Hey how you guys doing, I'm Dan from The New Travel.
Are you guys looking for free things to do in the city of Vancouver?
Then you've come to the right place.
So one popular thing to do is to explore the neighbourhood that I'm in now, and that is
called Gastown.
You can see a few tourists behind me, hanging out by the old steam clock.
"Oh... there it goes."
Just don't set your watch to that thing.
It's been wrong the last couple of times I checked.
But seriously, Gastown is one of the more unique neighbourhoods in Vancouver.
It's got that European style cobblestone streets, cool restaurants, places to eat, places to
shop, stuff like that.
So, definitely worth
a look.
So, once you're done with Gastown, you can walk just a couple of blocks over, and you
will find some pretty cool views of the waterfront.
And the waterfront is pretty huge, you could actually spend about an hour walking around
down here, if you wanted to.
I'm not going to do that, because I've got other things to show you.
Hey by the way, that building right behind me, that's called the Vancouver Lookout.
As the name suggests, it gives pretty cool views of the city.
It's not free, so it's not on this list, but if you do have a few bucks to spend...
I think it's like $12 or something, you get to go up.
Especially on a clear day at sunset, that's a good thing to do too.
So one suggestion for you guys, this is probably one that a lot of you guys know about, it's
called Stanley Park.
And Stanley Park is this huge park that's right next to downtown Vancouver.
It's basically a rain forest, so you've got some wildlife out there, you've got some crazy
trees (600 year old trees, and stuff like that).
You could spend hours and hours walking around Stanley Park.
Plan a whole day around it if you really like the nature.
Something else that's really popular in the summertime, is to take the bike path that
goes around Stanley Park.
Now it's a long path, it's like 8KM or 9KM, so it will take you a while, but it hugs the
ocean, and it's just beautiful.
If you're into bike rides or a long walk, I guess, I would recommend checking that out
for sure.
Now guys, if you didn't get enough park from Stanley Park, or if you just want to try something
different, there's another awesome park called Queen Elizabeth.
And Queen Elizabeth Park is a bit harder to get to from downtown, it's around 30th Street,
so it's a bit to the south.
But it's very accessible on transit, you can take a bus up Main Street.
There's different ways to get there.
And Queen Elizabeth Park has a lot of flower gardens, it has some little asian gardens,
and stuff like that.
And most importantly, it has a pretty wicked view of downtown, because it's on top of a
hill.
So if you want to get a classic picture with the downtown skyline and the water and the
mountains (everything!)...
I'll show you the picture I got there.
So if you guys want to get this sort of iconic view of downtown, with the snow-capped peaks
in the background, Queen Elizabeth Park is a great place to go.
Pretty cool, right?
So if you want that kind of view, you can go to Queen Elizabeth Park.
Of course it's free, and on a nice day, it's a great place to hang out.
So hey, parks aren't for everyone, let's say you want something else to do.
I'd recommend taking a walk down Main Street.
Or, even Commercial Drive.
Those are two streets that have a lot of character, a lot of cool restaurants.
They're kinda hipster neighbourhoods, so you can find some cool things to do.
If you're into that.
So the next tip I got for you guys is at a place called Kitsilano.
Kitsilano used to be like the old hippie neighbourhood.
Now it's a kinda gentrified and a bit overpriced (to be honest).
But it does have an awesome beach called Kits Beach.
And Kits Beach, Kitsilano Beach, is just a really chill place to hang out.
And there's always fun stuff happening there in the summertime.
You'll have free yoga classes sometimes, you'll have people playing sports on the grass.
It can get busy.
But there's a good reason why it gets busy, because it's an awesome beach.
One more beach on this list for you guys.
If you're a bit more adventurous, there is a nude beach near Vancouver.
I believe it's the biggest nude beach in North America, and it's on the UBC campus.
So if you check your map, UBC is pretty far from downtown.
I think the easiest way to get there is to take a #99 Express Bus.
But yeah, just look up UBC.
And if you walk to the back of the campus, you're going to go down a staircase, and then
you're going to find the beach.
I know it sounds like it's a journey (it kinda is, compared to Kits Beach).
But if you do make it out there, you're going to be... well you're going to see some nudists,
for one.
Not everyone's naked.... but you're going to be rewarded with a pretty cool beach!
So yeah, it's worth checking out, if you are adventurous, and that naked part doesn't freak
you out.
So that's about it.
That's a few tips for free things to do in Vancouver.
People always kind of ask me what they should do when they get to the city.
Those are a few tips.
I know a lot of them involve walking, but what can I say, Vancouver's a pretty active
city!
And there's beautiful nature, so you definitely want to get out into that, if you get the
chance.
Hey by the way, a little bonus tip for you.
When you do arrive in Vancouver, look for one of those black boxes, and pick up one
of these.
This is called The Georgia Straight, and it's a free monthly newspaper that can tell you
about local bands and events and free stuff... and cool stuff like that.
As always guys, I'm Dan from The New Travel.
Hope you enjoyed this video, if you have your own tips, leave them in the comments.
And... yeah.
Have a great day!