Welcome to the West Coast! Vancouver is a bustling west coast city located in beautiful British Columbia. Situated beside a seaport, you can catch your sights on ships, sea planes, sea lions, and even whales! And if that’s not enough, just move your gaze north and take in the beauty of the snow-peaked rocky mountains that surround the city. From sea to sky, you’ll feel right at home in Vancouver! Below are a few of my Must See’s and Do’s while visiting Vancouver.

1. Visit Stanley Park

Grab a bike or go on foot and get lost in Stanley Park. It’s absolutely beautiful! Take a walk or bike along the Seawall, stroll through the rose garden, or wind your way along the forested trails. It’ll feel like you’ve escaped the urban crawl and found a quiet world nestled beside the busy city. Remember, the Stanley Park Sea Wall loop is 10 km, so pack comfortable shoes and water! You may even spot a few sea lions along the way!

2. Capilano Suspension Bridge

Capilano Suspension Bridge is so fun and exhilerating! I must admit, although I am not afraid of heights, walking across the bridge for the first time with dozens of other people while it swayed made my heart rate spike. Nonetheless, we had so much fun traversing through the trees and walking amongst the towering evergreens.

3. Hike Grouse Grind

To properly experience the culture of the West Coast, you have to accomplish the Grouse Grind! It’s a vertical stair climb to the top, a real calf and quad burner! We hiked the grind when the city below was a smokey haze – I definitely don’t recommend hiking when there is an air quality warning from the wild fire smoke, but it was our last day in Vancouver and we had to check it off the bucketlist! Silly us, it was a hard climb, but the feeling accomplishment that overcomes your body as you crest the top is worth it, every single time! Once at the top, you can enjoy a celebratory beer, cocktail, or coffee, and explore the trails at the peak. And don’t worry, you don’t have to climb back down, there’s a gondola that you need to book that will take you back to the base.

4. Explore The Shipyards

In my opinion, The Shipyards is the perfect spot to stay while visiting Vancouver! It’s located in North Vancouver in the heart of the harbour, directly across from Gastown. There are plenty of restaurants and shops in the area and is within walking distance to the ferry that will take you across the harbour to Gastown and Stanley Park. I prefer to stay just outside the hustle of a busy city where I can relax after a busy day of exploring, so when we discovered The Shipyards, it quickly became a favourite area for us! I recommend staying at the Seaside Hotel North Vancouver – the rooms are modern and new, and it’s located right in the heart of The Shipyards.

5. Explore English Bay

As soon as we land in Vancouver, our tradition is to pick up our rental car and drive directly to English Bay and hit up Cactus Club for lunch. It’s the perfect spot to refuel, collect your thoughts, and enjoy the beach views. You can also walk go for a little stroll along the Stanley Park Seawall Path to help you settle in to the West Coast vibes. If you’re interested in staying in this year, I recommend The Sylvia Hotel! The rooms are a bit dated, but the views of the Bay are breathtaking, especially during sunset! Plus, the Hotel is a 1912 apartment building, so it’s full of character and old time charm. Even the elevators are original!

Affordable Accommodations

1. Seaside Hotel North Vancouver – we’ve stayed here twice and will probably be back again!

2. Sylvia Hotel, English Bay – this vintage hotel has a ton of character! If you’d like to transported back to the early 1900’s, I would definitely recommend staying here for a night or two. Plus, it’s located in a great spot, close to the beach!

Splurge Accommodations

1. Fairmont Pacific Rim – I personally haven’t stayed here yet, but if you’re looking for a place downtown, you can never go wrong staying at a Fairmont!

From experience, I would avoid East Hastings Street. Unfortunately it’s an epidemic of homelessness and it will be truly shocking if you end up driving down this road, or walking towards it. I would recommend avoiding this area. We have heard stories of this area and we wanted to check it out ourselves and ended up driving down this road and it was absolutely shocking and heartbreaking. A vision I’ll remember for the rest of my life. So, in saying that, I would avoid this area. You will notice that since Gastown is close to East Hastings Street, that homelessness does trickle into this area.