Vancouver Island and Whistler in summer

[Anonymous]

We are thinking of heading to Vancouver island and then to Whistler for our summer vacation. Has anyone done this and has feedback? We are concerned that it might be cold and grey like Seattle and San Fran. We are going in July and have 3 boys who are 8,8 and 9 and we all love the outdoors, hiking etc. Any feedback appreciated.

[Anonymous]

Anyone?

[Anonymous]

In July, chances are you'll have beautiful weather. But even if it's gray some days, there will be a lot of gorgeous outdoor things to do!

(Seattle resident)

[Anonymous]

we had sunnier weather in Seattle last August than Vancouver. Still loved it up there--wish we had time to go to Whistler.

[Anonymous]

Can't speak to Whistler, but we went to Vancouver Island in early July about 13 years ago and it was glorious. Cool but sunny and lovely. We went to Tofino, which I highly recommend. Whale watching, sea kayaking, hot springs, hiking, etc. Victoria is delightful and the First Peoples museum there is a can't-miss. Canada Day is July 1, so if you are there around then, be sure to make arrangements for fireworks somewhere. We caught them over the water in Vancouver before taking the ferry crossing the next morning. Tons of fun. Oh, and don't forget to try Nanaimo Bars - amazing.

[Anonymous]

I did a trip to Vancouver island and whistler in early July and had great weather. We had an overcast cool day on VI but sunny and warm whole time in whistler. We went whale watching and hiking at a large park not too far from Victoria and loved it. Felt like we had whole place to ourselves. So much to do in Whistler. We went canoeing, hiking, bear watching trip, biking, hiking on glacier with crampons, etc. You can ski glacier in summer but I don't recommend. Whistler Four Seasons is awesome if it's within your budget. Great pool to unwind and relax after an active day.

[Anonymous]

We took our then 4 year old to Vancouver, Island. We stayed 4 days in Victoria and then took the Ferry back to Vancouver. There is lots to do in Vancouver City. I'm not sure I would want to spend the whole time on Vancouver Island. We got to Whistler for 1 day (this year- boy age 8) and there was a huge accident on the way up and when we got there fog rolled in and we coulnd't take the sea plane we had planned to take. So we didn't really spend any time in Whistler.

Lots to do in and around Vancouver City. Less to do in Victoria, but still nice. We didn't explore any part of Vancouver Island which was not in the city.

[Anonymous]

Hey OP, I live in Victoria Don't even ask how I found DCUM!

May and June it starts to warm up, but there will be rain a few days a week usually. July to very early September are generally quite warm (20-25 degrees most days) with little rain (I think it rained 3 or 4 days max this past summer, and maybe a few more cloudy days). If you come June or later don't worry about the weather/rain. Victoria especially is lovely - I read about summers in DC and am amazed at how different it sounds. Ours will be warm but not overbearing, little humidity, way fewer bugs!

All of Vancouver Island is gorgeous in the summer - I highly recommend Tofino/Uclulet (even if you're not into surfing, just for the beauty), Saltspring Island (great daytrip with kids but you need a car for sure), Royal BC Museum in Victoria. To the west of Victoria (about an hour's drive) there are amazing beaches on the other coast. Tons between Sooke and Port Renfrew. Highly recommend French Beach (great kid-friendly hiking) and especially Botanical Beach - if you take any of my recommendations Botanical Beach is definitely #1! You can easily spend 4 hours hiking around and exploring.

Maybe I'm biased ( ) but I really disagree with 23:59. Victoria is a tourist-oriented city and to say there's not much to do suggests that they didn't do much research. May-September most of the city is completely ruled by tourism, cruise ships, tours, etc. It is also a central location - Vancouver, the rest of the island, and Seattle are all within a few hours.

I can't speak with as much detail about Whistler other than it lives up to the expectations and is a phenomenal location, especially in the summer for a family that likes the outdoors and hiking.

I don't know if this has been helpful or not but feel free to ask any other questions you have! I'm familiar with almost all of Vancouver Island/BC if there were any other places you were wondering about.

[Anonymous]

I was in Whistler last August. It was hot, actually. It was beautiful and there was a lot to do. I recommend canoeing on Alta Lake. It's just beautiful scenery. Even if you stay in the upper village it's just a short walk to the lower village. It will take about 2.5 hours to get there with no traffic, so plan for that.

[Anonymous]

Thank you all for the input and suggestions - cant wait to go now!

[Anonymous]

The Pacific Northwest and BC will be beautiful - warm (80s tops) dry and sunny after 4th of July.

[Anonymous]

more chance of clouds in Whistler, though.

[Anonymous]

OP, did you ever take this vacation? If so, I'd love to hear how it went.

NP here who is planning a similar vacation this summer, and I came across this post while searching the archives. We'll be on Vancouver Island for a week (not in Victoria), and then friends we are traveling with will be going on to Whistler afterwards.

We are an outdoorsy group, and will have 7, 8, and 10 year old kids (all boys) with us, so we seem a lot like your family.

Thanks!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, did you ever take this vacation? If so, I'd love to hear how it went.

NP here who is planning a similar vacation this summer, and I came across this post while searching the archives. We'll be on Vancouver Island for a week (not in Victoria), and then friends we are traveling with will be going on to Whistler afterwards.

We are an outdoorsy group, and will have 7, 8, and 10 year old kids (all boys) with us, so we seem a lot like your family.

Thanks!

To this poster: we did Vancouver and Whistler a couple of summers ago and it was fabulous. As much as we loved Vancouver, Whistler is even more beautiful and so, so much to do for our also-sporty family - hiking, mountain biking, etc. We loved it so much that last summer we went to Banff and Lake Louise which was arguably even more incredible than Vancouver/Whistler! Everyone we have shared our photos/stories with have been amazed and two of our friends booked trips to Whistler/Banff for this summer based upon our recommendations. You will have a fantastic trip - enjoy!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, did you ever take this vacation? If so, I'd love to hear how it went.

NP here who is planning a similar vacation this summer, and I came across this post while searching the archives. We'll be on Vancouver Island for a week (not in Victoria), and then friends we are traveling with will be going on to Whistler afterwards.

We are an outdoorsy group, and will have 7, 8, and 10 year old kids (all boys) with us, so we seem a lot like your family.

Thanks!

To this poster: we did Vancouver and Whistler a couple of summers ago and it was fabulous. As much as we loved Vancouver, Whistler is even more beautiful and so, so much to do for our also-sporty family - hiking, mountain biking, etc. We loved it so much that last summer we went to Banff and Lake Louise which was arguably even more incredible than Vancouver/Whistler! Everyone we have shared our photos/stories with have been amazed and two of our friends booked trips to Whistler/Banff for this summer based upon our recommendations. You will have a fantastic trip - enjoy!

Thanks for the feedback! I know that we would love Whistler, too, but we only have one week for this trip, and we decided to spend it on Vancouver Island. DH's parents live in Montana (Bozeman), so we visit the mountains a lot. Vancouver Island it more a change of pace.

DH has been to Banff/Lake Louise many times - summer and winter - and loves it. I haven't been yet, but it's definitely on the family to-do list!