Canada as a resort travel and retirement destination is familiar to many, but visitors to the Vancouver part of British Columbia discover another side. Western Canada was more thinly settled than the Canadian Eastern provinces, leaving a population and settlement boom until the mid 19th century to population areas later to become villages and townships. The unspoilt  Western Canada coast and Vancouver Island, national parks, Vancouver metropolitan city life and museums make for a stimulating and densely packed vacation schedule.

The breadth of choices for things to do in Vancouver and surrounding areas can surprise first time and repeat visitors alike. The early Canadian property and homesteading laws led to a settlement of Western Canada and Vancouver centered around towns in particular.  After the Granville townsite became Vancouver proper, a logging fire laid waste to most of what was left, explaining the preservation of the surviving Gastown. Usually fires in Western Canada were prevented by the temperature and climate, which positioned areas like British Columbia as such logging and lumber supply powerhouse regions.

After the historic district tours, a family picnic at Stanley Park might be just the ticket. If one family member wants to skateboard, and another wants to bike, and a few want to settle and read, while others want to frisbee, a trip to this very popular park is recommended. Discover the fun of just relaxing in a new place, or meet up with people you see along these green spaces and robust seawall paths. Tourists like to grab lunch fare at Granville Island and picnic at Stanley Park in style. Bike rentals, park shuttles, the Vancouver Aquarium and dining and eye opening views make Stanley Park a daytrip or more in itself.

Vancouver is located in Western Canada, not quite on the Pacific Ocean in the Vancouver “lowlands” due to a system of land extensions and peninsular bodies, bays and the odd island that make up the lowlands and waterlands next to coastland Canada. For many smaller municipal towns and villages in Western Canada today, planned growth is resisted for a rural preservationist perspective of residential living. A fluctuation in real estate values has left certain areas very affordable for retirement or income property investment.

Just the names of areas like Banff in Alberta and Icefields Parkway summon  imagined vistas of outdoor scenery splendor. Canada’s Westernmost provinces were born of railroad routes into vast mountain ranges, tall trees, and pristine lakes with luxury hotels that stunned visitors. Exporting scenery is a national Canadian pastime, nowhere more so than in British Columbia and Vancouver outlying areas. Boating trips and extended hikes, camping, fishing and trail adventures reward every dollar spent triple value for fresh air, unspoilt country,

Burrard Inlet is a familiar name and reference to most of suburban Vancouver and environs. Vancouver itself reaches into the interior somewhat, allowing easy train access. The overland rail trip from Toronto, Eastern Canada and Nova Scotia to the British Columbian Vancouver area is a celebrated Rockies stunner. Waterway travel to access any island and shore attractions makes a marina (like Vancouver’s) almost a necessity. The Queen Charlotte Islands and other seacoast destinations are reachable within hours by helicopter form Vancouver.

Settlement by towns happened long after shantytowns of miners and coolie camps sprung up to support whatever logging and building companies had been established. Watery inlets traversed mixed coastal coves and peninsular bodies which made for tricky portage. The Smoky Mountains and the nearby Okanagan Valley make for beautiful scenery and Whistler convenient alpine sports. Intracoastal access by train and roadway mixes secluded spots and daytrip ideas aplenty. Vinotourism, extreme adventure, relaxation and reflection, and alpine and mountain sports abound.

Cultured Vancouver visitors will enjoy learning about the earliest settlers of Western Canada, prehistoric and more recent native indians who left plenty of clues about their living preferences and practices all over British Columbia. The University of British Columbia anthropology exhibits craft a detailed portrait of early Western Canada and the the inhabitants who acknowledged and valued the resources of the area. Totem and deities, Canadian ancient artifacts and relics are knowledgeably shared with an inquiring and interested public.