Vancouver/City Centre

The City Centre, also known as the Central Business District, is the heart of Vancouver's downtown and contains the city's Financial District, the Granville Entertainment district, and many of its hotels, clubs and historical buildings. For the visitor, it's a good base from which to explore Vancouver because of its easy access to public transit, shops and restaurants. And if you want to sample Vancouver's cuisine or nightlife, or take in the mountains and harbour, it's a great place to be.

Get in
See Vancouver for options to get in the Vancouver area by plane, by bus, and by train, and by boat.

The City Centre is the destination for most transit users, so it's not much of a stretch to say most roads, buses and trains lead here.

By boat
Cruise ships travelling from Alaska, Washington, California, and Mexico, arrive a Canada Place (see listing under Architecture section), which is adjacent to Waterfront station.

At the north end of downtown, SeaBus, a part TransLink's public transit network, which travels between downtown (Waterfront station) and North Vancouver (Lonsdale Quay).

South of downtown, in False Creek, both Aquabus and False Creek Ferries provide similar routes serving Yaletown and False Creek, including Science World and the Olympic Village, with connections to Granville Island and Kitsilano (this destination only by False Creek Ferries). Fares range between $2.50 and $6.50, depending on the distance traveled.

By car
Driving into and around downtown isn't usually a problem outside of rush hour, but it can be a nuisance (particularly parking), so your best bet is to leave your car outside of the city centre to take public transit. If you drive, Georgia Street is the main street through the CBD. It continues on through Stanley Park and the West End and across the Lions Gate Bridge to the North Shore. Access from the south is by bridge over False Creek (the Burrard, Granville and Cambie bridges). All of them will lead downtown so just take the one closest to you.

Parking downtown is as you would expect for a city centre: expensive and, at times, hard to find. Expect to pay between $12-25/day for parking in a parkade. On-street parking meters are in effect from 9AM-10PM, 7 days a week. Many of the streets become no parking zones during rush hour.

Get around
There are plenty of bike rental stores in the area, from which there's easy access to the seawall and Stanley Park.



By public transit
Passengers can pay for fares using Compass Cards ($6 refundable deposit), Compass Tickets, or tap-to-pay using contactless credit cards (only American Express, Mastercard or Visa) or mobile wallets. Passengers using Compass Cards and Compass Tickets pay discounted fares. Passengers can transfer for up to 90 minutes, except if taking West Coast Express, in which case they can transfer for up to 120 minutes. On bus and HandyDART, passengers can also pay in cash, but in that case will not receive change and are not eligible for transfers.Zone based fares apply between Monday and Friday for trips starting before 6:30 pm, if travel involves SkyTrain or SeaBus. Outside of those hours or for travel on only bus or HandyDART, a single zone rate applies. If traveling by West Coast Express, a higher cost zone based fare system applies regardless of time of travel.Children 12 and under can ride for free. People aged 13 to 18, and 65 and older pay discounted concession fares.

By SkyTrain and bus
SkyTrain operates the Expo Line and Canada Line into this neighbourhood, terminating at Waterfront station. The Expo Line travels to Vancouver's downtown, Gastown-Chinatown, Yaletown-False Creek and East Van, and beyond Vancouver to Burnaby, New Westminster, and Surrey. The Canada Line travels to Vancouver's City Centre, Yaletown-False Creek, Mount Pleasant and South Vancouver, and beyond Vancouver to Vancouver International Airport and Richmond.

is the main hub (Cordova, at the foot of Granville St), with SkyTrain's Expo Line, SkyTrain's Canada Line, Seabus, and many bus routes terminating there. A large number of buses also pickup outside (corner of Burrard & Dunsmuir Sts) on the Expo Line, including those to Vancouver's Kitsilano. Most north-south bus routes pass by (Expo Line) and  (Canada Line), which are stations across the street from each other. If travelling from North Vancouver or West Vancouver, buses travel by Burrard station, Granville station, and Vancouver City Centre station.

See

 * Vancouver Public Library (29722412286).jpg
 * 2018-01-22 Robson Square (39240360834).jpg
 * Vancouver Public Library (29722412286).jpg
 * 2018-01-22 Robson Square (39240360834).jpg

Architecture
While Vancouver may not be famous for its architecture, the City Centre is home to some unique buildings both new and old.


 * Vancouver Marine Building.jpg
 * Vancouver Marine Building.jpg
 * Vancouver Marine Building.jpg

Do




Eat
The different parts of the City Centre have diverse characteristics. The central business district has, as you would expect, a high number of coffee shops and lunch places, the West End has a wide variety of restaurants, Yaletown has a number of high-end restaurants and Chinatown has many Chinese restaurants. Some of the best Japanese food outside of Japan is in Vancouver and its Cantonese and Korean offerings are also reputable.

Budget




Drink


Many of Vancouver's nightclubs are located in the Entertainment District along Granville Street from Robson to the Granville Street Bridge.



Sleep
The city centre has a wide range of accommodation options to suit every traveller's budget and style, but it's definitely tilted towards the higher end. Independent, boutique and chain hotels are all there so shop around and you will probably find something that suits your needs. The most expensive hotels tend to be in the main business district &mdash; between Georgia and the waterfront &mdash; with the priciest overlooking the harbour and mountains. Cheaper options tend to be more to the edge of the city centre, closer to False Creek and Yaletown. Hostels are located near the nightspots: along Granville Street or near Gastown.

Prices noted below are generally for the summer season when rates are most expensive.

Budget
If you plan to stay in a hostel downtown, it is probably better to ensure it is located west of Main Street and caters mainly to backpackers (tourists on a budget). Staying downtown keeps much of the frequently visited spots in walking distance. If you plan to find a cheap (significantly less than $90) hotel downtown, be aware that it is likely to be located in the "East Side", infamous for its prostitution and drug problems.



Go next

 * Gastown & Chinatown
 * Kitsilano & Granville Island
 * Stanley Park & the West End
 * Yaletown & False Creek