Vancouver

After Seattle we took the 4-hour train ride to Vancouver. Our hotel was in downtown Vancouver in a good location, where we could easily walk to a lot of places, including Yaletown and Gastown (I personally liked Yaletown better; cheerful atmosphere with tons and tons of restaurants). I’d say my favorite part of the trip was the Capilano Suspension Bridge, which is literally in the middle of a rainforest. Highly recommend!

Here are some of my “must sees” along with what my initial itinerary was below (like Seattle, we couldn’t get to everything on the list). I will note, however, that while I had every intention of going to Chinatown, we were strongly advised against doing so by our hotel concierge. From what we were told, it’s not safe. So I’ll just leave it at that and let you decide whether you want to go!

I had also planned out a day where we would take a day trip to either Victoria or Whistler. We decided on Victoria and it was so charming and beautiful! We did a group tour so that the van would pick us up in the morning, transport us to the ferry (while still on the van!) to Vancouver Island, and lets you off in downtown Victoria for some exploring, and then off to Butchart Gardens (and then back to the hotel). It was a really long day, but convenient because your transportation is all covered for you.

To See/Do:

Vancouver Lookout: 360 views of the skyline
Stanley Park: this is like Vancouver’s version of Central Park
Gastown and Yaletown: good for walking around and grabbing dinner
Capilano Suspension Bridge: awesome experience and beautiful scenery. It IS kid friendly!
Granville Island Public Market: Vancouver’s version of Pike’s Place
Victoria and Butchart Gardens: so much charm and the gardens are exquisite! High tea at the Fairmont Empress is a popular thing, but you may want to make advance reservations.
BC Parliament Buildings in Victoria