31 Hours in Vancouver

I'm travelling back to the UK from Oz in late June on Air Canada and had a 7 hour connection in Vancouver so have decided to stay the night and catch the same flight to UK the next day so now have 31 hours to explore!

Would welcome views on my planned itinerary:

- Land Wednesday morning at 10:00 am - in Biz so hopefully feeling reasonably fresh
- Get a Hire Car and head up the Sea to Sky Highway to Whistler
- Arrive in Whistler and find somewhere to stay - any recommendations? - max $200 per night
- Take a gondolla trip up a mountain and enjoy the views
- Back to the hotel, dinner, early night and sleep like a baby
- Nice breakfast then a leisurely drive down the Sea to Sky Highway stopping at a few waterfalls - somewhere nice for lunch?
- Park up in Vancouver and look around the city / Stanley Park
- Head back to the airport late afternoon
- Catch the 19:50 flight back to the UK

How does it look - achiveable? Would be nice to fit in a whale watching trip but cant see how to.

Any suggestions / things I've missed?

use expedia or priceline for hotel in whis

can't really go wrong in the village unless you want something fancy, in which case only four seasons or fairmont fit the bill and are more than 200

you can get a decent 3 star right in the village for $99 CDN in june

(listel, delta suites, hilton etc all fit the bill )

Ok - 31 hours? really!!!??

Why not look at getting a limo up to whistler? They leave from the airport, you may even be able to find someone to share it with...

Only 31 hours, do you really want to drive up that highway? It is beautiful, but also dangerous if you are not entirely awake. Perhaps you can hire a car one way? Look into that, because there are some nice waterfalls to stop at . The most obvious is Shannon Falls. A very short walk in from the highway. The walk will take you five to ten minutes, but it is flat walking and the falls are beautiful. A quick stop. Really worth it.

Then there is BRANDYWINE Falls. The walk is 20- 30 minutes, but again, very flat terrain off the main highway. These falls are not as high, but very beautiful, and not as visited.

Sorry that I can't recommend a place in Whistler. The Fairmont is great, but probably over 200.

You could stop half way back in Horseshoe Bay, for an early brunch/lunch at Troll's for a nice Fish and Chips. Troll's has been there for 50 years plus and is a bit of history. Just an idea.

Stanley Park is a great place to visit. $7 parking all day if you choose to rent a car. You can also buy parking for 3-4 hours for less if so desired.

The Aquarium is famous, if you are interested in Beluga Whales, dolphins, otters, great exhibits of local marine life, including wonderful jellyfish exhibits. Admission for an adult is around $ 18 Canadian.

The Sequoia Grill in Stanley Park is quite nice, with a beautiful view. Lunches around $ 15-25. Or you can eat at one of the sit outside concessions and have a sandwich for $7-10. Nearby Denman Street has MANY choices for food. The Raincity Grill only 5 minutes from Stanley Park, again with a great view, this time of English Bay has good food for lunch or dinner. Reservations MAY be necessary depending on the day of the week.

Remember that Vancouver has many bridges and getting back to the airport from downtown may take as much as an hour, depending on the day of the week, time of day etc.

Whale watching will not be possible unless you get on a ferry, or boat around Vancouver Island. Maybe next time.

Enjoy.

The suggestions from lizzimet are excellent, however there is a lot of construction on the route from West Vancouver to Whistler. You can look at the schedule for the construction at www.seatoskyimprovements.ca. You do certainly have to have your wits about you when you do this drive! This is a very beauiful drive if the weather is good. Enjoy your time here.

The village of whistler is dead right now so finding a hotel under 100.00 should be no problem. It will take you roughly 2.5- 3 hours to drive from richmond where the airport is up to Whistler with a few construction stops along the way, you will need your witts about you to the drive. The trip up the mountain is gorgeous and is worth the 30.00 bucks, but check to see if the gondola is running because the mountain closes for a short periods of time ready to reopen in june for the bike park. Plan your return trip to avoid the lions gate bridge traffic snarls that will start around 3 pm until 6 or 7 at night. Also the sea to sky highway closes for the blasting between midnight and 2 am opens for 1 hour then closes from 3-5 am. check for updates with mountain fm radio

Let's see...land at 10 - out of airport 12ish.

I'd just grab a daypack (leave the rest of your stuff at the airport) and take the Perimeter Express straight from the airport to Whistler, do your thing, and take the bus back very early the next morning and catch a whale tour from Granville Island (basically downtown).

The only waterfall you're really getting between Vancouver and Whistler is Shannon Falls which sounds far more impressive than it is without a lot of hiking. At least in the boat you'll get a nice view from the water of the city, coastline, mountains etc and it's a nice way to pass a couple of hours.
After that, hop a water taxi from Granville Island across False Creek ($2.50) and walk to Stanley Park along the seawall (apx 20 minutes). When done, grab the bus back to the airport.

Thanks for all the great advice.

Given all the roadworks on the S to S, the possibility that the Gondolas closed, and the great advice on here I think I might give Whistler a miss, stay in Vancouver doing these sites on day one then do the whale watch the next day.

Thanks all !

If you skip Whistler go up Grouse Mt if you still want the gondala/mountain experience. (assuming it's a clear day). That's basically a bus ride out of downtown, very easy to get to.

Yeah spotted that - sounds like a plan

Capilano Suspension Briedge looks good too - but expensive!

Lynn Canyon has a free one but it's not as big.