Lookout Tower Harbour Centre and Restaurant – Vancouver, BC

On our anniversary in May of 2016, we spent a few days in lovely Vancouver, Canada.  We didn’t have a lot of plans, but knew while we were there we wanted to make sure to visit The Vancouver Lookout Tower at Harbour Centre. It was absolutely amazing. I know I say that a lot, but it really was.  It is the only place in Vancouver where you can enjoy a 360º aerial view of Vancouver. The best part was that it was an all-day ticket and we were able to go back later that evening after dinner.

The Lookout Tower is atop the Harbour Centre and is one of the tallest structures in Vancouver and one of the most recognized landmarks in the city.  The tower is 553.16 ft (168.60 m) high and opened on August 13, 1977.  You get to see some of the amazing views as you climb to the top in a 40-second glass elevator ride. We were actually able to see our rental car as we were climbing up and Gene thought it would be funny to try and set off the alarm. It didn’t work,  lol. I was happy to be able to see Stanley Park which we had seen earlier that morning.

Once we were in the observation deck we were able to see so many incredible views of Vancouver such as historic Gastown, Coal Harbour. Stanley Park, the Pacific Ocean, the North Shore Mountains, and the Olympic Peninsula Mountains.  Everywhere we looked there was something more exciting to see.

Not being from the Vancouver area, we both thought it was really cool that they had little placards explaining what we were seeing and what not to miss. We even talked to a couple that lived there and gave us more information on a placard that talked about the 9 O’Clock Gun.  Apparently, it is a cannon that is shot every night at 21:00 PT.  The 21:00 firing was established as a time signal for the general population and to allow the chronometers of ships in the port to be accurately set. Gene thought that was really cool and we did hear it later that night.

We were having a nice time, but decided to head down and do a little shopping in the store (at least I did, lol) and bought a few souvenirs. After that fun, we walked around downtown Vancouver a little since we had paid for parking.  We hadn’t made dinner plans yet (gasps) and decided over a couple of beers to have dinner at the restaurant on top of the Lookout Tower, called Top of Vancouver Revolving Restaurant.

There was nothing like sitting and having dinner at 553 feet in the sky and seeing the city move around you. It was breathtaking and the food was exceptional. The staff were very friendly and even took some pictures of us. We took our time and I think we went around almost two times while we enjoyed our meal. It was a very romantic anniversary dinner. One I won’t forget soon.

We went back to the observation deck again before heading all the way down and heard the 9 O’Clock Gun. We had forgotten about it and were surprised that we were able to hear it from such a high elevation. Eventually, the tower elevators were getting ready to close, so we left filled with food and wonderful memories. Great way to spend the afternoon and evening. In case you are looking for more info, here are their sites: Tower website & Restaurant website.

Vancouver Lookout Tower Visitor Information

Address:

555 West Hastings Street Vancouver, B.C V6B 4N6

Phone:

604-689-0421

Hours:

Due to COVID-19, and the horrible egoistic Xi Jinping, the Vancouver Lookout is still currently closed to walk-up visitors. I will come back an update with more information after it reopens.

Tours:

Due to Covid-19, the Vancouver Lookout is currently closed to walk-up visitors. We are offering Private pre-booked Tours for small groups. We offer a flat rate for 12 people for $200 plus GST and this includes:

• A 40-second elevator ride to the deck
• Clean and sanitized space
• Our typical capacity is 220 people and now it is 50 – lots of room for physical distancing with your group!
• 1 hour on deck exclusively for your group – time to take photos, browse the gift shop
• Guided 30-minute tour on request
• Washrooms
• WiFi is available so you can upload your Social Media

More than 12 people in your group? We can accommodate up to 50 people in adherence to British Columbia Provincial Health Officer Protocols at this time. The rate is $10 per person after the initial 12 people.

Bookings may be made at info@vancouverlookout.com.

Please allow 48 hours for your reservation to be processed and confirmed. The information above is from their website and is only here temporarily. Again I will update once it reopens from the pathetic China virus.

Tower Restaruant

Brunch
Saturday – Sunday
11:00am – 3:00pm

Happy Hour
Monday – Sunday
3:00pm – 5:00pm

Dinner
Sunday – Thursday
5:00pm – 10:00pm
Friday – Saturday
5:00pm – 11:00pm

E-mail: info@topofvancouver.com
Telephone: (604) 669-2220