We are planning a 10 day trip to B.C. including Vancouver, then Victoria, and finally the Okanagan before flying home from Vancouver. Car rental prices are higher than I expected, expecially for the extra days beyond the one week period. Would it make more sense to skip having the car while we're in Vancouver and just pick it up as we're heading for Victoria? Do we really need a car in Vancouver or is mostly going to sit in the garage of the hotel?

So long as you're staying in a downtown location I really think you can do fine without a car and the taxi fares will probably be not much more than the cost you would incur for parking. Some of the more distant attractions like the Museum of Anthropology or the Grouse Mountain skyride could be combined with an organized tour that you can purchase in the hotel. So you can skip the car in Vancouver and probably end up well ahead financially.

I would consider not taking a car to Victoria. The bus is much less hassle. Although tourism is supposed to be down, I would not have known it by my recent ferry trips, which were packed even mid week. Maybe you could rent a car in Victoria for just a day to go, for example, to Butchart Gardens and on a scenic drive. For the most part, you don't need a car in Vancouver either but there again it would be nice to have for a day to visit somewhere like Queen Elizabeth Park or drive to W. Vancouver. Howe Sound is a fabulously scenic area that I wouldn't want to miss.

We just returned from the Okanagan and found Naramata to be a delightful little place. Surprising to me was that some of the wineries have very nice restaurants. Sandy Beach Resort was the most relaxing place I've been to in some time, but then we had the whole lodge and dining room to ourselves! Kettle Valley Steam Railway in Summerland is a fun 90 minute trip.

April, we are also staying at the Sandy Beach Resort in Okanagan. Any restaurant suggestions for that area would be appreciated.

On the way to Naramata just out of downtown Penticton you'll pass a unique tall building at the Hillside Estate Winery that has a nice bistro. My husband likes rather plain food and they seemed happy to oblige with a regular chicken, mayonnaise and lettuce sandwich. When I mentioned not being that hungry, they suggested a half order of pasta. Everything seemed fresh and I think they make their own bread too. The Sandy Beach people recommended the restaurant at Lake Breeze Vineyards in Naramata for their lunches and lake view. Unfortunately we didn't get to try it. You might like to have dinner at the Naramata Heritage Inn & Spa. It has outdoor and indoor eating areas and is very close to Sandy Beach.

Across the lake in Summerland we had a reasonably good dinner at Zia's Stone House restaurant. Shaughnessy's Cove, down by the water, is more of a pub style and might be worth a shot.

On one of the main streets between the lakes in Penticton is a Safeway store where you can pick up a few snack items.

If you're staying in the lodge and not the cabins at Sandy Beach you will get breakfast in their lake/lawn view dining room. We thought they were quite good - much more than we could eat anyway. There was a different hot dish each day, like eggs Benedict, quiche sorts of things, plus cereal, muffins or cake, bagels, fruit cups and I think you could make your own toast.

Off the topic of eating, the SS Sicamous sternwheeler in Penticton is an interesting look at the past.