Canada 2026: Vancouver

The sunshine. My goodness, the sunshine.

The Pacific Northwest has a reputation for weather that can be somewhat less than cooperative, but September can be a wonderful time of year there. I have fond memories of Seattle in September, when the temperatures are pleasant, autumn colours begin appearing and winter hasn’t yet decided to make its presence felt. Vancouver delivered much the same feeling, except the weather seemed determined to put on a particularly impressive performance. Around 25 degrees and sunshine, day after day. Apparently, somebody had ordered the premium weather package.

Vancouver was a great place to begin our Canadian adventure. I’d visited before, so this wasn’t a case of arriving somewhere completely unfamiliar. It was more like catching up with an old friend, only to discover they’d been showing off while I was away.

We flew Air New Zealand across the Pacific, and I have to give their catering team credit. Airline food has a fairly low bar to clear, but this was genuinely good. The crew were excellent, too. Thirteen hours trapped in a metal tube at 38,000 feet is still thirteen hours trapped in a metal tube, but I arrived in Vancouver in reasonably good shape and ready to get started.

Our first day was deliberately relaxed — after a long flight, there seemed little point in immediately launching ourselves into an ambitious sightseeing schedule. We took a hop-on-hop-off bus tour with Big Bus to get reacquainted with the city, then spent a couple of hours wandering along the waterfront, watching the seaplanes come and go. We had nowhere particularly urgent to be, the waterfront was beautiful, and simply being outside was a pleasure. It set the tone for the whole stay.

We stayed at the Holiday Inn Express in Metrotown, over in Burnaby. It might not be everyone’s first choice for a Vancouver hotel, but I cannot overstate how convenient it was. The SkyTrain was practically on the doorstep, shopping and restaurants were close by, and getting into downtown took about twenty minutes. The staff were exceptional, the room was comfortable, and after a day exploring, that was exactly what we needed. I don’t need a grand lobby and somebody in a uniform to carry my bags. Give me a comfortable room and transport that works, and I’m happy.

We spent more time exploring the waterfront and North Shore, including Lonsdale Quay. The market was interesting, but the real highlight was sitting outside beside the water, soaking up the sunshine. We also took a harbour cruise aboard one of Canada’s few remaining operating paddle boats. It was a pleasant way to spend time on the water.

We went to Cactus Club Cafe for my birthday, because if I’m forced to turn another year older, I may as well have a damn good Midnight Hour espresso martini and a flawless Cajun Chicken Sandwich to show for it.

The mountains were another story.

We took a trip to Whistler and the Sea to Sky Gondola. The gondola was interesting, but the ride on the Whistler Village Gondola was the standout for me. The journey took around twenty-five minutes each way, passing over enormous green valleys that seemed to stretch on forever. With no snow on the ground in September, it was easy to imagine how the whole landscape would be transformed during the winter ski season.

Whistler also appeared to have an unofficial Australian recruitment drive in operation. Australians seemed to be everywhere.

And then there were the bees. I first noticed them at Whistler, where there seemed to be an astonishing number of the little things buzzing around. I don’t recall ever having given bees much thought as a tourist attraction, but apparently Canada had other ideas.

Vancouver brought back memories of Seattle. There were parts of the city that felt familiar, although others felt distinctly Canadian. I can’t quite put my finger on the difference, and perhaps that’s part of the charm. The city has a character of its own, with a relaxed outdoor-oriented atmosphere and an impressive commitment to preserving its green spaces. Stanley Park is an obvious example: a huge stretch of greenery alongside a growing city, retained as an important part of Vancouver’s identity rather than simply being another opportunity for development.

That idea of experiencing a place through more than just the sights came up at FlyOver Canada, down at Canada Place. I went in expecting something of a tourist gimmick, but it was surprisingly well done. The moving theatre, sound effects, cold water spray to simulate snow and even the smell of pine forests all helped create the sensation of flying across the country. It wasn’t overdone, and those extra sensory elements made it a much richer experience than simply watching a film on a large screen. As a blind traveller, I appreciated having so much more to engage with than the visuals alone.

We also wandered into Gastown that day, explored a rather excellent vinyl shop whose name has since disappeared into the mists of obscurity, and heard the famous steam clock do its thing. Sometimes the small discoveries are just as satisfying as the attractions you deliberately plan to visit.

But the moment I keep coming back to was Grouse Mountain. The open-air cable car ride was the highlight of the day for me. Rather than being enclosed behind glass, we were out in the sunshine and breeze, travelling above the treetops. I could hear birds in the trees and feel the wind on my face. There was something wonderfully calm about it, with the city feeling a million miles away despite downtown Vancouver being only a short trip from the mountain.

My friend took plenty of photographs of the panoramic views from the top, which were apparently stunning. For me, though, it was never about the view. The ride was a reminder that an experience doesn’t have to be about looking at something spectacular. Sometimes the sounds, smells, movement and feel of a place can be just as important.

I loved revisiting Vancouver. It was easy to get around, the people were welcoming, the outdoor attractions were excellent, and the city had a vibe that made it easy to settle into holiday mode. The weather certainly helped, but there was more to it than blue skies.

I could easily have spent another two weeks there. Unfortunately, Canada is a rather large country, and we had quite a bit more of it to explore.

Vancouver had given us a pretty spectacular start.