Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Taking the eye-opening summertime Sins of the City walking tour at the
Van-
Diving into the sights, sounds and aromas of the bustling
Chinatown Night Mar-
ket
.
Explore Gastown & Chinatown
Radiating from the 'Gassy' Jack statue in brick-paved Maple Tree Sq, the main thor-
oughfares of compact Gastown are Powell, Water, Carrall and Alexander Sts. You'll
find plenty of shops and restaurants on Water, while Carrall is home to a more recent
wave of hip bars, stores and coffee shops. Wandering south on this street, you'll enter
the heart of the Downtown Eastside, where many of the neighborhood's poorest resid-
ents reside. Hastings St runs across Carrall and is the area's main drag, serviced by sev-
eral bus routes. A block further south brings you to Chinatown, denoted by its flare-
roofed buildings and dragon-topped street lamps. The entire Gastown and Chinatown
district is easily explored on foot and makes for a fascinating afternoon of urban wan-
dering. Couple this with an end-of-day drink or dinner in some of the city's best bars
and restaurants. In summer, come back for the weekend Chinatown Night Market on
Keefer St, between Columbia and Main Sts.
Local Life
»
Bars
Avoid downtown's Granville Strip drunks on a bar crawl of Gastown's top wa-
tering holes. You'll find hipster locals as well as more BC craft beer than you can shake
a merry stick at.
»
Shops
Chinatown is teeming with traditional grocery stores, where looking is just as
much fun as buying. You'll find interesting items such as lizards splayed on a stick. For
a different scene, peruse the cool indie boutiques of Gastown.
»
History
Vancouver's best heritage buildings line this area, from tile-topped apo-
thecaries to handsome century-old stone edifices repurposed as bars and restaurants.
