The Vancouver issue
Vancouver's Granville Island in the November rain
A wet afternoon on Granville Island beats a dry one if you time it right. Work out the quiet market hours and what to drink on Railspur Alley, then stay for the free lights after dark.
By Robin de VriesVancouver, one neighbourhood at a time
The Public Market opens at 9 a.m. every day and costs nothing to walk around. That matters in November, when the rain here is steady and almost everything on Granville Island has a roof over it. The ferry across False Creek takes about five minutes and costs $5.00.
Arriving by Aquabus
The Aquabus boats are small, rainbow-painted and heated inside, and they run from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. seven days a week. From the island to Hornby Street downtown is $5.00 one way for an adult and $3.50 for a child or senior. A return is $8.50. An all-day pass is $22.00 if you want to ride between the other docks at Yaletown and David Lam Park. Bikes are $1.00. Compass cards and transit passes don't work on the ferries.
Driving is the weaker option. The island has one one-way road, and the boat costs less than parking. The dock sits between the market and the Arts Club theatre. Guided city tours that take in the island run daily, so book ahead if you want a seat.
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The market before 11 a.m.
Weekday mornings are the quiet window inside the Granville Island Public Market, and 9 to 11 a.m. is the calmest stretch. At weekends the crowds build from 10 a.m. onwards. The stalls are piled with squash and berries, and the fishmongers work ice counters behind them.
Blue Parrot and JJ Bean pour coffee inside from 7:30 a.m., before the market opens, and Petit Ami from 8:30 a.m. Lee's Donuts starts at 8 a.m., an hour ahead of everything else, which is how you get a Honey Dip without the queue. Day stalls from local makers sell jewellery, soaps, preserves and candles alongside the permanent food shops. Doors close at 6 p.m.
Shopping in the Net Loft
The Net Loft is directly across the street from the market entrance, open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Inside is a warren of small shop doorways. Paper-Ya sells handmade and Japanese papers, dip pens and inks. Circle Craft is an artist-owned co-operative with pottery, glass and woven work, and its exhibitions change. Maiwa does textiles and natural dyes, and there's a hat shop and a bead shop too. Allow 45 minutes to an hour.
Cartwright Street craft and beer
The Craft Council of BC Shop & Gallery on Cartwright Street works as a gallery as much as a shop, showing members' work in clay, glass and metal. Its Ornament Collection, a selling show of hand-made ornaments, is on from 24 November until 6 February. It opens 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Tuesday to Sunday and shuts on Mondays. Give it 20 minutes, half an hour if you're buying.
A few minutes along the same street, Granville Island Brewing has brewed here since 1984. Tours run daily at noon, 2 p.m. and 4 p.m., and they take you through the bottling. Ask the price at the retail store when you arrive. In the taproom a flight of four small glasses is $15 and a pint is $10.25. It opens at noon early in the week and 11 a.m. from Friday. Closing time moves about, so check on the day if you want a late one.
Sake and gin on Railspur Alley
Artisan SakeMaker is a small storefront on Railspur Alley where Masa Shiroki makes sake on site in small lots. A flight of three samples is $15, and a flight of imported sake is $20. It opens from 11:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily, so treat it as an afternoon stop. On 28 and 29 November there's a six-course sake dinner with chef Dai Fukasaku, at 5:30 p.m. or 7:30 p.m., $130 a head. Book that one ahead. Otherwise 20 to 30 minutes at the counter is plenty.
The Liberty Distillery is on the corner of Old Bridge Street, with a long dark bar and a copper pot still behind glass. Tours aren't running at the moment, so come for the bar. Vodka, gin and whiskey are made here from organic British Columbia grain, and bottles are sold in the room. It opens at noon Monday to Thursday and 11 a.m. from Friday to Sunday, closing at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.
Lunch on False Creek
Tap & Barrel – Bridges is the bright yellow building by the water that everyone photographs, on Duranleau Street next to the ferry dock. It traded as Bridges for years, so the name on your map may be the old one. It opens from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. in the week, from 10 a.m. at weekends and until midnight on Friday and Saturday. Brunch runs 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at weekends. Happy hour is 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays and from 9 p.m. every day. It takes bookings.
Dockside Restaurant is quieter, on the ground floor of the Granville Island Hotel at the eastern tip, where the day-trip crowd thins out. It's the priciest waterfront table here, and worth reserving. It opens from 7:30 a.m. to 11 p.m., with weekend brunch until 2 p.m. The terrace looks across to downtown and the mountains, but patio seating is seasonal, so plan on sitting inside.
Free lights at Ron Basford Park
Ron Basford Park is a grassy mound at the south-eastern corner, between Performance Works and the hotel. The climb takes two minutes and puts you above the sheds, with Alder Bay on one side. There are no gates and no hours.
After dark a vintage crane near the hotel is lit up, and large musical notes hang in the trees by the theatres. The lights come on at sundown every day, holidays included, and cost nothing. They run from 12 November to 3 January, with the switch-on on 16 November. Plainer winter lighting is on across the island from 1 November until the clocks change in March.
Over to the St. Roch
False Creek Ferries runs from the island dock to Vanier Park in a few minutes, every 15 minutes from 9:45 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. An adult fare is $7.00 one way and $11.00 return. It lands you at the door of the Vancouver Maritime Museum on Ogden Avenue. Inside, under a high timber roof, sits the St. Roch, an Arctic patrol schooner. Historic boats are moored outside and there's a gallery for children. Adult admission is $22 plus GST, and the first Sunday of the month is pay what you can. It opens 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday to Sunday. Allow 90 minutes.
With small children
Kids Market is near the road entrance, in a century-old paint factory with a train caboose outside. Two indoor floors of toys, costumes and candy, free to walk around and open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily. The Adventure Zone play space is next to the shops. The waterpark outside is summer only, so don't promise it now. Without children, skip it.
Evening at the Improv Centre
Once the shops shut, The Improv Centre on Duranleau Street is the thing still going. Theatresports, where two teams of improvisers compete, plays Fridays and Saturdays at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. until 19 December. General admission is $31.50, and there's a licensed lounge if you come early. A new show opens on 19 November, a love story told with puppets. It plays Fridays and Saturdays at 7 p.m. with some matinees, through to 30 December. A one-night show of movie musicals plays on Thursday 26 November at 7 p.m. If your English isn't strong, give it a miss, as the comedy is unscripted and built on audience suggestions.
Closing days and bookings
Mondays shut the craft gallery and the maritime museum, so keep those for another day, and book the sake dinner and a table at Dockside before you come.
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Before you go
How do you get to Granville Island from downtown Vancouver?
Take the Aquabus from Hornby Street. It runs 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day, the cabins are heated, and the crossing is about five minutes. An adult fare is $5.00 one way, or $8.50 return, and bikes are $1.00. Compass cards are not accepted, so you pay the ferry fare separately. The dock is between the Public Market and the Arts Club theatre.
What is the quietest time to visit the Public Market?
Weekday mornings, with 9 to 11 a.m. the calmest stretch. At weekends the aisles fill from 10 a.m. onwards. The market is open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily and free to walk around, and Lee's Donuts inside opens at 8 a.m. if you want a doughnut before the crowds.
Is Granville Island worth it on a rainy November day?
Yes, because the main draws are indoors and free to enter. The Public Market, the Net Loft across the street and the Kids Market all keep you dry, and the Maritime Museum is a few minutes away by ferry. It suits a visitor with half a day and no fixed plan.
Where can you eat on Granville Island with a water view?
Tap & Barrel Bridges is on Duranleau Street beside the ferry dock, open from 11 a.m. in the week and 10 a.m. at weekends, and it takes large parties. Dockside Restaurant at the Granville Island Hotel is quieter and pricier, and worth booking ahead. In November, plan on sitting inside at both.
What is closed on the island on a Monday?
The Craft Council of BC Shop & Gallery is shut on Mondays, and so is the Vancouver Maritime Museum across the water. The Public Market, the Net Loft and the Kids Market all open seven days a week. Distillery tours at The Liberty Distillery are on hold until further notice, whatever the day.
