Vancouver – Granville and Natural Sites Around Vancouver
The covered market at Granville Island is one of the liveliest spots in Vancouver. To its south, Granville Street along Route 99 is a hub of shops and restaurants particularly beloved by city residents. Near Granville Island, at the end of False Creek, you'll also find Vanier Park, home to city museums and a huge beach with a promenade offering a stunning view of downtown. On the outskirts of Vancouver, there are breathtaking man-made natural sites like Queen Elizabeth Park and the VanDusen Botanical Gardens, as well as the suspension bridges of Lynn Canyon Park and the Capilano River in particularly fun wooded parks. Above all, towers Grouse Mountain and the legendary tramway climbing to its peak, one of Vancouver's top attractions.
How much time do you need for a trip around Granville and the Greater Vancouver area?
For a trip to Granville Island, in the southern part of False Creek, in the parks of the southern metropolitan area, and the natural sites north of the city, you should dedicate at least a full day, just to figure out exactly where to go.
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What are the must-sees and must-dos in Granville and Greater Vancouver?
- Spectacular view from the cable car to the summit of Grouse Mountain
- Colorful atmosphere and restaurants at Granville Island Public Market
- The city museums of Vanier Park
- The manicured gardens of Queen Elizabeth Park and the dome of the Bloedel Conservatory
- Cross the deep gorge on the Capilano Suspension Bridge
- The suspension bridges and rushing waterfalls of Lynn Canyon Park
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What's in Granville and the Nature Sites on Vancouver's Outskirts?
Granville Island was once an important fishing hub and is still lined with many fishing boats. Over the years, the industrial island south of Vancouver's downtown evolved from a space filled with old warehouses into a tourist attraction that draws a huge number of visitors.
- The covered market opened on the island (technically a peninsula) is one of the most popular spots for tourists and locals in Vancouver
- The area boasts excellent eateries, and the warehouses have been transformed into shops and artists' studios
- South of the island stretches the central Granville Street, a wide street also bustling with shops and restaurants.
- The street runs south towards Little Mountain, a raised area where the elegant Queen Elizabeth Park is located. Nearby, the VanDusen Botanical Gardens also stand as a tourist spot favored primarily by the city's residents.
In the northern parts of the Vancouver metropolis, the terrain starts to rise and the outskirts of the city are characterized by tall coniferous forests and rushing stream channels.
- Over both the Capilano River and the area known as Lynn Canyon, historic wooden suspension bridges have been constructed, which today are particularly popular green attractions.
- The bridges cross over the channels and lead into parks with paths cut through the forest trees.
- Above the channels rises the photogenic and tall Grouse Mountain, which in winter is a very popular developed ski site. In the summer, you can also reach its peak by cable car that climbs up to the observation deck at the summit. From the top of the cable car, you'll enjoy a simply stunning view of the entire metropolis.
Map of Granville and the natural sites of Greater Vancouver?
Everything to see and do in Granville
Granville Island
Granville Island is one of the most visited places in Vancouver. It is essentially a peninsula located in the northern part of the Fairview district, within False Creek, south of Vancouver's downtown. The island was previously used for industrial purposes but has been revitalized and is now a tourist destination featuring the Granville Island Public Market. The island also houses art shops, additional restaurants, a hotel, clubs, and promenades offering breathtaking views of downtown.
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Granville Street
Granville Street runs north to south through all districts south of downtown Vancouver. It's the main thoroughfare of Highway 99 that climbs north into downtown and continues to Stanley Park. The street crosses the Fairview district from Granville Island southward to the suburban Shaughnessy neighborhood. In its more northern part, in the South Granville neighborhood of Fairview, there is a cluster of shops and restaurants, making the area lively and popular with city residents and tourists.
Vanier Park
Vanier Park is located at the southern corner of the False Creek exit to English Bay. Along the waterfront is a popular promenade for jogging or walking, offering a stunning view of Sunset Beach and the skyscrapers of downtown Vancouver to the north. It is a small urban park with open lawns and trees (not as forested as Stanley Park), housing several important museums and popular natural beaches.
The most popular attraction in the park is the Museum of Vancouver. This museum covers the city's history and features fascinating exhibits, including items from popular culture, ancient artifacts from Native American tribes, and a variety of interesting handicrafts.
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Nearby, the Vancouver Maritime Museum also presents exhibits and findings related to the city's extensive maritime history. It's an interesting place to visit with children who love the subject. On the western side of the park is Kitsilano Beach, a large open sandy beach that is packed with swimmers during the summer days.
Everything to See and Do in Greater Vancouver
Queen Elizabeth Park
Queen Elizabeth Park is one of the most beautiful in all of Vancouver, a city known for its urban parks. The park is located in the Riley Park neighborhood in the southern part of the metropolitan area, on an elevated area called Little Mountain. The park's gardens are spread out in terraces of a basalt quarry that once operated there, and in some areas, you can see the exposed rock.
Within the park, there are several attractions and walking spots, the main one being the Bloedel Conservatory, a giant glass dome greenhouse preserving various bird and plant species. The park is situated on a hill 125 meters high, and from its paths, there is a breathtaking view of the metropolis and the surrounding ridges.
Just east of Queen Elizabeth Park are the Van Dusen Botanical Gardens. This is a large botanical garden with many species of trees and plants, primarily from the alpine regions above the city. The main attraction of the gardens is its huge and popular maze.
Capilano Suspension Bridge Park
The Capilano Suspension Bridge is one of the top attractions for a nature trip in Greater Vancouver. The bridge is located in the northern part of North Vancouver, a five-minute drive from Stanley Park. It's a wooden pedestrian suspension bridge supported by ropes. The bridge is about 140 meters long and was built above the deep gorge of the Capilano River in 1889.
The height of the suspension bridge is about seventy meters above the river gorge, and it leads to a forest of giant trees with walking trails. The bridge has become one of the favorite attractions for city residents and is especially crowded on weekends.
Lynn Canyon Park
Lynn Canyon Park is a mountainous and wooded natural area on the northern outskirts of the Vancouver metropolitan area. It is located within the suburb of Lynn Valley, a twenty-minute drive from downtown. Above the Lynn Canyon stream, there is a hanging wooden bridge, built in 1912.
This bridge is much shorter than its counterpart, about 40 meters long, and stretches 50 meters above the canyon. Within the park, there are more suspension bridges spanning over the canyon, offering spectacular views of the cascades and waterfalls of the stream.
The Grouse Mountain cable car
Grouse Mountain is one of the most popular tourist destinations in all of Vancouver and one of the most beautiful places in the nature of Western Canada. The great advantage of the towering mountain is its proximity and accessibility to Vancouver. The mountain's height exceeds 1200 meters and it is located just ten kilometers as the crow flies from downtown Vancouver. It's a very popular ski resort in the winter months and an attractive hiking destination in the summer.
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In the northern part of the Grousewoods suburb, you'll find the cable car that ascends to the mountain peak. This cable car climbs to an altitude of nearly a kilometer to the observation deck right at the mountain's summit. From there, other ski lifts take you to a variety of slopes down the hills (lifts that bring skiers to the peak after skiing down). A trip to the top of Grouse Mountain is a must when visiting Vancouver during the summer months, especially for the spectacular view from the summit.
