The sugar and spice scent of gingerbread is in the air today near the lobby of the Hyatt Regency in Vancouver.

It is the opening day for Gingerbread Lane, a display of culinary masterpieces made out of -you guessed it- gingerbread!

Running until December 27th, kids and kids at heart have a chance to vote for their favourite cookie work of art. Over 30 entries from school, community and culinary arts groups, transform the Hyatt Regency into a kind of Christmas candy land.

Previous years have brought in over 20,000 visitors and while it is a fun holiday attraction, it is much more than that. Gingerbread Lane has raised tens of thousands of dollars over the years for the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

When you first walk in it will be hard not to notice the 11 foot tall, 16 feet wide huge gingerbread house on display. Executive Chef Thomas Heinrich used 500 pounds of gingerbread dough, 1400 egg whites, and 400 pounds of icing sugar to make the impressive centerpiece.

If you head on down to Gingerbread Lane (its inside the hotel at 655 Burrard St.), leave a donation if you can when you vote. Every little bit helps and the money collected goes to a great cause.

Gingerbread lane is open daily from November 28th-December 27th and is FREE.