Experience Local Life at These Bed and Breakfasts in Vancouver

Staying in one of the city’s oldest residential enclaves at the charming West End Guest House, you’ll feel like you’ve gone back in time. Built in 1906, the home offers a glimpse into decades past with a photo gallery of how the property has changed over the years. Leave your cares on the whitewashed front porch and check into one of eight guest rooms, which have been welcoming visitors for 30 years. Get cozy and plan your day from a cushioned window seat—if you can resist the siren call of your plump feather bed. In your room you’ll find your en-suite stocked with goodies (from shampoo to Q-tips) to get you excursion-ready.

You’re a 15-minute walk from Stanley Park and equally close to the city’s business district, so you can lace up your hiking boots or slip on some heels. Skip stones across the water from beneath the park’s ancient trees, or hit up a trendy restaurant along Davie Street (snap a photo of the rainbow crosswalks). Afterwards, take some time to peruse the eclectic collection of cool shops on Granville Street.

Get to know your hosts and other guests over breakfast, when up to 12 people can eat family-style in the elegant dining room. The morning meal usually consists of a fruit course followed by a savoury main, which can be tweaked to meet guests’ special needs. If you get hungry during the day, help yourself to the butler’s pantry for complimentary refreshments. Those with a Sweet Tooth take note: freshly baked cookies are served at night!

You can’t miss the three-storey Edwardian manor that houses the Cambie Lodge Bed and Breakfast. The bright blue wooden panelling and a front porch trimmed in white are a beacon for short and long-term guests seeking a quiet stay in Vancouver’s ultra-hip Mount Pleasant. You’ll be a five-minute walk from the rapid transit line that services Vancouver International Airport, not to mention close to the caffeinated café culture of Main Street—make sure to stop in at the Wallflower for delectable feel-good eats like BBQ tofu hash or vegan poutine.

Check into your homey guest room named after a Vancouver city street. In most rooms you’ll get your own private bathroom for easy, laid-back, mornings. In the second-floor Broadway room, sit out on your personal balcony to observe the street below while you sip on a Spanish Latte made with sweet, condensed milk from nearby Kafka’s Coffee and Tea (three minutes by car). Opt for the Oak suite if you’re coming with family, where two queen beds and a single spread across two rooms with a shared bathroom to give you ample space.

In the morning, you’ll be treated to a vegetarian breakfast of freshly baked croissants, seasonal fruit and a choice of pancakes, egg dishes or French toast dusted with icing sugar. If you visit a local farmers’ market or have special dietary needs, you’re welcome to keep your own fresh food in the kitchen’s small guest fridge.

You’ll find the 1920s heritage home, House on Dunbar, on a tree-filled garden lot in a quaint residential neighbourhood. Just a five-minute walk from the forested Pacific Spirit Regional Park and a five-minute drive from UBC, it makes a welcoming vacation home for nature lovers, visiting academics or keen parents checking in on their student kiddos.

From the sweet cabin exterior, you’ll step into a surprisingly open-concept space punctuated by funky details like a granite dining setup that resembles a giant chess set. Light a crackling fire in the log-burning stone fireplace to cozy up the room while you rustle up a nourishing dinner in the self-catering kitchen. Sliding glass doors let you walk straight out to the garden, where you can banish chilly nights with a bottle of BC wine next to the outdoor flame pyramid. In summer months, fire up the barbecue for al fresco meals at the covered table with bistro chairs while the Zen water fountain sets a tranquil mood.

You’ll have two bedrooms to choose from, both with their own private bathroom. In the larger 2010 Room, lie beneath the charmingly sloped ceilings of this light-filled attic space after gold-spun dreams inspired by the antique spinning wheel at the foot of the bed. Freshen up with a morning bath in your deep-soaker tub, then head downstairs for a hearty continental breakfast.

You can fulfill dreams of living in a white-picket-fence cottage at Point Grey Guest House, and it’s close to sandy shores to-boot. Here you’ll be 15 minutes by foot from the forest-blanketed UBC Endowment Lands (the campus itself can be reached in just under 15 minutes by bike or 6 minutes by car), and a 7-minute drive from Jericho Beach. This quieter, arguably more scenic little sister of buzzing Kitsilano Beach is a great spot for watching day turn to dusk; if you’re lucky, you might see a resident harbour seal bob its puppy-dog head above the waves.

When you stay in the Cambria or the sunlit Albion room, you’ll be treated to an early morning breakfast. Wake to sunlight streaming in from double windows as you have a luxurious stretch in your queen-size bed. Starting at 8 a.m., you’ll find the communal table set with free-range eggs, fruit salad, baked goods and homemade jams. If you’d rather swap breakfast for a sleep-in, choose the one-bedroom Iona Garden Suite. Armed with fresh produce from adorable Point Grey Village (a 10-minute walk away), you can cook up your own late-morning feast in your self-serve kitchen dripping with cozy country charm.

The homey hospitality doesn’t end with breakfast choices here, though—your hosts are 30-year veterans in the B&B game, so they know that little extras makes all the difference. Need some laundry done? You need only ask. Want to store your luggage, free of charge, while you take a side trip? Easily done.

If you love sunsets, urban parks and seawall walks, English Bay Inn Bed and Breakfast is your ideal home away from home. This Tudor-style abode is just two blocks from the tennis courts and Lost Lagoon of Stanley Park, Vancouver’s 1,000-acre natural playground. It’s a short walk to the Seawall Path on English Bay, too, where the sunsets over the water are majestic and the running paths will inspire some end-of-day exercise along the beach.

Kids and families are welcome in the inn’s suite, but the other five rooms are off-limits to those under 18, promising you a refined, adult environment. Choice rooms will tempt you toward an early night in your elegant four-poster or sleigh bed, while others let you watch the evening settle from your very own balcony or through screened French doors.

For breakfast, join the other guests at the gleaming antique dining table and swap tales of your urban adventures, or request the private table for two in a quiet alcove if you prefer some morning intimacy. Either way, you’ll indulge in tea and coffee, juice, fresh fruit and a daily hot entrée. When you finish, grab a book and read beneath the open-air gazebo in the B&B’s sun-dappled backyard.

If you’re looking for the refinement of an upscale hotel with the charm of a bed and breakfast, Granville House B&B in the prestigious Shaughnessy neighbourhood is for you. Book any of the five rooms in this contemporary two-storey house, and you’ll get free on-site parking and a private bathroom stocked with Purely Salt Spring body products. In the Cedar Master, run yourself a luxurious bath in the freestanding porcelain tub to soak away city stresses. And if you’re here to work, choose the Alder Master room or the Dogwood Junior, which both boast full-size desks and upholstered chairs, plus thoughtfully placed outlets for charging electronics. At night, nestle under a Hutterite down duvet in your king-size bed in the peaceful dark thanks to blackout curtains.

Early birds (or those with morning flights) will find a fully staffed buffet breakfast available from 5 a.m. If you’ve got time to sleep in, mosey downstairs between 8:30 and 10 a.m. for a hot morning meal from a seasonal menu. You’ll dine at your own table rather than a communal one, with white linen tablecloths and napkins to add to the swanky hotel feeling. As morning gives way to afternoon, stroll around the manicured gardens outside or stay snuggled up by the fire. The large foyer leads to a living room decorated with soothing nature paintings by local artist Marion Webber, the ideal surroundings for pondering the next day’s activities over a pot of tea.

Situated just across the Lions Gate Bridge in serene North Vancouver, Thistle Down House is an elegant retreat for adults. This six-bedroom home (open to guests over the age of 12) built in Craftsman style dates back to the 1920s. You’ll find each room has its own personality, from the book-filled Pages room to the Persian-carpeted Snuggery. Looking for a cozy fireplace? Go for Memories, which also comes with a king-size bed and European décor. If it’s light and air you crave, Mulberry Peek’s bright windows and second-storey deck fit the bill.

At breakfast you’ll be joined by guests from across the country and the world. Ask if anyone’s tackled the Grouse Grind, the epic forested hike up nearby Grouse Mountain, while you dig into a sumptuous three-course breakfast. If you’re looking for tea, coffee or a snack later in the day, the butler’s pantry is always open.

You can get to the galleries, restaurants and shops of downtown Vancouver in just 20 minutes by car. If you’re visiting in spring, you’ll be treated to the perfume of blossoming cherry trees as you stroll along the waterfront. Search for the famed steampunk clock in ultra-cool Gastown, then pick up a box of creative creations from Cartems Donuts to enjoy under a shady apple tree back at the B&B.