Although Vancouver’s top-rated tourist attraction Stanley Park is a veritable all-season destination, it is definitely at it’s most spectacular during the summer with flowers in full bloom, visitors galore and a plethora of activities throughout the park beginning at dusk.
From Lord Stanley Suites, it’s a leisurely 20 minute stroll through the park to The Rose Garden where you could literally stop to smell the profusion of these sweetly scented blooms. Just around the corner, is the wildly popular Theatre Under the Stars at Malkin Bowl, one of Stanley Park’s most popular venues in the summer where you can catch an outdoor performance of a Broadway musical beginning in the early evening. Catch a bite beforehand at the nearby Stanley’s Grill housed in the Stanley Park Pavilion for some casual fare. If you’re up for a flick, Summer Cinema at Second Beach on Tuesdays at dusk is where you can have a picnic on the grassy lawn and watch a movie on the big screen, and it’s free! Or if your feeling a bit more energetic, enjoy the sunset from the seawall to English Bay while cycling, walking or running, but the view is probably just as perfect if you’re perched on a park bench; watching the fleeting hues of orange, pink and yellow dip into the edge of the water’s horizon and slowly fade: a truly dramatic ending to a glorious summer day.