Vancouver, Canada—

I fell in love with Vancouver when I visited it the first time in 2017. When I visited this place again, it was during a period of stress and frustration. The Pacific Ocean, the Canadian Mountains, and the great British Columbia calmed my mind and let me forget about work and enjoy the gift nature has offered to us.

If you are visiting Vancouver for the first time, you can find my itinerary in an earlier post. For this visit, I rented a car (Jeep Wrangler) for 7 days and stayed at the Sheraon Wall Centre.

The first place I have to recommend is Sea-to-Sky Gondola. When I first heard about it, I simply thought it is a Gondola that takes you to the top of a mountain. It is much more than that. It does take you to a viewing platform which offers a great view to the Sky Pilot Mountain and Mt Habrich. You can also enjoy multiple well marked and maintained trails in the mountain. I easily spent 2-3 hours taking pictures and completing two easy trails. But you can take as much as you want to enjoy the breathtaking view.

The next place I recommend is the Sea-to-Sky Highway (Highway 99 West) and the surrounding areas near Whistler. You can access Whistler by Highway 99 West. Sea-to-Sky Gondola is a great midway stop on your way to Whistler. Unless you are a fan of skiing, the Olympic Village in Whistler is not worth a visit. It is a very commercial area with live music and hotels. However, the surrounding parks are peaceful and have great views.

Along Highway 99 West, there are marked viewing stops. Look for those signs and you will be rewarded with amazing views.

A quintessential thing to do in Vancouver is to climb the Grouse Grind, a hiking trail with 2,800 feet elevation gain. Unfortunately, it was closed for spring maintenance during my visit. So definitely check out its opening hours before you plan the visit.

A few other places I visited are Horseshoe Bay, Capilano River Regional Park, Gold Ear Park, and Lighthouse Park. I witnessed a wedding happening in Capilano River Regional Park. Imagine taking a vow in front of a wooden frame covered by white flowers, with the Great British Columbia as the perfect backdrop. That was a fantastic location for a wedding!