Forbidden Vancouver Hidden History & Sweet Treats Tour

The Hidden History & Sweet Treats Tour is the newest walking tour from Forbidden Vancouver. It features iconic buildings in downtown Vancouver.

The tour has been running since 2023. It was originally called the Monumental Scandals Tour. The Hidden History & Sweet Treats Tour is similar to the tour that started a year or so ago, except that it now has a new name and includes gourmet treats for guests to enjoy along the way! It’s a terrific walking tour and highly recommended.

For the 2024 holiday season, Forbidden Vancouver offers the Holiday History & Hot Chocolate Tour. It’s mostly the same as the Hidden History Tour (in the non-Christmas season), but with a winter twist! Guests can explore the history of downtown Vancouver with hot chocolate in their hands and Christmas decorations all around.

Visit forbiddenvancouver.ca for the official website of this tour and other related ones.

This article includes the following information about the tour:

Tour Schedule & Admission | What to Expect | Tour Video | Other Forbidden Vancouver Tours | Other Information

The Hidden History & Sweet Treats Walking Tour in Downtown Vancouver

Forbidden Vancouver offers a series of guided walking tours around Vancouver. They cover a range of topics from the city’s past, with a focus on the darker elements of that history.

The Hidden History & Sweet Treats Tour is a new addition to the regular very popular lineup. The new tour has a recommended age rating of 10 and up which is different from most of Forbidden Vancouver’s tours which are usually recommended for ages 14 and older. That said, the scandals discussed on the tour still cover some darker topics including murder. Participants are led through the downtown area and get to go inside some of the buildings discussed as well.

On the tour you’ll see and learn about some of Vancouver’s most iconic buildings including the Vancouver Art Gallery, Hotel Vancouver, Marine Building and Sinclair Centre. You’ll also explore famous streets and neighbourhoods like Robson Square and Granville Street.

Visit the Forbidden Vancouver website for details about all of its tours.

Walking Tour in Downtown Vancouver — On the Tour Near Robson Square

Tour Schedule & Admission

The Hidden History & Sweet Treats Tour takes place on Saturdays and Sundays at 11:00 am for most of the year, but on other days at other times too. The tours take place daily beginning in June and through the summer and early fall. During the winter holiday season between late November and mid-January, they run even more often (including almost every day in December except for Christmas Day.)

Tickets must be purchased online and cost $69 for adults (ages 19-64) and $64 for seniors and youth (but just $49 or $45 during the Christmas holiday season). This tour is the most expensive one that Forbidden Vancouver has to offer, but that’s because of the delicious treats you get to try! For what you get and the experience, the price is very reasonable and well worth it! Hidden History & Sweet Treats is an exceptional historical walking tour and a city food tour combined into one activity.

The tour begins at the corner of Robson and Granville Streets in front of the Old Navy store. It runs for about two hours.

During the 2024 holiday season, the Hidden History tour is put on hold. Its replacement is the Holiday History & Hot Chocolate Tour, which begins on November 15th and runs almost daily until January 10th, 2025. The only days there aren’t a tour are the Wednesdays of November 20th, December 25th and January 1st.

This tour begins outside of Trees Cafe at 738 Granville Street. It runs for about 90 minutes and there’s limited availability to so book your spot in advance if you want to take part.

The Holiday History Tour is a little less expensive at $49 for adults and $45 for seniors and youth. That’s because you’re not getting the same sweet treats that you are on the normal tour (although you do get some high-quality hot chocolate).

The normal Hidden History & Sweet Treats tour returns in January after the Holiday History tour is over.

Visit the Forbidden Vancouver website for tickets to this and other related tours.

What to Expect

Participants on the tour are taken through downtown Vancouver by a guide and told a number of true stories from the city’s past. The tales range from how Vancouver’s richest families came to power, to class warfare during the Great Depression, to the murder of famous architect Sir Francis Rattenbury.

While a number of different buildings are discussed and examined in detail, probably the one looked at most closely is the Marine Building which in 1930 was the tallest building in the city (and one of the tallest in the British Empire). The tour gives an exclusive look inside the heritage building which is also near where the tour ends. Along the way, on the regular Hidden History tour (and not the holiday one) there are stops for attendees to taste high-quality chocolates, macarons and pastries.

The stories told on the tour are historically accurate and based on real facts. It’s a great way to lean about some of the early history of Vancouver.

Forbidden Vancouver Tour on Granville Street — Forbidden Vancouver Group on Granville Street

Walking Tour Video

For an even better idea of what to expect on the Hidden History & Sweet Treats walking tour, check out the video below. It shows scenes from when we went on the tour in 2023.

Other Forbidden Vancouver Tours

Hidden History & Sweet Treats isn’t the only walking tour on offer. Forbidden Vancouver has five tours which run regularly. The most famous and popular is the Lost Souls of Gastown tour which is all about the famous Gastown district.

Other tours on offer are The Really Gay History Tour (in the Davie Street Village), Forbidden Vancouver (about the prohibition era) and The Dark Secrets of Stanley Park. All of them are excellent.

There are also sometimes special one-off tours or events. For example, the Secrets of the Penthouse happens about once a month. This tour of the Penthouse Nightclub is led by the owner of the establishment and includes a dinner and Jazz performance. It too is exceptional.