Vancouver Travelers Recommend

Vancouver is a city with a lot of things to do like shopping, fine dining, visiting museums, touring beautiful parks and so much more. It is also a city that has a lot of great options for day trips nearby. Here are some of the best day trips from Vancouver. Visiting Whistler is one of the most popular ideas for destinations to visit outside of Vancouver and is only a 78mile (125km) drive north, from the city. Known for its snowcapped mountains that are popular in the winter for skiing, snowboarding and similar winter activities it is also popular in the summer months for hiking and mountain biking. Whistler is additionally home to an award winning pedestrian village and is known as one of the top ski and snowboard destinations in North America.

Since operating as a winter sports centre, some 40 years ago, Whistler has become one of the most popular ski resorts in North America. Travelling by train to Whistler? Step aboard the Whistler Mountaineer for one of Canada’s great train journeys: three-and-a-half hours of unparalleled scenery - Opt for the “Glacier Dome” to get a panorama view. Once there spend the day exploring Whistler’s Olympic Village, majestic forests of giant cedars and Shannon Falls – with a drop of over 335 meters – before returning to Vancouver by road. Or for a more tailored experience, take a private tour via the Sea to Sky Highway, part of Highway 99. Starting at the US border you’ll past the Lions Gate Bridge, Pacific coastline, Shannon Falls and Brandywine Falls before you reach Vancouver.

The capital of British Columbia is Victoria, a medium-size town of about 350,000 some 60 miles (100km) southwest of Vancouver. Best known for its lush gardens and ornate architecture, the city is an easy day trip from Vancouver. Cruise to Vancouver Island for a full day guided tour. Spend the day exploring Victoria including world-famous Butchart Gardens and one of the city's several excellent museums. Covering 55 acres (22 hectares) in a former limestone quarry, the Butchart Gardens are one of the world's premier floral show gardens. Take a scenic seaplane flight to the famous island for a leisurely day of sightseeing before returning to Vancouver by ferry. Enjoy panoramic views of the city and its surrounds as you get a birds eye view of from the sky. Splash down and spend the day exploring Victoria's quaint antique shops and cafes, as well as the historic alleys of the oldest China town in Canada.