A guide to the attractions of the port city in British Columbia, Canada, covering attractions, art, food, entertainment, history and culture.

This book can be purchased online from Amazon.com.

"'You might have seen a blind pig here,' says Lenard, leader of the Forbidden Tour which probes Vancouver’s less respectable past. We’re standing at the top of Market Alley, an unsavoury back street strung with electrical cables. What he’s taking about isn’t an animal, but a nickname for the illegal drinking dens which flourished here a century ago. The Prohibition era in 1920s USA is well known, but Vancouver got there first – the Canadian city banned alcoholic drinks between 1917 and 1921..."

Joining a tour detailing a colourful historical era of Vancouver, Canada.

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"Even I have noticed the interior of Vancouver International Airport. There’s something about its blue-green decor, dotted with timber carvings, that relaxes the incoming passenger on the long march to Customs. And I’m not the only passenger who likes the place. In 2017, YVR was named the Best Airport in North America in the Skytrax World Airport Awards. So what’s so good about this airport, and why does it make an attractive alternative entry point to North America?"

Detailing the highlights of Vancouver International Airport, Canada.

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"I’m standing outside the Santa Barbara County Courthouse, and I’m impressed. With its lofty tower and a Spanish inscription carved above its archway, I assume it must be a relic from the 19th century. I later find out it was built in 1929. That’s one of the interesting things about this Californian city; you can never tell how old anything really is. It some ways though, it makes sense that Santa Barbara resembles a Hollywood set..."

Exploring the attractive Spanish-style architecture of Santa Barbara, USA.

"It’s fair to say that LAX has a poor reputation among travellers. For years its long queues, dingy terminal buildings and minimal facilities were an ordeal for those using the Californian airport as their gateway to the USA. It’s while waiting for a flight out of LAX that you notice vast improvements in the passenger experience, courtesy of an $8.5 billion dollar modernisation program which has been underway over the past few years..."

Outlining improvements to the passenger experience at Los Angeles International Airport, USA.

"New York, New York! As the old song says, it’s a hell of a town. But there’s more to explore in the Big Apple than the well-worn tourist trails to the Statue of Liberty, Empire State Building, Central Park and the elevated walkway known as the High Line. At street level Manhattan and in the city’s other boroughs there are boutique tours, quirky sights and great places to eat and drink. After you’ve given your regards to Broadway, here are some other places to check out..."

"Believe it or not, Los Angeles has a Downtown. Though it was the hub of the city before 20th century urban sprawl stretched LA in every direction, many travellers never set foot there. It’s fair to say that Downtown has a reputation. Many assume it’s a dump, and a dangerous dump at that. But that’s increasingly a faded memory of the crime-ridden bad old days. Nowadays the district is a lively place with a great architectural heritage..."

Exploring the highlights of Downtown Los Angeles, USA.

"In my view, a good breakfast is the foundation of a long-distance rail journey. So it’s lucky that Philippe the Original is a short walk from Los Angeles’ Union Station, on the edge of Chinatown. You couldn’t ask for a more genuine slice of Americana before heading on a train journey up the USA’s west coast. I eat a sprawling omelette studded with spinach and onion, on a bed of hash browns; then I walk to the most beautiful railway station I’ve ever seen..."