Visiting Vancouver? Over 30 Ideas to Keep You Busy

June 16, 2010

How often have you had visitors and wondered what in the world you were going to do with them short of sitting staring at each other across the living room?? Fortunately in Vancouver there’s a great deal to do to keep even the most jaded visitor and host happy, especially in the summer.

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Impressing Your Visitor

Show your visitors those things that are unique to BC and even to Canada if they are from other parts of the world. First impressions count! If you’ve picked them up at the airport and providing they’re not asleep, take a detour along SW Marine Dr (only 7  minutes from the airport) and continue out along Spanish Banks. Some of the highlights of this drive are the following:

  • The Spanish Banks area is  particularly good at low tide when you can walk out on the sand flats for a mile.
  • Some of Vancouvers best beaches are along here including Locarno Beach which is perfect for an outdoor BBQ on a warm evening.
  • The view of  Vancouver from this vantage point with the water and mountains is truly spectacular.
  • Around Point Grey is the Museum of Anthropology . The building has recently been renovated and it is here you can see totem poles and unique BC First Nations art.
  • Kitsilano has a fantastic salt water outdoor pool – three times the size of an Olympic pool – with fabulous views of the mountains as a backdrop for those that just want to suntan and relax.

2516968238 579404b7d0 Visiting Vancouver? Over 30 Ideas to Keep You Busy

Downtown Vancouver

For many the skyscrapers of downtown are quite an eye-opener; for indoor days there’s plenty of shopping both at indoor malls and on Robson Street, in Gastown, or even Chinatown with it’s myriad shops to poke around in.  You could also try one of these activities.

  • Kids will enjoy Science World, and the Imax Theatre is far superior in size and effect than the one at Canada Place.
  • Park the car at Sunset Beach in the West End and take the ferry over to Granville Island - a great way to add to the fun.
  • The HR MacMillan Space Center has indoor shows, laser and light shows and telescope viewings. Try to visit  on a clear night.
  • Bard on the Beach Shakespearean plays are on in the summer months in the same area. Before the play begins try a walk around Vanier Point.
  • Take a dinner cruise while enjoying the downtown skyline.
  • Enjoy a scenic float plane tour. It’s not too expensive when you consider how many people you can tuck in and what can be seen in a very short space of time.
Vancouver City shots 139 Visiting Vancouver? Over 30 Ideas to Keep You Busy

Seaplane landing in downtown Vancouver

Stanley Park

You can easily spend a whole day here. The best way is to either cycle it or walk it.

  • Rent bicycles at the north end of Denman Street and take a trip around the seawall; even for the less fit this is an easy and fun way to spend half a day.  Hop on and off to look at the various sights or get lunch at the many stops available. Try to choose a quieter time so you can actually take your eyes off the path and enjoy the view!
  • Drive around the park  for a different view.  At the more elevated spots such as Prospect Point, the view has widened due to a huge windstorm that took out 10,000 park trees a few years ago.
  • There are two lovely beaches, unprepossessingly called 2nd and 3rdbeaches, with 2nd beach having a great outdoor pool for sunny days.
  • Visit the Vancouver Aquarium. As long as you are not a “Free Willy” activist then the Orca and Beluga whale exhibits are quite awesome to see.  There are many more marine animls on display as well as an Amazon exhibit. Animals are shown in’natural’ habitats and won’t be doing any tricks or acrobatics to music, and the general presentation is of education and interest - not entertainment.
  • In the summer there is outdoor ethnic dancing at the Ceperley Park picnic area. While this may sound a bit odd it can be a lot of fun and was a huge hit with some of my previous visitors.
  • If you’re feeling lazy there are narrated horse-drawn carriage rides around the park with general information about both Stanley Park and Vancouver.

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The North Shore

  • Starting at Deep Cove you can take a great walk to the lookout at Quarry Rock, about 30 minutes along the Baden Powell Trail; it’s not for those afraid of heights.
  • There are some small shops and eateries in Deep Cove.
  • Rent a kayak where you can explore the lovely inlet of Indian Arm or just the Cove area itself.
  • Most evenings see dragonboat teams practicing. Come out and cheer them on.

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Grouse Mountain

If you can afford the tram ride you can probably afford to eat at the Observatory Restaurant at the peak,  and in that case the trip up is included with your meal. If you are a fitness freak climb the 3000′ mountain on the Grouse Grind Trail, but only if you are prepared and healthy enough to do it! If neither of those methods attract you then there is a helicopter ride from Coal Harbour that will take you up to the peak and back to the harbour later in the day. Although there are things to see up there such as the lumberjack show and the raptor display the main attraction is the view so only consider going on a very clear day. There is also a free movie about Vancouver running continuously during the day.

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Grouse Grind

West Vancouver

  • If you want a view at no physical or monetary cost then drive up Cypress Mountain and pull off at the lookout. You get a great aerial view of the lower mainland and on a really clear day you can see Mount Baker in Washington.
  • Every August  the Squamish Nation Pow-Wow is held at the foot of CapilanoRoad. It ‘s quite a sight to see and the Europeans in particular love to see it! There is  food, stalls selling native goods, and of course the dance competitions. It’s definately worth the time for a unique afternoon.
  • Head to Sewell’s Marina in Horseshoe Bay. Try their sea safari.
  • Take the ferry from Horseshoe Bay over to Bowen Island as a foot passenger where you can either just poke around the shops in Snug Cove and have lunch on the deck at Doc Morgans Pub. Enjoy lovely views of Howe sound. You could even try a few hours of sea kayaking, right off the ferry dock. The view of Howe Sound and the snow-capped mountains are about as quintessential BC as you can get without almost any effort on your part.
  • If you’re slightly more energetic you can take the loop trail around Killarney Lake or even hike Mt Gardner for the 360 degree view at the top. The island has a little bus service that can get you around but check times.

Sea to Sky Highway through to Whistler

If you only have a day to spare you can easily take a run up to Whistler with stops along the way. Try one of the following.

  • Shannon Falls at Squamish is very close to the car park if you want a closer look.
  • Stop at the base of the Chief and see if you can spot the climbers on the rock face. It’s worth the one hour one way hike to the top too.
  • Brandywine Falls just south of Whistler is an enjoyable 5 minute walk from the car just for sheer height!
  • In Whistler there’s lots to tempt you - beaches, canoeing, hiking, golf, shopping, the peak to peak gondola and the zip line. On your way back to Vancouver stop at the lookout to see the Tantalus Range. You’ll have a full day of BC scenery under your belt.

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Victoria and the Gulf Islands

Everyone wants to take their visitors to Victoria, but to the average European visitor it pales in historic terms to what they have ‘back home’. The Royal BC Museum though is worth a visit.

  • Take a trip downtown at night to see the street entertainers and the lights.
  • If you take the ferry from Tsawwassen make sure to get your visitors up on deck when sailing through the Gulf Islands. It’s worth getting your hair messed up with the wind and if you’re lucky you’ll spot a whale or a dolphin too.
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Tsawwassen Ferry passenger

There is so much do here and so much to appreciate about living on the West Coast. Now if only the weather will co-operate and if it does you might have a hard time getting your visitors to leave!

Blog kindly provided by Heather Priest of North Vancouver.

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Posted by Hike Bike Travel | Filed Under Adventure Travel, British Columbia, Canada, Guest Post 

Comments

6 Responses to “Visiting Vancouver? Over 30 Ideas to Keep You Busy”

  1. Frank - Our Hiking Blog on June 16th, 2010 1:46 pm

    Looks fantastic, on the bucket list!
    .-= Frank – Our Hiking Blog´s last blog ..Falls Creek, AAWT & Heathy Spur Track – “short” walk =-.
  2. camwears on June 17th, 2010 7:55 am

    I was just thinking about doing a similar post!
    Great content… it’s given me some ideas for the upcoming weekend… Grind or Chief??
    .-= camwears´s last blog ..Photo of the Week: Boracay, Philippines =-.
  3. Hike Bike Travel on June 17th, 2010 9:13 am

    I like the Chief because your legs get such a great workout going down and I love the airiness at the top. The Grind is best in my opinion, on a slightly rainy day when you have the trail almost entirely to yourself.
  4. Tweets that mention Visiting Vancouver? Over 30 Ideas to Keep You Busy | HikeBikeTravel, My title -- Topsy.com on June 17th, 2010 12:07 pm

    [...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Harvard Classifieds, Leigh. Leigh said: HikeBikeTravel: Visiting Vancouver? Over 30 Ideas to Keep You Busy http://bit.ly/cfdOi7 [...]
  5. Don Nadeau on April 1st, 2011 6:45 am

    Excellent post.

    I’ve lived in Vancouver twice, and would add these for spring and summer visits:

    Lynn Canyon Park on North Shore for hiking and its suspension bridge

    VanDusen Botanical Garden, a few minutes from downtown

    Asian garden (not to be confused with the Japanese garden) at the UBC Botanical Garden, a few minutes from Spanish banks
    Don Nadeau´s last [type] ..The Oregon Coast- Short Sand Beach
  6. Hike Bike Travel on April 1st, 2011 7:26 am

    I couldn’t agree more. I love Van Dusen Gardens especially in the spring. I was going to check out Nitobe Gardens this Sunday (I think the Asian gardens you are referring to) – with all the cherry trees in bloom.

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