Vancouver is a cosmopolitan city in an amazing port setting ringed by towering mountain peaks. The local culinary scene is a reflection of the diverse multicultural population, fertile farmland and abundance of fresh seafood in the region. Delicious, fresh, local, organic, sustainable, vibrant and inspired capture the essence of Pacific Northwest cuisine. We toured Granville Island Market where a local chef introduced the various purveyors who provided samples of their artisan foods. A First Nations Boat Trip took us along the breathtaking inland waters of Burrard Inlet, which was followed by a traditional First Nations salmon barbecue luncheon. To show the diversity of the population, dinner was traditional Aburi-style Japanese sushi meal complete with a Sake paired menu.

The following morning everyone’s first experience on a Float Plane took us on a 45-minute flight to Vancouver Island where we foraged for mushrooms and got up close and personal with a herd of water buffalo and tasted their local cheese Fairburn Farm.  A tapas dinner was held at the famous and fabulous, Butchart Gardens. Culinary Capers provided us with a champagne breakfast and tour of their incredible kitchen facilities before we trolley-ed off on a tour of Chinatown with local Chinese guides followed by a Dim Sum lunch, followed by a leisurely bike rides around the seawall.  That’s right…a trolley, bikes, ferries and a float plane were our means of transportation… and all of that was in Vancouver – before we headed off to the mountains, where an alfresco luncheon in the most incredible valley, awaited us at North Arm Farm.

While in the mountains we also got to explore Whistler Village, where two additional unique forms of transportation were provided. Some of the group zip lined across mountain passes, while others rode a gondola across the mountain peaks. The “less adventurous” in the group, were treated to massages at the Spa. This was truly an incredible adventure.