BURST
Soccer fever is hitting Vancouver this summer, and costs are skyrocketing downtown. Hotel rooms and short-term rentals near B.C. Place for the FIFA World Cup 2026 are going for thousands of dollars per night — but tourism experts say if you look further afield, more affordable options are still available.
An estimated 350,000 fans from around the world are expected to fill the downtown stadium for seven matches, with the tournament running from June 11 through July 19. Vancouver is one of just two Canadian host cities among 16 across North America .
A Deloitte report prepared for Airbnb projects a shortfall of 70,000 accommodation nights during the tournament’s busiest nine-day stretch. With roughly 13,000 hotel rooms in the city — a stock largely unchanged since 2002 — “it translates to an average daily shortfall of 7,700 unaccommodated fans,” peaking at 14,700 on a single day.
The report also predicts that, due to the scale of the 2026 World Cup, hotel prices could climb more than 200 per cent, one of the largest spikes seen for any major Vancouver event, including U.S. pop star Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour concerts in 2024.
With demand set to hit record levels, Destination Vancouver CEO Royce Chwin is urging fans to book early and search for options outside the downtown core.
“For people looking to come to Vancouver for the matches, you’ve got the whole Lower Mainland,” Chwin told Postmedia.
Looking for accommodations outside of the city can help visitors dodge steep premiums. Many rooms in hotels near B.C. Place are currently listed for $1,200 to $2,000 per night, with prices expected to increase as the tournament nears.
Airbnb agrees that demand in the city for short-term accommodations has been surging. Searches for stays in host cities, including Vancouver, are up 80 per cent compared to this time last year.
Chwin said fans booking on Airbnb or Vrbo should be aware of some risks, such as last-minute cancellations — similar to what happened during Swift’s Eras Tour in December of 2024, when some ticketholders who booked early were left scrambling to find an alternate place to stay.
“It’s partly why we have been advocating so hard to get hotels approved and built in the city,” said Chwin, explaining that hotels generally offer stricter cancellation policies and consumer protections than short-term rentals, which allow hosts to cancel under certain conditions.
For fans willing to travel a bit further to get to World Cup matches, Chwin said accommodations in the Lower Mainland are cheaper while still providing reasonable access to B.C. Place by car or public transit.
“There are lots of great transit options to get people downtown from the Lower Mainland,” Chwin said. Booking outside the city also avoids the 2.5 per cent Major Events Municipal and Regional District Tax introduced in 2023 to help cover FIFA costs.
At big-chain hotels in Langley, such as the Coast Hotel and Convention Centre, rooms go for around $500 a night. In Abbotsford, the same chain charges about $300, and in Chilliwack, rooms drop to roughly $240, according to their websites.
Wally Martin, co-owner of the Princess and the Pea Hotel in Langley’s Murrayville neighbourhood, said the business has been overwhelmed by bookings for the World Cup period.
“It’s been around a 400 per cent increase compared to last year,” Martin told Postmedia.
Despite the surge, the bed-and-breakfast still has some rooms available, with nightly rates around $250. Martin’s daughter, Angela, who now runs the hotel, said the owners plan to list a few additional rooms closer to the tournament.
“Calling properties directly is a good tip for travellers because we don’t always show all of our inventory on third-party platforms,” Angela Martin said.
Wally Martin said staying at his boutique hotel is much more affordable than downtown Vancouver lodging. “Who wants to pay $2,000 a night? Here, you’ll pay far less and can buy an all-day transit pass to get into the city for $10.”
Guests can expect a personalized experience, he added. “We’ll say hello, bring breakfast to you before you leave, and give you tips on how to get around by transit.”
Some Lower Mainland universities are opening up their dorms to World Cup fans for stays during the tournament.
At Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, a single room in the Courtyard Residences goes for $82 to $251 a night, and a double-queen or kitchenette suite in The Simon for $168 to $523. Over at Capilano University in North Vancouver and Squamish, full-summer stays are being offered at a rate of $2,600 to $3,700.
If you’re open to crossing the border, there are some much cheaper options just south of Vancouver.
Hotels in Bellingham and Lynden are currently listing rooms anywhere from $120 to $360 a night — a fraction of downtown Vancouver prices — although crossing the border each day will mean extra time and planning. Even closer, in Point Roberts, some Airbnb and Vrbo listings are advertised for as low as $140 a night during the 2026 World Cup.
Chwin says fans should keep an eye on Vancouver hotel prices in the coming weeks, noting rates could come down as more rooms are released.
“When major events come to host cities, organizers like FIFA hold blocks of room hotels based on their expected needs,” he said. “From our understanding, FIFA has now released many of those rooms back onto the market.”