea Island Developments Discussion

[deasine]

I really never liked the carpets at YVR - they look so deep, dark, and heavy - just ruins the entire design scheme. Hopefully the inject more life in the airport's flooring that actually match the current logo.

[mr.x]

Originally Posted by clooless

I was sort of surprised by that as well, although I have read comments on travel sites with airport ratings that a lot of travelers are frustrated with the endless construction at the airport, and the dismal, rundown condition of the Air Canada side of the domestic terminal.

Personally, I think the parkade needs to be expanded (and cleaned once in a while for that matter), and I really think the domestic baggage claim area needs to be brightened up a lot as it's so freaking dark. The carpets are also worn in a lot of the airport, even in sections of the fairly new international terminal.

I agree....the baggage claim areas for both the domestic and international terminals are also crowded, particularly the international terminal. It's even worse with the low ceiling they have.

There's no way the customs/border agents gates and international baggage claim area can handle future airport growth. It's going to be really crowded there. And the international arrivals area is also way too small....needs to be at least 3x the size of what it is today.

[SpongeG]

maybe the new terminal will help

[clooless]

Originally Posted by mr.x2

I agree....the baggage claim areas for both the domestic and international terminals are also crowded, particularly the international terminal. It's even worse with the low ceiling they have.

There's no way the customs/border agents gates and international baggage claim area can handle future airport growth. It's going to be really crowded there. And the international arrivals area is also way too small....needs to be at least 3x the size of what it is today.

Yes! Here I thought I was the only one. Even a few years ago when I returned from Vegas at midnight we were waiting in the upstairs hallway because the customs and immigration hall is so freaking narrow. If you get two or three flights arriving around the same time it completely backs up. The architects really didn't design a customs hall to accommodate 25 million passengers a year.

When I met my girlfriend at the international arrivals area it was also packed with friends, relatives and loved ones anxiously awaiting their arrival. Growth just was not factored into the design at all.

[SpongeG]

aren't all airports like that?

the arrivals areas are always crowded

I have never been to one where its not full of people waiting

[mr.x]

Originally Posted by SpongeG

maybe the new terminal will help

my hope is that today's existing international terminal will become the trans-border terminal to the states (it should be large enough for present and future growth) and the future new terminal east of the Fairmont hotel would be the new international terminal that actually has growth in mind.

Talk about tiny:







The tiny arrivals area:





This is the domestic baggage claim (which looks nearly the same as the international baggage claim area)...one thing that shocks me is how this area is OPEN TO THE PUBLIC:

[MistyMountainHop]

Originally Posted by mr.x2

This is the domestic baggage claim (which looks nearly the same as the international baggage claim area)...one thing that shocks me is how this area is OPEN TO THE PUBLIC:

So? It's nice to not have to wait for your bags if you're meeting someone at the airport. You're just as likely to have your bag stolen by a passenger than by any random person.

[zivan56]

^^ But it's very less likely to happen at international, especially if you have to pass through customs. They could demand, for example, to show your ticket for the baggage...or search it and find a couple of kilos of drugs.

[mr.x]

Originally Posted by zivan56

^^ But it's very less likely to happen at international, especially if you have to pass through customs. They could demand, for example, to show your ticket for the baggage...or search it and find a couple of kilos of drugs.

precisely. ideally, they should install a glass wall or something and have someone check tickets at the door so that they can get in and claim their baggage....this should be done, especially with the Canada Line arriving.

we're the only airport to not do that.

[SpongeG]

Originally Posted by mr.x2

my hope is that today's existing international terminal will become the trans-border terminal to the states (it should be large enough for present and future growth) and the future new terminal east of the Fairmont hotel would be the new international terminal that actually has growth in mind.

Talk about tiny:







The tiny arrivals area:





This is the domestic baggage claim (which looks nearly the same as the international baggage claim area)...one thing that shocks me is how this area is OPEN TO THE PUBLIC:

I had to wait in smaller areas in heathrow and gatwick, cincinnati and johanesburg

that looks quite palatial in comparison

maybe the immigration people need to lighten up and spend less time with passengers?

my trip through gatwick was quick - the line up was fairly long but the time with the desk was like literally 2 minutes or less

when i got back to vancouver - they must have kept for more than 5 minutes

[mr.x]

^ at Hong Kong, i had to wait 30 secs to get through immigration....but then, i guess it helps if you're a Hong Kong Resident. even before getting my resident card, it was like 1 minute at the most. And the Hong Kong arrivals area is about 15 times larger than ours.

Immigration Canada is just too harsh. It was weird, as I was waiting in line to get through immigration i noticed that all of the Arab-looking passengers took a much longer time to get through. o_o With my family, it took us about 2 minutes.

[giallo]

^ In December, I got through HK immigration in about 15 seconds.....and I only hold a Canadian passport. It's crazy how efficient they are there.

[mr.x]

Originally Posted by giallo

^ In December, I got through HK immigration in about 15 seconds.....and I only hold a Canadian passport. It's crazy how efficient they are there.

lol, well it was around 30 secs...might've been shorter that that. They opened my passport, looked at my face and compared it with the passport photo, punched a few keys in the computer, scanned my passport barcode, and then stamped my passport, and then they let me go through.

yea, Chinese efficiency is amazing.

[zivan56]

If you want to see a small customs area, go to Munich international. There is an escalator that goes down to a room no bigger than the average downtown bedroom. The worst part is if too many people enter it at once, there is a chance you could get stuck on a moving escalator and not be able to get off. I am not a claustrophobic person, but it was a horrible experience with so many people crammed in there...some person was having a mental breakdown near me...
But yes, both US and Canadian customs are a pain in the ass, I've traveled to a bunch of places worldwide and have never experienced the inconvenience that I experience here. I have a Canadian passport, but they treat me like my name is on a watch list.

[Hourglass]

Actually, I've never found Vancouver's immigration that bad -- although I've heard lots of complaints. I agree the arrivals area is way too small and congested -- especially when whole families come out to greet their loved ones. But I'll take YVR over practically any American airport, many European facilities, and quite a few Asian ones too.

You guys zipping through HKIA are lucky. It can get very backed up during peak periods for non-residents. I've had business colleagues waiting up to 30 minutes to clear immigration. Of course, with the biometric scans, HK residents zip through very quickly...

[deasine]

Aren't there less costly ways in making the area larger... As of currently, according to the pictures (I haven't air traveled in a while), the layout is like this:



Edit: that diagram didn't turn out right.
Edit2: Picture Upload

[SpongeG]

when i came through it was november 11 and it was just on 11 am

so at 11 am they turned off the luggage thing where it comes up before you go through customs...

and we had the minute of silence

and than they forgot to turn it back on - so i and a few others waited about 10 minutes before someone got fed up and went and asked them to turn it back on and they were like oh yah

and finally it comes back on

and than customs was so slow turned what could have been 10 minutes into 30 or so

[mr.x]

Originally Posted by deasine

Aren't there less costly ways in making the area larger... As of currently, according to the pictures (I haven't air traveled in a while), the layout is like this:



Edit: that diagram didn't turn out right.
Edit2: Picture Upload

you're a genius...problem solved. but what about the international baggage claim area?

[vanman]

Originally Posted by Overground

I really don't know what to make of the laser beam.

Who puts a friggin laser beam on a totem pole. What a disgrace to native culture. It probably looks cool at night though.

[raggedy13]

In all likelihood it was a native artist who designed the totom pole, laser beams and all. It is probably just his style to try new modern takes on the traditional style (which at this point is pretty well a cliche in Vancouver)... something like Brian Jungen with his supercool masks...