Three days split by water: the seawall and Granville Island by bike and ferry, the North Shore by SeaBus for a free canyon bridge and a mountain, then the west side for the beach, the Museum of Anthropology and a Main Street evening. One ride a day.
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Checked October 10, 2026. That’s the day we last confirmed the hours, prices and closed days.
July to September is dry and long-lit, and the pool and the night market are open. May, June and early October are mild with some rain. From October to April it rains most weeks; the mountains still work in a shell and the museums do not care.
The West End for Stanley Park and English Bay on foot; Gastown or Yaletown for restaurants and the SeaBus; Kitsilano for the beach and West 4th. Avoid the blocks around Main and Hastings at night.
Tap a bank card or phone on every bus, SkyTrain and the SeaBus; it charges the Compass stored-value fare (C$2.85 for one zone, C$4.20 for two) and the whole system is one zone after 6:30 p.m. on weekdays and all weekend. Downtown is flat enough to walk or cycle; buses reach Kitsilano and UBC in under half an hour.
Stanley Park · 60 min
Rent at Spokes on the corner of Denman and Georgia (opens at 9 a.m.; helmet and lock included; a full day costs the same as four hours). The seawall is one way for bikes, anticlockwise, so start at Coal Harbor.
from C$9 an hour
Stanley Park · 30 min
Nine poles from Haida, Kwakwaka'wakw and Nisga'a carvers, and the lighthouse beyond them. Free; ten minutes on the bike from Coal Harbor.
Stanley Park · 45 min
The one climb off the seawall, up to the Lions Gate Bridge viewpoint and the cafe. Back down to the seawall and ride Third and Second Beach to English Bay.
West End · 75 min
Return the bike, then eat on Denman: a bowl at Kintaro Ramen or Motomachi Shokudo, or fish and chips on the beach from the Cactus Club patio.
Granville Island · 135 min
A 25-minute walk to the Hornby Street dock, then the little ferry across False Creek in five minutes. The market is open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily: Lee's Donuts, oysters at the fish counters and the artisan sake maker behind it.
C$5
Gastown · 75 min
Bus 50 from the island to Waterfront. The clock on Water Street whistles on the quarter hour; Blood Alley and the Gassy Jack corner take twenty minutes, then the shops along Water and Cordova.
Chinatown · 90 min
Phnom Penh for chicken wings and butter beef: cash, a line, no reservations. Bao Bei on Keefer for Chinese small plates and a cocktail, with walk-ins at the bar.
Waterfront · 30 min
From Waterfront station, 12 minutes across the inlet every 15 minutes; tap the same card you used downtown. The quay market opens around 9 a.m. for coffee.
C$4.20
Lynn Valley · 105 min
Take bus 228 from the quay to Lynn Valley Center, then walk 15 minutes. The bridge hangs 50 meters over the creek and is free; walk the loop to Twin Falls and 30 Foot Pool, or pay around C$80 for Capilano's bigger bridge, whose free shuttle leaves Canada Place from 8:30 a.m.
Grouse Mountain · 150 min
Take bus 228 back to the quay and the 236 to the base. The Grind is 2.5 kilometers and 800 meters of stairs, two hours uphill only, closed in snow (roughly November to May); the Skyride round trip with Mountain Admission is C$89 and runs all year.
C$89
Grouse Mountain · 60 min
The chalet restaurant with the city below the window; a burger and a local beer is the order. Lupins Cafe downstairs if you only want a sandwich.
Grouse Mountain · 75 min
Grinder and Coola in the grizzly habitat (summer season, about mid-April to mid-November), the ranger talks and the peak chairlift when it runs. Ride the Skyride down and the 236 back to the quay.
Lower Lonsdale · 90 min
Tap and Barrel on the pier for the view back across to downtown and a long BC beer list, then the SeaBus home. Or ride back first and eat izakaya at Kingyo on Denman.
Kitsilano · 75 min
Bus 2 or 44 from downtown. The 137-meter saltwater pool on the beach opens mid-June to mid-September (June 17 to September 13 in 2026); out of season, walk the beach to Vanier Park and the planetarium instead.
UBC · 120 min
Take bus 4 or 14 along 4th to UBC. Open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (to 9 p.m. Thursdays), closed Mondays from October 15 to May 15; Bill Reid's Raven and the First Men is in the rotunda.
C$26
UBC · 60 min
Wood-fired pizza by the slice in the Ponderosa Commons, a ten-minute walk from the museum. Or carry a sandwich to the Rose Garden terrace above the water.
UBC · 75 min
Nitobe is a Japanese stroll garden five minutes from the museum, open Tuesday to Sunday, 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. until the end of October and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in winter. Or take Trail 6's four hundred-odd steps down to Wreck Beach, which is clothing optional and wide at low tide.
Mount Pleasant · 120 min
The 99 B-Line to Broadway-City Hall, then walk to Main. Vintage shops and record stores from 7th to 30th, and the brewery blocks: Brassneck and 33 Acres are a few minutes apart.
Mount Pleasant · 90 min
Vietnamese family cooking on Main at 20th: grilled pork vermicelli and imperial rolls. Busy, so put your name down and have a beer up the street; The Acorn, a block north, is the vegetarian pick.
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Pins are approximate. Tap one for the stop; the directions links open Google Maps.
From YVR, the Canada Line runs to Waterfront in about 25 minutes; it is a two-zone fare plus a C$6.50 airport surcharge, so about C$11 with a tapped bank card on a weekday and less after 6:30 p.m. or on weekends. Taxis use fixed zone fares to downtown, roughly C$35 to C$45; Uber is similar outside peak hours.
About C$120 to C$180 a day per person for meals, transit and one paid sight. The Grouse Skyride (C$89) or Capilano (around C$80) is the big-ticket day; the other two days run closer to C$100 with the museum and the ferry.
Plans change. Ask Chat and it proposes a reshuffled day you can apply, or just answers the question.
Yes, for the park, the North Shore and the west side. A fourth day adds Whistler or Victoria; a fifth, Bowen Island or a second mountain.
Lynn Canyon is free and the walk is better; Capilano is bigger, has the cliffwalk and the treetop bridges, and costs around C$80. If you are paying for Grouse the same day, Lynn Canyon is the easy answer.
Day 3: the Museum of Anthropology, Nitobe's covered teahouse corner and Main Street's shops and breweries all work wet. Waystop's rain plan can set the beach aside in a second version of the day.
No. A contactless bank card or phone pays the same fare on everything, including the SeaBus. Buy a card only if you want a DayPass (C$12.55) for a day of many rides.
Same country first, then the cities people tend to pair with Vancouver. Want two or three in one go? String them together in the trip builder.
Add your dates, your hotel and who’s coming, then ask Chat to change anything: it proposes the edit and you tap Apply. Want a long lunch instead of a museum? Just ask. Every place is checked against Google Maps before it lands on your day, and Chat can tell you when to leave for the next stop. Going on to another city? Build a multi-city trip.