Vancouver's Granville Island

Vancouver’s best shopping can be found along key streets and at shopping malls, farmers markets, department stores, flea markets and designer brand stores.

In this article you’ll find information about the following topics:

Vancouver’s Best Markets | Vancouver’s Best Shopping Streets | Vancouver Shopping Centres | Second-hand Shopping | Other Information

Vancouver Shopping Locations

Below is our list of Vancouver’s year-round best shopping streets, shopping malls and public markets (like Granville Island).

In this article we’ll tell you about Metro Vancouver’s special public markets first though, as they are tourist attractions in and of themselves.

Vancouver’s Best Markets

The Lower Mainland has lots of markets. There are year-round public markets, seasonal farmers’ markets, fruit stands and night markets throughout the region.

Metro Vancouver Public Markets

The following are Metro Vancouver’s two best year-round public markets. They both have a wide range of stores and stalls. At them you’ll find everything from fruits and vegetables to art, gifts and exotic foods from around the world).

Granville Island Public Market (Granville Island, Vancouver)
Lonsdale Quay Public Market (North Vancouver)

Note: There are far more shopping opportunities at Granville Island than just its Public Market. The place is full of art studios and one-of-a-kind boutiques. See our article about Granville Island Shopping Opportunities to learn more (and to see a couple of videos about the place).

Lower Mainland Farmers’ Markets

Metro Vancouver also has a number of great farmers’ markets at various times throughout the year including the following:

Ambleside Artisan Farmers Market – at Ambleside Park in West Vancouver on Sundays between 10 am and 3 pm from May until October.
Burnaby Farmers Market – in the north parking lot at Burnaby City Hall (at 4949 Canada Way in Burnaby) every Saturday between 9 am and 2 pm from May until October.
Kitsilano Farmers Market – on Sundays from mid-May to mid-October between 10 am and 2 pm outside the Kitsilano Community Centre at 2690 Larch Street.
New West Farmers Market – a market at Tipperary Park in New Westminster between early spring and late fall.
Steveston Village Farmers Market – every second Sunday outside the Steveston Community Centre in the summer (although not in 2020 due to COVID-19).
Trout Lake Farmers Market – on Saturdays from 9 am to 2 pm from mid-May to mid-October at John Hendry Park in Vancouver.
White Rock Farmers Market – their markets take place on Sundays from 10 to 2 pm at Miramar Plaza (15154 Russell Avenue) from late May until late October.
Riley Park Farmers Market – year-round on Saturdays between 10 am and 2 pm near Nat Bailey Stadium (at 4601 Ontario Street).

For a more complete list of Farmers’ Markets, see below:

Wednesday Farmers Markets: Downtown, Surrey and Whistler.
Thursday Farmers Markets: New Westminster and False Creek.
Friday Markets: Richmond Night Market and Fort Langley Night Market.
Saturday Farmers Markets: Abbotsford, Burnaby, Fort Langley, Haney, Riley Park, Squamish, Trout Lake and the West End.
Sunday Farmers Markets: Ambleside, Coquitlam, Kitsilano, Ladner, Mt. Pleasant, Steveston Village, White Rock and Whistler.

Metro Vancouver Fruit Stands

Some of the Lower Mainland’s best fruit stands include the following:

Richmond Country Farms – at 12900 Steveston Hwy it’s a great place to stop at on your way back to Vancouver from the BC Ferries’ Tsawwassen ferry terminal. It’s open from April until the late fall.
Probably the cheapest fruit and vegetable store in Metro Vancouver can be found at Sunrise Market at 300 Powell Street, not too far from Chinatown. It’s an interesting place, and everything is amazingly affordable (for Vancouver). It’s also just a block from the Vancouver Police Museum, which is interesting if you’re curious about police work, Vancouver’s criminal history and crime scenes.

Outside Metro Vancouver but still within the Lower Mainland, Maan Farms is also a great place to find fresh produce in the summer. It’s located at 790 McKenzie Road in Abbotsford. In addition to a small country-style store, the place also has great play facilities for children.

Richmond Country Farm Vegetables — Produce at Richmond Country Farms

Metro Vancouver Night Markets

Taking place in the summer, Metro Vancouver’s main night markets are the following:

Richmond Night Market – at 8351 River Road in Richmond. Looking for lots of good take-out Asian foods, products and people? This is an amazing place for the senses with all its sights, sounds and delicious smells every weekend night in the summer. TIP: If you like walks or bike rides, and you’re heading out to Richmond anyway, maybe combine this with an afternoon trip out to Steveston Village.
Fort Langley Night Market – an artisan market in Fort Langley on Friday evenings between June and October.

Vancouver’s Best Shopping Streets

The following are Vancouver’s best shopping districts:

Robson Street – a district with a wide range of trendy and high fashion clothing stores. If you are young and like brand names like the GAP, Lululemon, Roots, and Armani Exchange, and you prefer to be outside instead of in a mall, then Robson Street is the place to shop. It’s also a great place for restaurants and people watching.
Granville Street – a shopping area which is also home to Vancouver’s main entertainment district with its night clubs and restaurants. Stretching from Waterfront Station (not far from the entrance to Gastown), this street has lots of popular shops including Canada’s most famous department store, the Hudson’s Bay.
Water Street – the main road in Gastown. Looking for quaint shops and restaurants, and also needing to pick up some souvenirs? Then Water Street and the Gastown area can make for an enjoyable window-shopping afternoon.

Want to learn about more great streets for shopping? Then check out Vancouver’s Top Most Interesting Streets.

TIP: Granville Street (the part starting downtown) is connected with Gastown at one end and Robson Street in the middle. It’s not a short walk to Robson Street, but it’s a nice one, so these three main shopping streets are actually fairly close together, as is Pacific Centre.

Grand Court at Metropolis at Metrotown — Metropolis at Metrotown

Vancouver Shopping Centres

In addition to the above shopping streets, Vancouver’s best shopping places and districts include some of its shopping centres and malls. Now malls aren’t for everyone (and these malls aren’t a whole lot different than the best malls in other major cities), but they are still great places for shopping.

Guildford Town Centre – the third largest mall in the Lower Mainland is located at 10355 152nd Street in Surrey.
Pacific Centre – located at 701 West Georgia Street, this mall is close to Granville Street and Robson and features lots of high-end brands. This is Vancouver’s best downtown indoor shopping centre (so an especially good place on rainy days).
The Hudson’s Bay – it’s not a shopping centre, but it is a big multi-storied retailer. The Bay has been Canada’s main department store since the fur trade days.
International Village Mall – located in Chinatown, it’s an interesting mall because of its Asian influences.
McArthurGlen – an outlet mall in Richmond near YVR Airport.
Metropolis at Metrotown – with close to 400 stores, this Burnaby mall is the Vancouver region’s biggest. No matter what store you’re looking for, it’s probably here, and the mall is conveniently accessible by SkyTrain.
Oakridge Centre – a large mall in south Vancouver that is being renovated between 2020 and 2021.
Park Royal – a large fairly upscale shopping mall in West Vancouver. Much of it is all indoors although some parts are more like a strip mall where you walk outdoors from one store to the next.
Tsawwassen Mills – a large mall near the BC Ferries Terminal in Tsawwassen.
The Amazing Brentwood – a newer shopping centre and urban development in Burnaby.

Hudson's Bay at Night — The Hudson’s Bay on Georgia Street

Vancouver Second-hand Shopping

Looking for second-hand stuff? Then check out the Vancouver Flea Market – a shopping mall of second-hand stalls selling everything from junk to treasures.

Similar to the Vancouver Flea Market, in Surrey there is the Cloverdale Flea Market. It features hundreds of tables of second-hand goods on Sundays from 6 am to 4 pm. The market happens at the Cloverdale Fairgrounds near the corner of 176th Street (a.k.a. Highway 15) and 62nd Avenue.