215 Best Sights in British Columbia, Canada

As the only day-use area in the park with small playground climbing structures, if you have children, you won't want to drive past this rest area. There are also several interpretive signs explaining how Parks Canada is helping wildlife (including bears, wolves, cougars, and ungulates) stay safe with the construction of underpasses and fencing. Read the signs before walking through Dolly Varden underpass (there are nine of them in the park) that the animals use to cross the highway to access important habitat and connect with mates. The site also has picnic tables and toilets.

Although many vintners take advantage of the nearby orchards, this funky winery makes a specialty wine out of fruit. Using recipes that are generations old, it creates some delightful table and dessert wines from pears, cherries, and black currants. They also make grape wine and dry ciders. 

This 8.8-km (5.5-mile) scenic road briefly parallels the fast-flowing Kicking Horse River before passing the Natural Bridge and traveling through the forest where it ultimately ends at the bright, deep green Emerald Lake. Compared to Lake Louise in Banff National Park, Emerald Lake is most definitely under-visited. The road is open year-round, and the speed limit is slow (50 km/h [30 mph]), allowing you plenty of opportunities to spot wildlife.

The city's best-known beach, English Bay, lies just to the east of Stanley Park's southern entrance. A long stretch of golden sand, a waterslide, volleyball courts, kayak rentals, and food trucks keep things interesting all summer. Known locally for being gay-friendly, it draws a diverse crowd. Special events include summer Celebration of Light fireworks and a New Year's Day "Polar Bear" swim. The oversized A-maze-ing Laughter sculptures will make you smile. Amenities: food and drink, lifeguards, parking (for a fee), toilets, and water sports. Best for: sunset, swimming, and walking.

Canada is the world's largest producer of ice wine, a specialty of Ex Nihilo Vineyards, a 25-minute drive north of Kelowna. This small but enterprising winery was among the first in the area to court celebrity endorsements, and struck a deal with the Rolling Stones to label its Riesling ice wine "Sympathy for the Devil." There is also a bistro on-site.

This picnic site is located right next to the brilliantly colored Faedar Lake. On a stroll along the pathway that goes around the lake, you will have stunning views of the surrounding mountain peaks, and in the summer months, you'll likely see wildflowers. Outhouse toilets are available. Note that the parking area is not suitable for large RVs or trailers and is accessible only by west-bound traffic.

Opened in 1908 by the Canadian Pacific Railway, the Empress is one of the grand château-style railroad hotels that grace many Canadian cities. Designed by Francis Rattenbury, who also designed the Parliament Buildings across the way, the solid Edwardian grandeur of the Empress has made it a symbol of the city. The elements that made the hotel an attraction for travelers in the past—old-world architecture, ornate decor, and a commanding view of the Inner Harbour—are still here although they exude a fresh, contemporary air. Nonguests can reserve ahead for afternoon tea (the dress code is smart casual) in the chandelier-draped Tea Lobby, meet for Pimm's cocktails or enjoy superb Pacific Northwest cuisine at the Q Lounge and Restaurant, or enjoy a treatment at the hotel's Willow Stream spa. In summer, lunch, snacks, and cocktails are served on the veranda overlooking the Inner Harbour. 

Mah-jongg, fan-tan, and dominoes were games of chance played on Fan Tan Alley, said to be the narrowest street in Canada. Once the gambling and opium center of Chinatown, it's now lined with offbeat shops (few of which sell authentic Chinese goods). The area's history is exceptionally well presented in the tiny Chinese Canadian Museum. Look for the alley on the south side of Fisgard Street between nos. 545½ and 549½.

Immediately adjacent to the Field Visitor Centre parking lot, this day-use area is a popular family-picnic spot in the summer months. On hot days, the small lake is perfect for a refreshing swim. The large parking lot is suitable for RVs, and there are accessible washrooms and a shop that sells T-shirts and other tourist merchandise inside the visitor center. 

On the confluence of where the Porcupine Creek joins the Kicking Horse River, with a wildly scenic backdrop of towering Rocky Mountain peaks, this is a perfect spot for a picnic. There are picnic tables and outhouse toilet facilities. It's accessible by westbound traffic only.

Known for its spectacular setting on a glacier-cleared field close to the shores of Floe Lake, this cabin was constructed in 1960 along one of the patrol trails that formed part of the network established by the National Park Warden Service to enforce fish and game regulations and fight forest fires within the park boundaries. The one-story log structure on a lovely rubble stone foundation is a good example of the typical rustic architecture and design.

This provincial park, on the scenic Strait of Juan de Fuca 21 km (13 miles) west of Sooke, comprises a sand-and-pebble beach, a campground, and seaside trails. The shoreline is an excellent spot for whale-watching, as migrating grays and resident killer whales often feed in the area. Amenities: toilets; showers; water sports. Best for: swimming; walking; windsurfing.

Once the site of the city's first civic buildings—the constable's cabin and customs house, and a two-cell log jail—this atmospheric brick-paved courtyard is now home to cafés and offices.

An underground steam system, which also heats many local buildings, supplies the world's first steam clock—possibly Vancouver's most photographed attraction. On the quarter hour, a steam whistle rings out the Westminster chimes, and on the hour a huge cloud of steam spews from the apparatus. The ingenious design, based on an 1875 mechanism, was built in 1977 by Ray Saunders of Landmark Clocks to commemorate the community effort that saved Gastown from demolition. Fun fact: yes, the clock does use steam power, but three electric motors help it run, too.

At this newly opened park, a forested trail will take you across a canyon via Canada's two highest suspension bridges (130 meters [426 feet]; 80 meters [263 feet]). There are also viewing platforms where you can marvel over the canyon formation and the surrounding mountain ranges. A play park for kids is included in the fee, but there's an extra charge for the rope challenge course, giant canyon swing, and zipline. 

When the sky is clear, the telescope at the Gordon Southam Observatory is focused on whatever stars or planets are worth watching that night. Admission to the observatory is by donation and it's open year-round Saturday evenings, from 7 to 11, weather permitting.

Take a stroll through the walled grounds and 35 acres of formal gardens at Government House, residence of British Columbia's lieutenant governor, the King's representative in BC. The 19th-century Cary Castle Mews on-site are home to an interpretive center, a costume museum, and a tearoom. The main house is open for guided tours one Saturday a month.

This small-brewery-gone-big is where the craft beer revolution began. Back in 1984, it was Canada’s first microbrewery. Since then, it has grown rapidly. The bustling Granville Island atmosphere is perfect for a tour and tasting of beer history. Tours, which run daily and are booked on a first-come, first-served basis, last about 30 minutes and include a taste of four brews. 

Boo, an adult grizzly bear, has called this 20-acre forested area in the middle of the Kicking Horse Mountain Resort home since 2002. Although born in the wild, Boo's mother was poached when he was young, leaving him unable to live on his own. At this refuge center, you can see Boo going about his day, take an interpretive tour, or visit an interpretive center that provides more information on grizzlies in the wild.  

North America's largest aerial tramway, the Skyride is a great way to take in the city, sea, and mountain vistas (be sure to pick a clear day or evening). The Skyride makes the 2-km (1-mile) climb to the peak of Grouse Mountain every 15 minutes. Once at the top, there are plenty of activities included in the ticket price. From spring through fall, you can catch a lumberjack show, a ranger talk, a documentary video, or a falconry demonstration. Go hiking, ride the chairlift, play disc golf, or visit a pair of grizzly bears in the mountain's wildlife refuge. For an extra fee, you can mountain bike, tackle a ropes course, go zip-lining, or take a helicopter flight. You can even pay extra to ride on top of the Skyride car. Popular family extras include a treetop canopy course and a chance to have breakfast with the bears. In the winter, you can ski, snowshoe, snowboard, sled, ice skate on a mountaintop pond, or stroll through the Light Walk, an illuminated pathway around a lake. A stone-and-cedar lodge is home to snack shops, a pub-style bistro, and a high-end restaurant, all with expansive city views. The Grouse Grind—a hiking trail up the face of the mountain—is one of the best workouts on the North Shore. Depending on your fitness level, allow between 40 minutes and two hours to complete it (90 minutes is an average time). Then you can take the Skyride down. The BCMC Trail is a less crowded, slightly longer alternative. From late May through September, you can catch a free shuttle to Grouse Mountain from Canada Place. Bus 236 from Lonsdale Quay stops at the base of Grouse Mountain year-round.

The interactive exhibits and high-tech learning systems at this center include GroundStation Canada, showcasing Canada's achievements in space, and the Cosmic Courtyard, full of hands-on, space-oriented exhibits including a moon rock and a computer program that shows what you would look like as an alien. You can catch daytime astronomy shows or evening music-and-laser shows at the H.R. MacMillan Planetarium.

Hainle Vineyards Estate Winery is a hidden gem: British Columbia's first organic winery and the first to make ice wines. It is a small producer open for tastings (though not tours unless you're a Royal Wine Club member), and its award-winning wines are highly coveted.

With only one highway through Kootenay National Park, many travelers choose this route as a scenic option to get from Banff to Windermere Valley. The park's terrain is rugged and natural with amazing views of the mountain ranges and the glacial blue rivers that often run alongside the highway. More so than the neighboring Canadian Rocky Mountain National Parks, wildfires have been significant in Kootenay, and, especially in the northern portion of the park, the large stands of burned trees allow a stark view of the mountain peaks and give a romantic, haunting feel to the terrain. These burn areas quickly grow over with lush greenery and wildflowers, providing an important ecosystem for several species of flora and fauna within the park.