10 Things to Do in Vancouver British Columbia, Canada

As you know, one of my goals this year to to purge the majority of the 4,000+ photos from my phone. Well, last night as I was scrolling through the images, I came across the time The Girl and I traveled to Vancouver back in 2017. I remember being blown away by its beauty, and all the fun things there was to do and see there. I took a million pictures so I could come back and share them with you. And well, I’m finally getting around to doing that now.  Better late than never, right? 😉

Bottom line: If you saw every one of the pics I snapped, you’d want to hop a plane to Vancouver today. It’s gorgeous and such a great city to visit. Here are some of the fun things we saw:

VanDusen Botanical Garden: It’s a 55 acre outdoor oasis with over 7,500 plant species and varieties, the VanDusen Botanical Garden is a serene setting located right in the heart of Vancouver. It’s the perfect spot for a picnic, to explore the hedge maze with your kids, or to check out the local wildlife. They also have a really cool visitor center we loved!

Kitsilano Beach: This beach has something for everyone! Sunbathers, volleyball players, sandcastle makers and families alike will love this beach. Kits Beach as the locals call it, is a great beach to swim at, too, because the water is calm and there’s a pool called, Kits Pool, which is Canada’s longest pool and part of the beach’s extended park.

Stanley Park: The city’s largest urban park is a national historic site right in the center of the city. With 405-hectares that border downtown Vancouver. Stanley Park is almost entirely surrounded by the waters of Vancouver Harbor and English Bay and, and is one of the top Vancouver attractions. Mountains, rain forest, and sea wall, one walk through the park and you’ll hit all 3!

Granville Island: I was going to try to sum up Granville Island in my own words, but when I was researching places to go at the time, I found this quote and it immediately made me want to stop by.

“This former industrial site is now one of Vancouver’s most beloved neighborhoods. Practically its own mini-city, Granville Island’s former factories now house trendy restaurants, galleries and theaters. But the main draw here is the Granville Island Public Market, often described as one of the best open-air markets in North America. Among the seemingly endless aisles of fresh produce and local crafts, you’ll find a variety of food stalls selling everything from baked goods to ethnic snacks.”

We were both so glad we went there! That public market was unlike anything I’ve seen. Awwe-some.

Vancouver Aquarium: The Vancouver Aquarium is Canada’s largest aquarium and home to more than 70,000 animals including eels, dolphins, anacondas, sea otters, sloths, and more. Visitors can learn all about the region’s marine life through their educational “encounters” program, which allows visitors to go behind the scenes and get up close and personal with the animals and the people who train them. So you can help “train” and feed dolphins, otters, turtles, sea lions, and more!

Neverland Tea Salon – Everyone has to eat, right? 😉 Neverland Tea Salon is hands down, the best place The Girl and I have ever stopped for afternoon tea. Everything from the nibbles to the tea blends were spot on. You simply can’t visit Vancouver without stopping here. Butter Baked Goods was pretty amazing too. 😉

Vancouver Art Gallery: This gallery was awesome! It included artwork by all sorts of artists: indigenous, super world-famous, and Canadian alike. They also had a lot of art of the Asia Pacific region at the gallery’s Institute of Asian Art. Oh and if you’re hungry, they have a cool rooftop patio cafe.

Capilano Suspension Bridge: Experience Vancouver the way the birds do by dangling high above North Vancouver on the Capilano Suspension Bridge {unless you’re scared of heights…then RUN away!}. Constructed in 1889, it’s the oldest tourist attraction in the city! It’s 450-feet long, and 230-feet high and offers awesome views of the Capilano River below. And when you reach the other side of the canyon you’ll find more suspension bridges and more fun at the Treetops Adventure.

Queen Elizabeth Park: This 128-acre park is the highest point in the city and located at Vancouver’s geographic center. It’s full of gorgeousness like quarry gardens, amazing city and mountain views, an arboretum, a cool rose garden that’ll blow you away and a place they call Painters’ Corner, where local artists display and sell their work. It really is a lovely park with a lovely name to boot!

Bloedel Floral Conservatory: Located at the top of Queen Elizabeth Park, the conservatory houses an aviary filled with all sorts of exotic feathered friends big and small and is worth every penny of the $6.75 admission fee. Side note: I may have quoted Billy from Dumb and Dumber a few times while we were there. 😉

UBC Farm Farmers’ Market: If you’ll be in the Vancouver area during the growing season {June – October} be sure and stop by the one of the University of British Columbia’s farmer’s markets not only for fresh vegetables, but for locally produced food as well {Watch out for the Kombucha though, it’s a little on the potent side}. The Girl and I happened upon one of their Saturday markets and ended up going home with a cooler filled with goodness.

So what did I miss? What are some awesome Vancouver hot spots? Have you been? Did you love it as much as we did?

Have a wonderful Thursday everyone,

~Mavis