Be at the door in the window. The rest is walking and height.

The visits that went wrong were rarely about the film. They were a late arrival, a child under 102 centimetres, or Saturday noon treated like a Tuesday.

Timed entry

The operator sells a window. You check in inside it, you wait, you load. Miss it and you are talking to a queue, not to this site. I hold no inventory. There is no checkout here.

Read the slot as “stand at the door,” not “leave the hotel then.” A cruise gangway or a photo stop at the sails will eat the spare minutes you thought you had.

The walk

From Waterfront Station it is about five minutes: toward the water, along the pier. SkyTrain, SeaBus, and West Coast Express all empty there. Downtown, walk. Driving and parking under the building is a separate, often full, problem — not mine as crew.

Do not jog the last block with a stroller. Keep ten spare minutes. The load will not wait because an app said four.

Hours that are kinder

First loads are calmer. Late afternoon in winter can be, once school groups have gone. Midday in July is elbows. Saturday remains the peak even with a valid window — you will wait. A weekday morning is the fix.

Kids and the mark

102 centimetres, measured on a post every shift I worked. Under that, no load. No “just this once.” Bring a second adult, or have a skip plan. Older children usually like it; the ones who hate swings should be believed in the lobby.

Nina Kowalski · Former flying-theatre crew, Canada Place