My wife and I may be headed to Vancouver in mid-March for a honeymoon. We’d be staying just south of downtown and we’ll be in town for 4 or 5 days. What should we definitely see? What are the tourist traps to avoid? I’ve read up on the Downtown Eastside, but I can’t tell where it starts and ends - how dangerous is it and am I liable to walk right into it? I won’t have a car. Is the public transportation system decent and clean? Can anyone recommend a decent restaurant for a nice evening out - not jacket-and-tie formal, but pricey-tasty-steak formal? Anything else?
I can recommend Vij’s Restaurant for Indian food. Terrific food, but there is a wait to get in.
Just moved here a few months ago, so the report:
The downtown east side. . . if you mean downtown downtown, the whole pennisula bit is totally safe-- perhaps some panhandling and such on Granville street and Burrard and around there, but, you know, it’s Canada. A little east of downtown is Gastown which is very overrated-- I have no idea what’s supposed to be interesting about it, aside from the gas clock. Chinatown is close to it and is very interesting if you aren’t from the San Francisco bay area or China. Neither are really dangerous but you’ll get panhandled in Gastown and it’s a bit grotty.
I can’t think of any notorious tourist traps, except perhaps the Capillano suspension bridge, which I haven’t done, or the gondolla up at Grouse Mountain. Granville market, of course, is usually a bit crowded but a mix of locals and tourists and it’s a hoot. The aquarium is freakin’ expensive and not ‘all that’ so I’d say skip it unless you desperately need to see beluga before you die. The anthropology museum at the university is interesting-- a good collection of Haida/Bella Coola/ Tlinget type coastal stuff, and a teaching collection of a lot of other random stuff. We drove up the coast recently as far as a bit further than Squamish and it was nice and scenic.
The bus system is fine and middleclass-/ student-harmless (probably because it’s a bit pricey). There’s a light rail that has a limited route, but depending on what part of S Van you are in it might be handy.
For dinner a Belgian place called Chambar is getting very good reviews. You’ll need a reservation. It’s a very foodie town for good grub will be an easy one. If you want a bit of an odd experience there’s a place called Lilooeet (spelling?) Feast House that serves coastal Salish food.
Weather-- it can be rainy and dreary but when it is sunny it is absolutely gorgeous. Bring an umbrella and cross your fingers.
Congratulations on your nuptials!
Our transit system isn’t too shabby – it’s pretty safe to get around on, and relatively clean. Here is a good online resource for figuring out how to get from “A” to “B” on it.
A very nice restaurant that’s not too far from where you’re staying is my very favourite “date” dining destination: Rain City Grill. It’s not too pretentious, but warm and intimate. The staff treat you like visiting royalty, and the menu is spectacular. The location is good for an evening out, too. If you’re extraordinarily lucky and the weather is reasonable, you might take a look at Stanley Park, which is just a few steps away and is a lovely place to stroll through, so long as it’s not raining cats and dogs. Otherwise, there’s a bus that departs from across the street and gets straight downtown in short order.
For a tourist stroll, I’d recommend Robson Street if you’re looking for “safe.” Gastown is quaint but kitchy, and Chinatown is colourful and a lot of fun, but things can turn ugly quickly there, even if you know your way about. One of my favourite vegetarian restaurants is smack in the middle, and still there’s been several times when an evening out there has been sullied by unpleasantness spilling over from the Downtown Eastside proper, which is, without question, the bleakest neighborhood in all of Canada. If having a terrified crackhead latch on to you and beg, not for spare change, but for you to protect her from her possibly-imaginary pursuers is the kind of thing that wrecks an evening for you, I’d give it a miss.
That said, I end up down that way fairly often myself anyway. It’s a matter of what your comfort zone is.
I’ll second all of the recommendations so far. I actually do like the aquarium, though, and the Capilano bridge is kinda nifty (albeit touristy).
I highly recommend Tojo’s if you like Japanese food. It’s very good but can get very pricey if you’re as much of a pig as I am.
You might also want to drive up toward Whistler for the scenery, or take a ferry over to Vancouver Island.
Granville Market has a Ukrainian deli that’s wonderful, and Granville Island Brewing cranks out some decent microbrews.
In March, expect rain. All. The. Freaking. Time. Vancouver is a lot like London, they say. I’ve never been to London though.
The Capilano suspension bridge is expensive but kind of cool.
Grouse Mountain is free and VERY cool. There’s snow at the top and everything. Don’t take the gondola up. Down, if you feel like it, but you have to pay for that.
Stanley Park is worth a look. Admire the temperate rainforest environment if you don’t have that sort of thing where you live.
You should browse Granville Island a little too. The town is fairly interesting.
A posh Chinese food pigout should be on your list of to-do’s. Kirin downtown is handily located, or Sun Sui Wah on Main Street. For more downmarket Chinese chow, Hon’s is an old standard-order off the specials on the wall. Down the hill a bit from Hon’s (opposite side of the street) is Gyoza King- first come first serve, and you will probably have to wait unless you are there right at opening. Japanese soul food, not a lot of sushi on the menu, but what they have is terrific.
You could go a strolling on Commercial Drive for the good eats and weird shopping.
Oh, I totally second this. The Drive is a mix of funky alt-culture and Little Italy/Portugal (leaning much heavier towards funky in the last decade or so.) If you’re near a Skytrain, it’s easy to get to. Just walk North from Commercial Station.
“Belgian Fries” on the Drive is one of the few places in Vancouver where you can get decent poutine, if that holds any appeal for you.
I enjoy Queen Elizabeth Park. I could spend all day in their conservatory.
Vancouver is one of the world’s great cities IMHO.
If you want to go to Grouse Mountain and don’t want to pay for the ride up and down, make a reservation at the restaurant at the top (name escapes me right now) the ride is then free. Hell of a view also. On a clear night you can see Vancouver Island.
Gas town and China town are in areas where I would take care if I was there at night. There are areas south of China town I would not go into at night without a tail gunner.
We have discussed Vancouver and things to do before:
http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=330554&highlight=vancouver
http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=255526&highlight=vancouver
http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=123749&highlight=vancouver
http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=122079&highlight=vancouver
http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=316998&highlight=vancouver
We had a great thread on Vancouver restaurants, but my search powers seem to be weak this morning, and I can’t find it. Maybe someone else with stronger search powers can locate it.
Right, I forgot about Queen Elizabeth Park. Go there too.
University of British Columbia, Museum of Anthropology.
Do Not Miss It, it’s too awesome for words, I promise, you will not be disappointed.
Yeah, I forgot about having a great bowl of feijoada near there in a Brazilian joint. Can’t remember the name of the little restaurant, but it was authentic right down to the waitress.
Santos is closed 
No more perfect chicken livers. The last time I was there I fought off the amorous pleadings of a little Peruvian guy with a wooden sangria spoon. Good times,good times …
No, really. It was R2D2 vs. Yoda redux. No injuries. 
Wow, I’d have to disagree about 1000%… I’ve been to aquariums all over, and I’ve never seen a place where you could get so close to the critters. Having a Beluga an arm’s length away gazing serenely into your eyes is worth the entire trip to Vancouver, IMO.
A cool place to visit (so I’ve heard) is Storyeum . It’s a live action museum.
Another couple of places that can be hit or miss (depending on whats showing) is the Vancouver Art Gallery (stainz and I saw the Andy Warhol exhibit there last year and it was tres cool!) and Science World .
As far as restaraunts go, I can recomend two, Hy’s Steakhouse and Samba . I had the best dinning experience I’ve ever had at Hy’s steakhouse about 7 years ago. It was divine, not crazy pricey either. Dinner for two with alcohol will run you about $150-175. Samba is all you can eat meat (Brazilian steak house), you can’t beat all you can eat meat!
Have fun!
MtM
I am not so sure you need to see Science World. It seems like every city I’ve ever lived in has one of those things with a bunch of kiddie science exhibits (Make a volcano! Go inside a smoker’s lungs!) and an IMAX dome at the top. Pretty expensive, too.
Thank you all for the advice. We’re considering everything here. We’ll have six days in Vancouver. My wife would like to see some orcas - is this possible at all in March, even if it means a day trip to Victoria or Vancouver Island? How feasible is it and how would that work?
You’ll never see a killer whale in Vancouver. You might spot a seal playing in False Creek (we would sometimes get one accompanying our dragonboat), but nothing bigger than that. Your only chance is to go on a whale watching trip – probably out of Victoria – but I don’t think there are any orcas migrating in March.
Don’t worry too much about the Downtown east side. Yes, it’s the poorest neighbourhood in Canada, but all the locals know to keep their hands off the tourists who innocently blunder through the area – which happens all the time. You can think of the Downtown Eastside as being centered on Main and Hastings.
Besides, all the junkies go for property crime anyway. Less chance of being beaten up.
Since you’re going to be on the West Coast, take advantage of the seafood. It ain’t the same as what you get in a land-locked state. Indulge in Sushi (Tojo is high end, but you can always grab a lunchtime bento box at a decent place like Samurai). Vancouver really is a foodie paradise, so try looking through online issues of the Vancouver Sun, the Province, and Georgia Straight for restaurant reviews.