I thought with lie flat seats, I can sleep on the plane and be well rested for work, thus maximizing my time in Vancouver and making the most efficient use of time. Because of the time difference, even if you leave Vancouver at 3pm, you wont be back until past 10pm. My plan for this red-eye flight was to get me back in time for work on Tuesday morning. Thinking about it, I probably would have been better off at the plaza premium as the Maple Leaf lounge was really busy while the plaza premium was almost empty.
I wasn’t hungry so I just went to the Maple leaf lounge to use their wifi before my flight. You do get a hot soup option but that’s about it. I say “food” because there are only bread, cookies, chips and some salad items. There are two sides of seating areas with the “food” area in the middle. On the other hand, maple leaf lounge is located on the second floor and is huge.
I can tell you the plaza premium has better food – the YVR domestic one has sushi on demand! However, it is much smaller and very open, everyone walking past security can see you. For domestic passengers in YVR, you really only have two lounge options: the Maple Leaf Lounge or the Plaza Premium located right after security.