We've never been on a tour of Stanley Park before. We have both walked and rode our bikes along the Sea Wall, we've taken out of town guests to see the Totem Poles, hear the 9 'O Clock gun and take photos of the city, but neither of us has been on an organised tour.
One of the options in the 2011 Tourism Challenge is a one hour fully narrated tour of the east side of Stanley Park provided by Stanley Park Horse-Drawn Tours. It was raining and cold so we debated whether to go or not. But we were there, I'd get a stamp, we probably wouldn't get another chance before the end of May and it was something we hadn't done before.
Reservations are not required, but there is limited availability. Tours depart about every 30 mins and carriages seat 20 passengers. Because of the rain, and everyone else being home getting ready for Easter dinner there were not many people around. So we got a seat on the next carriage. There were maybe only 10 of us all together.
The horses travel slow enough that there are plenty of opportunites to take photos of the sights along the way. (Although not with an iPhone, a real camera would have been better. My iPhone photos are all slighty blurry or too dark). The only actual stop is at the totem poles. Where we were allowed to get off and take some photos, and pop into the cafe to grab a hot chocolate each.
The narration provided by the carriage driver/tour guide is informative and a little humourous. Some of the sights that our guide highlighted were the HMCS Discovery, the cruise ships in dock, the Shangri-La hotel, the new convention centre, the old convention centre, the floating gas dock for the float planes, the Totem Poles, Harry Jerome memorial, the cricket and rugby pitches, Lumberman's Arch, the kiddie dryer, Girl in a Wetsuit, the sulpher piles, Lions Gate and Ironworkers Memorial bridges, Brockton Point Lighthouse, damage done by the 2006 windstorm, notches left in large tree trunks from logging back in the day, Children's minature railway, Aquarium, Beaver Lake (actually beaverless), the Rose Garden, statues of Lord Stanley, Robbie Burns, and Queen Victoria, Vancouver Rowing Club, Vancouver Yacht Club and more. Some of it we had heard before, but some of the information was new to both us.
Despite the rain and the cold we enjoyed the tour, it was a great way to see Stanley Park, learn some of the history, it was fun and we're glad we did it. It's not something we would have gone and done normally. But that's what the Tourism Challenge is for. To encourage us to experience Vancouvers attractions and to recommend them to our guests.
But at $29.99 per adult, or pretty much $60.00 for the pair of us, it was an expensive hour. It wouldn't usually be in our budget.Kids 3 and up are $15.99. I don't know too many of our friends who could afford to spend close to $100.00 for a family of four for an hour. I realise it's a business and they need to cover their expensives and make a profit but with no family rate it's a bit steep. The ticket office did say to keep an eye out for two for one coupons in the Entertainment Books and on the Vancouver Attractions site. Also the tours are often included in combo tickets or in some of the tourist brochures there may be coupons for a % off. So keep your eyes open.
