Our ski specialists are ready to help you plan and book your Vancouver city and Whistler ski holiday

Enhance your Whistler ski holiday with a Vancouver city break.

  • Extend your Whistler holiday with a few days in Vancouver
  • Diverse city with unmatched natural beauty
  • World class dining and a thriving arts and culture scene
  • Nestled between the Coastal Mountains and Pacific Ocean
  • 2-3 nights recommended

Why fly all the way to Canada and not experience one of the world’s most beautiful cities? Just a short journey from Whistler, Vancouver offers the perfect blend of vibrant city life and breathtaking natural surroundings. Whether you’re seeking culture, adventure, or simply a relaxing city break, Vancouver has it all.

With so much to see and do, we recommend spending 2-3 nights to really experience everything the city has to offer. Plus, Vancouver isn’t just beautiful - it’s also a pioneer in sustainable travel. From its fleet of electric public buses to the development of the world’s first electric float plane, the city is leading the way in eco-friendly innovation.

Our Vancouver city and Whistler ski holidays include

  • On holiday support and tailored advice from our Destination Experts based in Canada
  • Access to Inghams Digital Resort Guides with things to do and useful information
  • Flights from the UK, transfers and accommodation
  • Transfers between destinations

Day 1:

  • Arrive in Vancouver after your ski holiday in Whistler or your flight from the UK.
  • Drop your bags off at the hotel and go on a walking exploration of the city. Vancouver is an easily walkable city, taking toughly 35 minutes - 1 hour to get from one side to the other. The public transport is also excellent.
  • Head to trendy neighbourhood Gastown and explore eating spots, or see if the Vancouver Canucks are playing an ice hockey game and indulge in Canada's favourite pastime.

Day 2:

  • Start your day off with a mug of coffee and breakfast at one of Vancouver's local spots, then head to Canada Place where you'll find FlyOver, a 4D flight simulation ride and fly over the whole of Canada.
  • Vancouver boasts a booming craft beer community. In the afternoon you'll get to hail the ale with an organised Vancouver Brewery Tour. At the historic Waterfront Station, you'll board a private bus to explore behind the scenes of some of the city's favourite breweries, enjoying some well-earned samples along the way.
  • After enjoying the local brews, head to Capilano Suspension Bridge's Canyon Lights experience. Serving up lights and heights, the annual event brings the rainforest to life with incredible illuminations. Once you're finished, end your experience in style with dinner at Hy's Steakhouse and Cocktail Bar. With its dark wood walls and starched white tablecloths, this cosy spot is a bonafide Canadian classic serving some of Vancouver's best steak alongside delicious cocktails.

Day 3:

  • Grab breakfast, then get your bearings by heading up to the Vancouver Lookout for a 360-degree view of the city. From here, it's a short walk to downtown Vancouver's main shopping area, the Pacific Centre mall, where you'll find some of North America's best-known brands.
  • After flexing your credit card, take a short walk to Fairmont Hotel Vancouver. Built in 1928, the city's "grand dame" serves an elegant afternoon tea complete with scones, finger sandwiches, tartlets and a glass of bubbles - if you want to add some sparkle to your experience.
  • Suitably refreshed, it's time to strap on your skates and enjoy the ice in the centre of the city. Surrounded by glistening skyscrapers, this unique downtown rink is located just steps from the iconic Vancouver Art Gallery, and best of all, it's completely free to enjoy.
  • Tonight, you'll be working up an appetite in an alpine forest. A short bus ride from downtown Vancouver you'll take a gondola ride up to experience Grouse Mountain's Snowshoe Fondue. You'll have a chance to breathe in the fresh mountain air and enjoy stunning views of the city below as your guide takes you on a tranquil one-hour tour. As night falls, you'll retreat to a cosy wooden chalet when you can hang up your snowshoes and warm up by a roaring fire as you enjoy a three-course fondue dinner.

Day 4:

  • Time to visit the foot markets of Granville Island. Breakfast is a little bit of everything today.
  • After indulging yourself in too much delicious food, walk or cycle it all off at Stanley Park. View the totem poles and take a stroll by the Seawall.

How to book your Vancouver city break

Simply give our ski specialists a call to plan and book your Vancouver city and Whistler ski holiday. Flights, hotel and transport? Consider it done. Dial in and let our experts plan your dream getaway.

02045388944

Discover Vancouver

Vancouver is consistently rated among the world’s most beautiful cities and winter is a great time to visit. The city has a mild climate and sites which are all easily accessible by walking or public transport.

Things to do in Vancouver

Founded in 1931, the Vancouver Art Gallery is recognized as one of North America’s most innovative visual arts institutions. The Gallery’s celebrated exhibitions, extensive public programs and emphasis on advancing scholarship all focus on historical and contemporary art from British Columbia and around the world.

Special attention is given to the accomplishments of Indigenous artists, as well as to those of the Asia Pacific region. The Gallery’s exhibitions also explore the impact of images in the larger sphere of visual culture, design and architecture.

The Vancouver Lookout is located at the top of one of Vancouver's iconic landmarks, Harbour Centre. Located in the Heritage District of Vancouver, the Vancouver Lookout has been a staple of Vancouver’s skyline since 1977. Access the 360º view of Vancouver with a 40-second glass elevator ride, whisking you skyward.

Once you are on the deck of the Vancouver Lookout, we encourage you to take your time and learn about this vibrant city with information panels located throughout the deck with fascinating facts about Vancouver’s history & infrastructure.

Stanley Park © Destination BC Hubert Kang

Stanley Park is Vancouver’s first, largest, and most beloved urban park. At over 1,000 acres it is considered one of the top urban parks in the world. The park is home to ancient cedars, wildlife, rainforest ecology, vibrant art and attractions, and Canada’s largest aquarium.

The seawall path surrounding the park is used by millions of walkers and cyclists a year and offers incredible views of the Vancouver’s skyline.

Granville Island Bridge © Destination Vancouver

Granville Island showcases the best of Pacific Northwest living in cuisine, shopping, culture, performance, and art.

The Granville Island Public Market is packed with shops and stalls featuring sought-after specialty goods like fresh-caught seafood, world-famous donuts, and artisanal charcuterie that visitors line up for. Granville Island restaurants also offer delicious dining options. It’s safe to say no one has gone hungry on this island.

Long known for its mother-lode of souvenir shops, in recent years, Gastown has emerged as a hotspot for fashion boutiques, modern homewares and gifts. In fact, some of the city’s coolest independent casualwear studios can be found around this area, so you’ll find the city’s young and beautiful come to browse the boutiques along with the visitors making a quick stop for vacation mementos.

For souvenirs, Water Street, the neighbourhood’s main shopping thoroughfare is your best bet.

Make sure you check out some of the excellent First Nations galleries where you can pick up aboriginal art to take home. 

Vancouver’s most popular shopping street, Robson is where most visitors find themselves when the shopping bug hits. This is where you’ll find all of the big North American brands, as well as some local fashion chains, mixed in with souvenir stores, beauty outlets and unique gift stores.

Retail activity is concentrated from Seymour to Jervis, intersecting Granville Street with access to Pacific Centre along the way. 

Capilano Suspension Bridge © Destination Vancouver

Appreciate nature from three breathtaking perspectives - Capilano Suspension Bridge, Treetops Adventure and the exciting new Cliffwalk.

The 450 ft (137m) long, 230 ft (70m) high Capilano Suspension Bridge has thrilled visitors since 1889. While the wobbly bridge and stunning location is a Vancouver landmark, Capilano Suspension Bridge Park offers an all-encompassing BC experience. History, culture and nature are presented in unique and thrilling ways with knowledgeable staff and interpretive signage providing as much, or as little, information as guests want.

Cliffwalk follows a granite precipice along Capilano River on a labyrinth-like series of narrow cantilevered bridges, stairs and platforms through rainforest vegetation. With 16 anchor points in the cliff supporting the structure and open grated walkways, Cliffwalk is not for the faint of heart! Interactive exhibits demonstrate the need for water conservation.

Treetops Adventure takes guests 110 feet into the mid-story of a coastal rainforest on seven suspension bridges attached to old-growth trees. It is accessible to guests of all ages. Nature talks provided hourly, explains the importance of a West Coast temperate rainforest to the ecosystem.

Immerse yourself in the power of unique perspectives, the sensations of flight, and complete sensory engagement as you soar over, around, and through the world's most epic places.

Picture yourself with your feet dangling before a massive spherical screen, being transported over iconic locations and natural wonders. The combination of sights, scents, sounds, and precisely programmed motion captures the unmistakable feeling of flight, leaving you with an unforgettable sense of wonder and awe.

Located in the heart of Vancouver’s downtown harbour front, Canada Place is an iconic national landmark welcoming local residents, visitors and ships to the West Coast.

Canada Place is a multi-use facility that includes FlyOver Canada, Vancouver Convention Centre East, Pan Pacific Hotel, Port Metro Vancouver cruise ship terminal, World Trade Centre office tower and VINCI Park parkade. 

Experience a favourite Canadian pastime by catching a game of ice hockey at the Rogers Arena. The Vancouver Canucks fans are some of the most passionate ice hockey fans around, and a match on their home turf is not to be missed.

Vancouver Brewery © Destination Vancouver

The Vancouver area is home to several dozen craft breweries, creating a wide variety of small-batch beers.

 The Mount Pleasant neighbourhood has a particularly dense concentration of microbreweries.

In fact, the area was historically known as Brewery Creek and people have been making beer here since the 1880s. Today it’s a great spot to spend an afternoon biking or walking between tasting rooms. 

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Our accommodation in Vancouver

Discover Whistler

Rated again and again as North America’s best ski resort, Whistler truly has it all. Over 200 trails spread between two peaks (Whistler and Blackcomb Mountains) and linked by the famous Peak2Peak gondola, the resort has become the pride and joy of Canada’s Pacific North West.

Best for

Beginner

Intermediate

Advanced

Cross-country

Snowboard

Whistler Ski Resort is North America's largest, with 200+ runs, two mountains, year-round activities, stunning scenery and a vibrant village.

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Our accommodation in Whistler

Why book your ski holiday with Inghams

Decades on the slopes, service you can trust, ski holidays done right, we're the whole package.

Ski better with Inghams.

  • Ski experts since 1934

    Quality over quantity — 90 years creating the best, handpicked holidays just for you.

    History
  • Chalet the Inghams way

    Home comforts and a dedicated host to look after you. Our chalets are handpicked and exclusive to us.

    Chalets
  • Award-winning service

    If snow hits the fan, we’ve seen it all and sorted it all before.

    Why book with us
  • Try to top this snow guarantee

    If less than 25% of runs are open, we’ll take you to a nearby resort and keep you skiing.

    Snow guarantee
  • Championing the great outdoors

    If natures on your mind, then know it’s on ours too. The mountains are a special place, and we’re determined to help keep them that way. .

    Sustainability
  • We're the whole package

    With a package holiday, everything’s sorted (and protected by ABTA/ATOL) including travel, transfers, accommodation and expert advice tailored to you.

    Ski resorts