Kids Market, Vancouver, BC, Guide du visiteur et quoi faire à proximité

The Kids Market is an indoor market of toy shops and play spaces on Granville Island in Vancouver, British Columbia. It is a fun stop for families and a good way to see how a former industrial island became one of the city's liveliest public districts.

The story behind it

Granville Island was once a working industrial sandbar in False Creek, home to shipyards, mills and factories. From the 1970s the federal government redeveloped it into a public space of markets, studios and theatres, and the old industrial buildings were given new lives. The Kids Market is one of those conversions, and it has been a destination for families since the 1980s.

Inside, the building leans into fairy-tale decor, a cheerful contrast with the island's working past. It is filled with things a child or a parent might want, from classic toys and picture books to an arcade upstairs.

What to look for

• The fairy-tale decor throughout the interior, including a figure of Jack climbing down his beanstalk by the main stairway.
• The shelves of old-school classic toys, which are often more fun to browse than the modern kind.
• The picture books and small games that make good, easy-to-carry souvenirs.
• The arcade on the second floor, a noisy and colourful corner for older kids.

Tips for your visit

• Give yourself 30 to 45 minutes for the market itself, longer if you have children who like to play.
• Weekday mornings are usually calmer than weekend afternoons, when the whole island fills up. Check current opening hours before you go.
• Entering and browsing costs nothing, and you can go inside freely during opening hours.
• The Public Market, the waterfront and Granville Island Brewing are all a short walk away, so it fits easily into a longer wander around the island. The brewery began in 1984 and is often called Canada's first craft brewery.

See it on a quest

Granville Island, Vancouver: Hunt for the Lost LP is a self-guided walk around the island that passes the Kids Market as one stop on a longer route. You reach each place on foot, the app tells you about it as you arrive, and you solve a puzzle on the spot, which makes you look at the streets and buildings more closely than you would on your own. It is a paid quest, and one ticket covers the whole group. Start whenever you like, with no guide and no group to join.