YVR News

YVR voted Best Airport in North America

Wed, 09 Apr 2025 11:04:00 -0700

Musqueam Territory/Richmond, B.C. (April 9, 2025) –Vancouver International Airport | Aéroport international de Vancouver (YVR) has once again been voted Best Airport in North America in the 2025 Skytrax World Airport Awards. YVR also ranked 13^th in the world’s top 20 airports, an increase of four spots from 2024. These accolades were announced earlier today at a ceremony held in Madrid, Spain.

The Skytrax World Airport Awards are widely recognized as the global benchmark for airport excellence, based entirely on passenger feedback through the world’s largest independent customer satisfaction survey. The survey evaluates traveller experiences across different service and product key performance indicators – from check-in, arrivals, transportation, shopping, security and immigration through to departure at the gate. YVR is the only airport to be named Best Airport in North America 14 times in 16 years.

“I am thrilled that YVR has been recognized as the Best Airport in North America and is ranked among the world’s top airports,” said Tamara Vrooman, President and CEO at YVR. “This achievement is a testament to the dedication and passion of our incredible team, our valued community, and the trusted partners we work alongside every day. This award belongs to all of us.”

YVR’s operations, together with the trade and tourism activity the airport generates, contributed $23 billion in total economic output. And in 2024, YVR welcomed 26.2 million travellers and surpassed cargo records, moving more than 339,000 tonnes of goods.

The Best Airport in North America award highlights the strength of YVR’s strategic focus, one that prioritizes sustainable growth through investments in its core operations, excellence in customer service, and a commitment to climate resilience – all in service of the community and economy that supports it.

As a platform through which the region connects and thrives, YVR opens B.C. to the world. The airport is an enabler for business and economic development, a skills incubator for aviation and technology, a local marketplace for made-in-B.C. products and a driver of local businesses.

YVR operates on the traditional and unceded territory of the Musqueam people. Through its continued work and partnership with Musqueam, YVR is advancing reconciliation and helping to create a mutually beneficial future.

The awards are based on the World Airport Survey questionnaires completed by airport customers from more than 100 nationalities across 570 airports during the survey period, which operated from August 2023 to March 2024.

YVR will launch a celebration campaign to thank its employees, customers, community and business partners. Look for details about special events and activities in the coming weeks.

More information as well as a full listing of the Skytrax World Airport Awards is available here: World Airport Awards | SKYTRAX.

– 30 –

YVR reclaims top spot as Best Airport in North America

Wed, 17 Apr 2024 10:16:47 -0700

Vancouver International Airport (YVR) was today named Best Airport in North America at the Skytrax World Airport Awards in Frankfurt, Germany. Skytrax is recognized as the world’s premier international airport awards, with honours assessed according to votes cast by more than 13-million passengers worldwide.

YVR last received Best Airport in North America in 2021, and since that time has successfully moved through the global pandemic and its impacts to aviation, with a focus on key strategic priorities for the benefit of travellers, the community and the economy that supports it.

In 2023, YVR served 24.9 million travellers and implemented a number of operational improvements, while increasing collaboration with government and airlines, to build resilience and deliver a more efficient, predictable travel experience. This includes delivering accessibility programs and initiatives that meet the diverse needs of travellers and employees, ranging from a new Curbside Greeting program to sign language on information boards at each departure gate.

The Skytrax World Airport Awards are globally recognized and are voted on by air travellers via the single largest, annual airport customer satisfaction survey, covering more than 550 airports. The survey and awards are independent of any airport control or input. The survey evaluates the customer experience across all frontline areas of airport service and facilities.

YVR is the only airport to receive the designation of Best Airport in North America 14 times.

Creating an accessible travel experience at YVR

Fri, 12 Apr 2024 13:13:00 -0700

YVR is a global hub and welcomes a diverse population of travellers and employees. We are committed to providing an inclusive experience and have a long history of leading programs and initiatives at YVR that benefit people of all abilities.

Part of our programming includes ensuring our services and terminal facilities are built for purpose for people of all abilities, and this has been a priority at YVR for more than 30 years.

In 2018, YVR received an ‘Accessibility Certified Gold’ rating under the Rick Hansen Foundation Accessibility Certification™ (RHFAC) program. YVR was the first airport to receive the rating and scored an impressive 93 out of 100 points, showcasing our commitment to exceeding industry standards.

The RHFAC measures the level of meaningful access beyond building code, and is based upon the holistic user experience of people with varying disabilities affecting their mobility, vision and hearing.

We have a broad range of accessibility features at YVR that contribute to our certification and help ensure we are continually removing barriers and improving accessibility, including:

Universal counters at restaurants and information counters for people using wheeled mobility devices
Accessible self-serve kiosks for check-in and customs that are designed to accommodate people using wheeled mobility devices as well as those with visual and auditory needs
A variety of accessible parking options are available including short-term and economy lots.
Universal seating throughout the terminal
Universally accessible washrooms that are equipped with screen walls, automated dispensers, and adult-sized changing facilities
Family amenities such as nursing pods and nursery rooms
Pet relief areas for individuals travelling with service or guide dogs
Adaptive speakers throughout the terminal building
Enhanced wayfinding and signage, with increased contrast for readability
A translation service that supports more than 240 languages, available anytime via telephones stationed at information counters
Digital tools for travellers to book their time in security screening lines and receive near real-time travel information, helping create certainty and consistency

In addition, our Guest Experience team members and Green Coat volunteers are trained to support and assist travellers, providing assistance with baggage carts, wayfinding, accessibility requests, and more.

In 2023, YVR launched Beyond Accessibility, a comprehensive three-year Accessibility Plan that builds upon YVR’s longstanding efforts to provide a welcoming, inclusive, and accessible travel experience for individuals of all abilities.

Learn more about our accessibility plan at: Accessibility at YVR | YVR

YVR elevates accessibility online with EqualWeb: a new digital tool for enhancing access to information

Thu, 25 Jan 2024 09:45:34 -0800

YVR is on a continuous journey to enhance airport travel experiences, making them accessible and enjoyable for everyone, regardless of their abilities.

In our commitment to accessibility, we are excited to launch the YVR.ca EqualWeb widget, a cutting-edge AI accessibility function that improves the way users interact with our website.

Each day, YVR.ca serves as a comprehensive resource for its visitors, including passengers, partners, airport employees, and our community.

Our website provides a wide range of essential travel information including real-time flight data, information on baggage services and lost and found, guidelines on security procedures and regulations, details on accessibility services and facilities for passengers with disabilities, and more.

It is also home for news and information about new and exciting initiatives at the airport.

EqualWeb empowers users by allowing them to customize their accessibility profile on our website, providing a personalized experience through navigation, colour, and content adjustments.

By simply toggling the new EqualWeb widget on screen, visitors to YVR.ca can navigate the website in a friendly and accessible manner, tailored to each specific need. The powerful Auto AI features embedded in the widget offer a rich and easy-to-use interface comprising a total of 32 functions.

YVR takes pride in our commitment to creating a more accessible airport environment, with the introduction of the EqualWeb widget and the continued implementation of our three-year Accessibility Plan.

YVR will continue to connect people and communities and strive to provide a welcoming, inclusive, and accessible travel experience for people of all abilities.

Learn more about YVR’s Accessibility Plan.

YVR Winter Readiness: Enhancements and Preparations

Tue, 16 Jan 2024 16:30:19 -0800

Maintaining a safe and secure airport operation for travellers, employees and our community is the focus of everything we do. To operate safely, YVR needs a robust plan and the right people to make it happen. Over the past year, we have invested more than $40 million and worked continuously to prepare our people and operations for the 2023 winter season.

The enhancements we’ve made in the last year fall into four categories:

Operational Changes
Upgraded Traveller Experience
Data & Technology Enhancements
Greater Collaboration

Operational Changes

We’ve developed new operational plans to help bolster our overall preparedness, improve procedures, and increase available equipment to help manage severe weather events and irregular operations. This includes:

New gate protocols requiring aircraft to deplane passengers within 30 minutes of taxiing
16 additional airfield maintenance positions and an increased number of bridge and apron crews
More efficient de-icing processes and increased de-icing storage capacity
A significant investment in airfield snow and ice control measures including the purchase of 19 pieces of snow clearing equipment
Better management of aircraft movements, airport flow and on-time performance through the launch of our Airport Reservation Office (ARO)

Upgraded Traveller Experience

In order to better support our passengers, we’ve set up new zones across the airport with dedicated support teams and zone leads to ensure passengers can always find a friendly face to support them in their travels. Visitors to YVR will see the difference through:

Additional staff stationed throughout the terminal
A new Curbside Greeting Program, designed to welcome arriving guests and deliver seamless accessibility support for travellers with special needs

In addition to this, improvements to YVR’s website and digital tools will provide travellers with access to essential and timely information.

Our passenger Journey Platform, available on mobile phones, helps viewers easily navigate through the airport
YVR.ca has a revamped news page, acting as a multi-faceted hub for up-to-date airport information. It will also serve as our go-to space for communicating during irregular operations, including winter weather events.

Data & Technology Enhancements

Using predictive analytics and digital tools helps YVR generate highly accurate forecasts for all traveller processes. We’ll be able to better predict passenger movements and ‘see’ where we think we’ll need to provide extra staff weeks in advance. Our technology can:

Improve ability to track delayed baggage through real-time technology and data
Expanded digital tools for travellers including YVR EXPRESS and YVR TimeLine
Critical winter related updates provided via a live operations, data-focused dashboard
Greater use of YVR’s Digital Twin which improves our awareness across multiple facets of our operations
Implementation of advanced weather monitoring systems, able to provide real-time weather data.

Greater Collaboration

There are over 26,000 people who work on Sea Island to help keep the airport running smoothly and efficiently. The frequency of communication with all our partners and employees across YVR’s ecosystem has been significantly increased. This new ability allows us to share operational observations and analytical insights, which in-turn fosters data-driven decision making across and between all members. Greater collaboration has enabled:

Implementation of new information sharing platforms to increase multi-agency operational understanding
Daily touchpoints with partner organization, enhancing transparency and supporting faster, smarter decision making
Weekly performance reviews and look-aheads, both with YVR internal teams and external partners.
Implementation of a revised Demand Management Program, helping balance staffing levels against periods of both high and less high operational need.