How to Spend a Weekend in Vancouver
Where to eat and drink plus how to plan for the Vancouver half marathon!
When I decided to run my second half-marathon, I had very specific requirements in mind. I wanted a relatively flat course (running the Austin half in 2023 was brutally hilly), the same time zone as my hometown so I wouldn’t have to account for jet lag (or the jet lag of my toddler), and for it to be located in a city that I was excited to visit. I landed on the Vancouver half-marathon due to its proximity to Seattle, its beautiful course, and the rave reviews I read about it. Read on for my race-weekend itinerary plus everywhere we ate and drank!
Friday
On Friday, we hopped in the car for the three-and-a-half-hour drive to Vancouver, stopping for lunch at the Lighthouse Bar and Grill in Bellingham, Washington. We arrived at our hotel around 3 pm, which gave us enough time to change and get ready to go to the expo and dinner at Miku. I chose Miku in part because I wanted to try their specialty Oshi sushi, but mostly because it’s across the street from where the expo was held. Race expos are overwhelming, so I loved only having to find one parking spot, get my race-day bib, and walk over to dinner.
Saturday
After coffee at Oide, we headed to Maxine’s for brunch, and then to Stanley Park to walk around and take Liam to the aquarium. We made our way to Revolver for more coffee, stopping at a few boutiques and thrift stores along the way. After a quick rest back at the hotel, we went to Osteria Savio Volpe for dinner which was the perfect carb load before race day.
Sunday
I managed to sleep pretty well despite my nerves and woke up at 4:30 am to start my pre-race prep which included Zak making me Aeropress coffee (🙏🏻), a bagel I brought from home, and packing all of my gels, electrolytes, etc. for the race. I Ubered over to Queen Elizabeth Park to warm up and start the race! The primary reason we chose to stay at The Douglas is because the half marathon course goes right past it twice, making it easy for Zak and Liam to see me run. I was lucky enough to see them three times, at miles 4, 8, and 13. Post-race we went straight to the hotel so I could shower and change, and then to Prototype for coffee, followed by the best brunch of my life at Chambar. We stopped at Nemesis for more coffee before driving home to Seattle.
Have you been to Vancouver? Would love to hear your recommendations for my next trip!
