As more and more Canadians are vaccinated, the temptation for people to go travel again is certainly understandable. However, given the, shall we say, “unsteady” rollout of vaccines around the world, Canadians this summer will have to travel more in their own backyards. Thankfully, Canada is the world’s second largest country, and boasts access to two of the world’s greatest oceans. Sitting at a crossroads between Asia, US and Canada, Vancouver should certainly be on everyone’s travel agenda. The spots in this article are from North to South, and unfortunately do not capture the full amazingness of this city: it would require at least a week in the Greater Vancouver Area to fully take in all there is!

North Vancouver:

I’ll cover this one quickly, given the fact that I’m guessing most North Vancouver residents, who are typically affluent and older, do not want it to be a tourist hotspot. The city is dominated by low density construction, and has a slower pace of life.

The main body of water is Burrard Inlet, and for some reason I have always found the vast body of water quite soothing. You can also see the Lion’s Gate Bridge, a marvel of engineering that was created before WWII to connect North Vancouver with Downtown Vancouver

Waterfront:

Vancouver’s city waterfront is the most beautiful in all of North America. Full stop. I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves, but there is a reason why homes are so expensive in Vancouver relative to incomes (see: sunshine tax and why I moved to Toronto)

Stanley Park:

Trip advisor voted Stanley Park as the world’s top park back in 2014, with the park beating out heavyweights like New York’s Central Park. Beyond the “seawall”, which is literally a wall protecting the park from the sea, the park also has 27km of trails, snaking through it’s forested acres.

Upon entering the park from the South side, the Vancouver Rowing Club and Royal Yacht club are both visible. Unfortunately, given the current situation, neither of them are open to outside visitors

A little bit further in, we can see Deadman’s Island, which is unfortunately also closed. Not just because of the pandemic, but because it’s a Department of National Defense site with some interesting history.

Going further inwards, we can see the Lions Gate Bridge from across the horizon

The park hosts a variety of different fields (see below), monuments, and other attractions – I saw many people picnicking, and this being Canada, all were pretty good about picking up their litter.

One notable feature that was closed was the Vancouver aquarium; given the lack of visitors, the place was sold to an AMERICAN company. That being said, you can still watch the cute otters bumble around on the aquarium’s live webcams.

Downtown Vancouver:

Lest anyone that Vancouverites only play, there is a downtown core from which thousands of workers used to stream. Notable corporate headquarters include HSBC Canada (a bank), Telus (telecommunications), PlentyofFish (online banking no dating), along with regional headquarters of many of Canada’s banks and professional services firms (GO KPMG).

In contrast to the low rise developments in most Vancouver neighborhoods, the downtown core skyline is increasingly being dominated by soaring structures similar to the below.

There has been effort made to retain parts of Vancouver history, and blend the old with the new – the old Canada Post building is being redesigned to accommodate a new Amazon office. Ironic, isn’t it.

One notable landmark is the Vancouver Public Library, Central Branch, occupying a full city block. In regular times, you can find almost every type of book on Earth, along with modern recording studios, computer equipment, meeting rooms and inspiration labs.

Given Vancouver’s emphasis on walkability and sustainability, many workers in Downtown Vancouver live close to work. Some popular, but expensive, neighborhoods include Coal Harbor, the West End, Yaletown and Olympic Village. Vancouver’s investment in green space has meant that living downtown does not feel crowded, particularly since many other indoor attractions have remained closed for the past year.

University of British Columbia (UBC):

As the best university in Canada (fight me in the comments), UBC offers more than just a great education to its ~60,000 students. Given it’s sheer size of ~4,000 square km, it’s possible to spend nearly an entire day exploring the campus. While most classes are online, the school expects to be fully open in September 2021, which will hopefully mean the buildings can be accessed by non-students.

Highlights:

TRIUMF: One of the one world’s largest particle accelerators. I believe this is used to smash very small things are very high speeds, please go see for yourselves (note – you cannot see individual atoms with the naked eye). Also, the particle accelerator is underground and closed at this time, hence the lack of pictures.

UBC Farm: It’s a farm that also runs a market

Sauder School of Business: Loved my time there, YMMV. Increase revenues, lower costs.

One quick tip for visiting UBC: The food selection is extremely overpriced on campus given the captive audience. However, a quick walk to the UBC Village food court is all that is needed to solve the problem. 

Final Thoughts:

Given you’re probably wondering when the article is over by now, see below for some additional areas of interest for visitors to Vancouver. There will be an additional article covering other areas in Vancouver, along with so potential places to eat some of the world’s best sushi.

I like Parks and Beaches:

To list out the myriad of parks and outdoor spaces would mean an article that would be far too long. Part of Vancouverism (yes, Vancouver has its own architecture style) is a focus on maintaining green space and view corridors – this has means that Vancouver has over 240 parks, all under the watchful eye of the Parks and Recreation board and Leslie Knope. Seriously, Vancouver has an amazing Parks and Recreation team.

Suggestions: Kits Beach / Park, English Bay,

I like Nature:

Mountains – Whistler, Grouse, Cypress, Sun Peaks. Skiing and Snowboarding in the winter, hikes and sightseeing in the summer

GVA Watershed – Home to the Capilano Suspension bridge and protected Salmon Spawning areas

Hiking - Stawamus Chief, Garibaldi Lake, Golden Ears, Grouse Grind, among many others

Sea-to-Sky Highway – A scenic 400KM ride from Vancouver to the Catch Creek

I like Sushi:

Affordable: Samurai / Banzai Sushi (which tends to much too much mayo), Sushi Mura, Sushi King House, Tokyo Joe

High End: Miku, Minami, Blue Water Cafe, Lobby Lounge