Travel Information

Travel to Vancouver

Plane

If you’re arriving by air, you’ll most likely be flying into Vancouver International Airport (YVR). Located just 25 minutes from downtown, YVR is consistently rated one of the best airports in North America. There are more than a dozen international flights in and out of YVR every day, with more than 20 bound for the United States.

If you’re flying into Vancouver from a short-haul, domestic destination such as Victoria or other parts of Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands or Whistler, you can also travel via scheduled floatplane or helicopter services. Both offer departures from downtown Vancouver, or from Richmond – close to YVR.

Highway 1, the Trans-Canada Highway, accesses Vancouver from points east. If planning a driving tour, allow 4 hours from Kelowna in the Okanagan Valley, 12 hours from Calgary, and five days from Montreal. If you’re arriving in Vancouver from Victoria or Vancouver Island, you’ll need to take your car on a BC Ferries vessel across the Strait of Georgia to the mainland. Vancouver is only three hours north of Seattle. Take the Interstate 5, which becomes Highway 99 at the United States-Canada border.

BC Ferries provides regularly scheduled passenger and vehicle service between Vancouver, Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands and other parts of coastal British Columbia. Reservations can be made on some routes. Find out more by visiting their website or calling 1.888.223.3779 or 1 250.386.3431 (outside North America).

Hullo is the sole provider of direct ferry access into Downtown Vancouver from Vancouver Island. Their foot-passenger ferries are a fast and convenient way to travel, connecting Nanaimo with Vancouver Harbour in just 70 minutes. Four sailings are available each way on a daily basis, with additional late-night sailings offered during major sports and music events in the city.

Travel across Canada on VIA Rail’s transcontinental service running from Vancouver to Toronto, via Jasper, three times per week, year-round. Or take in the best of BC and Alberta with a Rocky Mountaineer two-day rail tour, offered from April through October. If you’re heading to Vancouver from the U.S., consider the Amtrak Cascades route between Eugene, Oregon and Vancouver, via Portland and Seattle.

Pacific Central Station is the terminus for both VIA Rail and Amtrak trains, and is located just east downtown Vancouver at Main and Terminal streets. Rocky Mountaineer trains operate out of their own facilities, with stations in East Vancouver (close to Pacific Central Station) and North Vancouver.

Take a scheduled bus service into Vancouver. Our coach line partners offer regular service to Vancouver from destinations including Seattle, Victoria, Vancouver Island, Whistler and the Okanagan Valley.