Whislter or Rocky Mountain?
 

Hi,

We are thinking of planning a trip in mid september. We love the outdoors and like to take our daughter on short kid friendly hikes. I am having a hard time deciding between Vancouver/Whistler area vs. Rocky Mountain National park.
Which one would you go to and why?
Thank you!

To confuse you even further, have you considered the Canadian Rockies? You fly into Calgary and then drive to Banff, Lake Louise and Jasper. Lots of easy hikes, fabulous scenery, wonderful drive up the Icefields Parkway to Jasper. It is one of our favorite places to travel.

We like going the first 2 weeks in September.

As much as I love RMNP, the beetle bug has taken a toll and the forests are not what they used be, but the people invasion is way up. It is hard to find parking, shuttle helps but with kids it is a challenge. With exception of Sprague lake, the hikes are not short

Vancouver/Whistler would be my preference right now.
Set up for kids in the Whistler small ski village. Zip lines, Xbike, hikes all over, tons of kids stuff, every outdoor activity imaginable and fabulous hiking including tram PEak to Peak.

Wonderful Ski village has everything you need including hotels set up w/families in mind like Westin w/2 bedrooms and a full kitchen with large outdoor patio looking at the lush mountains & trees.

I looked around to find hints of where you might be from... and I saw on one post you spoke of <I>flying in from New York City</I>. (that was a trip to Europe, so can't tell for sure where you're actually <b>from</b>)

IF coming all the way west, from the east, I would take any "kid" to Vancouver/Whistler before I took her to the <I>admittedly very scenic R.M.N.P.</I>

Vancouver is unique, interesting and exciting to a kid even without crossing a street! Even a trip to the candy counter finds a U.S. kid confronted by numerous <I><b>different</b></I> candy options which are all quite literally <I>foreign</I> to them. (LOL)

Vancouver's Grouse Mountain affords incredible views, and is just a stone's throw from the center of town. <I>Stanley Park</I> probably affords just the <b>tame</b> hiking environment a kid would like. The Vancouver Aquarium is on the grounds of Stanley Park, and Vancouver also has lots of shoreline paths with great views in various directions.

Add Whistler to that and you have yourselves quite a variety.

And merely <b>hiking</b> through Vancouver's China Town on a Saturday afternoon can be a whole new world for a kid (or anybody). Vancouver is so walkable and so <I>foreign</I> that a kid from far away would surely gain plenty from having known the experience.

Good summary NW Male.

I'd add Capilano Suspension Bridge Park. I did that when I was 10 y/o girl and thought I'd found my "favorite place."

1JAR - I would agree entirely - <b>except for the mean, <u>big kids</u> who made MY early try on the Capilano Susp. Bridge <I>something with which I wasn't quite comfortable!</I></b>

LOL

Thanks everyone! Seems like Vancouver/Whistler is a hands down winner. And so seems to be the Rockies. We are a few hours of flight away from both these places, so flying in would not be an issue. One more question - how is the weather in mid-sept in both Banff and Vancouver/Whistler.

Just looked up Capilano Suspension Bridge Park. Wow!!

travel_12, IMO that is the best time of year to visit either place. But.... it's the very best along the west coast in terms of fair weather, and so I'll give this one to Vancouver. (On several trips, we have done both Vancouver and Banff in a 2+ week vacation, and so hard to pick for me.)

If deciding between RMNP and Banff, then I would say Banff, hands down.

If you prefer not to fly into Canada (say, due to higher fares), you can always fly into Spokane for Banff and to Seattle for Vancouver. Spokane will certainly add significant travel time; we do it because we enjoy that drive.

Seattle for Vancouver gives you also the option of taking the train up, which is a lot of fun. You really don't need a car in Vancouver (as well as the parking fees). You can rent a car for any out of town trips right from downtown. And the public transportation is excellent - even getting to Capilano Suspension Bridge and Grouse Mountain is not a problem.

Thats great to know sludick. Thanks.