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Vancouver Prohibition Secrets: Gastown Walking Tour
4.9
470 Ratings
Vancouver
Delve into the darkest tales of Prohibition-era Vancouver. This historical walking tour unveils the city’s hidden narratives, from gangsters and bootleggers to dishonest policymakers. The route trails through Gastown’s oldest roads and lanes, recounting its most forbidden histories.
Delve into the darkest tales of Prohibition-era Vancouver. This historical walking tour unveils the city’s hidden narratives, from gangsters and bootleggers to dishonest policymakers. The route trails through Gastown’s oldest roads and lanes, recounting its most forbidden histories.
Duration:
1 hour, 30 minutes
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
- Cambie Bar & Grill - A Vancouver institution, now a lively local bar, hostel and restaurant. The Cambie has history dating back to the Gold Rush!
- The Dominion Building - Hear about the tallest building in town in 1910!
- Woodward’s 43 - Learn about the Historic Woodward’s building in Gastown. What role it had in the city over the last 100…
- Cambie Bar & Grill - A Vancouver institution, now a lively local bar, hostel and restaurant. The Cambie has history dating back to the Gold Rush!
- The Dominion Building - Hear about the tallest building in town in 1910!
- Woodward’s 43 - Learn about the Historic Woodward’s building in Gastown. What role it had in the city over the last 100 years.
- Gastown - The tour wraps up on the cobblestone streets of Gastown, the historic centre of Vancouver.
- Water Street - Explore the main street in Gastown and learn about our Prohibition Commissioner - Walter Findlay.
- Hotel Europe - Nestled in Gastown’s historic Maple Tree Square, there was once a near beer parlour in this location.
What's Included
- Professional guide
- Professional guide
What's Not Included
- Gratuities
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
- Gratuities
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
Additional Information
- Children must be accompanied by an adult
- Operates in all weather conditions, please dress appropriately
- Please arrive at least 10 minutes before the scheduled start time
- Children must be accompanied by an adult
- Operates in all weather conditions, please dress appropriately
- Please arrive at least 10 minutes before the scheduled start time
Location
356 Water St
Water Street
Meet outside 356 Water street at the entrance to historic Gastown at Water and Cordova Streets.
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.9
(470 Ratings)
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Therese
Sep 16, 2025
Well worth this entertaining story of Canadian Prohibition - Lenard was our tour guide and he did an excellent job of both informing us along with entertaining us with the history of the area. He combined funny little stories, local history and even sing to inform us about Canadian Prohibition
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Faraway17101012612
Sep 11, 2025
How Prohibition made Gastown - I very much enjoyed Lenard's delivery of the high points of the Gastown district. It's always fun toget the insights into a town's history that doesn't always show up in the history books
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Catherinewv4414lq
Aug 29, 2025
Great Storytelling! - We very much enjoyed this tour with Cole as our guide. He is an excellent story teller, and very funny. We try to do tours like these everywhere we go and have done dozens over the years. This one was top notch!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Michals859
Aug 24, 2025
Great afternoon walking tour in Gastown - We loved this walking tour with our guide Wil the owner of Forbidden Vancouver Walking Tours. We did the Gastown Prohibition Tour, which was super fun. Wil was great, he knew the history of every nook and cranny in Gastwon. His enthusiasm about each building, the people and how Vancouver was built around this area was awesome. We did this on the day we arrived to one give us a little bit of info about the area since we stayed a few blocks from Gastown and get acclimated. Thank you to Wil and his excellent company who also are a key contributor to the community with their fundraising efforts to support local causes.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Gerald_r
Aug 12, 2025
Discover The Prohibiton period in Gaston. - Very interesting history about Gas Town during Prohibition times. Learned about the places and characters during this time.
Review provided by Viator
Timurul_h
Aug 9, 2025
Writing this review two... - Writing this review two years after the fact, and I still think about it sometimes. Genuinely some of the best content curation and presentation I've come across. I forget your name, man with the lovely short grey heard, but you were brilliant.
Review provided by Viator
Gunjitb2015
Aug 2, 2025
Engaging, fast paced and entertaining. Great to experience this walking historical tour in Gastown! - Lenard was a great communicator- inclusive, entertaining and experienced. Loved hearing about the buildings and the social history. Really brought the history of early Vancouver to life!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Trail56306250326
Jul 19, 2025
Super interesting insights into the gangster world of bygone times in Gastown - Marina who conducted our tour was fabulous! She was funny, professional, very well informed and linguistically well articulated - in the 105 min or so there was not a single one who would have been bored! She found the right balance between politically explosive issues and historical backgrounds.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Odyssey60603936002
Jul 14, 2025
Excellent edufuncational tour! - Very fun & informative tour led by Rob! He took us to every notable site in Gastown; we humorously learned all there is to know about the place. We expect that he not only serves as an inspiration to the other tour leaders but also offers them beneficent guidance.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Diane_c
Jul 15, 2025
Walking tour at 4pm was... - Walking tour at 4pm was two hours long. Although it was really interesting and educational, two hours was a little long. We started at one point and ended up in another and had to walk back to the meeting point on our own. It was a little much.
Review provided by Viator
