Fairmont Hotel Vancouver

The Fairmont Hotel Vancouver is the city's grand railway hotel and one of the best-known buildings downtown. Its steep copper roof, dormers, carved stonework and gargoyles follow the château style of Canada's great railway hotels. Work started in December 1928 for the Canadian National Railway, stopped during the Great Depression once the steel frame was up, resumed in 1937 and was rushed to completion so the hotel could open on 28 May 1939, in time for the royal tour of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. The architects were John Smith Archibald and John Schofield.

At 17 floors and about 111 metres, it was the tallest building in Vancouver from 1939 until 1972. It is the third hotel in the city to carry the name; the first two stood nearby on West Georgia Street. Hilton International managed it from 1964 to 1984 without ever adding the Hilton name, Canadian National sold it to Canadian Pacific Hotels in 1988, it took the Fairmont name in 2001, and Larco Enterprises bought it in 2015. Its history includes broadcasts by CBC Radio, the bandleader Dal Richards, who began his career in its Panorama Roof Ballroom in 1940, and a role as the fictional Tipton Hotel in the television series The Suite Life of Zack and Cody.

There are around 557 rooms and suites. A $12 million renovation of the lobby, restaurant and guest rooms ran from 2014 to 2018, timed for the building's 80th anniversary, and the 14th floor was restored to its 1939 decor. The signature suites include the Art Deco Lieutenant Governor's Suite, panelled in black walnut, and the Royal Suite.

Notch8 Restaurant and Bar is the hotel's main dining room and also serves afternoon tea. Facilities include a swimming pool, a gym and a spa, which makes it a comfortable base in wet weather.

The hotel suits travellers who like historic character and a central address, families who want a pool and business visitors staying downtown.

The location is hard to beat for sightseeing on foot. The Rosewood Hotel Georgia is on the same street at 801 West Georgia, the Vancouver Art Gallery and Robson Square are close by, and the Bill Reid Gallery and the Wedgewood Hotel are both on nearby Hornby Street.