Where urban meets wilderness
At 1,001 acres, Stanley Park is 10% larger than New York's Central Park and is North America's third-largest urban park. But unlike Central Park, Stanley Park wasn't designed—it's a natural temperate rainforest that the city grew around.
Named after Lord Stanley of Preston, Canada's Governor General, this peninsula of old-growth forest features towering Douglas firs, western red cedars, and western hemlocks—some over 500 years old. The park receives over 8 million visitors annually, making it Canada's most-visited tourist attraction.
The Vancouver Seawall is the world's longest uninterrupted waterfront path. Construction began in 1917 and took 60 years to complete around Stanley Park alone. Today, it stretches from Coal Harbour all the way to Spanish Banks.
28 kilometers of pure Vancouver magic
Suspended 230 feet above the Capilano River, this 450-foot-long bridge has been thrilling visitors since 1889. Walk among the giants in the Treetops Adventure, where suspension bridges connect you to 250-year-old Douglas firs.
Vancouver sits in the Pacific Northwest temperate rainforest zone—one of only a few temperate rainforests in the world. With annual rainfall exceeding 1,200mm, this ecosystem supports massive trees, lush ferns, and diverse wildlife right at the city's doorstep.
Grouse Mountain, Cypress Mountain, and Mount Seymour provide year-round recreation just 20 minutes from downtown. Ski in the morning, beach in the afternoon—it's the Vancouver way.
Bald eagles nest in Stanley Park, seals bask on the rocks near Siwash Rock, and black bears occasionally wander into North Shore neighborhoods. Orcas and humpback whales can be spotted from lighthouse viewpoints.
This freshwater lake in Stanley Park was once a tidal mudflat. Poet Pauline Johnson named it "Lost Lagoon" because it would "lose itself" at low tide. A causeway built in 1916 separated it from Coal Harbour, creating the serene lake we see today—home to over 200 species of birds.