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June 13, 2008
The Big Bus that could
Vancouver sightseeing takes a new perspective from higher up.
BAILA LAZARUS
Sitting eight feet in the air, looking down at West End traffic, it's impossible to believe that any large vehicle, let alone a double-decker bus almost 30 feet long, is going to manoeuvre through this traffic jam. But Patricia, our extraordinarily skilled and patient driver, slips between parked cars and pilons, peddlers and pedestrians, as she deftly takes us along English Bay to Stanley Park.
I'm just about midway through a one-and-a-half-hour tour, operated by Big Bus. You might have seen them around downtown recently – bright red sightseeing buses, painted with British flags. I'm on what's called the Hop-On-Hop-Off tour.
Starting in Gastown, the bus heads through downtown, across the Burrard Bridge, over to Granville Island, then back downtown, into the West End along English Bay, into Stanley Park, along Robson, through the entertainment district (B.C. Place, Queen Elizabeth Theatre) and back to Gastown. The Hop-On-Hop-Off tour enables visitors to get off at any one of 22 designated stops, spend some time walking around, and get back on at the same stop or at another one further down.
If you want to take a stroll along Robson, you can get off at the Empire Landmark Hotel near Broughton, walk east and have your choice of getting on again near Burrard, Granville or Homer (Library Square). Or, if you want to see the Vancouver Aquarium, take the bus to Stanley Park, get off for a couple of hours and then get back on again. The ticket is good for two days, so you can really see most of Vancouver's downtown sites, as well as Granville Island. It also stops at specific hotels along the route, such as the Holiday Inn, Century Plaza, Sandman Hotel and the Georgian Court.
As the tour progresses, an automated audio recording lets riders know where they are, and they can also follow along with the Big Bus map that has all 22 stops marked. The audio recording offers historical tidbits, such as the fact that there used to be a giant rock that separated the men and women bathers on English Bay; and historical reenactments (remember those CBC history-in-a-minute commercials?) to give people a flavor of Vancouver's colorful past. Passing over the Burrard Bridge, for example, the audio reenactment conveys how Capt. George Richards came to the coast in 1859, conducting a hydrographic survey looking for coal. He entered False Creek, thinking it would link up to coal deposits in Burrard Inlet. Meeting a dead end, he gave it the name by which it is still known today.
In addition to the Hop-On-Hop-Off tour, Big Bus has package tours that include tickets to specific sights at reduced prices. The Up and Around Tour ($46), one of the best values, according to general manager McKay Wood, includes a pass for the lookout at the top of Harbor Centre; the Over and Around Tour ($63) includes a SeaBus to the North Shore, a shuttle up Grouse and entry into the Capilano Suspension Bridge; and the Watch and Around Tour ($47) includes a ticket to the IMAX movie at Canada Place. An advantage to the package deals is that, when you get tickets for certain attractions, such as the Vancouver Aquarium, you don't have to stand in line during peak visitor periods.
Big Bus tours run all year. They have eight open-top buses, six double-deckers and two single-deckers. Prices range from $35 per person for the Hop-On-Hop-Off tour to $69 for the Out and Around Tour. The Hop-On-Hop-Off tour starts at 9 a.m. in Gastown at the Big Bus Welcome Centre, on Water Street near the steam clock. During peak season (March 15-Oct. 15), departures are every 15-20 minutes; during off-season, every 30-45 minutes. Buy your ticket online and get free fudge and gelato from the Big Bus Welcome Centre. Call 604-299-0700 or visit www.bigbus.ca for more information.
Baila Lazarus is a freelance writer, photographer and illustrator living in Vancouver. Her work can be seen at www.orchiddesigns.net.
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