Welcome to Vancouver

Vancouver is the largest city in the province of British Columbia. It's surrounded by water on three sides and is nestled alongside the Coast Mountain Range. Vancouver is home to spectacular natural scenery and a bustling metropolitan core, and boasts one of the mildest climates in Canada.

The Greater Vancouver region is home to more than two million people in 21 municipalities, making it the third largest metropolitan area in Canada.

Mapquest and Google Maps are both excellent resources for figuring distances and directions.

VanMap is a Web-based map system that includes more obscure items like sewer lines and the bizzarre, like where someone is buried in the Mountain View Cemetery.

Vancouver is the host city for the Winter 2010 Olympics.

Getting Around

Unlike most major cities, Vancouver does not have a freeway connecting the downtown to the airport. Traffic can be nasty, especially during rush hours (7:30am - 9:30am and 4:00pm - 6:30pm). Give yourself plenty of time to get around.

Airports

YVR - Vancouver International Airport
YXX - Abbotsford International

Buses & Trains

Translink operates Vancouver's bus, SeaBus and SkyTrain public transit systems.

Vancouver Airporter offers bus transportation between downtown Vancouver and Vancouver International Airport (YVR).

Greyhound Bus offers inter-city travel (including Vancouver-Whistler)

Amtrak offers passenger train travel between Vancouver and Seattle.

ViaRail is Canada's national passenger railroad, offering transportation between Vancouver and Jasper and other major cities in Canada.

BC Ferries

The BC Ferry system is the largest domestic ferry service in the world, serving to connect Vancouver with Vancouver Island and many other smaller coastal islands, such as Bowen Island.

Weather

Vancouver's weather is the mildest in Canada, in part due to a strong warm Pacific Ocean current that originates near Japan, and a strong flow of on-shore air that originates near Hawaii. Spring comes early, with flowers generally in full bloom by early March. Late summer and autumn days-through October-tend to be warm and sunny. Current Weather

The temperature averages for August are:

Predicting day-to-day weather in Greater Vancouver is one of the most challenging jobs in the country. That's because the Cascade Mountain range of north-western Washington State splits the onshore flow of Pacific wind and moisture, and the flow reconverges above Greater Vancouver, just as the airflow is forced over the North Shore mountains.

> more Vancouver weather statistics

Travel Resources

Vancouver Visitors Bureau
Tourism Vancouver

Vancouver City Website
Vancouver.ca

Tourism British Columbia
Hello BC