Steveston is the oldest part of Richmond and the most distinctive place in the whole city for visitors. It was founded in the 1880s as the largest salmon-canning centre on the Pacific coast, with 15 canneries operating at its peak. Most of them closed by the 1960s, but the working fishing-boat harbour remains, and on any given day (especially spring and early summer) you can buy fresh spot prawns, sockeye salmon, or ling cod directly off the boats at Fisherman's Wharf.
The Gulf of Georgia Cannery is a Parks Canada National Historic Site — a genuinely excellent museum housed in a restored 1894 cannery building. The self-guided tour through the old processing lines is worth the $13 admission for anyone interested in Canadian history. Britannia Shipyards, about a kilometre east along the dyke, is a second heritage site covering Richmond's boat-building history and is free.
Steveston Village itself has around 20 blocks of independent shops, cafés, fish-and-chips spots, and antique stores along Bayview and Moncton Streets. Pajo's on the public pier is a Vancouver institution for fish and chips — expect to queue on summer weekends. The whole area is a short loop from the main parking lots and it's flat, stroller-friendly, and dog-friendly on the dyke trails. Plan half a day minimum.
How to get there
By car from Richmond City Centre, take No. 1 Road south to Bayview Street — about 10 minutes. By transit, the 402 bus runs from Richmond-Brighouse SkyTrain station directly to Steveston Village.
Local tips
- Pajo's fish and chips on the public pier is the classic move
- Buy prawns or salmon direct from Fisherman's Wharf during the season
- The Gulf of Georgia Cannery is worth the admission for the history
- The dyke trail east from the village leads to Britannia Shipyards