Enjoying Vancouver Before an Alaskan Cruise

A couple stops before the SkyTrain terminus station at Waterfront, you can get off at Yaletown-Roundhouse and use this area as an excellent base for your explorations.

Walk along the seawall: Extending all the way to Stanley Park, you’ll join locals exercising, socializing, and strolling with their dogs along picturesque waterfront views in places like Sunset Beach and English Bay. Public art installations, playgrounds and facilities dot the route.

Take a ferry on False Creek: A reasonably priced and pleasant water bus makes stops at Granville Market and the excellent Science World museum. You can buy tickets directly from the ferry driver or save some money by buying online in advance.

Take a bay cruise in a zodiac boat: For those who want more speed and from-the-water sightseeing, there are inflatable speed boat tours that leave from Granville Island and take you to waterfalls and further ashore communities.

Rent a bicycle: If you only want to ride for a couple hours, the public share system system of bikes (rent via the Mobi app or Mobi website) is great for convenience and price. You can no longer ride bikes on the Seawall, but there are excellent bike paths along the streets.
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Explore Stanley Park: Home to the Vancouver Aquarium, the Stanley Park Train, First Nations totem art, and several gardens, this incredible park is larger than New York’s Central Park. A must visit, even if you’re just enjoying a drive or bike ride.

Granville Island - Home to food stands and farmer market stalls, everyone is sure to find something they like! For me, every Vancouver trip requires a pilgrimage to Siegel’s stand for Montreal-style bagels.

Tokyo Spring - Japanese food in Vancouver is excellent! Located in the International Village Mall (in Gastown), this place not only has excellent sushi and sashimi, but also many wonderful options for non-seafood eaters like omurice, udon, and katsu. Try the avocado bomb if it's available!

Grand Chinese Restaurant Yaletown - This is my family’s go-to local for Chinese food. Favorite dishes include the pan fried pork buns, stir-fried prawns with eggplant, and red bean filled pan cakes.

Fritz European Fry House - Another personal pilgrimage spot: a tiny hole in the wall that serves poutine (and for some, hot dogs). Just enough room to sit on one of the few benches that line the wall and tuck into your glorious mess of perfectly fried potatoes, cheese curds and gravy. A vegan option is available too! Open late (2-4 am some nights) to satisfy patrons of the surrounding lively nighttime bar district.