ELA Annual Conference: A Penny Saved…
Very few people have not felt some sort of budget crunch in the last couple of years, and so here are some tips on how to save money and still attend the conference in Vancouver!
Some attendees will fly in and out of Seattle, WA (airport code SEA) and take the train up. Others may be able to save and fly in to SEA and out of Vancouver (YVR). If the prices hold fairly steady after July 1, this may be what we do as staff members. When I looked a few weeks ago, the difference was $150-200 per ticket. So, if you have the time in one or both directions, keep this in mind and you can sightsee out the window while meeting a tight budget.
If you want to consider Seattle, here is some information that may be helpful:
You now can catch the new Link Light Rail from Sea-Tac airport to the Seattle Amtrak station. Here’s the Link Light Rail info:
http://www.soundtransit.org/Riding-Sound-Transit/Schedules-and-Facilities/Central-Link-Light-Rail.xml
And here’s the information on the International District/Chinatown station, which is next to the Amtrak station:
http://www.soundtransit.org/Riding-Sound-Transit/Schedules-and-Facilities/Transit-Facilities/Intl-Dist-Chinatown-Station.xml
Here’s the info on Amtrak, which takes about 3-4 hours depending on customs:
http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/ContentServer/AM_Route_C/1241245667297/1237405732511
Light rail costs $2.50 one-way, and the Amtrak costs $37.50 one-way.
The light rail trip takes about half an hour, though you need to budget 10-15 minutes or so on each end to walk from the airport to the light rail stop and from the Chinatown station to the King Street Amtrak station.
A cab or shuttle between Sea-Tac and Amtrak should run about $30-40.
We look forward to seeing you!