Canada Place facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Canada Place |
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| General information | |
| Status | Complete |
| Type | Convention center Cruise ship terminal |
| Location | 999 Canada Place Vancouver, British Columbia V6C 3T4 |
| Coordinates | 49°17′19″N 123°06′40″W / 49.288635°N 123.111119°W |
| Current tenants | Vancouver Convention Centre Pan Pacific Vancouver Hotel Vancouver World Trade Centre |
| Construction started | March 9, 1983 |
| Completed | December 1985 |
| Opened | May 2, 1986 |
| Renovated | 2011 |
| Cost | $400 million CAD |
| Renovation cost | $21 million CAD |
| Owner | Port Metro Vancouver |
| Height | 81.5 metres (267 ft) |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 23 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Eberhard Zeidler / Barry Downs |
| Architecture firm | Joint Venture: Zeidler Roberts Partnership, MCMP & DA Architects + Planners |
| Renovating team | |
| Renovating firm | Ledcor Group of Companies |
Canada Place is a famous building right on the water in Vancouver, British Columbia. It's located on the Burrard Inlet waterfront. This amazing place is home to the Vancouver Convention Centre, the Pan Pacific Vancouver Hotel, and Vancouver's World Trade Centre. You can even experience a cool virtual flight ride called FlyOver Canada here!
The outside of the building is covered by special fabric roofs. These roofs look just like giant white sails. This unique design makes Canada Place a very recognizable landmark in the city. It's also the main place where big cruise ships start their journeys to Alaska. You can easily get to Canada Place by taking the SkyTrain to Waterfront Station.
The building was made even bigger in 2001. This allowed it to welcome more cruise ships. In 2009 and 2010, Canada Place was used as the main press center for the 2010 Winter Olympics. Its white sails are so famous that people sometimes compare them to the Sydney Opera House in Australia.
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History of Canada Place
Canada Place was built on land that used to be a busy pier. This pier, called Pier B-C, was built way back in 1927. It was mainly used by the Canadian Pacific Railway and other shipping companies. They used it for trade across the Pacific Ocean.
In 1978, the Canadian government, the provincial government of British Columbia, and the city government started planning. They wanted to build a new convention center, a cruise ship terminal, and a hotel. Four years later, the Government of Canada created a special company. This company was called Canada Harbour Place Corporation. Its job was to build the Canada Place project on the old pier site.
Construction started in a very special way. Queen Elizabeth II arrived on the Royal Yacht Britannia. She was joined by Pierre Trudeau, who was the Prime Minister of Canada at the time. Also there was William R. Bennett, the Premier of British Columbia. Together, they officially started the first concrete pour for the building.
During Expo 86, a big world's fair held in Vancouver, the Canada Pavilion opened at Canada Place. Prince Charles and Brian Mulroney, who was Prime Minister then, opened it. The Canada Pavilion was one of the biggest and most impressive pavilions at any World's Fair. Over 5 million people visited it before Expo 86 ended on October 13, 1986.
Today, the Canada Place Corporation (CPC) still manages the facilities at Canada Place. They make sure everything runs smoothly.
Fun Events at Canada Place
Canada Place is a lively spot! Many community events are held here throughout the year. They host and organize lots of fun activities for everyone to enjoy.
Pan Pacific Vancouver Hotel
The Pan Pacific Vancouver is a hotel located within Canada Place. It first opened its doors in January 1986. The hotel has 503 rooms and suites for guests. It also has two restaurants and a lounge where people can relax. The Pan Pacific Hotels and Resorts company operates this hotel.
The Heritage Horns
The Heritage Horns are a unique feature of Canada Place. They used to be called the 12 O'clock Horn. Every day at noon, these horns play the first four notes of Canada's national anthem, O Canada. You can hear them all over Downtown Vancouver and even further away!
There are ten horns in total. Five of them face north, and five face east. They are located on the roof of the Pan Pacific hotel. These horns are very loud, with an output of 115 Decibels.
The idea for the horns came from Les Southwell. They were designed and built by Robert Swanson for Canada's 100th birthday in 1967. BC Hydro paid for them. The horns were first on the roof of the BC Hydro building. They were silent for a while when that building became apartments.
But on November 8, 1994, the horns started sounding again! They were bought, fixed up, and moved to Canada Place. At first, there were some complaints about the timing. So, the timer was changed to an electrical one to make sure they were accurate.
The Heritage Horns also sounded 26 times during the 2010 Winter Olympics. Each sound was for a medal won by Canada! The first time was at 7:30 p.m. on February 13, for a silver medal won by Jennifer Heil. The horns also sounded at 7:00 p.m. each evening from March 26 to April 16, 2020. This was to show support for essential service workers across Canada. Another famous time signal nearby is the 9 O'Clock Gun in Stanley Park.
