Other Testimonials

The Greenwood Guide To Canada

Even just stepping off the lively, bustling downtown streets, strewn with high rise buildings, into the small and Traditional English Bay Inn is quite an experience. The sitting room with lavish candelabras, Persian rug, French antiques, classical music, ticking clocks and a crackling fire sets the tone. Collections of books and CDs are there for you to choose and use. Boban is a self confessed "crazy European” and the owner or the inn. You are likely to encounter him over a glass of wine or a game of chess. He says he always wins (which sounds like a challenge for someone). Perhaps that's why he puts the decanters of port and sherry in the bedrooms. There are chocolates there too. The muted country-house colours, exposed brick walls, mahogany furniture and feather beds are in cahoots, and make you seriously consider lengthening your stay. Greg, the manager, runs the inn super smoothly, and is greatly entertaining at breakfast. He cooks it himself and particularly applause-worthy are the freshly baked scones, bursting with fruit. A big foodie and long-term local, he can point you in the right direction for all the best, hidden, West End eating spots and watering holes.

The Best In The West

English Bay Inn; Meticulously run five-room antique and flower-filled house-turned-inn with welcoming, knowledgeable host, happy to help you plan your days.

Doctor's Review - June 1996 - Kerry McPhedran

Sipping sherry and sinking deeper into the, The Globe and Mail and the chintz sofa in the comfort of my very own personal sitting room, I gaze out the leaded glass windows at the violet sky of early evening and reflect on the loss of a gentler, more genteel time. The slow tick-cock of a French porcelain clock adorned with frolicking shepherdesses is interrupted only by my murmured thanks for the continued survival of inns like this one.

I have only to step out the door of the owner's Tudor-style English Bay Inn in the heart of Vancouver's West End to find myself half a block's walk from freighter-strewn English Bay, one block from Stanley Park's leafy 400 hectares and three short blocks from Delilah's 27 versions of the two-ounce martini.

Ford and Beth Stephens
4410 Park Avenue
Richmond, VA 23221

September 27, 1993

America's Wonderful Little Hotels & Inns
P.O. Box 150
Riverside, CT 06878

Dear Sir or Madam:

We are writing to recommend a bed & breakfast in downtown Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada:

The English Bay Inn
1968 Comox Street Vancouver, B.C.
Canada V6G 1R4
(604) 683-8002

Because this inn was not included in your 1991 West Coast edition, we believe that it may be a new recommendation.

We have recently returned from a three-day visit at the English Bay Inn, from September 12-15, 1993. It was readily apparent that the owner, had spent considerable time and expense in turning his tudor-style house into a comfortable inn. The inn is situated in a residential neighborhood one block from English Bay and the entrance to Stanley Park, an ideal location and a snug haven amid the many high-rise apartments.

Our room, with private bathroom, an antique mahogany sleigh bed, wardrobe, and all cotton Ralph Lauren bed linens, was cleaned daily and the towels changed. The living room on the first floor was furnished with antiques and had a gas fireplace, which was lit every afternoon when we returned from our days' outings. Breakfast was served in a formal dining room, also with a gas fireplace. The two-course breakfast was terrific: the first course comprised fresh fruit and scones each day; the second varied from day to day and during our stay included quiche, scrambled eggs, and apple cinnamon crepes. Coffee and juice were served liberally throughout. The conversation around the table was lively, occasionally stirred by our attentive host. We found ourselves lingering over coffee after completing breakfast.

The owner was quite helpful in suggesting sights to see within easy walking distance including Stanley Park, Granville Island, the Maritime Museum, and the Vancouver Museum. He also recommended great restaurants, also within walking distance.

The English Bay Inn was a high point in our trip, and we heartily recommend it. We are not connected directly or indirectly with the management or owners.

Very truly yours,

Ford and Beth Stephens

Dear Boban,

back to Germany we want to say "Thank You" again for the Great Time at
English Bay Inn.

We have had a wonderful time at yours, in Vancouver, in Western Canada. My parents and me are showing our photos round these days, remembering our trip, the towns we saw and the people we met. We loved the trip.

We wish you all the best !

Regards,
sincerely Yours

Udo Dittmann

TQ3 Holiday
Germany

TQ3 Travel Solutions is the leading provider of quality, innovative travel expense management solutions to companies worldwide. With system-wide revenues in excess of $11 billion, TQ3 operates 1,200 locations in over 80 countries.

Sue Golden has submitted a review of English Bay Inn to TripAdvisor and has asked us to share it with you.

English Bay Inn
June 30, 2004
http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g154943-d184895-r2230635-English_
Bay_Inn-Vancouver_British_Columbia.html

My husband and I just returned from a trip to Vancouver, British Columbia and had the good fortune to stay at The English Bay Inn. We had read about the Inn in travel books and web sites. Nothing prepared us for the wonderful accommodations which awaited us, or the beautiful, friendly city of Vancouver. The English Bay Inn is a lovely Inn situated in the best area of Vancouver, the West End. It is walking distance to Stanley Park, and the harbor, as well as many of the lovely beaches surrounding the city. We rented bikes for the day and rode throughout the park and over to Granville Island. The next day we rode a public bus to Yalesville and explored the historic areas of Yalesville and Gastown, walking back to the Inn via Canada Place and the harbor. The Inn's owner, Bobin, made our stay truly wonderful! His hospitality and incredible scones are well worth the trip. We had a lovely room overlooking a small garden. It was a quiet retreat after a busy day of sight seeing. I highly reccomend a visit to Vancouver and a stay at the English Bay Inn.

Boban,

Joan and I really enjoyed our three days in Vancouver -- a truly great city we need to see more of! -- and your kind hospitality had much to do with that. Everything about the English Bay Inn, from comfortable room to tasty breakfast to convenient parking, was just what we needed. You've managed to save a wonderful little piece of the old English Bay neighborhood for us
outlanders to experience as we never would otherwise. Please also pass our appreciation on to Greg for his attentions and for being up bright and early on Sunday to get us started on our way home.

Michael S. Hass
ADD Inc
Cambridge, MA

Greg, Boban,

Thanks for your great hospitality last week end. Joy and I had a wonderful time in Vancouver. You guys took care of all our needs and helped make the week end a lot of fun. I'm attaching a photo of Joy in your fancy room. Hopefully we'll be back to visit with you again.

Don

Dear Boban and Greg:

A note to say a BIG "THANK YOU" to you for the lovely time over the Christmas holidays that you created for my mother Lil Johnson and sister, Ashala Bracken.

They loved your home and were so happy that they were able to enjoy it as well as your delicious breakfasts!

Thanks too for including Bruce and my brother and me in on the first breakfast with them - you made it very special for all of us to be together at this time.

So thanks so much for everything! We will certainly rent with you again the next time we have guests and have already been telling everyone we know how great your place is and that they should think of renting it for a "weekend get away" or for their own company that don't want to stay out in the "berbs" for their entire visit. So we are singing your praises for you!

We wish you much success and hopefully a "full house" for you in the years
to come.

Again, many thanks. It really has been great dealing with you and we sincerely appreciate how you made mom and Ashala feel so special during their stay with you.

Best regards,
Terry and Bruce Johnson

Dear Boban and Greg,

Thank you ,what I can say except that maryann and I had a really great time staying at the English Bay Inn. I most definitely hope to visit you both again or at the very least keep you very busy with many referrals.

the hospitality was superb and the place is absolutely gorgeous.

and lets not forget the delicious breakfast.

cheers,

Lorraine Valenti
Paris Ceramics USA
New York, NY

Hi,
Joyce and Saul here.......arrived home safely without incident, on schedule. Weather hot and muggy for a few weeks now. Sent you to your email address 3 pics we took yesterday......hope they arrived in useable shape. Sometimes compressing to sendable size doesn't work so if they are fuzzy or unviewable let us know and we'll send you hard copy. Hope all is well there.......save us a spot for some "mooseturd pie" today (sure is good tho)........thanks for putting up with Saul's sense of humor (oy vey), and let's keep in touch. xox Joyce and Saul. PS. Will start work on Boban opus soon.

Hi, --
Mike and I are back in sunny Palm Beach Gardens--after a loooooong trip from Vancouver to Florida, punctuated with many lines and waits. We finally touched down at 12:30AM local time, but we were so "wired" that we never got to bed until after 3:00AM local time. Today I'm shackled to the washing machine, and Mike is running errands -- the supermarket is on the top of his list. BUT--- we had such a wonderful time in Vancouver, and we feel especially blessed that we found our way to the English Bay Inn. We both agree that Vancouver has replaced San Francisco as the BEST city in North America..... (Paris and Nice still edge out all other places in the WORLD.) We really loved our stay with you. You made Vancouver an extra-special place for us. We are already planning another trip -- my queasy stomach kept us from Victoria after all -- and we haven't seen the Canadian Rockies yet. Please keep us informed of your whereabouts -- perhaps next summer will find us together again...both of us certainly hope so.
Again -- thank you so much for everything.

Denise and Mike

Upon our return to Kansas City and 95 degree temperatures, Susan and I reflected upon our visit to Vancouver and English Bay Inn with fond memories. You have a great location and an amazing B and B. Thanks for the hospitality, food, and information about VC. We hope to return someday.

Bob and Susan Hiatt

Hi,

First of all, we had a great stay at the inn, thanks to your help and advice about sights and travel plans. We enjoyed Vancouver very much, the area that the inn is located in is terrific. The sea wall walks were some of the best time we spent in the city.

Jane and I took your advice and headed for La Conner Wash, what a treat that turned out to be. The town was quiet, I guess the season has not really started yet, but we found it charming and beautiful. If you have ever been east, you may know what eastern Long Island looks like in summer, or maybe even the Berkshire area of Mass. in summer. The town was beautiful, at
first we thought we would just stay for several hours and head into Seattle, but we found Kerstins (a great restaurant) and had a bottle of wonderful Oregon red wine, and decided that driving would be senseless, so we checked into the La Conner Channel Lodge - what a find!! Great place right on the water (1st street) and an easy stroll into the main part of town. We had a great short stay and enjoyed the shops and the sights. We also enjoyed a short visit to Seattle as well, Ray's salmon was the best we had on this trip. If you every go to Seattle, its a must!! (its outside of town a bit, but not too hard to find and very famous)

So thanks again for that great tip, that's the kind of place we would never have found on our own. If you ever find yourself east, and need a nice suggestion like that, we would be glad to help out, just email us.

Best wishes for a successful season at the Inn,

Marv and Jane Hazan

We wish to thank you for wonderful accommodations and meals. Gerald and I had a very enjoyable stay at your Inn and in Vancouver.

A business associate of mine may be calling or emailing you for reservations this month or in May. His name is Rick Clost - he is looking forward to staying at the English Bay Inn.

Thank you again - Arleen Kynaston

P.S. would you please email us the name of the Port that you serve?

Dear Boban,

Jen and I had such a wonderful stay in Vancouver at your charming bed and breakfast! Thanks again for the delicious breakfasts, interesting conversations, and delightful accomodations. We will definitely be back...AND we'll tell all our friends! Happy Spring.

Sally McLaughlin and Jen Sweigert

Hi, Boban and Greg

Just want to wish you and your family a "Happy Holiday". Jeff and I really enjoyed our visit to Vancouver. We are glad to have had the opportunity to stay at your inn and experience the wonderful breakfast you made for us.

Please say Hello to Helen and wish her a "Happy Holiday" for us.

Sincely,
Aumpai

Hi Boban,

We want to say thanks for a great weekend. We hope to visit you again some day!

Take care,

- Amy & Guy

Hi Greg, my friend, how are you?

sorry to haven't write you be4, but i start work yesterday (i haven't internet at home), and -after all those days off- it was really a busy day. The return trip was quite long and bored. but all was fine.

riccardo has not "bronchite" but he has WHOOPING COUGH (and i don't know if it's better than bronchite!!!)...it's very long to treat/cure. I feel good now, to known i came back before the 12th. They needed me in those/these days...infact during the night (whooping cough is mainly by night) we have some problems with him, lot of cough, lot of wakefulness...but better this than worse...

and you, are u doing? and my friend Boban? i have a really nice "remember" of you. hope there will be a soon "next time" to spend togheter with you, there or here!.

thank you again for your friendship and hospitality. It was really fantastic to stay in Vancouver at the English Bay Inn. I would suggest it to everebody!!!...

pls say hallo to Boban and to "all" the nice people a met in your Guest House (and you are the first!!!).

kisses from Italy
gian luca arici

Boban,

We arrived home safely last evening and just want to thank you and Greg for making our stay at the English Bay Inn so pleasurable. (Please thank Greg for the great directions to the airport!) Vancouver is a great city with so much to do, but we had so little time. Hopefully, we will return again one day.

I hope our paths will cross again, and our best to Greg.
Sincerely,
Audrey & Michael Schulde

Dear Boban,

We arrived home safe and sound after a 7 hour delay in the Vancouver Airport due to mechanical difficulties. Thank you again for your wonderful hospitality (and Gregg's). You made our brief stay in Vancouver delightful.

Aloha,
Sandra Ohara

Hello to both of you!

Just a message from Andre and Joan to say that we really enjoyed our stay. The place is very nice, the food terrific and the hospitality most gracious. (oh and don't worry one bit about the heat thing, I think the second nite was better than the first, probably because we were a tad too hot on the first night....should have left well enough alone, you sleep better when it's cooler.)

Thanks again for the great service!

Joan and Andre
Seattle, WA