British Columbia

Vancouver: a city that earns every superlative

Vancouver sits between mountains and sea in a way that makes the city feel like it grew out of the landscape rather than displacing it. Stanley Park's old-growth forest is minutes from the restaurant-lined streets of Gastown and Chinatown. The food scene draws on the Pacific Rim's full pantry, from Japanese ramen and Cantonese dim sum to Pacific Northwest seafood. Granville Island's covered market and the seawall cycling route keep the city endlessly walkable and genuinely liveable.

Adventure from the slopes to the sea

Whistler Blackcomb is one of North America's great ski resorts, just two hours north of Vancouver on a highway that is itself a spectacle. Come summer, the trails switch to mountain bikes and hikers push into the Coast and Selkirk ranges. Sea kayakers thread between the Gulf Islands, and the Haida Gwaii archipelago in the north offers one of the world's most compelling encounters with Indigenous culture and coastal wilderness. The province's rivers are legendary among fly-fishing enthusiasts.

Wine, warmth and the Okanagan interior

Inland from the coast, the climate shifts entirely. The Okanagan Valley is semi-arid and sunny, with long lakeshores lined by orchards, vineyards and beach towns. Kelowna is the heart of BC wine country, producing acclaimed whites and Bordeaux-style reds that have earned the region serious attention beyond Canada. The valley towns move at an unhurried pace, with farmers' markets, cycling trails alongside the lake, and a warmth in summer that surprises visitors expecting perpetual Pacific drizzle.