The location of Canada’s first Aboriginal arts hotel may come as a surprise—even to locals who walk past the front door every day. The front desk of the unassuming, tucked away, brand new boutique hotel is in the Urban Aboriginal Fair Trade Gallery; you can check in to your suite while admiring and purchasing local artists’ works.
Skwachàys Lodge was named in a traditional ceremony by Chief Ian Campbell, the Hereditary Chief of the Squamish Nation on whose territory the Lodge was built. The Chief tells the story that “Skwachàys” is the traditional name of this area, located at the head of False Creek, and refers to the spring waters that once covered the area. The Squamish people believe that these waters are a portal into the spirit realm and are sacred.
The new lodge is also at a portal, located at the crossroads of Vancouver’s Gastown and Chinatown neighborhoods. The design has preserved the century-old brick façade, as well as constructing a traditional northern longhouse to sit atop the heritage building. Its 40-foot story pole, the Dreamweaver, stands as tall and proud as its building’s purpose and the people that live and work within.
Owned-and-operated by the Vancouver Native Housing Society (VNHS), Skwachàys Lodge is an innovative approach to sustainable housing that combines cultural authenticity, business excellence and community economic development. This new model for supportive housing is combined with a for-profit hospitality business wholly owned-and-operated by the VNHS, itself a registered charitable organization. 100 percent of profits from the hotel operation and the fair trade gallery subsidize the 24 Aboriginal artist live/work studios housed on certain floors of Skwachàys. This unique model improves the life and preserves the culture and heritage of Vancouver’s urban Aboriginal people, while exposing interested cultural visitors to the experience.
My slick, spacious, new, electronically-savvy room was filled with art, from the colorful mural installation in my front entrance (opposite the convenient galley kitchen) and bedroom, to the base of the aforementioned totem, straddling my private patio.
Six Vancouver interior designers collaborated with six Aboriginal artists to create the 18 distinctly themed rooms featuring original carvings, paintings, fabric, art, custom furniture and décor. Downstairs, adjacent to the gallery, there is the Kayachtn Welcome Room, open for light breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks, all imbued with Aboriginal flavors.
The lodge also offers traditional cultural experiences, like the First Nations Sweat Lodge, a domed structure of willow branches located in the rooftop garden that symbolizes Mother Nature’s womb. Here they offer private Sweat Lodge Purification Ceremonies led by a Sweat Lodge Keeper, who adheres to Aboriginal traditions.
Even without the sweating and purification, you’ll be experiencing urban Aboriginal culture and life, coupled with a stunning and singular boutique hotel.
Skwachàys Lodge || 29/31 West Pender, Vancouver || skwachays.com
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