Exploring Vancouver and Beyond
Vancouver's Attractions
From cultural institutions to sights that celebrate Vancouver’s natural beauty, and educational stops to stimulate the whole family, the city’s attractions should be at the top of every traveller’s must-see list. Most of the top attractions work hard to make sure that their activities and exhibits are accessible to everyone, and will offer accessible parking and washrooms. However, there are some restrictions, so we recommend visitors contact each place directly to make sure they’ll have a great experience, whatever their personal needs might be. Below is a list of some of Vancouver’s top attractions and information about how accessible they are.
Shopping
Whether visitors to Vancouver want to spend a day hitting the stores, or just pick up a few souvenirs, they’ll find shopping precincts, malls and department stores all ready to welcome guests with special needs. The city’s major malls, such as Metropolis at Metrotown, Oakridge Centre and Park Royal Shopping Centre, are fully accessible, and will usually have accessible parking at all entrances, numerous wheelchair-accessible washrooms, and wheelchairs available for rental. Or grab designer brands at a friendly price at McArthurGlen Designer Outlet close to Vancouver International Airport, which is also fully accessible.
For visitors that prefer to explore neighbourhoods and shopping streets, such as Yaletown, Gastown and Robson Street, the City of Vancouver’s stringent building codes mean that most stores should have doorways that are flush with the sidewalk or access via a ramp. And the picturesque Granville Island, with its popular public market and artisan studios has plenty of disabled parking spots, ground level or elevator entries to many shops and restaurants, and designated accessible restrooms in the market. You can also take a cute little Aquabus ferry across False Creek to Granville Island – more than half of the fleet is now wheelchair-friendly.
Guided Tours
For those that want to pack a lot of exploring into a short amount of time, guided tours are a hassle-free way of seeing Vancouver’s top attractions and sights.
Gray Line Westcoast Sightseeing does have wheelchair-accessible buses available on request for their range of daily guided tours. The buses have a hydraulic lift that can accommodate folding wheelchairs (not motorized), strollers and walkers. The company offers a range of tours that explore Vancouver, Whistler, Grouse Mountain and Capilano Suspension Bridge, and Victoria. To ensure an accessible bus is available, travellers need to book in advance via email or by calling 604.451.1600. While the company isn’t able to accommodate wheelchairs on its “hop on, hop off” sightseeing service, they instead offer a discounted rate on their Vancouver City tour for visitors using a wheelchair and those travelling with them.
For visitors who want to tour around the city’s largest green space, Stanley Park Horse-Drawn Tours is also wheelchair accessible. The one-hour tour takes guests on a circuit of the park, complete with commentary.
