Shannon O'Brien Travel Itineraries

The best destinations

Photo of British Columbia
Photo of British Columbia

The Best of British Columbia

#36 best destination in the world

Map view

Whistler Blackcomb

Photo of Whistler

Best time to visit: Jan-March, June-Aug, Dec

Cost: $$$

  • Ski resort located in Whistler, that is by many measures the largest ski resort in North America, and has the greatest uphill lift capacity
  • It features the Peak 2 Peak Gondola for moving between Whistler and Blackcomb mountains at the top
  • With all of this capacity, Whistler Blackcomb is also often the busiest ski resort
  • Whistler Blackcomb was the centrepiece of a renewed bid on the part of nearby Vancouver for the 2010 Winter Olympics, which they won

Big White Ski Resort, Kelowna

Photo of Kelowna

Best time to visit: Jan-Feb, Dec

Cost: $$

  • Ski resort located southeast of Kelowna, it is the third largest resort in British Columbia, after Whistler-Blackcomb and Sun Peaks
  • Big White has western Canada's largest resort night skiing area
  • The resort has a central village which offers accommodations, eateries, bars, and shops

Sun Peaks Resort

Photo of Sun Peaks

Best time to visit: Jan-Feb, Dec

Cost: $$

  • Alpine ski resort located in Sun Peaks, that has 13 lifts with a total capacity of 13,400 riders per hour, with the Burfield chair being the longest at 23 minutes total ride

Stanley Park Seawall Trail

Photo of Stanley Park

Walk difficulty: Easy

Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Nov

Cost: $

  • Public park in Vancouver's Downtown Peninsula, whose historic lighthouse on Brockton Point marks the park's easternmost point
  • While it is not the largest of its kind, Stanley Park is about one-fifth larger than New York City's Central Park
  • Significant effort was put into constructing the near-century-old Vancouver Seawall, which can draw thousands of people to the park in the summer

Capilano Suspension Bridge Park

Photo of Capilano Suspension Bridge Park

Walk difficulty: Easy

Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Nov

Cost: $

  • Simple suspension bridge crossing the Capilano River in North Vancouver
  • The bridge was originally built in 1889, but was rebuilt completely in 1956

Butchart Gardens

Photo of Butchart Gardens

Walk difficulty: Easy

Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Nov

Cost: $

  • Group of floral display gardens in Brentwood, it is a 119-year-old display garden created by Jennie Butchart, and still privately owned and operated by the family

Granville Island

Photo of Granville Island

Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Nov

Cost: $

  • Peninsula and shopping district in Vancouver, formerly an industrial manufacturing area
  • It includes a public market, restaurants, a marina, a hotel, numerous artists' studios and workshops, and various performing arts theatres

Wapta Falls, Yoho National Park Of Canada

Photo of Yoho National Park Of Canada

Walk difficulty: Easy

Best time to visit: Jan-March, June-Aug, Dec

Cost: $

  • Wapta Falls is a waterfall of the Kicking Horse River located in Yoho National Park
  • It is the largest waterfall of the Kicking Horse River

Photo of Vancouver Art Gallery

Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Nov

Cost: $

  • Art museum in Vancouver, and the largest art museum in Western Canada by building size
  • The museum was opened to the public in 1931, and the Gallery's permanent collection has approximately 12,000 works by artists from Canada, and around the world
  • The collection also has a focus on First Nations art, and art from Asia