One of the most popular areas of North Vancouver is The Shipyards, also known as Lonsdale Quay. Some people call it downtown North Vancouver, and others call it Lower Lonsdale. It has many names!
Either way, it’s where the Seabus is, which means that many people travel from downtown Vancouver to visit the North Shore via Lonsdale Quay. There are a ton of buses that go from the Seabus to all over North Vancouver. You don’t need to drive.
The area has a lot of condos and apartments, but there are not many houses. We have noticed a lot of Chinese people moving to Lower Lonsdale recently. This is mostly because there are a lot of popular restaurants in the area, and Chinese people love trying different foods, especially seafood.
Popular restaurants
There are a ton of restaurants that people take the Seabus over from downtown for. Some of them include:
- JOEY Shipyards
- PIER 7 Restaurant + Bar
- Tap & Barrel • Shipyards
- Jägerhof Restaurant (German food)
- Anatoli Souvlaki (Greek food)
Photo: PIER 7 Restaurant + Bar in Lower Lonsdale
I really enjoyed Anatoli Souvlaki as the food was amazing. The owner of Jägerhof Restaurant is one of the waiters, and he is super friendly.
Once you have finished your meal, make sure you check out Waterfront Park, a great place for views of downtown Vancouver and the North Shore mountains.
If you are into hiking, you can drive to the mountains in only 10 minutes. You can leave Waterfront Park and be at Mount Fromme Trailhead in ten minutes (even with some traffic.) It’s unbelievable. You might want to go hiking first and then eat after as a celebration.
There is plenty of parking around the trails up the mountains. It’s all free as far as we know.
Below are some other things to do or know about Lower Lonsdale:
- Go to the farmers market on the weekends
- It’s the perfect mix between city life and nature
- It’s a great place to walk your dog
- Very popular spot for tourists and photographers
- There is free skating in the winter
- Free kids waterpark in the summer
The Shipyards Is The Event Hub of North Vancouver
Lonsdale Quay always throws amazing events, particularly during Canada Day and Christmas. Thousands of people come out for these events.
Photo: The Shipyards Christmas Festival
It’s also worth noting that it’s easy to get to events in downtown Vancouver as well, without having to deal with the issues of living downtown (pollution, homeless, violence, stress etc.) You can go to an event in Vancouver, like the Honda Celebration of Light, make your way back to the Seabus terminal at Waterfront Station, and then be back at your condo in Lonsdale Quay in around 15 minutes.
That’s much better than having to drive an hour back to Richmond or Surrey with heavy traffic.
Owning a condo in The Shipyards, therefore, offers the best of both worlds. Central location without the stress of living in downtown Vancouver. If you are thinking about buying a condo in downtown Van, at least check out a few condos in The Shipyards to compare. Here’s a link for condos in the Shipyards area.
Photo: Waterfront Park
Getting To Know The Shipyards area
The area around the Shipyards is electric. It sort of feels like Banff, with the amazing snowcapped mountains, but also like the center of a city, with the exciting Lonsdale Quay Market. There are also massive yachts all over the place.
The area is one of the fastest growth in Vancouver, and you can see they are building condo’s all over the place.
The Market was built for Expo 86, which was a major event held in Vancouver in 1986. It can continued to evolve greatly since then.
Expect to see lots of art galleries, restaurants, and stores. My favorite part are the amazing views of downtown Vancouver and the massive mountains.
Lonsdale Quay Guide
It’s also still a ship building and repair area. There are industrial areas that are non-polluted. It’s super neat to see.
If you want to see where locals get groceries, you can head further up Lonsdale Ave to find a Whole Foods and Loblaws.
There is also a IGA grocery store on Esplanade Ave.
The Lower Lonsdale area is mainly white and Asian. The Persian community lives in Upper Lonsdale.
Go and explore and let us know what you thought we missed in this article. We are happy to update it with new information.
If you want to live in the area, go speak to a real estate agent and see your options! We hope you enjoyed this Lonsdale Quay guide.
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