An easy country day east of Vancouver: a riverside walk at Derby Reach, where the first Fort Langley stood, the Hudson's Bay Company fort where British Columbia was proclaimed in 1858, lunch in Fort Langley village, waffles and berries at Krause Berry Farms, a tasting at the Fraser Valley's oldest winery, and a boardwalk loop in Campbell Valley.
Time
9–10 hour day
Driving
About 2½ hours driving, roughly 135 km (85 mi)
Best time
Mid-June to mid-September
Updated
$4 USD
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4:45 pmCampbell Valley Regional Park: Little River Loop
6:00 pmDrive back to Vancouver
Highlights
Worth the trip
Costumed interpreters and the 1840s storehouse at Fort Langley National Historic Site
Berry waffles, pies and an estate winery at Krause Berry Farms
A tasting at Chaberton, the Fraser Valley's oldest winery, then the Little River Loop boardwalk
What’s in the guide
Detailed stop guidance, rules, practical pitfalls, a route map, Google Maps, Waze and Apple Maps links and weather alternatives. Read it online any time, or keep it offline in the Greg’s Guides app for iPhone and iPad. See an example guide →
Plan for the conditions
Expected seasonal weather
In July and August the Langley area usually sees highs around 24–25 °C (75–77 °F) and lows near 12 °C (54 °F); June and early September are a little cooler, with highs near 20–22 °C (68–72 °F). Summer is the driest season, though a shower can still pass through, and the inland valley is often a few degrees warmer than downtown Vancouver, with occasional hot spells above 30 °C (86 °F). In late summer, wildfire smoke can haze the views. From October the rain returns. These are seasonal expectations, not a forecast for your travel date; check the Environment and Climate Change Canada forecast the evening before and the morning of your trip.
Admission and parking are separate. Check current conditions before departure.
Drive Highway 99 from Vancouver along the fjord of Howe Sound to Whistler: a pier on the water at Porteau Cove, the 335 m (1,100 ft) drop of Shannon Falls, the Sea to Sky Gondola above Squamish, Brandywine Falls on the way north, and an afternoon in Whistler Village with the Squamish Lil'wat Cultural Centre.
A full day across the water from downtown Vancouver: an early hike to Quarry Rock above Deep Cove, the free suspension bridge over Lynn Canyon, the Skyride or gondola up Grouse Mountain for the city view and the grizzly habitat, and dinner by the harbour at Lonsdale Quay and The Shipyards.
Walk Vancouver's waterfront from the cobbled streets of Gastown along the Coal Harbour seawall and around Stanley Park, past the totem poles at Brockton Point, Siwash Rock and Third Beach, to English Bay. Then take the little Aquabus ferry across False Creek to Granville Island's Public Market.
9–10 hour day·No driving: walking, plus a short Aquabus ferry ride
Best: All year; best May to September
$4 USD
Waterfalls, lakes & hot springs
Vancouver → Bridal Veil Falls → Kilby Historic Site → Sasquatch Provincial Park → Harrison Hot Springs
Head east up the Fraser Valley past Abbotsford to the 60 m (200 ft) veil of Bridal Veil Falls, lunch at the 1906 general store and farm of Kilby Historic Site, a forest walk or swim at Hicks Lake in Sasquatch Provincial Park, and a late-afternoon soak and lakeside dinner in Harrison Hot Springs.
Take the BC Ferries crossing through the Gulf Islands to Victoria for two nights: a free tour of the Parliament Buildings and an evening on the Inner Harbour, the Royal BC Museum, Fort Rodd Hill and Fisgard Lighthouse, a sunset walk on the Ogden Point breakwater, and a quiet Sunday morning at Butchart Gardens on the way back to the ferry.
2-night weekend·About 3½–4 hours driving, roughly 170 km (105 mi), plus two 1½-hour ferry crossings
Best: May to September
$5 USD
Beaches, rainforest & ferry road trip
Vancouver → Horseshoe Bay ferry → Coombs → Cathedral Grove → Highway 4 → Tofino → Pacific Rim National Park Reserve → Ucluelet
Take the ferry from Horseshoe Bay to Nanaimo and cross Vancouver Island on Highway 4: the goats on the roof at Coombs, the giant Douglas firs of Cathedral Grove, and the winding road past Kennedy Lake to the open Pacific. Spend Saturday in Pacific Rim National Park Reserve and Tofino, from rainforest boardwalks to a sunset on Chesterman Beach, and walk Ucluelet's Wild Pacific Trail on the way home.
2-night weekend·About 8–9 hours of driving in all, roughly 520 km (325 mi), plus two ferry crossings of about 1 hour 40 minutes each
Drive the Coquihalla to Kelowna, stopping at the Othello Tunnels on the old Kettle Valley Railway. Spend Saturday crossing the rebuilt Myra Canyon trestles and tasting at Summerhill and Mission Hill, and Sunday on the Naramata Bench above Okanagan Lake before the drive home.
2-night weekend·About 11–12 hours of driving in all, roughly 970 km (600 mi): about 4 hours each way between Vancouver and the Okanagan, plus short hops between wineries