Lonely Planet Vancouver & Victoria , livre ebook

Vancouver & Victoria

Contents

Plan Your Trip

Welcome to Vancouver & Victoria
Vancouver’s Top 10
What’s New
Need to Know
Top Itineraries
If You Like…
Month By Month
With Kids
Like a Local
For Free
Eating
Drinking & Nightlife
Entertainment
Shopping
Sports & Activities
LGBT+

Explore Vancouver & Victoria

Neighborhoods at a Glance
Downtown & West End
Top Sights
Sights
Eating
Drinking & Nightlife
Entertainment
Shopping
Sports & Activities
Gastown & Chinatown
Sights
Eating
Drinking & Nightlife
Entertainment
Shopping
Sports & Activities
Yaletown & Granville Island
Top Sights
Sights
Eating
Drinking & Nightlife
Entertainment
Shopping
Sports & Activities
Commercial Drive
Sights
Eating
Drinking & Nightlife
Entertainment
Shopping
Main Street
Top Sights
Sights
Eating
Drinking & Nightlife
Entertainment
Shopping
Fairview & South Granville
Sights
Eating
Drinking & Nightlife
Entertainment
Shopping
Kitsilano & University of British Columbia
Top Sights
Sights
Eating
Drinking & Nightlife
Entertainment
Shopping
Sports & Activities
North Shore
Sights
Eating
Drinking & Nightlife
Shopping
Sports & Activities
Day Trips from Vancouver
Whistler
Richmond & Steveston
Southern Gulf Islands
Sleeping
Victoria
Top Sights
Sights
Eating
Drinking & Nightlife
Entertainment
Shopping
Sports & Activities
Sleeping

Understand Vancouver

Understand Vancouver
Vancouver Today
History
Green Vancouver
Arts & Culture

Survival Guide

Transportation
Arriving in Vancouver
Getting Around Vancouver
Tours
Directory A–Z
Accessible Travel
Dangers & Annoyances
Discount Cards
Electricity
Emergency
Internet Access
Medical Services
Money
Opening Hours
Post
Public Holidays
Taxes & Refunds
Telephone
Time
Toilets
Tourist Information
Visas
Women Travelers

Behind the Scenes
Vancouver Maps
Downtown
West End
Gastown
Chinatown
Yaletown
Granville Island
Commercial Drive
Main Street
Fairview & South Granville
Kitsilano
North Shore
University of British Columbia (UBC)
Stanley Park
Our Writers
Welcome to Vancouver & Victoria

Explorable neighborhoods, drink-and-dine delights, and memorable cultural and outdoor activities framed by striking vistas – there are endless reasons to fall for this ocean-fringed metropolis.

Taste-Tripping
Don’t tell the rest of the country but Vancouver is Canada’s dine-out capital. Abandon your diet and dive into North America’s best Asian cuisine, from dim sum to banh mi sandwiches; or unleash your appetite on a smorgasbord of fresh-caught seafood, including seasonal spot prawns and succulent wild salmon. The farm-to-table movement has reinvigorated West Coast cuisine in both Vancouver and Victoria – anyone for Vancouver Island lamb with foraged morels? And then there’s the craft-beer scene, pouring the nation’s finest IPAs, sours and more.

Neighborhood Villages
Downtown is just the start of Vancouver. Walk or hop public transit to explore the city’s diverse and distinctive mini-districts. Whether it’s the independent boutiques of Main St or the coffee shops of Commercial Dr, the redbrick bars of Gastown or the heritage-house beachfronts of Kitsilano, you’ll find this city ideal for easy-access urban adventures. Just be sure to chat to the locals wherever you go: they might seem shy or aloof at first, but Vancouverites love talking up their town and regaling you with their personal recommendations.

Culture Hub
There’s an eclectically diverse grassroots creative scene here that operates like a locavore movement for culture fans. Mingle with regulars at indie festivals, toe-tapping live music, waterfront Shakespeare shows and a camera-ready menagerie of eye-popping public art. There’s also a savor-worthy menu of independent art studios, a large public gallery that’s about to break ground on a grand new building, and a huge, party-like open-house art crawl that lures locals and visitors every November. And we’re not just talking about Vancouver; Victoria is studded with artsy happenings just waiting to be discovered.

Outdoor Wonderland
Those snow-capped giants peeking between downtown’s glass towers? They’re less than 30 minutes away by car. Vancouverites can ski in the morning and hit the beach in the afternoon – although it’s far more relaxing to take your time. The city’s North Shore nature doorstep offers snow sports, mountain biking and rainforest hiking, while the city itself is laced with beaches, kayaking routes and Canada’s urban green-space jewel, the mighty Stanley Park. And Victoria? It’s your entry point for a sparkling array of Vancouver Island outdoor adventures.

Waterfront vista from Stanley Park’s seawall | HARRY BEUGELINK/SHUTTERSTOCK ©

Why I Love Vancouver
By John Lee, Writer
Forest trails, tiny hummingbirds and sunset-hugging beaches framed by ocean and mountain panoramas. I moved here 20 years ago, but I’ve never taken my eyes off Vancouver’s unwavering natural charms. For me, it’s this breathtaking backdrop that sets the glass-towered metropolis apart. But I’m still an urban lad and I’ve also enjoyed watching Vancouver become a grown-up city. From adventurous dining to thriving arts and culture, this young West Coast community keeps moving forward – and I don’t just mean the delicious craft-beer scene (although, personally, that really helps).
For more, see Our Writers
Vancouver’s Top 10

Gastown
1 The brick-paved, heritage-hugging neighborhood where 19th-century Vancouver began has seen a cool wave of bars, restaurants and boutiques opening in recent years. But rather than building afresh, these independent businesses have restored and revitalized some of the city’s oldest structures. The former skid row ‘old town’ area is now a picturesque and popular balance of old and new; just ask the jaunty bronze statue of John ‘Gassy Jack’ Deighton in Maple Tree Square, guarding the site where he built his first pub way back in 1867.

Maple Tree Square and the Gassy Jack Statue | ANDREAS PROTT/SHUTTERSTOCK ©

Vancouver’s Top 10
Stanley Park Seawall
2 Few cities have democratized their waterfront better than Vancouver: you can stroll or cycle along a tree-fringed, wave-lapped walkway all the way from Canada Place to Kitsilano and the University of British Columbia (UBC). But the highlight is the 8.8km stretch around Stanley Park. Like an immersive visual spa treatment, you’ll encounter rippling ocean backed by looming mountains on one side and the gentle swish of dense forest and smiling cyclists on the other. It’s a sigh-triggering reminder of how great life can be.

HARRY BEUGELINK/SHUTTERSTOCK ©


Vancouver’s Top 10
Granville Island Public Market
3 Granville Island is packed with enticing backstreet studios and artsy little nooks, but the brimming Public Market lures everyone who comes here like a foodie-themed siren song. From pyramids of glistening fresh fruit to drool-triggering deli counters that inspire a picnicking approach to life, it’s a taste-tripping wander for browsers as well as locals dropping in for their regular shop. Add a seat at the shoreline plaza outside, complete with cheery buskers and beady-eyed seagulls, and you’ve found what may be Vancouver’s best afternoon out.

EMI330/SHUTTERSTOCK ©

Vancouver’s Top 10
Craft Beer
4 British Columbia (BC) has become Canada’s microbrewery capital in recent years, with around 200 beermakers popping up across the province. Leading this boozy charge, Vancouver has dozens of intriguing options, most with inviting tasting lounges that feel like mini neighborhood pubs. There are walkable clusters on and around Main St and near the northern end of Commercial Dr, with hot producers such as Brassneck, Strange Fellows and Powell Brewery worth keeping your taste buds primed for.

CAVAN/ALAMY STOCK PHOTO ©


Vancouver’s Top 10
Grouse Mountain
5 Vancouver’s favorite winter playground is a short drive from downtown. But Grouse isn’t just for goggle-eyed powder nuts. In summer, you’ll have great views over the city – shimmering in the water far below – plus the perfect excuse for a flower-studded alpine hike (take the steep Grouse Grind to reach the summit if you fancy working up a sweat or hop the scenic gondola ride instead). Either way, check out the grizzly bear enclosure: it’s a great way to see sharp-toothed wildlife close up without wetting yourself.

Skyride gondola on Grouse Mountain | FELIPECBIT/SHUTTERSTOCK ©


Vancouver’s Top 10
Capilano Suspension Bridge
6 Arrive early to avoid the summer crowds and you’ll have a great time inching over the swaying rope bridge that stretches across a roiling, tree-lined river canyon. Even the bravest find their legs turn to jelly here, but it’s all in good fun. At least that’s what you should tell yourself, as you’ll have to cross back at some point. There’s plenty to see in the surrounding temperate rainforest park: a series of canopy bridges, a glass-floored cliffside walkway and nature trails through the towering trees.

NICEPIX/SHUTTERSTOCK ©

Vancouver’s Top 10
Chinatown
7 Not all Chinatowns are created equal. The largest in Canada (and also the third biggest in North America), Vancouver’s still has the lively feel of a vibrant community, from its busy apothecary shops to its steam-shrouded barbecue meat stores. The area is in transition, with a tasty menu of new restaurants and coffee shops continuing to pop up, but the evocative older buildings remain in a neighborhood that has been designated a National Historic Site. A perfect urban explorer’s excursion; ensure your camera is fully charged.

ROBERTHARDING/ALAMY STOCK ©


Vancouver’s Top 10
Asian Dining
8 Torn between visiting Canada or Asia? Come to Vancouver and try the richest, most authentic Asian dining scene in North Amer