What to do on a Saturday in/around YVR
 

OK, the plan starts to drop into place a little more. On Saturday morning we're going to be making our way from the airport to downtown. Because we need to pick up various supplies for the baby we're going to hire a car for the day, but the shopping will obviously only take an hour or so to do.

As such, what should we (2 adults & 10 mo. old baby) do for the rest of the day when we've got a car to hand? Grouse mountain?

Also, any recommendations for a decent supermarket that won't be too far out of our way?

Thanks

Tony

Any of the parks,.......you might even take the highway up to Whistler if the weather is fine (I don't think it's that far). Quality supermarkets......I personally like Safeway in western Canada as the stores aren't too big......if you are looking for that large store concept you might try Save-On Foods or Superstore. For baby things I would suggest any large pharmacy like Shoppers Drug Mart or London Drugs....they both offer more than just drugs, and prices are fairly resonable.

Whistler is out as we're going up for a few days later in the week.

As for the baby supplies, we need baby food and nappies/diapers - I just assumed the supermarket would be best, but looks like FT has done the job again & advised me otherwise.

Cheers

Any time I have visitors in town, I'm kind of at a loss as to what to recommend for them to do/visit. I just got back to Vancouver and on my flight, one of the shows it had on its personal video players was a kind of a what you can do in Vancouver program in a gameshow format. Their picks were:
Stanley Park
Museum of Anthropology at UBC
Grouse Moutain
Chinatown
Gastown
Capilano Suspension Bridge
Personally, native art doesn't interest me enough to pay to see it. Grouse Mountain is nice but it's kind of pricey for what you get ($30 for a nice view, lumberjack show, other shows, trails, etc). If you are just looking for views, you can just drive up Seymour Mountain or up West Vancouver. Capilano Suspension Bridge is also kind of a tourist trap because you can do the Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge for free.

I think your best bets with a car are Stanley Park, Granville Island Market, Steveston, Queen Elizabeth Park, and perhap Metropolis/Metrotown Mall if you want to do some shopping.

The big supermarkets in Vancouver are Superstore, Safeway, and Save-on Foods. Superstore is generally cheaper but its stores are usually packed during peak times (like the weekends). Big pharmacies like Shoppers Drug Mart or London Drugs carry dry goods among other things and are competitive in price. There's a London Drugs on Robson Street (north side, west of Thurlow) near where you're staying. The closest supermarket I can think of is a SuperValu (I forget if they've changed names) on Davie, near the beach. There's also another London Drugs across the street. However, if you're driving in from the airport, I think you'll pass a supermarket along the way on Oak, Granville, or Cambie. Cambie might be your last choice as there's construction going on.

I like Grouse Mountain, but if it's a cloudy day, it's not worth it. If you do go, make reservations at the restaurant for dinner and your ticket up is free. The food is quite good and it's not that expensive if you consider that your ticket came with it. The Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge is also very nice, while you're over there.

The UBC museum is spectacular, if you're at all interested in First Nations art, it's a must.

Both Stanley Park and Granville Island are doable without a car, though the former is nice with a car because you can drive out to some of the lookouts that would take you awhile without a car. It would never even occur to me to go to Granville Island in a car, I have to say -- the parking is horrible. Take the cute little ferries instead.

>As such, what should we (2 adults & 10 mo. old baby)
>do for the rest of the day when we've got a car to
>hand? Grouse mountain?

Grouse mountain is a good choice if you've got the car, but only if it's a nice day, otherwise forget it. There's also a (free) lookout in the North Shore mountains up on Cypress bowl road that's kind of nice with a car.

The museum of anthropology is easier to get to with a car - Especially worth doing if you take the route along Spanish banks. (Basically get your map out and follow Burrard street bridge to Cornwall Avenue to Point Grey Road to Alma Street to West 4th Ave to NW Marine Drive to UBC.)

The drive around Stanley Park is also nice.

>Also, any recommendations for a decent
>supermarket that won't be too far out of our way?

You'll likely come into Vancouver from the airport along Granville street. Although it's on the 'wrong side of the street' there's a Safeway store on Granville:

Canada Safeway Ltd.
8555 Granville Street @ 70th Avenue (West Side of Granville)
Vancouver
(604) 261-7614
map: http://tinyurl.com/lhb5x

If you come into Vancouver on Oak Street there's also a Safeway in the strip mall at the corner of Oak and King Edward (also known as "25th Avenue"). This one will be on 'your side of the street." Just look for the Shell station.

Cheers,
Geoff Glave
Vancouver, Canada

Thanks as always - great info.

Tony

There's always CHINATOWN .. and the Dr Sun Yat Sun Gardens. It's a nice reprieve from the hustle and bustle around town. Walk along Pender St, and see the shops, taste the foods at the Bakeries. You just gotta try the 80cent APPLE TART at New Town Bakery!!

There are many curio shops around to wander the day away. Once that's done, maybe you can head to the Vancouver Aquarium and see the fish and seals! It's a wonderful way to spend an afternoon...

Gelato? The best one in town is MONDO GELATO. You can see their 2 locations downtown. 1 on Robson and Bute, and the other at Denman and Comox. Or there's always that other Gelato place with its 200 flavours on Venebles and Clark (near Chinatown).

Or dim sum at Richmond's Chinatown.. well, the whole island is chinatown! The best place for Dim Sum is : Sun Sui Wah .. go to the Richmond once. Go early and ask for the Mango Crepe first before ordering anything else!

Questions about Stanley Park and Granville
 

My family will be going to Vancouver for a few days later this month. Given our time, we are just planning on checking out Stanley Park and Granville Island.

Couple of questions:

1. Isn't it better to take the free trolley (assuming it's in operation) throughout the park? Or is it better to drive the one-way road and park as the mood fits? We'll be there on a Monday or Tuesday so I'm hoping the parking isn't a problem.

We were going to rent bikes (as we did the last time we were up there) but we're going with my 1-year-old grandaughter this time.

2. Is there street parking outside of the park that is available? Or do you have to be lucky?

3. Is parking easy to find to get to the ferry to get to Granville? It makes more sense to catch the ferry back and forth.

4. How much time should I plan for if we want to go to the Lynn Canyon Suspension bridge? Is it worth a trip out there? We'll be at the Hilton in Metrotown.

Thanks!

Free Trolley or Drive around Stanley Park?
I've never taken the free trolley so I can't really knowledgeably comment on that. That said, although I enjoy driving through the park I'm guessing it might be easier for a tourist to just park and jump on the trolley. The problem with driving is with the occasional lack of parking spaces in "key" locations (even on a weekday as I found out when driving my visiting cousin around) and the one way road around the park (unless you're familar with the couple of "shortcuts" that prevent a full drive around to get back to the same spot).

Parking outside the Park?
It's pretty difficult to get parking just outside the park because most of it is restricted to residential parking. I occasionally can get parking on the southwest side of the park on Beach Avenue or Morton Avenue (see Google Maps) west of Denman street when I go to locations near English Bay. It's also still a bit of a hike into the main part of the park. I can't remember if it's one hour parking though.

Ferry to Granville Island?
I've never taken the False Creek Ferry so again I can't knowledgeably comment. The ferry does look fun though. However, according to their web page, the loading point nearest to Stanley Park looks to be a few blocks east of the Beach Ave/Morton Ave parking I mentioned previously at the Aquatic Centre (which doesn't have the greatest parking around it either).
Parking on Granville Island is not as impossible as one thinks, particularly if you break down and do pay parking instead of insist on free parking. Driving on the island is a bit chaotic due to the "non-standard" streets. If you don't mind a bit of a walk, you can park on Creekside Drive just west of the Island. This will allow you to walk by Go Fish!, a "shack" on the False Creek dockside sales area that sells some of the best Fish & Chips in town. My wife and I have parked on Creekside, ate lunch at Go Fish! and went for a walk on Granville Island many times.

Lynn Canyon Suspension bridge?
It's probably about a half hour to fourty-five minute trip out there from the Hilton. Alternatively, you might be able do work your way there as a stop after Stanley Park (across the Lions Gate Bridge and along the north shore to Lynn Canyon).
It depends on what you like. We go out there every so often on a (yearly basis but haven't been to recently) to play around. It's a nice walk amongst the trees. You can walk down to water and hop along the rocks also. Wear good shoes.

There are two ferry companies that run to/from Granville Island to various parts of Yaletown, Science World, Maritime Museum and the Aquatic Centre. But the ferries charge about $2-3 oneway per person. During the weekdays where parking is slightly better at Granville Island, it may be wiser and cheaper to just drive to Granville Island and park there. One company is False Creek Ferries and the other is Granville Island Ferries.

http://www.granvilleislandferries.bc.ca/home.html


For fun on a boat, just take the Seabus between Vancouver and North Vancouver!

>Isn't it better to take the free trolley (assuming it's in operation) throughout the park?

The 'free trolley' doesn't go all the way around park. It's operated by the people who sell in the clippity-cloppity horse-drawn carriage rides in the park, so it delivers you to them. (And the carriage rides don't go all the way around the park either.)

>Or is it better to drive the one-way road and park as the mood fits?

In my opinion, yes.

>We'll be there on a Monday or Tuesday so I'm hoping the parking isn't a problem.

It shouldn't be.

>Is there street parking outside of the park that is available? Or do you have to be lucky?

There is street parking in the "West End," both down by Beach Avenue and west of Denman Streets, but you have to be VERY lucky :)

>Is parking easy to find to get to the ferry to get to Granville? It makes more sense to catch the ferry back and forth.

There isn't much free parking in around the aquabus, but you might find some down at the foot of Hornby Street.

>How much time should I plan for if we want to go to the Lynn Canyon Suspension bridge?

Depending on the time of day, allow about 30 minutes to drive there from Metrotown, and a couple/few hours to explore the park. Add another half-hour if you choose to visit the ecology centre.

>Is it worth a trip out there?

Yes, it's a great park.

Cheers,
Geoff Glave
Vancouver, Canada

Definitely go to Granville Island and try some Indian Candy and salmon jerky....Gotta love that BC sockeye salmon.

Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge
 

4. How much time should I plan for if we want to go to the Lynn Canyon Suspension bridge? Is it worth a trip out there? We'll be at the Hilton in Metrotown.

Just got back from there.
The length of the Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge is shorter than the famous Capilano suspension bridge, but it has more Canadian feeling!
Free admission, free parking and less people.
What I want to emphasize is quieteness.
After crossing over the bridge, we decided to go hiking to see the Twin Falls.
It was a rainy day and most of the time during our 20-min. hiking, we were almost alone :eek: I enjoyed the smell of cedar trees and realized that I was in Canada!
Even I photographed the warning sign for the bears :D

Wear the good shoes! I'm pretty sure once you see/cross the bridge, you immediately want to explore further! Enjoy!

lynn canyon worth the trip
 

I would definitely make the trip to lynn canyon. Much more natural setting than the tourist favs Capilano bridge and trap... though the hatchery at Capilano is interesting...
Do be prepared for rain though - and don't let it stop you!! Vancouver is most beautiful in the wet!