Visited Vancouver, new Westminster, we are disgusted with the lack of washroom facilities. my husband is 73 years old with stage 4 prostate cancer, we were looking for a washroom at the train station in new west minster station, with no luck, my husband was beside himself trying to hold it in. not one shop or restaurant would allow us to use the washroom, it was humiliating for my husband , we will let our family and friends know, NOT to visit your city. So disgusted with your transit system. read more

Nothing makes you feel like a true tourist like stopping at the Visitor Center. I tend to avoid it because a lot of Visitor Centers don't have useful information and the workers seem miserable and unhelpful. This particular place was the opposite! They gave us maps, directions to different attractions, and helped us figure out the public transit. You may have to swallow some traveler's pride but it will save you a lot of time and stress if you just go and talk to a local who's used to answering questions! read more

We stumbled across this visitor centre while walking around the Canada Place, and how we wish we'd found it sooner! From the neighboring buildings and hotels shooting up like a bamboo forest, this visitor centre was looking brand spanking new and very modern and clean interior, probably getting ready to receive tens of thousands of visitors for the 2010 Winter Olympic. It was fun looking around the pictures and maps throughout this place. We didn't get a help from the volunteer persons there as we didn't really need to, but you can find all kinds of maps, all the restaurants, attractions, activity info and coupons here. And we found the public transportation map, which is helpful to get around the town if you want to go outside of walking distance and don't want to use rental car or cab. read more

Why do people stop by here especially if you know the city pretty good already. Well either a tourist or if you live in the area this place has hella info. The people that work here really know what their talking about. They have great info on not only the main attractions in and around the city but also some hidden gems or places inside the main attractions that are a bit hidden yet an awesome find. It's across the street from where all the cruise ships dock and it can get extremely crowded in the area to park and even walk. However, it is worth the trip here. Even though I come through the area often I like stopping by and grabbing pamphlets for new attractions and each person Ive spoken to there takes time out to give you good info. Its obvious they know what their talking about and they love their job. Heck I think this would be a fun place to work. The only downside is the parking, driving in this part of the city and congestion. Another thing of note is the parking meters in the area took my American money/change. read more

Got in for a few questions and spend almost 20 minutes in there! They were so friendly and helpful! In the end, they even gave me and my friend some chocolate!! Place to be for any questions! read more

What a library of resources for the visitor/tourist, in such a scenic location! the water,mountains, Pan Pacific, food court, Sinclair Centre...anyways... Love checking out the print media stuff, esp. the Meeting Planners guide, Travel Planners guide, and of course the Official Visitors Guide. All carry a nice assortment of the member restaurants who pay the big bucks to be a member. So i like the fact that these restos are legit & current ;) And if you go to the rack card section, some restos have special discounts, even if you're not a tourist b/c they simply can't expect ppl to show their passports, etc. since some leave in the hotel room...ie. small deals like free dessert, 2 for 1 appetizer... Plus they have a Ticketmaster there to buy any events in the city! and if you're a road trip guy like me, tons of free maps/guides/brochures for Interior BC's golf resorts, destinations, etc. read more

This review concentrates on the AMAZING INITIATIVE brought to tourist hosts of Vancouver; by The Hotel Association of Vancouver - Vancouver Attractions Dot Com and Tourism Vancouver: The TOURISM CHALLENGE initiative, is what I am talking about, which Not only does it benefit Vancouver, BC; the individual tourist attractions and the participants, it also shapes Vancouver ambassadors for the global marketplace. WELL DONE Vancouver, BC. read more

You can certainly get a plethora of printed media from your hotel about the city. But I suggest you pay a visit when you arrive in Vancouver anyway. Because what you don't get is the first hand knowledge, short cuts, tips and local tidbits that the enthusiastic staff here will impart. Kudos to Vancouver for attracting what seems to be volunteer retirees who love their city and want to make sure that you love it too and will get the most out of your visit here too. I spoke to two volunteers here, and another while we took a ferry ride, who went on the False Creek Ferry tour with her husband so she could talk intelligently about it. It appears that the staff on their days off take the time to go to the site and attractions the Centre recommends. They are honest in their opinions about places and are good at reading your needs too. On the day I stopped by and praised the natural beauty of the city, the volunteer recommended Lighthouse Park to me, after I informed her that wanted to explore places outside central Vancouver area. She was a gem, the park was a delight, and her advice about going early to avoid the traffic on Lion's Gate, because of a lane closure, is the kind of tip you can really only get from a local. I loved the fact that when I asked her a question she didn't know, she asked another person who did know. Teamwork and passion and common sense. Wow! The Centre is clean(that word is synonymous with Vancouver I am finding), spacious, and well stocked with all sorts of printed cards and brochures from various places and vendors. Look for the places you want to visit to see if they offer discounts. Get the brochure/map on Stanley Park as it is colorful and well done. It was so pretty I brought it home so I could gaze out it while dreaming about my next trip. The large city map the tourism board prints out is good too, if your hotel already doesn't have that one. Get also the cheat sheet on attractions the Centre prints out. That tells you what bus, train to take, and if it is a two fare zone etc. (My only tip now would be for LIghthouse Park, that they add the actual stop to get off! Also, the only bus that goes to Marine Drive I was told by a local runs only 3x Sundays!). It's a plain Xerox sheet, nothing fancy, chock full of useful information. I was already used to Vancouver's fairly easy mass transit system but if you are not a savvy, that is truly helpful. I thought it was terrific even though I had plotted most of my routes. This is one of the best tourism offices I've visited in terms of friendliness of staff, the quantity and quality of information from the staff. The only strange thing seems to be a lack of public bathroom but I was directed to the food court just next door! Just a note: If anyone from the tourist board reads this, I understand the Giant Os Gemeos might be in trouble. Why not have a satellite stand on Granville Island just asking for $1 from every visitor? Or ask randomly the visitors who come through YVR? Just one dollar? Or have the city host an Os Gemeo BBQ, with tickets going to support their maintenance? read more

This is *not* your ordinary perfunctory little visitor's center - set up in the middle of town and staffed by a few civic-minded volunteers in a little corner office with a few brochure racks.. This is *not* that.. This is more like a public full-service travel agency.. maintained by the Greater Vancouver Visitors and Convention Bureau.. you walk in here off the street with a question like .. "My wife is insisting we spend some time in Victoria.. what's the best way to....?" .. and their volunteers and paid staff are on your case.. pointing out *all* the alternatives for visiting the place..points they think you really ought to see.. pulling out Ferry Schedules.. if that's how you want to do it.. finding and *booking* accommodations.. I mean.. *good,* *inexpensive,* centrally-located accommodations at a guaranteed price ..if that's what you *want* .. expensive and elegant.. they can handle that too.. Best decision we made was walking in there.. No fee charged.. The volunteers are all pleasant people.. ready to chat up their favorite spots in BC and suggest spots you might not have considered visiting.. I *suspect* we happened to be the accidental beneficiaries of Vancouver getting its visitor accommodations ready for the 2010 Winter Olympics.. just a wonderful operation they ran.. and free for us! If they had *had* someone on staff who could have come up with some knowledgeable kara*ke tips... well.. *that* would have warranted *six* stars... but no.. None of the nice ladies had much in the way of guidance for kara*ke.. BUT.. they did make a web query which brought up a decent listing of places.. and they did try to dissuade me from visiting the closest place.. which happened to be in what they considered to be a scary neighborhood... (too late as it turned out.. I had visited *that* place on my first night.. and "scary" neighborhoods in Vancouver... well.. shit.. not even *close* to SF-scary.. Oakland scary.. NY-scary..) but I did appreciate their concern.. read more

If you are a visitor to Vancouver and you want information about tours, restaurants, hotels, or things to do in the city, go here (and by here, I mean Tourism Vancouver, though Yelp can be a pretty helpful place too). This summer we had lots of out of town visitors in town for our wedding. We decided to stop by Tourism Vancouver to pick up some maps and information to pass along to our guests. We were really pleased by the stuff that they provided and the helpfulness of the staff. read more

This placed was packed with tourists almost out the door. There is a major event in town tomorrow and Friday and some international fans of said band that are in town all the way from Europe and Asia wanting to take advantage of the beautiful city and do things. The people here were really nice and helpful. They have some tourism training and were able to hook up some of these people as well as my friends who flew out for an opening day tour show with some packages to check out some amazing stuff in the city. Most were for 2 people, therefore, I will be playing tourist in my own city and will be writing about those as well. There is free wifi inside which helps. What an awesome way in the service industry/customer service to put our best foot forward to people who are spending money in our city. read more

Such a nice and friendly place to start your visit in Vancouver. They have discounted tickets to all of the major attractions and will help you plan how to get around. read more

The staff are very friendly, outgoing and helpful and the new jazzed up location is like - wow!!

Information and local tips along with a one stop shop for entertainment and attractions.