The 21 best things to do in Vancouver

This must-see park right next to downtown Vancouver is a whopping 1,000 acres. It’s got beaches, totem poles, an aquarium, playgrounds (one’s a splash park), a pool, botanical gardens, tennis courts and much more. With all Stanley Park offers, you could easily spend a day within its perimeter. Many visitors want to bike the Seawall that surrounds the park, but, especially in the summer, it’s usually too crowded to be pleasant. I think you’re better off biking the dirt paths inside the park and walking the Seawall instead. Bonus: walkers are more likely to spot a seal or maybe even a whale swimming by and can admire the views without causing traffic jams.

Venture inside the park to get lost amongst miles of walking and biking trails bordered by ferns, centuries-old cedars and cathedrals of 160-foot-tall Douglas fir. Keep an eye out for beavers, raccoons, great blue herons, bald eagles, coyotes and, of course, Canada geese. Please don’t feed any wildlife—it’s bad for them plus causes aggression (and Canada geese, a.k.a cobra chickens, are aggressive enough!).

Known as the Peak of Vancouver, locals and tourists flock to Grouse Mountain for outdoor activities, whatever the season. From hiking and ziplining in the summer to skating and snowshoeing in the winter—plus lumberjack shows and grizzly bear visits in between—Grouse Mountain is a year-round destination. Up for a challenge? Try the Grouse Grind, a 1.8-mile trail featuring 2,830 stairs that takes you 2,800 feet up the mountain. Or just take the gondola up for amazing views of the city and the ocean (I’m partial to the Skyride Surf Adventure version where you ride in the open air atop the gondola car).

British Columbia has a wealth of marine life, including orcas, humpbacks, seals and dolphins (a dead great white shark was even found off Haida Gwaii recently). From Granville Island, hop aboard one of Prince of Whales’ or Wild Whales’ boats for a conservation-minded whale watch tour. Learn about whales and marine conservation as you witness the beauty of Vancouver’s waters.

Packed with towering trees, these botanical gardens are a great spot to unwind or take a few nature selfies. VanDusen Botanical Garden is 55 acres of green and splashes of colour, with 7,500 plant species from all over the world. Wander around the picturesque lake and find your zen in the Elizabethan hedge maze made from 3,000 cedars. The Festival of Lights display from December to early January is popular (and very crowded; book ahead), but springtime is my favourite time of year at VanDusen with all the colourful bulbs pushing up through the ground and the cherry blossoms overhead.

This 10-minute gondola ride takes you up almost 2,800 feet past Shannon Falls, the third-highest falls in the province. Drive the stunning Sea to Sky Highway almost to Squamish then gaze out the gondola window (you’re guaranteed a window seat, as each gondola has a max of eight passengers) for even more spectacular views of Howe Sound and the mountains surrounding Vancouver. Hike the trails, try the Via Ferrata, cross the Sky Pilot Suspension Bridge, dine at the Summit Lodge and, during the winter, ski the backcountry.

Overhauled in the ‘70s, Granville Island is a former waterfront industrial site (technically a peninsula rather than an island) home to a public market, food shops, restaurants, artist studios and galleries, shopping, inviting green space, a sea village of floating homes, and even a working concrete factory (look for their fun silo and truck art). The best way to get there is via a cute little rainbow-striped Aquabus or you can walk or ride the road under the south side of the Granville Bridge.

The vast public market features everything from confections to cheeses to bread to meats (if you insist on taking photos of the beautiful stacks of fruit, please don’t block the aisles). Pick up a few items and picnic next to False Creek (guard against snack-stealing birds!) or indulge in the market’s food court. Oyama Sausage Co. is justifiably famous for its charcuterie and sausages and JJ Bean makes fab coffee; though they’re tasty, I wouldn’t stand in a long queue for Lee’s Donuts. For an elegant patio lunch, I recommend Dockside Restaurant, waterside at the Granville Island Hotel.

Rogers Arena is home to the Vancouver Canucks hockey team (that Stanley Cup has to come eventually, surely). Next door is BC Place, home to the Vancouver Whitecaps FC, Canadian MLS champions three years running. Both venues also host major concerts and events throughout the year (I prefer BC Place, especially when its retractable roof is open). Canadians love hockey and Vancouver adores their Canucks, no matter how wonderful or frustrating they may be. Vancouver’s soccer spirit is increasing with the city hosting seven FIFA World Cup matches in 2026. The Whitecaps’ regular season is March to October and the Canucks play October to April (or May or June, depending on how the team’s doing).

Open weekends and holiday evenings from May to October, this is the largest night market in North America. The Richmond Night Market will give you a taste of Asia’s famed night markets with 600-plus international food options like grilled squid, pho fries, gyozas, roti mac and cheese, and nitrogen ice cream at the food stalls, followed by shopping for gifts and accessories at more than 100 retail stalls. There are games, live music, entertainment and always great people-watching. A five-admission Zoom Pass lets you skip the line—team up with someone nice in the line-up and share the cost.

This tranquil garden in Chinatown is the first Ming Dynasty-style “scholar’s garden” built outside China. Created using traditional tools and techniques by specialists from Suzhou (where the gardens that inspired this one are located), the garden highlights rare trees, prized rocks and the principles of balance and harmony. The garden is an oasis of tranquillity and requires paid admission, but you can stroll the adjacent park for free. Learn the symbolism behind the placement of each plant, structure and path, or just enjoy peace, quiet and beauty.

In a renovated neoclassical courthouse on Robson Square in the heart of downtown, the Vancouver Art Gallery houses thousands of works important to the region and world. Art from Indigenous artists and the Asia Pacific region feature prominently and the gallery has the world’s most comprehensive collection by West Coast landscapist Emily Carr. Even more is to come with a new nine-level, purpose-built gallery under construction a few blocks southeast and the recent arrival of new head curator Eva Respini, formerly of New York’s Museum of Modern Art and the Institute of Contemporary Art Boston.

The 17.5-mile paved pathway starts at the Vancouver Convention Centre and winds around Stanley Park to English Bay, False Creek, Olympic Village, Granville Island, Kitsilano Beach and the beaches of Spanish Banks. The 5.5-mile section around Stanley Park is the most popular, but tackling the whole Seawall will give you an excellent (and active) tour of Vancouver.

It’s the world’s longest uninterrupted waterfront path, and you’ll see mountains, the skyline, beaches, sculptures and gardens (springtime highlights are the cherry and plum blossoms, but I like to look for the banana trees in summer and fall). Some sections of the Seawall are pedestrian only and others have a separate path for bikes, scooters, rollerblades and other wheels. Stay in your lane or you will raise the ire of locals and potentially get someone hurt.

The original downtown core of Vancouver, the gentrification of Gastown began in the 1970s to turn this former industrial hub into a tourism and entertainment neighbourhood prettied up with cobblestone streets and lights that look like they’re out of the Victorian era. It’s home to unique boutiques, art galleries and several excellent restaurants, many in beautifully refurbished buildings. While the Gastown Steam Clock draws crowds of tourists from the nearby cruise ship terminal, know that it’s not even 50 years old and that steam only powers the clock’s winding mechanism. Gastown is worth seeing, but I also recommend a wander through Kitsilano, Yaletown and the South Main and Commercial Drive neighbourhoods.

The Capilano Suspension Bridge swings (a little) at 230 feet high and 450 feet across the Capilano River through the temperate rainforest on Vancouver’s North Shore. Test your mettle as you walk the main bridge, the cantilevered cliff walk, and seven smaller bridges suspended 100 feet high in 250-year-old Douglas fir trees and you’ll be rewarded with spectacular rainforest views. Not far to the east, the Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge is a smaller but free version, a mere 167 feet above Lynn Creek. It provides access to several easy walks and to rugged backcountry trails.

Located on the traditional territory of the Musqueam people, the Museum of Anthropology (MOA) reopened in summer 2024 after a renovation and a reinterpretation of its displays of Indigenous artifacts done in collaboration with local First Nations. One of Canada’s largest teaching museums, MOA is home to hundreds of thousands of ethnographic objects, artifacts and works of art, including textiles, ceramics, massive totem poles and masks. The permanent collection includes the largest collection in the world of works by Haida sculptor and activist Bill Reid. The iconic building was designed by world-renowned Canadian architect Arthur Erickson.

This popular food truck is the creation of chef Paul Natrall of the Squamish Nation, who serves Indigenous fusion cuisine using fresh, local ingredients and traditional cooking methods like smoking and stone baking. Mr. Bannock is named after the popular unleavened fry bread and chef Natrall offers it several ways, including in taco and burger form. Want more Indigenous cuisine in Vancouver? Salmon n’ Bannock serves dinner on West Broadway plus has a new location with grab-and-go food at YVR airport.

At almost five miles, Wreck Beach is one of Vancouver’s largest and most beautiful stretches of sand and happens to be one of North America’s largest naturist (i.e. clothing optional) beaches too. Make a bench out of one of the massive logs on the beach to enjoy the views or take a walk between the long staircases that provide access down the 200-foot-high cliffs (the beach narrows in a few spots at high tide so check the tide tables if you want to keep your feet dry).

Wreck Beach has a real sense of community, as represented by the active Wreck Beach Preservation Society. Keep an eye out for events like the annual Bare Buns Run where runners pound the sand of the tidal flats beneath the forested cliffs nude, with just buns exposed, or shy (i.e. fully clothed).

If you’d rather not bathe in your birthday suit, Jericho is another fantastic Vancouver beach with a more typical waterside experience. Jericho is a top spot for swimming (there’s better water circulation so less pollution here than at English Bay or Sunset beaches) and for water sports like kayaking, paddle boarding, windsurfing and sailing. Equipment is available for rent, and lessons and tours are offered for a good bit of the year. I also recommend next-door Spanish Banks, where you can wade out almost to the container ships at low tide.

A Stanley Park highlight, the Vancouver Aquarium focuses on sustainability and conservation and works in partnership with the Vancouver Aquarium Marine Mammal Rescue Society. The marine mammals at VanAqua are rescues that aren’t able to be returned to the wild because of their injuries or because they were orphaned young and can’t fend for themselves. Giggle at the antics of the otters and seals, zen out watching the jellyfish and gain a greater appreciation of the importance of protecting the world’s oceans. The Vancouver Aquarium originated the Ocean Wise sustainable seafood and ocean protection initiative—look for the symbol on menus throughout the city.

The West End is a bustling neighbourhood of beaches, shopping and dining and hosts annual events like the Celebration of Light fireworks competition, the city’s Pride Parade and New Year’s Day’s Polar Bear Swim. In the summer, English Bay Beach and Sunset Beach next door draw throngs who want to soak up the sun—on cooler days there’s much more room to stretch out.  The whole neighbourhood is a top destination year-round for shopping, dining, waterfront strolling (bikes aren’t allowed on the Seawall here), beautiful scenery and art (the A-Maze-Ing Laughter statues are a bit freaky, I prefer Inukshuk and think Engagement is a perfect spot for a sunset photo). 

For summer fun after the snow melts, coast down 900 feet of Cypress Mountain’s vertical on the Eagle Coaster’s smooth track in a gravity-fueled cart. Control your speed with the handbrake if you’re nervous or want to admire the wildflowers. If you’re keen to reach the 25-mile-an-hour top speed, my advice is to ask the rider in front of you if they plan to go fast or slow so you can try to time your departure until they’re far enough down the mountain. Kids aged 3 to 8 have to ride with an adult. Reach the coaster via the Eagle Express Quad Chair while admiring views of Howe Sound and the surrounding mountains. Grouse Mountain expects to open its version in spring 2025.

The curious seals in the colony at Pam Rocks in Howe Sound often interrupt their sunny snoozes to dive in and swim over to see what the visiting kayakers, stand-up paddle boarders and snorkellers are doing. Enjoy an afternoon on the water with Seadragon Charters and see the seals, learn about protecting Vancouver’s marine environment and maybe catch a glimpse of some bald eagles and other wildlife.