Spanish Banks Beach — Attraction in Vancouver

This is by far, my favourite beach in Vancouver; especially during low-tide. The beach is expansive!

On one end, nearest UBC, there is a leash-free dog park that is large enough for many pooches to enjoy dipping in the water, running along the sand or playing in the muddy grass (yes, muddy grass- it is Raincouver, after all.

One can walk with their furry friend along the trail, or wade through the water, 150 feet from shore, during low-tide for 60-90 minutes with breath-taking views of the North-Shore mountains, ferries and cruise ships as a backdrop, while watching local club regattas in the foreground on weekends.

Bring yourself a blanket, a cooler and a gas bbq and enjoy the entire day outdoors and stay for the amazing sunsets and evening twilight with your loved one.

Be warned though, come early or later in the day as it gets very busy. Parking is at a premium and eventually, so is the space at the beach. You will see many RVs parked many days even though there is not supposed to be any overnight parking. I believe the beaches close at 2300 hours and the parking lots soon afterwards.

The city offers amenities like picnic tables, hot-coal depositories, volleyball courts for beach v-ball and several concession stands.

The beaches (East and West Spanish Banks as well as Jericho) do have lifeguards but only during high season and really it is two lifeguards per station and they are spread out.

Beaches are cleaned and groomed during high season. I’ve been hurt and have heard others have as well with broken glass buried in the sand but these incidents are few and far between. The beaches are generally cleaner than they were when I had my incident 25+ years ago.

Fun fact is that the movie industry uses this beach quite often and one of my favourite scenes which takes place at this beach is in Jackie Chan’s Rumble in the Bronx. You can see him get flattened by the Coastguard’s hovercraft at Spanish Banks.

Go, enjoy. Just make sure you get there early on a sunny day to make...

We went to Spanish banks and walked across the beach westwards to see the sunset. We ended up in what I later found out (using Google maps) to be an off leash area. I did not notice clear signs posted for those coming from the east part so I learned the hard way.

I'm not a dog owner but I don't mind playing with them either (if I ever have a farm then definitely will think of getting a dog) Anyway, I wouldn't recommend someone walking west from here if they mind friendly dogs coming to play with them every now and then. We sat at a log by the beach. My wife put her ice cream on the side for a second, and a dog came running and ate it. I put my phone against a rock to take a steady picture. A dog came running and pushed it over. 😂

The view of sunset from this park is stunning. My only feedback is that the park is missing some lighting in several areas. The west area including the parking lot has no lighting 👏 at 👏 all. So if you're coming to watch the sunset, kayak or ride a SUP board, please come with flashlights (I saw many people, apparently-regulars, pull out their flashlights at sunset!) Otherwise prepare to look for your stuff in the dark, walk in the dark back to your parking lot, load your car in the dark.

And if parking management reads this. Please consider installing lights (preferably solar powered) at the parking lot and around the paths so people can find their way safely at night.

Terrible photos are mine, but credits to my wife Tessa Santoni for the awesome photos...

Large beach spot, doesn’t usually get too busy. Can always find a spot to seat even on a hot weekend in the summer. This beach does get significantly more windy than kits, so if it’s not very hot could be a bit chilly.

The bigger challenge with this beach is finding parking at peak hours in the weekend, would recommend to get here before 11AM to find a spot. This beach is not as transit accessible at Kits, it’s a much longer walk from the nearest bus stop.

There are good washrooms and multiple concession stands on this stretch of beach. This is a popular spot for volleyball and families. You have a very 180 degree view on this beach, can see downtown Vancouver and all the mountains across the water.

Highly would recommend if you have a car. Parking near the beach is max 2 hours and pricing is...