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Canada 🏔️

Vancouver, British Columbia

Vancouver, British Columbia

🏔️

To New Yorkers like ourselves, the proximity to nature was what really shocked us about Vancouver. Like — there are mountains. Right there. And you can ski! And snowshoe! And hike! And climb! And people do! All of the time! Since we were there for just a few days, we hardly cracked the surface with regards to outdoor pursuits, but please enjoy what we did manage to explore.

The ◐ symbol denotes a place that if you’re only there for a day, an hour, a moment — go there.

EAT

Lemon tart at Thierry Chocolate Patisserie Cafe

◐ Forage

West End. Cozy, sustainable, farm-to-table restaurant that is very, very popular whether it’s for farm-fresh scrambled eggs and mushrooms at brunch or a bison steak at dinner. (If you’re starting to see a pattern that all Vancouver restaurants are sustainable/farm-to-table, you are correct!)

◐ The Red Wagon

East Van. Found this on Bon Appétit’s list and yes it’s super hipster but it’s also PHENOMENAL. Get the pulled pork pancakes with Jack Daniels syrup and the Cobb salad with fried chicken on top. Get everything.

Thierry Chocolate Patisserie Cafe

Downtown. French bakery with beautiful cakes, pastries and macarons from Patissier Chef Thierry Busset. We went to rest our feet with a cappuccino and a slice of lemon tart. Superb.

Kingyo

West End. We didn’t make it sadly, but a friend said this is his favorite sushi in Vancouver. Next time! Make a reservation or show up early.

Postmark Brewery & Van Urban Winery & The Belgard Kitchen

Gastown. A brewery, a winery and a delicious farm-to-table restaurant all rolled into one space. It’s around the corner from the Alibi Room if you want a new place to get dinner after a few beers. Delicious and atmospheric.

Earnest Ice Cream

Delicious ice cream in flavors like Lemon Poppy Seed, London Fog and Whiskey Hazelnut. There are four locations in the city.

◐ 49th Parallel Cafe & Lucky’s Doughnuts

49th Parallel is one of Vancouver’s many delicious coffee shops and the fact that they serve Lucky’s Doughnuts and egg sandwiches is an added bonus. Highly recommend the pistachio and mulberry old fashioned doughnuts. We visited the Downtown location, but there’s also one on Main St. and one on West 4th St.

Pistachio doughnut at 49th Parallel

Kissa Tanto

Chinatown. Italian-Japanese fusion in an incredible, hidden-seeming jewel box inspired by 1960s Tokyo jazz cafes. It’s definitely a scene, but worth trying to score a reservation — it’s delicious and the staff is so nice.

◐ Miku

Waterfront. Famed sustainable seafood and sushi place on the water, known for their aburi oshi sushi made with flame-grilled seafood. Be sure to make a reservation. Go full out with an omakase dinner or go for lunch when it’s less busy and you can order one of their many set menus. It’s all as good as they say — especially the salmon oshi sushi!

Salmon aburi oshi sushi at Miku

DRINK

A flight at Callister Brewing Co., Vancouver’s only collaborative brewery

◐ The Alibi Room

Gastown. Amazing beer bar in a slightly desolate stretch beside Vancouver’s rail yard and shipping ports, with 50 local and imported craft beers on tap and BC wines. We didn’t stay for dinner but they offer a wide menu of everything from nuts to sandwiches to mains, all with a locally-sourced bent — I’ve heard it’s very good. Loved the beers we tried from Strange Fellows, Brassneck, Back Country and Parallel 49.

The Keefer Bar

Fun, swanky bar with Asian-inspired cocktails in a slightly sketchy area. I enjoyed the Buffalo Soldier — with bourbon, lemon, ginger and tamarind.

Breweries

Vancouver has a thriving beer scene and we barely scratched the surface. We checked out Powell Street Brewing and Callister Brewing in East Van, and there’s another cluster of breweries around Mt. Pleasant/South Main. You could easily spend a day biking between them.

East Van

Mt. Pleasant / South Main

PLAY

The seawall path around Stanley Park

◐ Stanley Park

North America’s third largest public park, almost completely surrounded by Vancouver Harbour and English Bay. There’s a bike path loop around the peninsula that gives you pristine views of the harbour, Lions Gate Bridge and mountains. This is a MUST for any trip to Vancouver. You can rent bikes near the park entrance and many downtown hotels offer bikes to guests for free.

Granville Island Public Market

This is definitely a touristy thing to do, and there’s a reason for that — it’s pretty, there are cute shops and so much food. (Think Pike Place Market in Seattle or Chelsea Market in New York.) You can drive or take a tiny ferry boat over. A few spots we liked inside:

  • Paper-Ya — A paper store just across from the main market, with amazing tiny Japanese stationery and origami paper
  • Chau Veggie Express — Vegan Vietnamese. Get the big salad with spring rolls in it.

Small museum downtown devoted to Haida artist Bill Reid and contemporary indigenous art. I wish it were bigger, but it did give us a good background on Bill Reid, who you will soon learn is much beloved in BC.

Museum of Anthropology at UBC

Fabulous museum devoted to world arts and culture, with a focus on that of the First Nations people of BC. It’s worth taking the free hour-long overview tour to learn more about the artifacts, totem poles and history of the area. And, of course, visit Bill Reid’s The Raven and the First Men.

Bill Reid’s “The Raven and the First Men” at the Museum of Anthropology

Take a Walk

Vancouver is home to many beautiful parks and beaches. Once you’ve done Stanley Park, check out one of these:

  • Vanier Park — Waterfront park with an amazing view of the West End. Also home to the Maritime Museum and Museum of Vancouver. Very popular with kite fliers.
  • Kitsilano Beach — My cousin compared it to the Venice Beach of Vancouver: lots of meaty dudes doing pull-ups and excellent people watching.
  • Locarno Beach Park / Spanish Banks — Much quieter, with a winding paved path along the coast and views of the city, mountains and tanker ships. Trails head up the hill to UBC’s campus.

Shop

Start on one end of South Main Street and work your way up or down — it’s all vintage shops, bookstores, and those kind of boutiques that sell only letterpress stationery, sea salt candles and Japanese pencils. The best.

  • Front & Company — Giant consignment store
  • Vancouver Special — Fancy modern chairs and objects
  • C’est La Vie Boutique — Vintage consignment store
  • Bohemia Gallery — Vintage clothing
  • Nineteen Ten — Modern home boutique
  • The Regional Assembly of Text — Stationery
  • Urban Source — Such a cool crafting/art supply store. Everything from feathers to construction paper.

SQUAMISH

What makes Vancouver so unique is the extent of natural wonder right at your doorstep — skiing, hiking, rock climbing, snowshoeing, camping, you name it. I can recommend Squamish, an easy day trip from Vancouver, full of mountains you can stare at in wonder. Plus there’s Cypress Mountain, Shannon Falls and the Britannia Mine Museum on the way.

View from the Sea to Sky Gondola summit, overlooking Howe Sound

◐ Sea to Sky Gondola

Take a gondola to the top of a mountain with sweeping views of mountain peaks and Howe Sound below. There are a number of trails that lead from the summit, including a slightly scary suspension bridge. Plus there’s a restaurant if you’re in need of a snack or a Sea to Sky beer from Howe Sound Brewing.

Britannia Mine Museum

This may sound like a total snooze, but it’s actually really interesting! It’s a museum set up in the restored buildings of the mining town surrounding Britannia Mine, including exhibits on mining and social history and a visit inside an old mining tunnel via train. You get to wear hard hats. It’s great.

Shannon Falls

The third highest waterfall in BC, and one of the easy stops on the road to Squamish. It’s a quick hike to the falls — only about 10 minutes.

Cypress Mountain

One of Vancouver’s nearby ski slopes, only 30 minutes from downtown. The ski season runs from mid-November to mid-April, and there are also a number of hiking trails.

DEEP COVE

View of Deep Cove from the Quarry Rock trail summit

A cute waterfront town in North Vancouver, known for its trail up to Quarry Rock and doughnuts. The hike takes about an hour and is basically a very long wooden staircase up a mountain. The view is well worth it, promise! It’s a popular trail, so be warned it can get crowded on weekends. After you’re done, go to Honey Doughnuts in town for an apple-sized maple-glazed doughnut.