It seems everywhere we go we always find unique and fun stuff to do, sometimes on the cheap too. Our most recent house sitting stop has us in the greater Vancouver area. And lucky for us I have a high school friend who lives just a few blocks away, which is awesome, because now we have a local guide to Vancouver. This not only saves us time and lots of money, but we get to experience different things than other tourists would.

When it comes to finding stuff to do, the internet is always a great source of information. But how do you sort through vast amounts of “100 Must See Amazeballs Things To Do in…” articles?

You don’t. You get a local’s advice about the town you’re in.

Now, you should find some stuff to do on your own, and we have, but my buddy offered up a few things to do thus far, and he’s hit home runs on all – and not just solo-home runs early in the game, these were game-winning walk-off in dramatic fashion, Jose Bautista bat-flip-esque home runs.

Check out our weekend…

If you’ve ever been to the lower mainland in BC, you’ve probably heard of the Capilano Suspension Bridge. It’s a suspension bridge 450 feet (137m) across and 230 feet (70m) above the ground. It looks pretty cool, but it also looks pretty expensive at $40 per adult for park admission. So it would have run us $80, and our friends another $80, gouging the four of us for $160 to walk across a bridge. We didn’t do Capilano.

My local guide to Vancouver said to check out Lynn Valley / Lynn Canyon instead. So we did. It too has a suspension bridge, this one being 48 metres long and 50 metres above ground. There was also a nice walking path which led to a river and what’s called the 30 Foot Pool where we saw what must have been a Nordic family swimming in said 30 Foot Pool.

Dudes, it was cold water, like seriously cold. Women’s nips would cut glass – and guys – your nards would crawl so far up inside you they’d be in your throat. Awkward visuals aside, it was a nice area with plenty of scenery. Maybe it’s not quite Capilano, but at the low, low price of FREE, you’re going in saving at least $40!

After some great conversation and a walk through the cedar-filled forest, it was time to check out North Van for some snacks and to wet the palette with some tasty micro beers!

With more advice from my buddy, we found ourselves at the shores of North Vancouver walking along and admiring the waterfront at Lonsdale Quay (pronounced key, not kway).

We stopped for a round of happy hour beers (quick side note, happy hour in Canada is usually $3 – $4 beers…I know right, WTF)! Add to that a plate of nachos for us to snack on as we enjoyed the scenery and we were pretty happy campers.

But wait…

What’s that over there?

Are those…

FOOD TRUCKS!!!???!?!?!!?!

We asked our server what was going on over yonder, and she said there’s a Friday market during the summer months. We picked the perfect day to check out this area of Vancouver!

So we ventured on over to food truck-land-ia to see the fare being offered. After a quick loop we thought “well, what should we do for dinner”? After a moment of thought our friend said “I think I saw some tasty options at one of those food trucks”.

So it was a food truck kind of night.

And best of all, there was also a beer garden (of course I say ‘best of all’ when if comes to beer). So with our plates of food truck tasty-ness and a beer in hand, the four of us had a nice meal, a few local craft beers, listening to some “stick to your day job” entertainment, and a good story to tell about our day.

But Shelly and Al’s fun-filled weekend didn’t end there. Our local guide to Vancouver had one more trick up his sleeve for Saturday.

Rather than go to the crowded Folkfest, we opted for a beach barbecue at the Spanish Banks, where my friend pulled out all the stops. Grill. Cooler full of a variety of beverages (some possibly of the alcoholic variety). Tasty eats. A shade tent. Comfy chairs. 7-layer dip. Good weather. And most important – great company.

We sat there and chilled, watched the sun set, and had a pretty kick-ass weekend – all thanks to our local guide to Vancouver.

 

House sitting and travelling has allowed us to meet so many awesome people, and visit just as many awesome places. It’s even better when you can reconnect with people you haven’t seen in 5, 10, or in this case, 20 years!

Now go sell all your stuff and enjoy a local’s guide through town!