10 Fun Facts you May not know about Vancouver
- Vancouver is home to Canada’s longest pool. Kits Pool measures 137 meters (451 feet), it is nearly the size of three Olympic pools. This outdoor, saltwater pool is a major tourist attraction and is open year round.
- The eco-activist group Greenpeace, the most visible and successful environmental organizations in the world, was founded in Vancouver 1971. A group of volunteers first met in Gastown’s Luna Café.
- The cosmetic treatment Botox was invented in Vancouver.
- Much of Stanley Park’s ‘natural beauty’ is man-made;
- this includes Lost Lagoon; a 40 acre man-created water feature in Stanley Park. Originally, it was part of Coal Harbour, but was separated by the Stanley Park Causeway in 1916 which essentially turned it from a tidal flats area into a lagoon. It is home to the Jubilee Fountain and many types of birds and some turtles. There is a 2km trail that surrounds the lagoon.
- the squirrel population; all of the grey squirrels found in Stanley Park are descendants of eight pairs of grey squirrels that Vancouver received as a gift from New York City in 1909.
- most of the trees; after insect infestations devastated swaths of the park in the early part of the 20th century, the city replaced swaths of ravaged Hemlock and Spruce with Douglas Fir. Entomologists considered the Fir resilient and more aesthetically pleasing.
- Vancouver is also called “Hollywood of the North”. In North America the city comes second after Los Angeles in TV production and third in feature film production (after Los Angeles and New York). Most productions made in Vancouver are American, whereas most Toronto based productions are Canadian.
- Vancouver and Victoria have the mildest climate in Canada. Although, Vancouver receives on average, 1,589mm of rain per year so bring your umbrella!
- Vancouver’s cruise ship terminal is the 4th largest in the world. Most of the ships departing from the terminal are headed to Alaska.
- Vancouver is a very young city. The City of Vancouver was incorporated on April 6, 1886, the same year that the first transcontinental train arrived. CPR president William Van Horne arrived in Port Moody to establish the CPR terminus recommended by Henry John Cambie, and gave the city its name in honour of George Vancouver. The Great Vancouver Fire on June 13, 1886, razed the entire city. The Vancouver Fire Department was established that year and the city quickly rebuilt. Vancouver’s population grew from a settlement of 1,000 people in 1881 to over 20,000 by the turn of the century and 100,000 by 1911
- BC Place was the first covered stadium in Canada. The stadium opened on June 19, 1983, and was built as an indoor structure with an air-supported roof, the largest of its kind in the world upon its opening. The retractable roof is 7500 square metres and is the largest in the world.
- A world-renowned city for green thinking and living. Vancouver was awarded the top honour of the “greenest city” in the world in 2021 by BusinessWaste.co.uk. The city was described as “Canada’s shining jewel when it comes to recycling” and praised for increasing its recycling rate from 40 per cent to over 60 per cent in just over a decade.
We hope that you learned a few things about Vancouver in this post. If you want to explore the city more, don’t miss out on Private Tours. Our team is dedicated to organizing fun and versatile tours to show you the best Vancouver has to offer!
Photo Credit: Tourism Vancouver/Albert Normandin