The Barclay Hotel is a small hotel located on the ever-popular Robson Street. It is at the Denman end, not far from the water. In its previous life, it was a boarding house and the rooms still show a shadow of this past incarnation. The lobby, though, gives a very good first impression with marble stairs and a welcoming canopy. It is, however, unbelievably cheap for a great location in a city where hotel rooms are extremely expensive. I paid C$85.50 per night for a small double on the first floor. There are three floors of rooms and no elevator.

Our room, 123, was exceptionally small. I got a quick glimpse of 121 and it was almost twice as big, just the luck of the draw I guess. We had a queen-size bed, a desk, two chairs, and an armoire that held our equally petite TV. Linda Kaye laughed when she saw our TV; she thought it matched our room. We did have an excellent selection of channels, both Canadian and American. We had only one nightstand because there was not enough room on my side of the bed for a second one, and, when I got up, I could barely fit between the bed and the desk. I must add that it was a very comfortable bed with a nice firm mattress. We slept very well under our down comforter. The duvet cover was a bit garish but not loud enough to keep us awake.

The room was very clean and our bedding was changed daily. There is no closet, but there are four hooks on the wall behind the door. We had one small window, and we faced toward Robson Street, but from the rear of the building. Robson is a very busy street; we could hear light street sounds even with our window closed. Our bathroom had a vintage look with a circle top mirror and a single built-in sink. There was shampoo and soap provided but no blow-dryer. We had a one piece tub and shower. An iron is available at the front desk.

The staff was very helpful. They had maps and were able to provide me with excellent directions to the Vancouver Art Museum. You can purchase a continental buffet breakfast for $5.34. Actually, it was a great buy, though we only had it one day. There are several types of bread, waffles, pancakes, English muffins, bagels, Danish, boiled eggs, cheese and meat, cereal, oatmeal, orange juice, coffee, tea or hot chocolate. In the afternoon, you can purchase alcoholic drinks in the same bar area.

If you are looking for swank, keep on looking. If you want a nice, clean hotel with nonsmoking rooms in a great location, then I highly recommend the Barclay.

Coming into Vancouver after a long drive from Kennewick, Washington, I was glad when I saw the Barclay Hotel sign. Now, the next thing to do was to find the parking lot or garage, and that wasn't easy.

It was rainy, and I drove into two parking garages that catered to Barclay customers, but for 2-3 times the fee the Barclay was going to charge me for the day.

Finally, I was told that the parking lot was right behind the hotel. DUH! I thought. If it was a dog, it would bite me! Oh well, I parked my car and locked it up because there was no way it was being used for the next three days of my trip in Vancouver.

Upon entering the lobby of the Barclay, I was greeted by a very nice concierge. After realizing that I had goofed on making my reservations online and asked for the airline employee rates instead of the higher civilian rates, the concierge still gave me a room for the airline employee rate (about $56 US).

After getting my key, I went to my room. It was tiny, but neat and clean. Hey, I thought, "I am only sleeping and showering in here for three days, not living here."

The Barclay Hotel is one of Vancouver's oldest buildings. It used to be a boarding house before it became a hotel, and the old-time ambiance is still there. The rooms are small and decorated with different styles of furniture in each room. My room was an end room facing the back alley. Each time I had to go to my car to load and unload my luggage, I had to put a garbage bag or one of my coolers to keep the door ajar so I wouldn't be locked out and walk around the block to the front entrance. That was my only complaint about the Barclay. The service was great, my room was cleaned every day, and the Barclay is right in the middle of downtown Vancouver. What more could I ask for at $56 US a night?

I thought there would be some cable in the room for when I stayed there, but it was very limited. It was fun watching "Law & Order" on the Quebec TV station.

I highly recommend staying at the Barclay if you are on a budget and want a hotel in the middle of Vancouver near the sights and bus lines. I didn't take advantage of the Continental Breakfast ($5 CAD), since I had my own breakfast stuff with me, but it is the cheapest breakfast in town.