The Best Vancouver Attractions Ever

Vancouver () is a coastal city and major seaport located in the Lower Mainland of southwestern British Columbia, Canada. The city is bounded by the Strait of Georgia, Burrard Inlet, the Fraser River, the city of Burnaby, and the University Endowment Lands. Vancouver is named after Captain George Vancouver, a British explorer. The name Vancouver itself originates from the Dutch "van Coevorden", denoting somebody from (in Dutch: "van") Coevorden, an old city in The Netherlands.

The population of the city of Vancouver is 578,041 and the population of Metro Vancouver is 2,116,581 (2006 Census). Vancouver is the largest metropolitan area in Western Canada and the third largest in the country, although as a municipality it is ranked 8th nationally.Population and dwelling counts, for Canada and census subdivisions (municipalities), 2006 and 2001 censuses. Statistics Canada. Retrieved on: 2009-07-03. Vancouver is ethnically diverse, with 52% of city residents

and 43% of residents of Metro Vancouver

having a first language other than English.

Vancouver was first settled in the 1860s as a result of immigration caused by the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush, particularly from the United States, although many immigrants did not remain after the rush. The city developed rapidly from a small lumber mill town into a metropolitan centre following the arrival of the transcontinental railway in 1887. The Port of Vancouver became internationally significant after the completion of the Panama Canal, which reduced freight rates in the 1920s and made it viable to ship export-bound prairie grain west through Vancouver. It is the busiest seaport in Canada, and the fourth largest port (by tonnage) in North America.

Prior to the 1980s, the economy of Vancouver had traditionally relied on British Columbia's resource sectors: forestry, mining, fishing and agriculture. It has diversified over the past 30 years, however. Today its second largest industry, after forestry, is tourism, and it has become the third-largest film production centre in North America after Los Angeles and New York City, earning it the nickname Hollywood North.

Vancouver is consistently ranked as one of the three most livable cities in the world. According to a 2009 report by Mercer Human Resource Consulting, Vancouver has the fourth highest quality of living in the world, after Zürich, Vienna and Geneva and ranked first in a survey by magazine The Economist.

Mercer - Quality of Living global city rankings 2009 ? Mercer survey, 28 April 2009

Expensive cities: The global cost of living. Interactive map. CBC.ca. Retrieved: 2007-06-19. In 2007, according to Forbes, Vancouver had the 6th most overpriced real estate market in the world and second in North America after Los Angeles. In 2007, Vancouver was ranked Canada's second most expensive city to live in after Toronto and the 89th most expensive globally, and, in 2006, the 56th most expensive city in which to live among 143 major cities in the world. In 2007, Vancouver was ranked as the 10th cleanest city in the world by Forbes.

In October 2008, the City of Vancouver was named one of "Canada's Top 100 Employers" by Mediacorp Canada Inc., and was featured in Macleans'' newsmagazine. The 2010 Winter Olympics and 2010 Winter Paralympics will be held in Vancouver and nearby Whistler, a mountain town 125 km north of the city.