University of British Columbia

Located in Vancouver’s Point Grey neighbourhood, the University of British Columbia, or UBC, is one of Canada’s largest and most prestigious universities.

It has close to 55,000 students and is home to several of Vancouver’s best museums, parks and places of interest.

University of British Columbia

The university is located at the western end of the Point Grey Peninsula, about a 30-minute drive from downtown Vancouver.

The University of British Columbia is like its own city and its amazing campus offers visitors much more than just post-secondary classes. On the property are museums, beautiful gardens, performing arts theatres and some of Metro Vancouver’s finest parkland.

Botanical Garden at UBC in Fall — UBC Botanical Garden in the Fall

UBC’s Best Places to Visit

Some of the highlights of what you can find at and around the University of British Columbia include the following:

Beaty Biodiversity Museum is a small biological museum.
Pacific Spirit Regional Park is located in the UBC Endowment Lands, has over 70 km of forested walking and hiking trails, and is easily one of Metro Vancouver’s finest parks. Inside the park is Camosun Bog, with its own great places to explore, and Wreck Beach – Vancouver’s famous clothing-optional beach (conveniently located not far from campus).
The Museum of Anthropology is located right on campus and has an exceptional collection featuring First Nation aboriginal art and culture.
The Chan Centre for the Performing Arts has a 1200 seat concert hall, a cinema and a theatre.

UBC's Thunderbird Stadium — Thunderbird Stadium

Thunderbird Stadium is the university’s stadium where sports like soccer, football and rugby are played.
Nitobe Memorial Garden is a beautiful Japanese garden that’s run by UBC Botanical Garden.
The UBC Botanical Garden is a beautiful garden featuring thousands of both domestic and exotic plants.
Wreck Beach is a world-famous beach located at the edge of UBC. It’s famous because it’s beautiful, but even more so because it’s a “clothing optional” beach.

Festivals and Events at UBC

In addition to performances at the Chan Centre and regular student-focused events, which happen all the time, a number of festivals and events take place at UBC that are open to the public. These include the UBC Apple Festival which is a fundraising apple-themed event at the UBC Botanical Garden on the second weekend in October.