Vancouver is known for its mild climate and endless rain, which falls steadily in winter. However, summer days are pleasantly warm, with average temperatures of about 68 degrees, and locals flock to the beaches to make up for the months of rain. Most of the city-run beaches staff lifeguards from 11:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. from mid-June to mid-August, and in general, swimming areas are clearly marked. At many of the beaches, seasonal concession stands entice sunbathers with cool drinks and ice cream, but visitors are welcome to pack lunches and snacks. Alcohol, smoking and campfires are not permitted, and dogs should be leashed except in designated areas.
English Bay Beach, one of Vancouver’s better-known beaches, is along the Stanley Park Seawall system close to the city’s downtown core. Several popular events take place at English Bay, including the annual Polar Bear Swim on New Year’s Day, and the international fireworks display that each summer in July and August attracts nearly 400,000 spectators to the waterfront each night of the event. Swanky beachfront apartments overlook the shore, which includes several volleyball courts and a water slide. Also called First Beach, English Bay Beach has two sister beaches along the Seawall, Second Beach and Third Beach. Second Beach is at Stanley Park Drive and Lost Lagoon Drive near the outdoor pool in Stanley Park, while Third Beach is a quiet beach at Ferguson Point.
Offering breathtaking views of the cityscape, ocean and mountains, Sunset Beach is set at the mouth of False Creek, close to the heart of the city. While Sunset Beach offers many of the same amenities as the others, including lifeguards, volleyball courts and a concession, it is a designated quiet beach and is slightly less crowded. On other side of False Creek past Vanier Park is Kitsilano Beach, another popular beach known to locals as “Kits Beach.” On a sunny day, the smell of sunscreen mixes with the salty air as bikini-clad bodies bathe in the sun, and kids splash in the water and build sand castles. West of the beach is Kitsilano Pool, a heated saltwater pool nearly three times the size of an Olympic pool.
Further along the shoreline toward the area known as Point Grey, visitors have their pick of a handful of other beaches. These include Jericho Beach, north of Jericho Park; Locarno Beach, west of Jericho Park; and Spanish Banks Beach, on Northwest Marine Drive. One of Vancouver’s more notorious spots for sunbathing is Wreck Beach, near the University of British Columbia campus. Wreck Beach is Canada’s largest nude beach, so it is the perfect place for sunning and swimming for visitors who find bathing suits restrictive.
