❗Disclaimer❗ This is a travel guide written based on my experiences with solo travel. Your experiences may very well be different—I’m hoping that my “adventures” serve as some kind of inspiration for yours 😉
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Vancouver is the perfect city for a female traveler to go exploring on her own, without much hassle and worry. I paid a visit to this city of “Beautiful British Columbia” over (US) Thanksgiving break last year, and it turned out to be a pleasantly peaceful weekend to satisfy my ever-growing wanderlust.
I booked this flight back in August, about 3 months before the trip. I used Scott’s Cheap Flights as a guide, and it was actually an e-mail from them that prompted me to book a flight! I think I paid less than $300 USD round trip! Interestingly, it was cheaper to fly to another country Thanksgiving weekend than it was to another state within the US 😂 #SupplyAndDemand
This was also my third international trip as a female solo traveler. My first two were in Barcelona and parts of Sweden, both of which had their ups and downs, but Vancouver just felt perfect on all fronts. It helped to be in a good mood going in, but many of the following things contributed to my conclusions about Vancity:
WHERE TO STAY
I flew out on WestJet from LAX the Wednesday night before Thanksgiving. Because I still had to go to work that day, my flight was at night, and I arrived close to 10pm. Uber/Lyft is not available to Vancity (at least when I went) so I had to take a cab from the airport to my Airbnb in Downtown Vancouver.
The taxi cost about $30 USD, and wasn’t too bad since that’s usually how much is costs to get to LAX with Lyft in my experience. My Airbnb was located in a high rise near Gastown, on the 27th floor! While the views were gorgeous, the room I was renting out of the condo was literally the size of a closet! I guess you get what you paid for, and I paid about $250 for four nights, and the convenience of being so close to all the great city spots. Also, my Airbnb host had a cute frenchie 🐕 that would greet me with a plushie in his mouth, lol!
THINGS TO DO
This city is perfect if you like to walk around and explore things on foot. I pretty much walked everywhere, except for getting to-and-from the airport. I took the bus when I went to Capilano but walked back to downtown, and was served some of the most beautiful views ever despite the long walk back!
So, TL;DR, just walk everywhere! It’s fun, and you can justify all those amazing calories you’ll consume while exploring Vancity 😉
✰STANLEY PARK✰
Stanley Park is a gorgeous, expansive nature-lover’s paradise! There are plenty of bay, forest and rocky views. I kept a lookout for animals, but only saw Canadian geese, ducks, seagulls, and of course the many breeds of domesticated dog!
One of the main reasons SP was on my go-see list was because of the Totem Poles. I love finding unique statues and historic sites in places I visit, in what are seemingly places that are common all over (like parks).
I passed through SP on all of the days I was in Vancouver. SP was my prime destination on the first day. On the second day, it was part of my morning run route, and on the third day, it was my final leg of a long walk back from the Capilano Suspension Bridge!
So I guess even if it’s not on your to-do list, it’ll somehow make it’s way into it!
✰GRANVILLE ISLAND (& MARKET)✰
Using Google Maps to walk to GI can be tricky, but I triumphed!
The air was quite chilly the day I went, so I was shivering as I was walking towards the island, despite wearing my layers, puffy coat, gloves and beanie!
I was low-key disappointed in what I found though…don’t get me wrong, some of the shops I walked into had cute, novelty Canadian souvenirs and plenty of things to peruse through, but I guess I was expecting there to be more stuff to do…
I did venture into the Granville Island Market…that was packed.
If I had been in a hungrier mood, you better believe I would have bought up most of the market 😂! There were SO much to choose from—fruits, cheeses, fudge, candies, cookies, gelato, fresh pasta, etc.!
But, what was silly ol’ me craving?
I took this piping hot cup outside, and found a nice bench by the water to sit, relax, rest my legs, and take in the views…
✰CAPILANO SUSPENSION BRIDGE✰
Alright, I’m gonna be 100% honest about this one. CSB is overpriced, and not worth the trip for anyone sensitive to motion-sickness! Walking across the bridge was more of a doozy than I expected it to be…
The views from the bridge are so fresh and green, but I was getting headaches and low-key dizzy from walking across the wavy bridge…
I would recommend—if you do decide to make CSB a stop on your Vancity trip—to come after eating a proper meal. Come bundled up if you visit during the winter like I did. I think part of the reason I grew bored of the attraction was due to the fact I was already doing a lot of walking on the trip, haha!
THINGS TO EAT
Since I was staying near Gastown, I had plenty of cafes, coffee houses restaurants to choose from! I didn’t have the best appetite on this trip, but when I did feel that hunger coming, I made sure to sate it with foods I was craving and visiting places worth checking out.
49th Parallel Coffee Roasters was a place I bookmarked on Instagram because they have a partnership with Lucky Donuts, and those donuts look BOMB.
I went to one of their shops on Thurlow St. in Downtown. As I was waiting in line, my appetite for a donut started to sink. The donuts looked gorgeous, but I just wasn’t feeling that sweet tooth vibe for whatever reason…so I got a cappuccino and a breakfast sandwich called The Avo. Made with eggs, avocado, mayo and sweet tomato paste, this was a perfect breakfast sandwich to refuel with after a morning run!
Other great breakfast/coffee places included Prado Cafe, where I had a beetroot latte to warm me up (in the most literal sense!) before a morning run.
PappaRoti had an amazing Mushroom & Jarlsberg Cheese Quiche, which I had with a mildly-sweet cafe latte, and also before a morning run!
Plenty more delicious food was had! Scroll through the pics below to see for yourself 🤤
SAFETY
I felt comfortable and safe in Vancouver, throughout my stay. Yes, I will admit that I may have a slight advantage having lived in LA…since I lived in -between South Central and DTLA in my first two years of graduate school, I wasn’t too intimidated by Canada!
I relied on walking for most of my trip, and felt super comfortable. Of course, I took general precautions and did not stay out very late or in dark, isolated areas, but besides taking general precautions, Vancouver (in my opinion) is a friendly destination for the female solo traveler.
FIVE OBSERVATIONS
✰Vancouver is a city of bridges, I just couldn’t avoid them 🙂 !✰
✰Fudge is just as popular—if not more—than maple syrup!✰
✰Vancouver is a city meant for people who like the outdoors and to be active!✰
✰ The night views are epic. ✰
✰ Tim Horton’s: a Canadian symbol, but not worth the hype. ✰
THE NOT SO GREAT
Honestly, there wasn’t much to complain about in my opinion! Sure, there was no break from the cold, but what do you expect at the end of November in Canada? Funnily enough, it was raining and cloudy in LA during the days I was in Vancouver, and despite being in the low-mid 30s F, the sun was out on most days!
The people are friendly, the neighborhoods are safe, and the views are incredible. I’d say the city is too laidback for me to call it home (lol) but it is the perfect city for a novice female solo traveler to spread her wings and not worry too much 🙂
FOR THE FEMALE WHO…
Loves convenient public transit
Loves to daydream
Loves wildlife
So, if your starting out as a female solo traveler and need an easy-peasy (but beautiful) place to explore, Vancouver is an excellent choice!
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Have you ever visited Vancouver?