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University of British Columbia

Vancouver


The giant University of British Columbia is more than just your average college campus; it's also home to some of the city's best visitor attractions. There’s a modern art gallery, a cool natural history museum and the revered MOA, Vancouver's best museum. As if that wasn’t enough to keep the students from ever doing any work, the campus is studded with intriguing public artworks and also houses both the tranquil Nitobe Memorial Garden and the popular UBC Botanical Garden.

Three of the city’s most treasured and wild beaches – Locarno, Spanish Banks and Wreck – are also located in this area. And the campus is home to the Chan Centre, one of Vancouver's best concert halls. It's easy to make a full day of it here; there are lots of places to eat as well.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Vancouver attractions

1. Pacific Museum of Earth

0.09 MILES

Across from the Beaty Biodiversity Museum, this sparkling little attraction has really upped its game in recent years. The cabinets of shimmering minerals…

2. Beaty Biodiversity Museum

0.18 MILES

A family-friendly museum showcasing a two-million-item natural-history collection including birds, fossils and herbarium displays. The highlight is the…

3. Chung Collection

0.4 MILES

Leave your photo ID at the front desk of the lower level of UBC's main library building, and then wander around a roomful of exhibits chronicling the…

4. Nitobe Memorial Garden

0.42 MILES

Exemplifying Japanese horticultural philosophies, this is a delightfully tranquil green oasis of peaceful pathways, small traditional bridges and a large,…

5. Wreck Beach

0.43 MILES

Follow Trail 6 into the woods and down the steep steps to find Vancouver's only official naturist beach, complete with a motley crew of counterculture…

6. UBC Botanical Garden

0.51 MILES

You'll find a huge array of rhododendrons, a fascinating apothecary plot and a winter green space of off-season bloomers in this 28-hectare complex of…

7. Morris & Helen Belkin Art Gallery

0.51 MILES

This ever-intriguing gallery specializes in contemporary and often quite challenging pieces, with chin-stroking new exhibitions opening in its high…

8. Museum of Anthropology

0.62 MILES

Vancouver's best museum is studded with spectacular indigenous totem poles and breathtaking carvings – but it's also teeming with artifacts from cultures…