Vancouver International Airport (YVR)

Vancouver, CA 🇨🇦 Large International Airport Scheduled Service

ICAO

CYVR

IATA

YVR

Elevation

14 ft

Region

CA-BC

Local Time

Airport Information

GPS Code: CYVR

Local Code: Not available

Location: 49.193901° N, -123.183998° E

Continent: NA

Type: Large International Airport

Arrivals

View incoming flights

Departures

View outgoing flights

External Links

Official Website Wikipedia Live Flights

Nearby Points of Interest

Tourist Attractions View
Hotels View
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What Travelers Say

AI-Generated Summary Based on web research

Vancouver International Airport (YVR) garners a mixed but generally positive sentiment among travelers, having been consistently named the Best Airport in North America by Skytrax in both 2024 and 2025, and ranking 13th globally in 2025. While official accolades highlight its overall excellence, individual traveler reviews often point to specific areas of frustration, particularly concerning staff interactions and service inconsistencies.

What Travelers Love

Overall High Rankings: YVR has been recognized as the Best Airport in North America by Skytrax for 14 out of the last 16 years, based on extensive passenger surveys.
Cleanliness and Design: The airport is frequently praised for its cleanliness and sensible design, making it generally easy to navigate.
Efficient Transportation Connections: The Canada Line (SkyTrain) offers excellent and frequent service directly connecting the airport to downtown Vancouver, often highlighted as a major strength.
US Customs Pre-clearance: The ability to clear US Customs & Border Protection before departing to the United States is appreciated for making arrivals at US destinations feel like domestic flights.
Accessibility Initiatives: Recent improvements include new accessibility programs like curbside greetings and expanded language services with sign language displays at departure gates.

Common Complaints

Security Staff Attitude and Wait Times: Numerous reviews describe security staff as rude, dismissive, arrogant, or incompetent, leading to frustrating experiences. Wait times for security can also be unpredictably long, ranging from quick to over 30 minutes, or even up to 2 hours for oversized luggage.
Limited and Expensive Amenities: Travelers frequently lament the limited and costly food and beverage options, with many establishments closing early, especially at night.
Uncomfortable Seating and Temperature: A common grievance is the prevalence of seating with armrests, making it difficult to rest or sleep during layovers, coupled with reports of the airport being cold. Hot water dispensers have also been noted as out of service.
Baggage Handling and Customs Bottlenecks: Some travelers have reported slow baggage delivery. While automated customs kiosks are available, some experience long lines and perceived bottlenecks at border guard stations.
Confusing Signage: Instances of badly marked signs have led to confusion, particularly for transfers or navigation within the terminals and parking areas.

Overall, Vancouver International Airport is recognized for its modern infrastructure and efficient transit links, often performing well in international airport rankings. However, improving consistency in staff professionalism at security and customs, enhancing food and beverage availability during off-peak hours, and providing more comfortable resting areas could significantly improve the individual traveler experience.

Generated 5 days ago

This summary is automatically generated by AI based on web research of traveler reviews and experiences. AI-generated content may not always be 100% accurate.

Current Weather Conditions

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Airport Routes

Top Routes (by observations)

Newly Discovered

Popular Flight Routes

Building Route Index: We are building our route index for commercial airports. Currently 330 routes are indexed for Vancouver International Airport. For real-time updates, admin access is required.

0 destinations displayed

Destination	IATA	City	Aircraft Type	Airline	Details	Route Map
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Top Airlines

Operating at Vancouver International Airport

Airlines by Flight Activity

Based on observed flight operations and route network

Airline	Routes	Flights	Destinations	Last Activity
Air Canada `ACA` / `AC`	41	697	41	Dec 11, 2025
Jazz `JZA` / `QK`	29	629	29	Dec 11, 2025
WestJet `WJA` / `WS`	25	519	25	Dec 11, 2025
WestJet Encore `WEN` / `WR`	9	152	9	Dec 11, 2025
Flair Airlines `FLE` / `F8`	14	152	14	Dec 9, 2025
Pacific Coastal Airlines `PCO` / `8P`	14	138	14	Dec 11, 2025
Cargojet `CJT` / `W8`	7	126	7	Dec 10, 2025
Morningstar Air `MAL`	5	105	5	Dec 11, 2025
SkyWest `SKW` / `OO`	4	104	4	Dec 3, 2025

Showing top 9 airlines by flight activity. Data includes observed departures and route networks from this airport.

For Pilots

Designation	Length	Width	Surface	Status
`08L/26R`	9940 ft	200 ft	CON	Active Lighted
`08R/26L`	11500 ft	200 ft	ASP	Active Lighted
`13/31`	7300 ft	200 ft	CON	Active Lighted
`XX/26A`	3500 ft	75 ft	CON	Closed

Type	Description	Frequency
APP	APP	`128.6 MHz`
ATIS	ATIS	`124.6 MHz`
CLD	CLNC DEL	`121.4 MHz`
DEP	DEP	`126.125 MHz`
GND	GND	`121.7 MHz`
RCO	PACIFIC RDO	`123.15 MHz`
TWR	TWR	`23.66 MHz`
TWR	TWR	`118.7 MHz`

Ident	Name	Type	Frequency
`IMK`	Vancouver	DME	`111100 kHz`
`IRD`	Vancouver	DME	`111900 kHz`
`IVR`	Vancouver	DME	`109500 kHz`
`VR`	Vancouver	NDB	`266 kHz`
`WC`	White Rock	NDB	`332 kHz`
`YVR`	Vancouver	VORTAC	`115900 kHz`
`ZVR`	Sea Island	NDB	`368 kHz`
`ZXE`	Barnes	NDB	`356 kHz`

Ground Transportation

Last updated: Nov 21, 2025

Taxis

Taxis are available 24/7 at designated stands on Level 2 of the Domestic and International Arrivals areas. All taxis are licensed and use metered rates, with some fixed zone fares to popular destinations. Wheelchair-accessible vehicles are available.

Rental Cars

Major car rental companies are located on-site in the parkade, directly across from the terminal building. Companies include Avis, Budget, Hertz, and National. Off-site rental agencies are also accessible via courtesy shuttles.

Public Transportation

The Canada Line SkyTrain provides a direct rail link from the airport (YVR-Airport Station) to downtown Vancouver in approximately 25 minutes. The station is located between the International and Domestic terminals. A $5 YVR AddFare is applied to most fares leaving the airport. Late-night bus service is also available when the SkyTrain is not running.

Distances are approximate and calculated as straight-line distances.