With kids · Vancouver · Canada
Vancouver with kids
Family-tested sights, a calm base and the practical details that make travelling with children easier.
Updated By the AMZBooking editorial team
Quick answer
Vancouver works well for families: beaches, Stanley Park, the aquarium and Science World are close together, the North Shore adds suspension bridges and mountain gondolas, and indoor options cover rainy days. Top picks: Stanley Park and the seawall, Vancouver Aquarium and Granville Island. Families usually base themselves in Downtown and Coal Harbour.
Key facts
- Family picks
- 8
- Best area for families
- Downtown and Coal Harbour
- Rainy-day options
- 3
- Busiest months
- July–August
Best things to do with kids
Park · Stanley Park
1.Stanley Park and the seawall
This 400-hectare peninsula of rainforest, beaches and gardens is circled by a seawall path of about 9 km used by walkers, runners and cyclists. Stops include the totem poles at Brockton Point, Siwash Rock, the Prospect Point lookout under the Lions Gate Bridge and Second and Third beaches on the western shore.
Rent a bike on Denman Street and ride the seawall counter-clockwise, the required direction for cyclists, allowing about an hour plus stops.
- Time needed
- Half a day
- Cost
- Free
- Iconic
- Free
- Outdoors
- Kids
- Nature
- Active
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Aquarium · Stanley Park
2.Vancouver Aquarium
Inside Stanley Park, the Vancouver Aquarium focuses on the waters of the Pacific Northwest and the Arctic, with sea otters, sea lions, jellyfish and a tropical gallery, plus a 4D theatre. It is one of the city's main family attractions on a rainy day.
Plan your visit around the sea otter feeding and talks listed on the daily schedule.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Kids
- Rainy day
- Nature
Market · Granville Island
3.Granville Island
Beneath the Granville Street Bridge, this former industrial island is home to the Granville Island Public Market — produce, seafood, bakeries and food counters — plus artists' studios, a brewery, theatres and a Kids Market of toy shops. Small Aquabus and False Creek Ferries boats shuttle across from downtown and Yaletown.
Arrive by mini-ferry rather than by car, as parking fills quickly, and eat lunch on the docks behind the market.
- Time needed
- Half a day
- Cost
- Free
- Iconic
- Food
- Shopping
- Kids
- Free
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Nature · North Vancouver
4.Capilano Suspension Bridge Park
First built in 1889, the suspension bridge spans 140 metres across the Capilano River canyon at a height of about 70 metres. The private park adds Treetops Adventure, a chain of footbridges between tall Douglas firs, and Cliffwalk, a walkway bolted to the canyon wall.
Go at opening time or late in the day to avoid tour groups, and wear grippy shoes on the damp boardwalks.
- Time needed
- 2 hours
- Cost
- Expensive
- Book ahead
- Book online in summer and during the winter lights season, when time slots fill.
- Iconic
- Kids
- Views
- Nature
- Photo spot
Museum · False Creek
5.Science World
The silver geodesic dome built for Expo 86 houses a hands-on science centre with galleries on the body, nature and engineering, an outdoor science park and a large dome cinema at the eastern end of False Creek.
Arrive by SkyTrain to Main Street–Science World station, or by mini-ferry along False Creek.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Kids
- Rainy day
- Architecture
Viewpoint · North Vancouver
6.Grouse Mountain
The Skyride gondola climbs to about 1,100 metres for views over the city, the Strait of Georgia and, on clear days, Mount Baker. In summer there are grizzly bears in a wildlife refuge, lumberjack shows and hiking; in winter, skiing and snowshoeing. Fit hikers climb the Grouse Grind, a 2.9 km staircase-like trail with about 850 metres of ascent.
If you hike the Grind, buy a one-way gondola ticket down; the trail is uphill-only and closes in winter.
- Time needed
- Half a day
- Cost
- Expensive
- Views
- Outdoors
- Kids
- Active
- Nature
Beach · Kitsilano
7.Kitsilano Beach and Kits Pool
Kits Beach faces downtown and the North Shore mountains across English Bay, with volleyball courts, a grassy park and Kitsilano Pool, a heated outdoor saltwater pool 137 metres long that opens in summer. It is one of the city's liveliest beaches on warm days.
Come for sunset, then walk the seawall to Vanier Park and the Maritime Museum.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Outdoors
- Kids
- Views
Experience · Burrard Inlet
8.SeaBus to Lonsdale Quay
The SeaBus passenger ferry crosses Burrard Inlet from Waterfront station to Lonsdale Quay in about 12 minutes on a regular transit fare, with harbour views of the skyline, cruise ships and floatplanes. Lonsdale Quay has a market hall with food stalls, and the Shipyards waterfront is next door.
Sit by the front or rear windows on the way over and return at dusk for the city lights.
- Time needed
- 1–2 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- Views
- Kids
- Photo spot
- Food
Rainy-day ideas
- Vancouver Aquarium — Plan your visit around the sea otter feeding and talks listed on the daily schedule.
- Queen Elizabeth Park and Bloedel Conservatory — The park is free; pay only for the conservatory, which makes a warm rainy-day stop.
- Science World — Arrive by SkyTrain to Main Street–Science World station, or by mini-ferry along False Creek.
Where families should stay
$$$$ · Best for first-timers, luxury, families and shopping
Downtown and Coal Harbour
Downtown Vancouver fills a peninsula between Burrard Inlet and False Creek. Coal Harbour's seawall runs from Canada Place and the cruise terminal past the floatplane docks to Stanley Park, while Robson Street and the blocks around the Vancouver Art Gallery hold the main shops and hotels. Waterfront station links the SkyTrain, the SeaBus and the Canada Line to the airport.
- Good
- Seawall and Stanley Park on foot; Direct Canada Line to YVR; Wide hotel choice
- Watch out
- Expensive hotels; Quiet after office hours in the business core
- Nearby
- Canada Place, Stanley Park, Vancouver Art Gallery, Waterfront station
Family travel tips
- Children aged 12 and under ride TransLink buses, SkyTrain and the SeaBus free.
- Granville Island's Kids Market and the free summer water park beside it make an easy half day.
- Stanley Park has a seasonal miniature train and a free summer splash park at Lumberman's Arch.
- Pack rain gear year-round; local families head outdoors in light rain.
- Bears live on the North Shore, so keep children close on trails and follow posted signs.
Day trips for families
- Whistler (About 2 hours by car or coach) — The resort town that co-hosted the 2010 Winter Olympics has one of North America's largest ski areas and, in summer, mountain biking, hiking and the Peak 2 Peak Gondola between Whistler and Blackcomb mountains.
- Squamish and the Sea to Sky Gondola (About 1 hour by car) — Squamish sits between Howe Sound and the granite walls of the Stawamus Chief, a famous climbing and hiking peak.
- Bowen Island (About 20 minutes by ferry from Horseshoe Bay) — A relaxed island community in Howe Sound with a walkable harbour village of cafés and galleries, trails through Crippen Regional Park to Killarney Lake, and calm bays for kayaking.
- Steveston (About 40 minutes by transit) — A historic salmon-canning village at the mouth of the Fraser River, Steveston has a working fishing harbour where boats sell seafood from the dock, the Gulf of Georgia Cannery museum and waterfront fish and chips.
When to go with children
The best months overall are June–September. July–August are the busiest, so book the big sights early. Weather by month.
Questions travellers ask
+Is Vancouver good for kids?
Vancouver works well for families: beaches, Stanley Park, the aquarium and Science World are close together, the North Shore adds suspension bridges and mountain gondolas, and indoor options cover rainy days.
+What can kids do in Vancouver?
Stanley Park and the seawall, Vancouver Aquarium, Granville Island, Capilano Suspension Bridge Park and Science World.
+Where should families stay in Vancouver?
Downtown and Coal Harbour: Waterfront towers, Canada Place and the seawall towards Stanley Park.