Vancouver is one of the most beautiful cities in Canada, with a natural harbour capable of accommodating the largest ships in the world. It is open to navigation all the year round, and temperatures below zero Centigrade are almost unknown. The Burrard Inlet of the Port of Vancouver is reached under the majestic span of the 4,977 feet long Lions Gate Suspension Bridge, completed in 1938. The towers of the bridge are 380 feet above water level and connect Vancouver and Stanley Park with North and West Vancouver. The surrounding areas of the bridge have for many decades been good vantage points for ship photography. In January 2008, the port took over the Fraser Surrey Docks on the Fraser river leading to New Westminster, and Deltaport at Roberts Bank to the south of the Fraser river entrance with coal terminals, container and project cargo terminals. Port jurisdiction extends over six hundred kilometres of shoreline and extends from Point Roberts on the Canadian/American border through Burrard Inlet to Port Moody and Indian Arm, and from the mouth of the Fraser river east to the Fraser valley, north along the Pitt river to Pitt Lake and includes the north and middle arms of the Fraser river.

Situated at 49-16 degrees north, 123- 07 degrees west, Vancouver is the largest and busiest port in Canada trading $172 billion worth of goods per year with more than 130 countries. Annual port throughput is almost 130 million tonnes in ten categories. Coal (37 million tonnes), Forestry products (29 million tonnes), Grain (20 million tonnes), Bulk minerals and chemicals (15 million tonnes), Petroleum (8 million tonnes), Fertilizers (8 million tonnes), Consumer goods (7 million tonnes), Machinery and construction equipment (5 million tonnes), Processed Food (2 million tonnes), and Animal hides and dairy produce (1 million tonnes). Vancouver has 28 deep sea and domestic marine terminals with two cruise terminals, four container terminals, two breakbulk terminals, two automobile terminals, and eighteen dry and liquid bulk terminals.