Pan Pacific Vancouver

Landmark waterfront luxury atop Canada Place

★★★★★📍 Coal Harbour (Canada Place)$$$$

The Pan Pacific Vancouver sits atop Canada Place, the instantly recognizable waterfront landmark topped by five white Teflon "sails" that juts into the harbor on the edge of downtown. Its position gives it some of the most dramatic harbor-and-mountain views of any hotel in the city, looking out over Coal Harbour, the constant comings and goings of floatplanes and boats, Stanley Park, and the peaks of the North Shore.

It's a polished, full-service luxury hotel with spacious rooms (the harbor-view rooms being the prize), a heated outdoor pool and hot tubs on a terrace overlooking the water, a health club and spa, and several restaurants and lounges that make the most of the views. The hotel is directly integrated with Canada Place, which houses the city's main cruise ship terminal and the original Vancouver Convention Centre — making it especially convenient (and popular) for travelers beginning or ending an Alaska cruise, and for business travelers.

The location is hard to beat for the waterfront: you're on the harbor, with the seawall and the route to Stanley Park right there, FlyOver Canada and the Vancouver Lookout adjacent, and Gastown and the downtown core a short walk. The Pan Pacific suits travelers who want classic full-service luxury, spectacular water views, and a central waterfront base — particularly those connecting to a cruise or wanting to be at the heart of the harbor.