A high-rise of 20 stories, the Rosedale is all suites. There are several sizes, but they aim for a clientele of families and they get it. Our family expedition (three sisters plus their spouses and kids) made this our Vancouver headquarters for 2 nights, and it worked out well.

The rooms are little more dated than I had expected but okay. Ours had a separate bedroom with a queen-size bed, overlooking the top of the spectacular Vancouver Public Library. Our girls shared the living area, which had a foldout queen-size sofa bed (we had a roll-away brought in). That area was a little dark--it was between the bedroom and the hall and thus had no sunlight (other layouts had windows in both rooms). There was a kitchenette in the hallway between the two, but we didn't use it.

The pool is on the mezzanine and a little hard to find but nice. There are lots of windows in this area, which gives a lot of sunlight. Breakfast was in an area just off the lobby. It was little disappointing but fit with what was advertised: juices (from a juice machine), coffee (from a coffee machine), and muffins (prepackaged). There was coffee in the room (which was better than the machine's).

The location is a little to the east and south of the central part of Vancouver. For example, it's over 2 miles to Stanley Park at the northwest corner. It is close to Yaletown, a recently revived area that's home to the Yaletown Brewing Company (highly recommended) and other restaurants. It's about a mile walk to the Aquabus stops on False Creek. If you're going to concerts at BC Place, it's pretty convenient, and they appear to offer package deals for all the events there.

The staff was friendly and helpful. They have a computer with Internet access in the lobby they'll let you use (there's also free access at the library across the street). All in all, it was okay--Vancouver is expensive, and the price here was moderate given the range. But if I come back here, I'll probably look for somewhere else to stay first.

Best Things Nearby:
The best thing in general about this resort was its location, right in the heart of Vancouver and within transit or a leisurely walk to all the Vancouver-area tourist attractions and restaurants. Gastown, Chinatown, Granville Island, Robson Street itself (the Rodeo Drive of Canada), Stanley Park, Canada Place, the waterfront, Yaletown, and the downtown UBC campus are all easily accessible.

Best Things About the Resort:
Location, location, location! The on-site Aviawest concierge was very knowledgeable and helpful, which made up for the fact that he was accessed through a separate building. The Rosedale is a shared facility, and the "hotel" services are not available to the timeshare guests, with the exception of fitness and pool areas. However, the Aviawest staff are available from 8am to 10pm.

Resort Experience:
The Rosedale is a high-rise metropolitan hotel, which houses both an actual hotel and suites for two different timeshare affiliates (Aviawest through RCI and another timeshare through Interval International). The Aviawest suites are comfortable but small - like a small hotel suite. The bedroom area had a queen-size bed, chest of drawers with TV, nightstands, and a comfortable chair, but with those in place, there was almost no room to lay down a suitcase of any considerable size. A small closet adjacent to the mini-kitchen had only six hangers and a tabletop ironing board with iron.

The kitchen itself had a bar-type fridge, large enough to hold cold drinks or the makings of a very basic breakfast, and was equipped with a toaster, kettle, one frying pan and pot, and china and glassware for four, but four people certainly could not have eaten in the unit. There was an apartment-sized stovetop and small oven, but really no counter on which to prepare foods to cook in them. The breakfast nook had a café-size table and two chairs, suitable for coffee or breakfast, but no more.

Fortunately, the location of the Rosedale, right on Robson Street across from the beautiful Vancouver Public Library building, meant that there was really no need to eat in the unit: there were restaurants of every cuisine and in every price range literally at your doorstep, and the Aviawest staff really knew their stuff when making recommendations for live entertainment, places to eat, and the best places to shop.

If you're staying in Vancouver for a few nights, it's the perfect pied-a-terre, but a full week in the small space left us feeling cramped (although there's certainly more than a full week's worth of things to see in the city).

• Unit Type: Studio
• Activities: Not Available
• Amenities: Good
• Unit Satisfaction: Good
• Family Friendliness: Good
• Service: Very Good

Best Things Nearby:
Downtown Vancouver, Yaletown, many restaurants and shops

Best Things About the Resort:
The location and great views

Resort Experience:
The Rosedale on Robson is a full-service 21-story all-suites hotel in downtown Vancouver. Aviawest bought two floors of suites and manages them independently from the hotel. The Aviawest office around the corner handles all requests as opposed to the hotel staff. I found the office staff helpful and prompt in meeting our requests, although don't expect a full-service hotel. However, the in-house concierge is very helpful. There is a mid-week cleaning, but we only stayed for 4 nights.

The rooms may be smaller than other timeshare units, but they are big considering this is an urban hotel. You'll be either on the 15th or 19th floor and have a commanding view of downtown. The living room is fairly spacious with a sleeper sofa and has a DVD player (you can borrow DVD's from their office for free - 1 at a time). The bedroom features a queen-sized bed and a smaller TV with VCR. The kitchen is really just a narrow counter in the hallway adjoining the bedroom and living areas, but is adequate. It contains a stove, oven, microwave, and a mini-fridge. Make that a very wide mini-fridge, about 50% larger than the ones I'm accustomed to. There is also a laundry room on each floor (one washer, one dryer for $1.25 each).

There is an indoor pool and Jacuzzi. The pool is rather narrow and more for swimming laps, but children could play there as well. There are also exercise equipment and facilities. There are no activities at the hotel, but the Aviawest staff could arrange any number of tours. They never asked us to attend a timeshare presentation, although there were some occurring (perhaps these people did not do a timeshare exchange like us).

Yaletown is a two-block walk and features many fine restaurants, pubs, and shops. You can also catch an Aquabus to Granville Island if you walk to the waterfront at Davie St. Most of downtown is walkable, as is Chinatown (check out the Float Seafood restaurant for dim-sum). We stocked up at T&T supermarket in Chinatown for groceries. Immediately around the hotel are a number of coffee shops and cafes. Most of the finer dining and boutique shops are further down on Robson.

There is public transit that stops outside the hotel, but these go to the "non-downtown" areas. The main avenue where most public transit stops is on Granville St, which is a 4 block walk. You can also go to the Skytrain station at Granville and Georgia. You can buy a transit pass or a ticket-pack at the 7-11 across the street. Note that on the Skytrain and Seabus they don't routinely check your tickets, so don't go overboard on buying tickets. Taxis are reasonable and should cost about $5 for most places downtown, and about $25 to/from the airport.

Overall, this is a great place to stay if you want to be in the heart of Vancouver.

• Unit Type: 1 Bedroom
• Activities: Not Available
• Amenities: Very Good
• Unit Satisfaction: Excellent
• Family Friendliness: Good
• Service: Good

Best Things Nearby:
Robson Street has lots of coffee shops and great shopping stores within walking distance.

Best Things About the Resort:
The room, although quite small, was very nicely furnished and was well-contained.

Resort Experience:
The hotel staff was courteous but did not go out of its way to make our stay pleasant. It was awkward, since we were told to ask the hotel staff for anything, rather than go outside the hotel to an adjacent office to request items. We were also a little annoyed at the fact that we were never told we had to pay for parking, which was an expense we did not anticipate: $9 daily. At the time of our stay, there was contruction going on nearby, so it was quite noisy. The view from our room was of an adjacent high-rise building. We ate at the restaurant inside the hotel, and both times, my husband and I were sick. No activities were scheduled for the week that were were there.

• Unit Type: 1 Bedroom
• Activities: Poor
• Amenities: Poor
• Unit Satisfaction: Fair
• Family Friendliness: Fair
• Service: Fair

Best Things Nearby:
This resort is in a prime location-at the corner of Hamilton and Robson. Everything you could possible want is within walking distance, including fabulous restaurants, nightclubs, museums, theaters, Gastown, Stanley Park, and more.

Best Things About the Resort:
Besides the location, this resort has a fabulous view.

Resort Experience:
The resort is a high rise with fabulous views of the city. The units are small, but well equipped and clean. The one-bedroom units are best suited for a couple. There is a double bed in the bedroom and a small sleeper sofa in the living room. The resort has a gym, a pool, and a hot tub.

• Unit Type: 1 Bedroom
• Activities: Not Available
• Amenities: Good
• Unit Satisfaction: Excellent
• Family Friendliness: Good
• Service: Very Good