Image credit: Alamy Stock Photo

Feed curious minds at Science World

1/12

An unmissable feature of Vancouver’s skyline, Science World’s gigantic metal orb houses a world of wonder. While it’s packed with enough exhibits, experiments and factoids to keep little brains inspired all day, BodyWorks for older kids and the Wonder Gallery for littlies are must-see exhibits if you’re short on time.

Image credit: Kids Market

Visit Granville Island

2/12

Formerly an industrial wasteland, Granville Island is now home to food purveyors, artists, designers, performers and a thriving craft brewery. There’s a Public Market for delicacies and hand-crafted goodies, and a two-storey Kid’s Market featuring endless activities and toys. Festivals and performances dot the calendar year-round, so be sure to check what’s on during your visit.

Image credit: The Sandbar

Feast with water views at The Sandbar

3/12

Nestled under the Granville Street Bridge, The Sandbar dishes up fresh local seafood against a quintessential Vancouver backdrop. The iconic Granville Island eatery is known for its atmosphere, with nightly live music, dedicated in-house sushi bar and cedar plank salmon that falls right off your fork.

Book your flight to Vancouver, then get busy exploring all this vibrant city has to offer. Find flights now.

Image credit: Grouse Mountain

Rise and grind on Grouse Mountain

4/12

Perched above downtown Vancouver, Grouse is more than the sum of its stunning views. Attempt the infamous “Grouse Grind” hike up, or save your knees with a cable car to the peak where you’ll find much to enthral, including (enclosed) grizzlies, a lumberjack show and, in the winter, a skating pond.

Image credit: Alamy Stock Photo

Unleash at a Canucks game

5/12

We know it as “ice hockey”, but in Canada it’s just “hockey” – and nowhere will you get a better sense of the locals’ passion than at Rogers Arena, watching the Vancouver Canucks between October and April. The pace is undoubtedly thrilling, but hearing normally-polite Vancouverites scream passionately is priceless.

Image credit: Kishimoto

Sample Vancouver’s best sushi at Kishimoto

6/12

A thriving Asian population and access to quality seafood means a proliferation of excellent sushi in Vancouver. Kishimoto is, in a hotly-contested field of over 600 sushi spots in the city, one of the best. Don’t leave without sampling the immaculately-pressed salmon oshizushi.

Catch a hockey game, ride a cable car and tick orca-watching off your list. Book your Vancouver trip now.

Stroll the Seawall in Stanley Park

7/12

Fringing the expanse of green that is Stanley Park, the Seawall is part of the Seaside Greenway a walking and biking track that meanders from the Convention Centre downtown to Spanish Banks Park, west of the city. With views of the skyline, mountains and sea, it's a visual Vancouver banquet for locals and tourists alike.

Image credit: FlyOver Canada

Delight the family at FlyOver Canada

8/12

Located downtown in Canada Place, FlyOver Canada is an immersive cinematic experience – the name of which doesn’t really do it justice. Spend eight minutes soaring over the landscapes of Canada in a harness, complete with wind in your hair. Surprisingly invigorating.

Image credit: Strathcona Beer Company

Cheers the city at the Strathcona Beer Company

9/12

Lying in the heart of Strathcona, Vancouver’s oldest neighbourhood, this not-so-micro brewery is the place to discover the laid back, hipster vibe that the city has become known for. Order a pizza in the industrial-chic tasting room and sample a local brew – including the special zesty Beach Lemon Mandarin Radler.

Book your flight to Vancouver, then get busy exploring all this vibrant city has to offer. Find flights now.

Live out your film fantasy at Hotel Vancouver

10/12

Fairmont Hotel Vancouver has had its fair share of time in the limelight. Known as “the castle in the city”, its marble-clad interior and fairytale exterior make it a location scout’s dream – it’s appeared in The X Files and Dark Angel, and more recently was the backdrop for several scenes in the 50 Shades film franchise.

Image credit: Sea Wolf Adventures

Tick orcas off the bucket list on Vancouver Island

11/12

The Salish Sea is one of the best places on earth to see orcas at play. For an unforgettable afternoon, combine a seaplane to Vancouver Island with an open-boat ride to get close to these majestic creatures. Between May and October you’ve got a 95 per cent chance of spotting a pod.

Image credit: Getty Images