Vancouver is the largest city in the province of British Columbia, located on Canada’s spectacular west coast and the third largest Canadian city. Vancouver hosted the 2010 Winter Olympic Games which were a golden opportunity to showcase the city and area to the world.

Greater Vancouver has a spectacular water setting. Built on a series of peninsulas, the many bays, inlets, and river branches, as well as the Pacific coastline, are major features of the city. To the west, the Gulf Islands in the Strait of Georgia are easily accessible and are used as year-round vacation properties by Lower Mainland residents.

The Coast Mountains rise directly behind the city to the north and provide excellent local skiing. There are three local ski hills within a half-hour drive of the downtown core while the world-famous ski resort of Whistler/Blackcomb is a short 2 hour drive up the scenic Sea-to-Sky Highway.

Downtown Vancouver occupies a narrow peninsula bounded on three sides by Burrard Inlet, English Bay and False Creek, with Stanley Park at the tip. Key attractions and neighbourhoods are all easily accessible on foot, and streets are organized on a grid system. Robson St and Georgia St are the main downtown east-west thoroughfares, while Granville St is the main north-south artery.

Three prominent neighbourhoods are just a few steps from the downtown core: Yaletown is on Hamilton and Mainland Sts; Gastown is centered on Water St; and Chinatown is in the area around Pender St, between Abbott St and Gore Ave.

Granville Island (not really an island) is under Granville Bridge and is a blend of popular restaurants, theatres, artisan businesses and boutique shops.

West of Granville Island is Kitsilano, a neighbourhood of well-maintained heritage homes with lots of restaurants and specialty shops.

Richmond is close to the airport and is built on 17 islands of silt where the Fraser River meets the Pacific. Richmond is Vancouver’s modern day Chinatown, heavily populated by young Asian immigrants and is a hotbed of ethnic restaurants, and several large shopping malls.

Over the Lions Gate Bridge and Second Narrows Bridge is West Vancouver and North Vancouver, which together comprise the North Shore.

Vancouver’s public transportation authority, TransLink oversees bus, SkyTrain light rail and SeaBus boat services for the Greater Vancouver Area. The extensive BC Ferries system links Greater Vancouver with the Gulf Islands and Vancouver Island, including the capital city of Victoria. Vancouver is also Canada’s largest port and is the hub for cruise ships heading to Alaska.

Vancouver International Airport is Canada’s second busiest airport, handling 15.7 million passengers in 2004. It is about 23 km. south of downtown, while Pacific Central Station, the combined bus and train terminus, is just across from the Main St SkyTrain station.

Population
July 1, 2010 Estimate	2,329,999
Male	1,151,028
Female	1,178,971
% Canadian Total	6.87

Marital Status (2010 Estimates - Age 15+)
Single (Never married)	572,063
Married (Legal and common-law)	1,138,045
Separated (Legally Married)	48,608
Widowed	102,985
Divorced	113,876

Home Language (Top 3)
	2010 Estimates	% Total
English	1,626,477	70.59
Cantonese	112,863	4.90
Chinese	99,745	4.33

Income
2010 Total Income Estimate $	78,703,963,740
% Above/Below National Average	+5
% Canadian Total	7.20
2010 Average HH. Income $	86,071
2010 Per Capita $	33,779

Housing (2010 Estimates)
Occupied Private Dwellings	914,404
Owned	597,316
Rented	316,605

Occupations
2010 Estimates	Male	Female
Management	96,742	51,681
Business, Finance & Admin.	77,329	168,370
Natural & Applied Sci. and Rel’d	77,971	19,818
Health	17,198	53,527
Social Sci., Gov’t Serv’s & Relig’n	20,313	39,466
Education	19,613	32,358
Arts, Culture, Recr’n & Sport	27,184	27,669
Sales & Service	145,178	180,183
Trades, Transp. & EquipOps. Etc.	156,712	11,610
Primary Industries	17,492	8,201
Processing, Mfg. & Utilities	33,598	19,229

Retail Sales
2010 Retail Sales Estimate $	26,902,197,038
% Above/Below National Average	-8
% Cdn. Total	6.29
2010 per HH $	29,420
2010 per Capita $	11,546

Vehicles
2008 new vehicles registered (Year End)	113,776
Total vehicles on the road (Dec '08)	1,426,140

Source: FP Markets, Canadian Demographics 2010