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, 2012 Estimate	2,473,055
Male	1,221,038
Female	1,252,017
% Canadian Total	7.08

Marital Status (2012 Estimates - Age 15+)
Single (Never married)	610,213
Married (Legal and common-law)	1,215,379
Separated (Legally Married)	51,568
Widowed	109,994
Divorced	121,547

Home Language (Top 3)
	2012 Estimates	% Total
English	1,724,549	70.52
Cantonese	119,478	4.89
Chinese	106,263	4.35

Income
2012 Total Income Estimate $	85,859,452,355
% Above/Below National Average	+1
% Canadian Total	7.16
2012 Average HH. Income $	88,136
2012 Per Capita $	34,718

Housing (2012 Estimates)
Occupied Private Dwellings	974,169
Owned	636,611
Rented	337,037

Occupations
2012 Estimates	Male	Female
Management	100,736	54,891
Business, Finance & Admin.	80,360	179,260
Natural & Applied Sci. and Rel’d	81,110	20,925
Health	17,778	56,548
Social Sci., Gov’t Serv’s & Relig’n	20,961	41,846
Education	20,439	34,253
Arts, Culture, Recr’n & Sport	28,090	28,997
Sales & Service	150,792	191,478
Trades, Transp. & EquipOps. Etc.	162,950	12,176
Primary Industries	18,157	8,641
Processing, Mfg. & Utilities	34,839	20,375

Retail Sales
2012 Retail Sales Estimate $	29,478,980,477
% Above/Below National Average	-13
% Cdn. Total	6.14
2012 per HH $	30,261
2012 per Capita $	11,920

Vehicles
2010 new vehicles registered (Year End)	93,823
Total vehicles on the road (Dec '10)	1,407,828

Source: FP Markets, Canadian Demographics 2012