Get oriented
Vancouver International Airport has two main terminals, domestic and international, connected by a short corridor dotted with services, seating, and a great kids' play area. In the International Terminal, flights to and from the United States use gates in Concourse E, while all other international flights use the D gates. Flights within Canada use concourses A, B, and C in the Domestic Terminal.
Take care of yourself
Eat: The food court in the International Terminal offers sushi, pizza, noodles, burgers, deli sandwiches, and a nice upper-level seating area for those trying to get away from the crowds below. Table service is offered nearby at the Pacific Market Restaurant, the Jade Oyster Bar, and at the new Hanami Japanese Restaurant, located near the security checkpoint for the International Terminal. Downstairs, in the International arrivals area, the Elephant & Castle pub offers British pub fare, including ploughman's lunches.
In the Domestic Terminal your choices for table service include the Milestones Restaurant and Cheers Bar & Restaurant, both on the departure level. In the two food court areas on the departure level your choices include sushi, bagels, pizza, salads, juices, sandwiches, and burgers. There's also a brewpub, a doughnut stand, good coffee, and several fast-food outlets on the lower level, near the baggage claim areas.
Relax and refresh: To escape the hectic airport scene, head for the comfortable seats in the lobby of the Fairmont Vancouver Airport hotel, located right on top of the airport and accessible from the lobby of the International Terminal. If that's too upscale for you, join the folks napping in the seating area in the connecting corridor between the Domestic and International terminals or stop in at the chapel, located on the lower level of the International Terminal.
If you find people-watching a pleasant pastime, grab a stool at the Starbucks coffee bar or the Jade Oyster Bar in the center lobby of the International Terminal. Both are near a large cast-bonze sculpture that sits in a sort of amphitheater setting with low wooden benches.
Need more serious relaxation services? YVR has three Absolute Spa locations: pre-security in the Domestic Terminal, post-security in the U.S. Departures area, and the largest outlet at the Vancouver Airport Fairmont Hotel. The spas feature oxygen bars and offer manicures, massages, and pedicures. If you just need a haircut or a scalp massage, look for the Airport Hair Salon, located in the connecting corridor between terminals.
The Fairmont Vancouver Airport hotel, has a day rate (9 AM–6 PM) that runs upward of C$129 and an evening rate (6–11 PM) that starts at C$135. Room rates include a free Internet connection and access to the hotel's extensive health club facilities. For a great deal, pass on the day room rate and pay just C$10 to use the hotel's shower and sauna or C$15 to use the pool, hot tubs, showers, and workout facilities. Tel. +1 (604) 207-5200.
Or take in dinner and a movie: InMotion Pictures has a "portable theatre" DVD rental kiosk in the International Terminal, between the ticket counters and the food court (across from Starbucks) and in the U.S. Departures gate area, between gates 84 and 85.
Feeling woozy or need a check-up? The Vancouver Airport Medical Clinic (on Level 1 of the Domestic Terminal) offers travel medicine and vaccinations, cosmetic dermatology, and patch-ups for minor injuries. Walk in or call ahead for an appointment. Tel. +1 (604) 207-6900. Hours: 8 AM–8 PM, 7 days a week. There's a pharmacy nearby and a dental clinic scheduled to open in early fall 2001.
Most areas of the airport are non-smoking, but there are separately ventilated smoking rooms past security in the Domestic and International terminals and on the lower level of the Domestic Terminal near Stanley's Lounge. Smoking is also permitted in Cheers Bar & Restaurant, located in the departure area of the Domestic Terminal.
Take care of business
In addition to an Aerzone Business Centre, YVR also sports a business center on the arrivals level of the International Terminal which offers faxing, copying, printing, and secretarial services as well as computer workstations and laptop hookups. The Fairmont Vancouver Airport Hotel also has a business center and provides free Internet connections in each guestroom.
There are several full-service Royal Bank branches scattered throughout the airport. Automatic teller machines are plentiful, but only before the security checkpoints. Some machines dispense Canadian dollars, some offer U.S. dollars, and others dispense currency from 90 different countries.
Airline club members will find two Air Canada lounges in the domestic terminal, one in the U.S. Departures gate area, and one in the International Terminal. British Airways and several other international carriers have lounges in the International Terminal, just past the security checkpoint.
Explore the airport
Shop: YVR has shop-filled "streets" in the departure levels of both the Domestic and International Terminals, all honoring the airport's "street-pricing" policy, which means prices here should be no higher than prices in downtown Vancouver.
Each terminal has a well-stocked bookstore and a wide variety of shops selling smoked salmon, maple syrup, and other gift food items.
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Best souvenir under $10:
B.C.-based Purdy's Chocolates sells a six-pack of their very popular chocolate hedgehogs for C$7.50 from a shop in the International Terminal ticket lobby. (A 10-pack is C$10.95.)
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In the International Terminal, head to the Kids' Place Children's Store for toys, to the Mountain Style Shop for outdoor gear, and to Gifts of the Raven or Spirit of the North for artwork, crafts, and other gifts from British Columbia. Duty free shops beyond the security checkpoints include a PGA Tour Shop, a wine store, and all sorts of food and gift shops.
In the Domestic Terminal, browse for clothing, books, jewelry, and other gift items at British Columbia and Beyond, and just try to restrain yourself at the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory shop. On Level 1, grab snacks, Slurpees, and other incidentals at the world's first airport 7-Eleven or browse the pharmacy for cosmetics, greeting cards, and other gift items.
Sightsee: Throughout the airport you'll find wonderful Native American art reflecting the Musqueam culture and people. The collection's centerpiece, a 3½-meter high, 4,900-kilogram sculpture by Bill Reid titled The Spirit of Haida Gwaii—the Jade Canoe, sits in the center of the departure level of the International Terminal. Behind Reid's masterpiece is the Great Wave Wall, a glass installation by Lutz Hauschild that was inspired by the Great Wave of Kanagawa by the artist Hokusai.
In the arrivals hall you'll find large carvings by Susan Point, including the world's largest Coast Salish Spindle Whorl and two 17-foot-tall red-cedar welcome figures. Large weavings by Musqueam weavers Debra Sparrow, Robyn Sparrow, Krista Point, Gina Grant, and Helen Calbreath hang nearby.
For more information about these artworks and others throughout the airport, stop by the information booth in the Domestic Terminal (the counter with a giant question mark overhead).
You'll get the best views of airfield activities and surrounding scenery from the glass-walled corridors of the International Terminal. To get closer to the scenery, head outside (towards the parking structure) from the International Terminal and spend some time at Chester Johnson Park. The park features a walking trail through a mini-Pacific Coast forest, three totem poles, a waterfall and a reflection pond.
A bit further afield, Flight Path Park (on Russ Baker Way, a 5-minute cab ride from the airport) sports a replica of the airport runway system complete with a compass pointing to worldwide destinations. The park has several historical aircraft and is a great place to watch airplanes take off and land.
Play around:
There are children's play areas before and after the security checkpoints in both terminals and in the middle of the connecting corridor between the Domestic and International terminals.
A nursery in the connecting corridor is open 24 hours a day.
If kids ask politely, the folks at the airport police desk (in the connecting corridor just down from the play area) will hand over a paper ambulance that they can assemble and play with. At the Information Desk in the Domestic Terminal, they hand out children's activity books.
Kids of all ages, however, might enjoy searching the airport to try to spot all the great art scattered about or visiting the park just outside the International Terminal. Adults might enjoy a game of pool at the Elephant & Castle Pub in the lower level of the International Terminal.
Go into town
A taxi ride to downtown Vancouver will cost about C$25 and can take up to 30 minutes. Customer service representatives, called "Taxi Hosts," are stationed by the taxi stands and can help you figure out how much your fare should be.
Shuttle vans to downtown and the cruise ship terminal cost C$12 and leave for downtown every 15 minutes until 10:30 PM. After that, until the last run just past midnight, they leave every 30 minutes.
You can buy your tickets at the Tourism InfoCenter, the Airporter ticket office, or on the bus.
If you have lots of time, little luggage, and don't mind transferring, you can take the public bus downtown. Catch the No. 100 on the ground level of the Domestic Terminal and ask the driver where to transfer.
For additional information about Vancouver International Airport, call +1 (604) 207-7077.
