The visitor guide
Okay, real talk: Stanley Park is huge (about 400 hectares of rainforest wrapped in a 9 km seawall), and "let's go to Stanley Park" is not a plan. So here's the park spot by spot, with a map, directions to each stop and the best way to see it for the date you actually have in mind.
Guide reviewed October 20, 2026. Prices are per adult and come from each venue's own site.
Every stop below has its own directions link, so you can drop a pin and go. Costs are per adult from each operator's own page.
Free
The main event. The Park Board says the 9 km Stanley Park stretch takes 2 to 3 hours to walk or about an hour to cycle. You don't have to do all of it. Our take: the Coal Harbour stretch out to Brockton Point is the best first hour you can spend here.
Free
Planted by the Kiwanis Club in 1920, with more than 3,500 rose bushes and a west coast style arbour. It's near the park's Georgia Street side, so it makes an easy first stop before you head for the water. Roses are a summer-into-fall show, so expect greenery in winter.
Free
Nine totem poles that the Park Board calls BC's most visited tourist attraction. The collection began at Lumberman's Arch in the 1920s; most originals went to museums and were replaced with commissioned poles, and the ninth, by Robert Yelton of the Squamish Nation, was added in 2009. Take your time here.
Photo: Bernard Spragg, CC0
Free
A cannon cast in England in 1816 and brought here in 1894, which mariners once used to set their chronometers and which also warned fishers of closings. It sits right on the seawall just before Brockton Point, so it's an easy stop on the east side loop.
Free
Built in 1914 at the park's eastern tip, and the seawall passes right under the arches holding up the tower. Come back after dark for the Lions Gate Bridge lit up across the water.
Photo: Kenny Louie, CC BY 2.0
Free
Elek Imredy's bronze, set on a rock just offshore in 1972. You'll spot her from the seawall between Brockton Point and Lumberman's Arch.
Free
Erected in 1952 to honour BC's lumber industry, replacing the original Bowie Arch. It's an open, grassy spot on the north shore of the park and a natural halfway point on the east side loop. In summer there's a spray park nearby for kids.
Paid admission, prices vary by date
The Park Board calls it Canada's largest aquarium, and it's a short walk from the Stanley Park Loop bus stop. It's the park's best answer to a rainy day. Ticket prices change by date, so check before you go.
Free
A forest lake the Park Board is working to restore so it keeps supporting the park's biodiversity. The Ravine Trail is a wheelchair-accessible route up to it from the seawall, following Beaver Creek. It's a calm, shaded change of pace from the water.
Photo: Bobanny, Public domain
Lookout free; cafe at menu prices
Excellent views of the Lions Gate Bridge, the North Shore mountains and Burrard Inlet, says the Park Board, and they're right. A signal station once stood up here to warn ships about tides and weather. Prospect Point Cafe is on site if you want a snack with the view.
Free
A 32-million-year-old sea stack just off the seawall between Third Beach and the Lions Gate Bridge. In Squamish legend a man was turned into the rock as a reward for his unselfishness. There's also a lookout above it, reached from Park Drive or the Siwash Rock Trail. Our pick for the most photogenic stop on the seawall.
Free
A 700- to 800-year-old western red cedar stump. Old photos show people, cars and even an elephant posing inside it. It was badly damaged in the December 2006 windstorm, then saved by a citizen-funded stabilization and rededicated in October 2011.
Photo: tree-species, CC BY 2.0
Free
A sandy beach the Park Board recommends for quiet swims, picnics and watching sunsets, right on the seawall with a concession, washrooms and pay parking. If it were us, this is where the date ends: blanket, snacks and the sun going down.
Lookout free; restaurant at menu prices
The headland above Third Beach, home to The Teahouse, which pitches itself as the place for Vancouver's best and longest sunset. Book ahead if you want a window table at golden hour.
Beach free; pool is seasonal
The beach at Stanley Park Drive and North Lagoon Drive, closest to the English Bay side, with a playground, washrooms and the heated outdoor Second Beach Pool next door. Barbecues are allowed at nearby Ceperley Meadow. Lifeguards are on duty from Victoria Day to Labour Day.
Free
A former tidal mud flat that became a freshwater lagoon when the causeway was built in 1938, now a sanctuary for many bird species. The #19 bus stops right beside it at Pipeline Road, and the Lost Lagoon Nature House explains the park's plants and wildlife. Great for an easy loop before dinner in the West End.
Photo: Jester7777, Public domain
If you only have an hour or two, do the east side. Start at the Stanley Park Bus Loop, wander the Rose Garden, walk out to the Brockton Point totem poles, then follow the seawall past the Nine O'Clock Gun and the lighthouse to Girl in a Wet Suit and Lumberman's Arch. By our rough count on the map it's about 4 km, under an hour of walking, so there's time to stop and actually talk.
Finish where you started and you're right by the #19. If the conversation's going well, the Aquarium or dinner in the West End is a few minutes away.
The Park Board puts the 9 km Stanley Park stretch at about an hour on a bike, and bikes ride free on TransLink buses, SkyTrain and SeaBus if you're bringing your own. Follow the posted signs for direction and lanes, since cyclists and walkers are kept apart on the seawall.
Going round, you get Coal Harbour and the city, then Brockton Point, the Lions Gate Bridge, Siwash Rock and the beaches on the English Bay side. Our take: book a rental for two hours, not one, so you can stop at Third Beach without watching the clock.
The west side is the sunset side. The Park Board recommends Third Beach for watching sunsets, and The Teahouse at Ferguson Point is just above, if you'd rather watch from a table with a drink in hand.
Bring a layer. Even on a warm day the breeze off the water cools things down fast once the sun drops, and nobody looks romantic shivering.
When the weather turns, the Vancouver Aquarium is the obvious indoor move. The Lost Lagoon Nature House is a good short stop for curious kids too; check the Stanley Park Ecology Society for its hours.
In summer, Second Beach has the playground, the heated outdoor pool and lifeguards, and there's a spray park near Lumberman's Arch. Outside summer, plan on the beaches and trails instead.
The Ravine Trail is a wheelchair-accessible route from the seawall up along Beaver Creek to Beaver Lake. Second Beach has a water wheelchair from Victoria Day to Labour Day, which needs two attendants to operate.
The Park Board also publishes an interactive accessibility map of Stanley Park, which is worth a look before you go so you can pick paved routes and the nearest washrooms.
Open a place for its price information, maps and directions, then build a plan around it. Prices are per adult; check each venue for child rates and booking conditions.
Getting there is the easy part. TransLink's #19 bus stops at Stanley Park Drive and Pipeline Road by Lost Lagoon, and at the Stanley Park Loop near the Aquarium. There's no public transit around the park itself, so once you're in, plan to walk, bike or drive. Drivers come in at the west end of Georgia Street or from Beach Avenue on the English Bay side.
Parking is paid on every park road through EasyPark. From October 1 to March 31 it's $4.25 an hour, up to $12.75 for the day; from April 1 to September 30 it's $4.75 an hour, up to $17.75. Rates apply 6am to 11pm, and a few meters (including the Totem Poles, Brockton Point, Prospect Point and Teahouse ones) don't sell day passes. The park is open 6am to 10pm unless posted otherwise, and washrooms are open dawn to dusk.
One honest heads-up: every winter the Park Board closes parts of the seawall for slope stabilization and maintenance, with detours. Check the Park Board's seawall page before you set out, especially if you're planning the full loop.
By Date Spark team. Guide reviewed October 20, 2026.
Good to know· 7 questions
The Park Board says the 9 km Stanley Park seawall loop takes 2 to 3 hours to walk, or about an hour by bike. A shorter east-side loop from the Bus Loop to Brockton Point and back is about 4 km.
Parking is paid on all park roads through EasyPark: $4.25 an hour up to $12.75 a day from October 1 to March 31, and $4.75 an hour up to $17.75 from April 1 to September 30. Rates apply 6am to 11pm.
Walk or cycle the seawall, see the Brockton Point totem poles, Siwash Rock and Prospect Point, visit the Vancouver Aquarium, loop Beaver Lake or Lost Lagoon, and watch the sunset from Third Beach. The spots above each have directions.
Take TransLink's #19 bus to Stanley Park Drive and Pipeline Road by Lost Lagoon, or to the Stanley Park Loop near the Aquarium. There's no public transit around the park itself.
The Teahouse at Ferguson Point is the sit-down sunset option, Prospect Point Cafe has the bridge views, and there are concessions at the beaches. Bringing a picnic to Third Beach works too.
Yes, the park and its trails, beaches and landmarks are free. You pay for parking, the Vancouver Aquarium, food, and seasonal extras like Second Beach Pool.
The west side. Third Beach faces English Bay and the Park Board recommends it for sunsets, with Ferguson Point and The Teahouse just above.
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