Wandering Well · Day trips · Canada

What are nice day trips from Vancouver?

Short answer

Cloverdale and Tsawwassen are some potential day trips within 50 km of Vancouver. Aldergrove, Ladysmith, Qualicum Beach and Nanaimo are within 100 km of Vancouver. We list 11 places below, including 9 coastal towns (Shawnigan Lake and Gabriola), 5 food and café towns (Duncan and Sidney) and 4 old-world towns. More below.

Within 50 km 2 places

Cloverdale, Canada
Gold

Cloverdale

Canada

Cloverdale is a historic town centre within Surrey, British Columbia, southeast of Vancouver, known for its heritage architecture and walkable café-lined str…

35 km away21 mi away More →
Tsawwassen, Canada
Bronze
Coast & island escapes

Tsawwassen

Canada

A suburban peninsula community in British Columbia's City of Delta, Tsawwassen is best known as the site of the BC Ferries terminal — built in 1959 on a caus…

30 km away18 mi away More →

Within 100 km 9 places

Ladysmith, Canada
Silver
Mountain villages

Ladysmith

Ladysmith · Canada

A small harbour town on the east coast of Vancouver Island, Ladysmith sits right on the water at the 49th parallel, with a café and restaurant scene that pun…

60 km away37 mi away More →
Shawnigan Lake, Canada
Silver
Coast & island escapes

Shawnigan Lake

Canada

A small lakeside town on Vancouver Island, where dense Pacific Northwest forest surrounds a little pond and Tudor-style buildings, with forested hills rollin…

80 km away50 mi away More →
Nanaimo, Canada
Silver
Coast & island escapes

Nanaimo

Nanaimo · Canada

Nanaimo sits right on the harbour along British Columbia's Vancouver Island, with a walkable centre dense with cafés, restaurants, and heritage buildings, an…

61 km away38 mi away More →
Gabriola, Canada
Silver
Coast & island escapes

Gabriola

Canada

This small Gulf Island in British Columbia's Georgia Strait — between Vancouver Island and the mainland — is sometimes called Petroglyph Island, a name that…

54 km away34 mi away More →
Duncan, Canada
Bronze
Coast & island escapes

Duncan

North Cowichan · Canada

This walkable waterfront city on southern Vancouver Island, Duncan sits in the Cowichan Valley with mountains close by and a centre well supplied with cafés…

70 km away43 mi away More →
Sidney, Canada
Bronze
Coast & island escapes

Sidney

Sidney · Canada

A waterfront small town on Vancouver Island's Saanich Peninsula, Sidney has a café and restaurant scene that is well stocked for its size, and a shoreline al…

73 km away46 mi away More →
Qualicum Beach, Canada
Silver
Coast & island escapes

Qualicum Beach

Qualicum Beach · Canada

This little waterfront town on Vancouver Island's Salish Sea coast, Qualicum Beach sits at the foot of Mount Arrowsmith with a walkable central core of cafés…

96 km away60 mi away More →
Gold
Food scenes & café towns

Aldergrove

Canada

A pocket-sized Canadian town with a lively café and restaurant scene for its size, Aldergrove sits at the water's edge with upland country close at hand, mak…

53 km away33 mi away More →
Bronze
Inland waterside towns

Lake Cowichan

Lake Cowichan · Canada

A little Vancouver Island town sitting directly on its namesake lake, with easy access to upland wilderness and a modest central core of cafés and restaurant…

85 km away53 mi away More →