• Vancouver

    Seven Funky, Must-Visit Vancouver Stores

    So, you’ve been to Granville Island. You’ve enjoyed the hip shops along Vancouver’s 4th Avenue. Ready for something different? Don’t want to buy just another mass-produced souvenir from the Robson stores? Here are seven indie-owned Vancouver shops that everyone will love. 1. Urban Source. Hundreds of bits ‘n’ scraps fill this store – no, it’s not a hoarder’s dream. Instead, it’s a clever shop that challenges children and adults alike to craftily reuse and recycle. Take paper and caps and create a flight of fancy in the form of a bird, or make your own decorative wrapping paper. It’s a fun way to spend $10 and make something beautiful once…

  • Vancouver

    Five Favorite Vancouver Hotels for Families: From cheap to posh

    We’re celebrating Vancouver, BC with a week’s worth of Vancouver- and BC-centered posts. I’ll give you the skinny on my favorite kid-friendly hotels, restaurants and activities. Our family always stays in the downtown core or in the West End. The downtown core is convenient for catching the SkyTrain to Science World and walking along Vancouver’s “high street” – Robson Street. Downside: Very expensive parking, often starting at around $20/day. The West End is convenient to Stanley Park (which will soon become your kids’ favorite park in the whole world) and offers a U.N.-worthy selection of inexpensive, international eateries. I personally avoid staying anywhere along upper Granville street (before you hit…

  • Richmond

    Steveston, BC with Kids

    Drive past Richmond’s malls and farmland — and you’ll find yourself in the midst of BC’s quaint, walkable fishing village, Steveston. Perfect on a blustery day or a warm summer afternoon, Steveston provides ample opportunity to stretch your legs by walking through village streets – chockablock with unusual fare (a Romanian bakery and a Japanese restaurant, for example), boutiques and simple shops — plus the town’s National Historic Site. Steveston’s a fantastic way to spend a family morning or afternoon. (Photo at right: Statue outside Gulf of Georgia Cannery) What to do with kids in Steveston: Try to decide among the hundreds of toys packed inside Splash Toy Shop (3580…

  • Hiking with kids near vancouver british columbia
    Get Outdoors! Camping & Hiking Trips,  Vancouver,  Whistler

    Hiking with kids in Vancouver, BC

    Writer-broadcaster Jack Christie is one of Canada’s most trusted sources on travel, recreation and sport. And he did a quick Q & A on hiking with kids in Vancouver, BC. We should consider ourselves very lucky! As the outdoors columnist with Vancouver’s Georgia Straight newspaper (Canada’s largest circulation weekly) since 1986, he has filed over 500 reports, many of which are posted on line at straight.com. Jack, along with his partner in creativity, photographer Louise Christie, is the best-selling author of a series of 17 adventure guides, including 52 Best Day Trips from Vancouver, The Whistler Book: All-Season Outdoor Guide and Best Weekend Getaways from Vancouver: Favourite Trips and Overnight Destinations (Greystone Guides). Does he have…

  • Vancouver

    Families Travel! Taking the Kids to Vancouver on Amtrak

    Canadian-born Seattle resident Connie Wanklin-Iskra, her husband Matt, son Makhno (almost 3) and daughter Naomi (6 months) decided to enjoy a car-free weekend in Vancouver, BC. So, over the long US Memorial Day weekend, they decided to take the Amtrak train‘s route to Vancouver for a two-day trip. “We wanted to stay longer, but felt we might need a day to recover when we returned,” Wanklin-Iskra says. “Which was definitely the case.” They boarded the Amtrak in Edmonds, Washington at 8:07 a.m. and arrived in Vancouver, BC, almost four hours later. The train was $70 round trip for each adult, half-off for Makhno and free for her daughter (and other children under age 2). Once in Vancouver, it was…