Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Sights
DowntownVancouverliesonaspitoflandborderedtothenorthandeastbyBurrardInlet,
to the west by English Bay, and to the south by False Creek, which almost cuts the city
center off from the rest of Vancouver. Granville Street was Vancouver's first commercial
corridor, and if today you stand at its junction with West Georgia Street, you're as close
to the center of the city as it's possible to be. From this busy intersection, Granville Street
extends north toward Burrard Inlet as a pedestrian mall, leading through the central busi-
ness district to Canada Place and the main tourist information center. Also within a three-
block radius of this intersection are Vancouver Art Gallery, all major banking institutions,
shopping centers, and the city's best hotels. To the south, between Dunsmuir and Robson
Streets, is the theater district and Library Square. Yaletown, the hot spot for tech compan-
ies, is farther south, bordered by Homer, Drake, and Nelson Streets. East along the water-
front from Canada Place, and still within easy walking distance of the Granville/Georgia
Streetsintersection,istheoldestpartofthecity, Gastown. BeyondGastown,NorthAmer-
ica's third-largest Chinatown is a hive of activity day and night. On the opposite side of
the central business district is the West End and enormous Stanley Park (accessible by
Robson Street ) a 2-kilometer (1.2-mile) strip of boutiques and restaurants.
CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT
MM Canada Place
The stunning architectural curiosity with the billowing 27-meter-high (88 feet) Teflon-
coated fiberglass “sails” on Burrard Inlet—the one that looks as if it might weigh anchor
and cruise off into the sunset at any moment—is Canada Place, a symbol of Vancouver
and a city icon. Built as the Canada Pavilion for Expo86, this integrated two-hectare (six-
acre) waterfront complex is primarily a convention center and cruise-ship dock. The Van-
couver Convention Centre, which makes up the bulk of the complex, has been expanded
to triple its size at adjacent Burrard Landing, in a half-billion-dollar expansion project that
haschangedthefaceofthedowntownwaterfront.TheoriginalcomplexatthefootofBur-
rard Street also houses the luxurious 405-room Pan Pacific Hotel (the glass marvel with
domed top), restaurants, shops, and an IMAX theater. Start your self-guided tour at the in-
formation booth near the main entrance; then allow at least an hour to wander through the
complex. Don't miss walking the exterior promenade—3.5 city blocks long—for splen-
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