Vancouver is a bustling city on the west coast of British Columbia, Canada. It is the largest city on the west coast, the densest and most ethically diverse city. It is a place great for living, and great for visiting because it has everything you want. From beaches, mountains, and natural parks to a vibrant city center with many shops and dining scenes.

Overall, Vancouver is a young city and doesn’t have a rich historical culture like other metropolitan cities. Many people come to visit Vancouver because it is just a few minutes and hours away from the beautiful natural landscape, and yet you still can stay in the city center and not be in the middle of nowhere.

So if you are planning to travel to Vancouver, bookmark this travel guide for some insights on what to do, see or where to stay. I recommend staying a few days exploring Vancouver and a few more days for day trips outside the city. In addition, Vancouver has a great connection to the airport where you can take on a flight and fly into the north, east, or central of Canada easily.

Lively Gastown is known for its whistling Steam Clock and mix of souvenir shops, indie art galleries, and decor stores in Victorian buildings. It is a touristy place, but worth exploring the trendy food and drink scene, as well as boutique shops around this area.

For 360 view over the city, visit the Vancouver lookout. During a clear day, you will be able to see North Shore mountains in the background as well as Vancouver Island. There is also a restaurant at the top of the tower if you would like to dine with a view.

Robson street is the main commercial street if you are looking to do some shopping in Vancouver. Besides that, Vancouver has many shopping malls also in the city center available.

Canada Place is a great place for a walk alongside the harbor with some fabulous views of iconic landmarks of Vancouver and North Shore mountains.

Beaches

Yaletown is the cleaner and upper-class side of Vancouver with many new trendy restaurants, cocktail lounges, and coffee shops. On the waterfront, David Lam Park has an expansive lawn and a playground, while the Seawall is popular for cycling and walking.

A privately owned and operated ferry service that provides commuter and sightseeing services to locations all along False Creek of central Vancouver. Make sure to hop on to one of those Aqua bus ferries to admire the views from the water. Ferries are running frequently and you can purchase tickets by cash or card even on the ferry.

Located on a peninsula in False Creek, Granville Island is not really an island as such. Visit Granville Island during the day for their Public Market with diverse food and art vendors. A perfect place to visit also for a rainy day.

An 8.8km seawall, 400-hectare rainforest, beautiful beaches, wildlife, and restaurants make this huge public park hard to beat. It is a public park surrounded by the waters of Burrard Inlet and English Bay. The park has a long history and was one of the first areas to be explored in the city. In the park, you can find many attractions worth exploring, such as the Vancouver aquarium, beaver lake, or totems.

Vancouver seawall is the world’s largest uninterrupted seaside path. The length of this path is around 28km and on a nice day, it is a great place to go for a run, walk or bike all the way around downtown, Stanley Park, False Creek, and Kitsilano district.

This garden is located in the Chinatown district of Vancouver. It is apparently the first garden to be built outside of China. The architecture of the garden was incorporated into the Ming Dynasty.

The park doesn’t contain only the suspension bridge across the Capilano river in the Nort of Vancouver, but also the fun Treetops adventure and gravity-defying Cliffwalk. There is a shuttle bus from downtown Vancouver that will take you directly to the park. If you are traveling during the wintertime, then don’t miss a visit to Capilano suspension bridge park for its nicely decorated area with thousands of lights.

Lynn Canyon suspension bridge in the North of Vancouver. It is a lesser-known and visited bridge compared to the more famous Capilano suspension bridge, but equally amazing! The area was well taken care of, paths were marked and of course, not many people were around. Apart from this bridge in Lynn Canyon, you can visit the crystal clear pools and twin waterfalls.

From sophisticated entertainment to unspoiled nature, Grouse Mountain is a 1,200-meter mountain offering activities such as skiing & hiking plus sweeping views of Vancouver. There is a gondola that takes you up if you don’t want to hike.

An absolutely stunning museum and location that displays international art and culture especially works by First Nations people of the Pacific Northwest. The museum of archaeology and anthropology is located at the University of British Columbia grounds.

The outdoor Richmond Night Market is on each year from late spring to early fall and features various Asian food vendors, kitschy games, and cultural performances.

The Vancouver Art Gallery is an art museum located in downtown Vancouver. The museum occupies a 15,300 square meters building adjacent to Robson Square, making it the largest art museum in Western Canada by building size.

Vancouver has such a mixture of cuisine that the typical Vancouver dishes are dishes with heritage from Europe or Asia. As the city is close to the city, make sure to taste some seafood dishes, especially salmon, prawns, and oysters. The other popular dish that you may hear about when in Vancouver is anything Asian. From sushi, and ramen to chicken wings. You have plenty of Asian cuisine in there and it is part of what Vancouver is. Lastly, you will occasionally see food tracks outside on a street selling japadogs. These are Japanese-style hot dogs and also call for the popularity of food in here. Nevertheless, I have to say that the coffee scene in Vancouver is amazing! Went to a few coffee shops and always top-notch coffee! Below are some restaurants and coffee shops places for you to explore:

1) Botanist

2) La Mezcaleria

3) Phnom Penh restaurant

4) Long table distillery

5) The birds & The beets

6) Revolver

7) Matchstick

8)Buro the espresso bar

9)Saku

10) Kingyo