Thanks for all the great suggestions. When I booked the tickets into YVR I had not planned on going to YYJ, but now wife really wants to see Butchart Gardens and downtown area. I am looking into changing tickets to YYJ as this would be much easier and we would only have to deal with one ferry crossing. I picked the Westin Bear Mountain because I was going to book an award night, but I did not realize how far it is from the downtown. What hotel would you recommend that would be more centrally located?

I did not really have a reason to visit Kamloops, thought that it could be a stopover from Whistler to Jasper. I like the idea of driving through Whistler, to at least see the area. If we do this, would Kamloops be the best place as an overnight? Would highway 5 be the best way to go?