13 Best Sights in Downtown, Vancouver

Named after one of British Columbia's preeminent artists, Bill Reid (1920–98), this small aboriginal gallery is as much a legacy of Reid's works as it is a showcase of current First Nations artists. Displays include wood carvings, jewelry, print, and sculpture, and programs often feature artist talks and themed exhibitions such as basket weaving. Reid is best known for his bronze statue The Spirit of Haida Gwaii, The Jade Canoe—measuring 12 feet by 20 feet. It is displayed at the Vancouver International Airport, and its image was on the back of Canadian $20 bills issued between 2004 and 2012. More Bill Reid pieces can be found at the Museum of Anthropology. 

Extending four city blocks north into Burrard Inlet, this complex mimics the style and size of a luxury ocean liner, complete with exterior esplanades and a landmark roofline that resembles five sails (it was made with NASA-invented material: a Teflon-coated fiberglass once used in astronaut space suits). Home to Vancouver's cruise-ship terminal, Canada Place can accommodate up to four liners at once. Altogether, the giant building is definitely worth a look. And the FlyOver Canada ( 604/620–8455,  www.flyovercanada.com) attraction, a simulated flight that takes you on a soaring and swooping virtual voyage across the country, is an excellent reason to go inside. If this dramatic journey above Niagara Falls, the Rocky Mountains, and the vast Arctic sparks your curiosity about other parts of Canada, follow the Canadian Trail on the west side of the building, which has displays about the country's provinces and territories. Use your smartphone or tablet to access multimedia content along the way. (There's free Wi-Fi). Canada Place is also home to the posh Pan Pacific Hotel and the east wing of the Vancouver Convention Centre. On its western side stands the newer and much larger convention center—its plaza stages the 2010 Olympic cauldron and the Digital Orca sculpture by Canadian artist Douglas Coupland. A waterfront promenade from Canada Place winds all the way to (and around) Stanley Park, with spectacular vantage points where you can view Burrard Inlet and the North Shore Mountains. Plaques posted along the way include historical information about the city and its waterfront. At the Port of Vancouver Discovery Centre at Canada Place, at the north end of the Canada Place complex, you can take in a history wall with artifacts, imagery, and interactive displays.

One of Vancouver's most handsome postmodern buildings, the 23-story Shaw Tower at Cathedral Place has a faux-copper roof that mimics that of the nearby Fairmont Hotel Vancouver. The three large sculptures of nurses at the building's corners are replicas of the statues that adorned the Georgia Medical-Dental Building, the art deco structure that previously occupied this site. Step into the lobby to see another interesting sculpture: Robert Studer's Navigational Device, suspended high up on the north wall. The small garden courtyard, which also leads to the entrance of the Bill Reid Gallery, is an unexpected respite from Downtown's bustle.

Built between 1889 and 1895, this is the oldest church in Vancouver. Constructed in the Gothic style, the Anglican church looks like the parish church of an English village from the outside, though underneath the sandstone-clad exterior it's made of Douglas fir from what is now south Vancouver. The 32 stained-glass windows depict Old and New Testament scenes, often set against Vancouver landmarks (St. Nicholas presiding over the Lions Gate Bridge, for example). The building's excellent acoustics enhance the choral evensong, and it hosts many concerts. Gregorian chants are performed every Sunday evening at 8 pm. The cathedral's Labyrinth makes for a meditative walk that's hard to find anywhere else in the city's core.

Kitty-corner to the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver, this building has a five-story-high public atrium, regularly changing art exhibitions, and one of the city's more intriguing public art installations. Pendulum, by British Columbia artist Alan Storey, is a 90-foot-long hollow aluminum sculpture that arcs hypnotically overhead.

Inspired by New York's Chrysler Building, the Marine Building is worth stopping for a look. The terra-cotta bas-reliefs on this 21-story, 1930s art deco structure depict the history of transportation—airships, steamships, locomotives, and submarines—as well as Mayan and Egyptian motifs and images of marine life. Step inside for a look at the beautifully restored interior, then walk to the corner of Hastings and Hornby Streets for the best view of the building.

A four-pronged sculpture towering more than 30 feet, the Olympic Cauldron is next to the Vancouver Convention Centre's West Building. In 2010, when Vancouver hosted the Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games, it burned with the Olympic flame, and it's relit occasionally for Canada Day and other special events. The Cauldron overlooks the Burrard Inlet on Jack Poole Plaza, which is named for the Canadian businessman who led the bid to bring the Olympics to Vancouver. Sadly, Poole died of cancer just one day after the flame for the Olympic torch relay was lit in Olympia, Greece, at the start of its journey to Vancouver.

Architect Arthur Erickson designed this plaza to be the gathering place for Downtown Vancouver, although it's not accessible at street level, which makes it a bit of a secret. Landscaped walkways connect the Vancouver Art Gallery, government offices, and law courts at street level, while the lower level houses a University of British Columbia satellite campus and bookstore. In winter, there's also a covered, outdoor, public ice skating rink. In summer, the rink becomes a dance floor for weekly (free) salsa sessions, usually on Friday night and Sunday afternoon. Political protests and impromptu demonstrations take place on the grandiose gallery plaza facing Georgia Street, a tradition that dates from the days when the building was a courthouse.

Running from the Terry Fox Plaza outside BC Place Stadium down to the West End, Robson is Vancouver's busiest shopping street, where fashionistas hang out at see-and-be-seen sidewalk cafés, high-end boutiques, and chain stores. Most of the designer action takes place between Jervis and Burrard Streets, and that's also where you can find buskers and other entertainers in the evening. Alberni Street, that runs parallel to Robson from Burrard Street, is the other hot spot for uber high-end brands. 

Vancouver architect Richard Henriquez knitted four buildings together into Sinclair Centre, an office-retail complex that takes up an entire city block between Cordova and Hastings, and Howe and Granville Streets. Inside are a handful of specialty retailers, federal government offices, and services including UPS and a multilingual travel agency. The two Hastings Street buildings—the 1910 Post Office, which has an elegant clock tower, and the 1911 Winch Building—are linked with the 1937 Post Office Extension and the 1913 Customs Examining Warehouse to the north. As part of a meticulous restoration in the mid-1980s, the post office facade was moved to the Granville Street side of the complex. The original clockwork from the old clock tower is on display inside (on the upper level of the arcade).

Canadian painter Emily Carr's haunting interpretations of the British Columbian hinterland are among the attractions at western Canada's largest art gallery. Carr (1871–1945), a grocer's daughter from Victoria, BC, fell in love with the wilderness around her and shocked middle-class Victorian society by running off to paint it. Her work accentuates the mysticism and danger of BC's wilderness, and records the diminishing presence of native cultures during that era (there's something of a renaissance now). The gallery, which also hosts touring historical and contemporary exhibitions, is housed in a 1911 courthouse that Canadian architect Arthur Erickson redesigned in the early 1980s as part of the Robson Square redevelopment. Stone lions guard the steps to the Georgia Street side (the plaza is often the site of festivals and other events); the main entrance is accessed from Robson Square or Hornby Street.

Resembling a flying saucer stuck atop a high-rise, the 553-foot-high Vancouver Lookout Tower has fabulous views of Vancouver and its surrounding landscapes—on a clear day, as far as Mount Baker in Washington State. A glass elevator whizzes you up 50 stories to the circular observation deck, where knowledgeable guides point out the sights and give a (free) tour every hour on the hour. The top-floor restaurant (604/669–2220) makes one complete revolution per hour. (Note that the elevator ride up is free for diners.) Tickets are good all day, so you can visit in daytime and return for another look after dark.

This former Canadian Pacific Railway passenger terminal was built between 1912 and 1914 as the western terminus for Canada's transcontinental railway. After Canada's two major railways shifted their focus away from passenger service, the station became obsolete. But a 1978 renovation turned it into an office-retail complex and depot for SkyTrain, SeaBus, and the West Coast Express (a suburban commuter rail). In the main concourse, murals up near the ceiling depict the scenery travelers once saw on journeys across Canada. This is where you catch the SeaBus for the 13-minute trip across the harbor to the waterfront public market at Lonsdale Quay in North Vancouver, and the adjacent Shipyards with its restaurants, galleries, and open-area concert space.