Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
some of the city's best independent shops, bars and restaurants. Almost as old, Chin-
atown is one of Canada's largest and most vibrant of its kind.
These shoreline neighborhoods exemplify Vancouver's development in recent decades.
A former rail-yard and warehouse district on the edge of downtown, Yaletown is lined
with chic restaurants and boutiques. Across the water, Granville Island was a grungy in-
dustrial area before being transformed in the 1970s into a haven of theaters, art studios
and the best public market in British Columbia.
Settled by European immigrants in the 1950s and by counter-culture types in the 1960s,
this is one of the city's most entrancing neighborhoods for a stroll. Eschewing chain
stores, the main drag is studded with quirky shops, welcoming indie bars and coffee
shops run by generations of Italian families. This is also a great dining strip and the
home of Vancouver's best patios.
The skinny-jeaned heart of the hipster scene, Main has transformed into the city's
coolest 'hood in recent years, boasting Vancouver's newest gallery district and its best
independent cafes, shops, bars and restaurants. It's a great area to meet locals away
from city-center crowds. Expect lots of changes: this area is developing rapidly.
Linked by Broadway, this area combines rows of clapboard residential avenues radiat-
ing from Fairview's Cambie St with, a few blocks west, the store- and gallery-lined
South Granville, one of Vancouver's best walkable shopping strips. Green-thumbed vis-
itors will also be drawn to its popular park and garden attractions.
