guest service agent

conseiller du service

senior cook

restaurant manager

receptionist

Capilano Suspension Bridge Park

A typical day at work took place in what should be a calm, self-explanatory natural environment, but was often treated like a tightly controlled warehouse operation. Despite being a forest attraction where the setting does most of the work, staff were expected to follow rigid rotations, remain glued to booths or carts, and treat every station as if it were critical to the entire guest experience.

What I learned was how large attractions can over-manage themselves. I gained experience working with tourists in a high-traffic environment and learned how to stay composed in a setting where procedures and oversight often took priority over common sense and human interaction.

Management tended to take things far too seriously for the environment they were operating in. There was a sense of boredom at the supervisory level that translated into unnecessary fixation on control, constant monitoring, and frequent changes. A single empty booth was treated as a major issue, even though most guests were simply happy to be in a forest and didn’t require constant “enhancements.”

The workplace culture reflected this. Many coworkers were great, but the atmosphere was tense and compliance-driven. Instead of trusting staff to read the room and interact naturally with guests, there was an emphasis on surveillance, strict rotations, and pushing activities whether or not guests were interested.

The hardest part of the job was working in a beautiful natural setting that was managed like an assembly line. The constant changes, micromanagement, short and inconvenient breaks, and pressure to justify rising ticket prices by adding more attractions made the job feel unnecessarily stressful.

The most enjoyable part of the job was the forest itself and the guests. Most visitors were tourists who were already happy to be there, curious, relaxed, and appreciative. Simply being available for questions and organic interaction would have been more than enough. The place largely speaks for itself.

Overall, it felt like the park was competing with itself — continually raising admission prices and then feeling the need to justify that by adding more and more, even at the expense of the natural environment. Sometimes leaving well enough alone would have served both guests and staff better

A nice place to work and great if you are a student living on the North Shore!  Not a lot of pressure and can be fast-paced, May thru September and November/December.

Very diverse company when it comes to people.  All ages, all walks of life, all genders, all types of personalities.  An inviting and warm place to be.  One thing here is they never ever question safety.  Probably one of the safest places to work.

99% of the guests are happy and very friendly so not a lot of stress here.

Lots of junior managers and all are friendly and helpful.
Senior managers are aloof and not so friendly.  But you hardly if ever deal with them so no big deal.

Can't beat the staff discounts and the hand warmers when it is cold and the cold drinks and freezie treats when it is hot.
Great staff facilities, lounges, kitchen, change rooms, and they supply you a uniform.

They also offer very flexible scheduling in the busy season.  So you can definitely have great work and life balance here.

The only failing here is the wages.  Everyone gets the same wage.
No matter how much experience you have.  1st-year employee or 20 years experience, you get paid the same in maintenance, parking, guest services, shuttle, etc.

Minimum Wage is BC is $12.65 it will go up to $13.85 June 1, 2019.

Right now the average wage a Capilano Bridge is $13.75 an hour.

So this multimillion dollar company fails miserably when it comes to wages. Most other tourism companies pay a minimum of $15.00 an hour.  Other than food service there are no chances of tipping her either.

The wages are the number 1 complaint of the staff here.

If they improved wages, I could see the Capilano Group being in the top 100 employers in Canada.  They almost got it right.

Culture wise your immediate colleagues are great (people you work with directly) but the disconnect between management/ownership is like nothing I have ever seen. 

My disappointment with how management effectively brushed away any concern by employees was immeasurable. Whether it be concerns over Covid-19 protocols, the lack of a living wage, or having access to the most basic benefits package, your voice is filled away in a drawer that an even more out of touch HR department will never look at. 

If you accept an offer here the phrase “I can’t afford to work here” will become commonplace. It is very hard to work somewhere when you see 1000s of guests each day lining the pockets of the owner while you make just above minimum wage with zero benefits to take care of your health. 

The “history” of the park is also very questionable. If you are in a position where you work closely with guests you feel like you are educating them about what is seemingly a vanity project for the owner at this point. Any attempt to bring in contemporary ideas about local or Indigenous history are heard by few that care and ignored by many who could implement anything meaningful. 

Overall take a job here if you want some part time cash but stay away otherwise. There are far better jobs out there in the same field that will pay you fairly and let you contribute to their success other than directing people to the gift shop. 

Honestly, we don’t get paid enough for what we do. We work in below freezing temperatures for 8 hours, while only being allowed one 15 minute break in the eat which is nothing. 

Every time you ask a manager for another heat break, they’ll just ignore you, and deny it. I just have gotten at least 1 frost bite, and 15 days I came home with frostnip. 

The uniform that they provide you is meant to be “waterproof”. But it soaks right trough, and off of the employers get drenched. Clearly, they don’t care about the well-being of the frontline workers.

We work our buts off making sure guest have an amazing experience only to get paid 25 cents over minimum wage. This isn’t even the base pay for new workers. They call it a ‘raise for your dedication to the company’, but they’re just trying to make sure you don’t quit. We should get paid at LEAST 2-3 dollars above minimum for the effort, anxiety and stress we have to deal with day to day.

Plus, the managers are the most passive aggressive people you’ll ever meet. Beware of what you’re getting yourself into!!!

Their marketing department deserves enormous credit for how amazing they make the Capilano Bridge experience feel. I will give them that. 

Their park guide supervisors are all wonderful and their training is fantastic. 

However, I couldn’t wait to get out of there by the end of each shift very quickly.

Pros:
- supervisors do their best to keep up morale and obviously care about the business and their role 
- flexible with days you want to work
- fresh air
- when it’s not to busy, its great interacting with guests 
- will definitely get your 10,000 steps in
- Definitely a job anyone with 0 qualifications could do so good for entrance level people 

Cons:
- Very tedious and boring a lot of the time
- Very busy and overcrowded a lot of the time
- All feels very touristy (think Disneyworld vibe)
- Upper management obviously more focused on getting as many people through the gates as possible then presenting a world class experience
- Doesn’t feel like you’re in nature a lot of the time
- Be prepared to deal with a lot of aggressive guests about masks, smoking, bringing in booze, littering etc 
- Pretty miserable standing around in the pouring rain for 8 hours 

It is a beautiful and historic place.
Yes, you are surrounded by nature and that is truly refreshing.  But like many businesses, the owner/operator, of Capilano. Makes the Gold, Owns the Gold, and chooses not to share the Gold with anyone.  If there ever was a business that could be a leader in the Canadian Tourism industry.  This is the place.  But it falls short because it fails to recognize that the strength of this company is built on the backs of all the staff.

First of all it is a beautiful place full of nature and clean fresh air.  Many of your colleagues are young student types.  It has beautiful facilities and is very safe.  There are some old timers the over 40 crowd who are exceptional folks.

After that it becomes bizarre.  Vancouver's number 1 tourist attraction that makes millions does not come close to paying anyone with experience a living wage.  Management are aloof and all you ever get is that subtle smile or head nod.

The HR department may be the worst anyone will ever encounter. 

If you need a first time job.  Great place that will pay you minimum wages and give you some experience.  After a season or two.

Get out!


Capilano is definitely a young persons gig.  The vast majority of staff are under 25 years of age.  Many middle management are in their mid to late 20's.

There are a few old timers there.

The problem is the park pays very poorly.  Some longtime staff are only making 15.75 per hour this is after 10 years there.
That is very sad.

Working conditions are beautiful and staff seem to have fun.  
Guests are 97% easy to deal with and there is little stress.

There are generous staff discounts, fun staff events and nice summer, Christmas bashes.

My only advice to the CEO is to pay people what they are worth.

Choosing to work here is probably one of my best decisions! After a bit of time working here I was able to regain some social skills with the help of management and other colleagues as well! Great people work here for the most part and it is a very enjoyable workplace! Lots of flexibility is given to you so you can change your schedule if needed. Team is always there for you to answer questions happily and always has your back in the case where guests may be out of line.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Flexibility,  diversity and the work equality and respect.  

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
There is not stressful situation working with the right people. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Nice diversity working with all cultures and fun to work. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Being close to nature is the best park of the job.

Top Job Titles	Average salary
Guest service agent 3 salaries reported	$18.00 per hour
Conseiller du service 1 salary reported	$60,000 per year
Senior cook 2 salaries reported	$22.38 per hour
Restaurant manager 2 salaries reported	$62,500 per year
Receptionist 1 salary reported	$38,886 per year

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