Granville Island
Granville Island definitely is an eyeful. There's musicians of all sorts, crafts, food, shopping, art and niche stores dedicated to umbrellas and sake and hats. Sitting out by the water watching the birds is a fantastic way to spend a nice afternoon on the island if it's not too busy - which it does get on summer weekends. Best to take public transit to the island, or cycle over if you're able because parking spaces get to be a hot commodity.
Beat the Crowds – Visit Whistler in the Summer
I imagine this ski hill in Whistler looks very different in the winter. In fact, I don't think you'd be able to see the hill as it would be teeming with people. If you aren't a skier then visit Whistler during the summer - it's probably the most pristine part of Canada, your allergies will disappear while there due to the lack of pollutants, and the money that was dumped into the town's infrastructure for the 2010 Winter Olympics helped things along in spades. As some tourists pointed out from Perth, Australia: "Whistler reminds me of Disneyland... you know, how everything is just so perfect looking. We came here after visiting Vancouver and thought that was absolutely beautiful, then we came here and it's even nicer! Bloody hell!"
View of the town from about one-quarter of the way up the Whistler Gondola
