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The Best Two-Day Vancouver Itinerary from a Local

Updated January 31, 2024

Vancouver is one of the best cities to visit in Canada for its diverse vegan food options! In a five-mile radius, there are more than 40 vegan restaurants, not including the many restaurants with many vegan options. The only problem you will have as a vegan is deciding where to go!

Isn’t that a luxury that we have missed while traveling?

This two-day vegan itinerary to Vancouver guides you through some of our favorite neighborhoods in the area that I have loved both as a tourist and as a local. You will enjoy a variety of vegan cuisine, peruse through bookstores and vintage shops, explore forested seawalls and sandy beaches, and maneuver your way through the tight streets of Downtown Vancouver.

If you happen to have more than two days or want more options, check out our complete vegan travel guide to Vancouver!

How to Spend Two Days in Vancouver

Get ready to sample some of the best vegan food for brunch, lunch, and dinner plus see the best of Vancouver on this two-day vegan itinerary! If you happen to have more than two days, be sure to check out this lineup of the very best day trips from Vancouver!

Day-one itinerary

Start with a vegan breakfast at Chickpea

We’re kicking off this two-day Vancouver itinerary with a hearty vegan breakfast to give you energy. Chickpea has a wonderful all-day breakfast menu with tofu scrambles, latkes, bagels, waffles, pancakes, and more. My personal favorites are the Latkes Benechick, which is a tofu benedict on top of a latke instead of an English muffin, and the Lox Bagel, with their house-made carrot lox and creamy labaneh.

Morning activity: shopping on Main Street

Main Street is the place to go if you want to shop local as there are no chain stores (this is also an excellent activity to do on a rainy day in Vancouver). You can find a shop for whatever is calling your name: records, vintage clothing, books, flowers, tea, zero-waste goods, candy, antiques, pet supplies, toys, and so much more. If you’re looking for a fun gift to take home, Giving Gifts is a great gift shop with a selection of local art, greeting cards, jewelry, beauty products, baby toys, and other small gifts. Vintage shoppers will love exploring Woo Vintage Clothing, Bohemia Gallery, and Mintage Mall, among others. A great time to visit is during the spring to catch a glimpse of the cherry blossom trees on the side streets.

Lunchtime: vegan pizza at Pizzeria Grano

For a truly authentic Neapolitan pizza, look no further than Pizzeria Grano. Their pizza dough is hand-stretched and topped with local plant-based cheeses and sustainable local produce. Their Zucca pizza is such a comforting combination of zucchini, cashew cheese, butternut squash, caramelized onion, and sage. Their Hawaiian pizza is a fun twist on a controversial favorite with onion, pineapple, and banana pepper. Don’t forget to end your meal with a tiramisu, which is big enough to share

Pizzeria Grano Vegan Vancouver

Afternoon activity: Queen Elizabeth Park or VanDusen Botanical Garden and Jericho Beach Park

Once you have properly carbo-loaded, you can spend the rest of your afternoon exploring the beautiful parks in East Vancouver and the Kitsilano neighborhood. Queen Elizabeth has the picturesque Quarry Gardens, situated in the park’s center at the top of the hill. It’s beautiful to visit all year round but you will notice more tourists in the fall for the foliage and the spring for the cherry blossoms. The VanDusen Botanical Gardens are also incredibly stunning year-round, especially in the spring when the tulips and cherry blossoms are in bloom.

After exploring the gardens, head west to Edible Flours, an all-vegan bakery with a small selection of sweet and savory options ranging from cinnamon rolls and brownies to spinach tofu artichoke rolls and gluten-free chocolate chip cookies. Once you have grabbed yourself a treat, continue west towards Jericho Beach Park where you can walk for miles and admire the stunning views of Kitsilano, Downtown Vancouver, Stanley Park, and even the mountains of North Vancouver on a clear day.

Dinnertime: vegan comfort food at MeeT

While there are plenty of incredible restaurants in the Kitsilano area that can satisfy your cravings, we recommend heading back to Main Street for a hearty dinner at MeeT on Main. Their double-battered oyster mushrooms and poutines with their house-made gravy and vegan cheeses regularly draw in a crowd. For an extra Instagram-worthy indulgent meal, The Mighty Mac burger is their signature burger topped with their mac-n-cheez. They also have less indulgent items, like The Big Yum bowl, if you would prefer to end the day with a veggie-forward meal.

Meet Vancouver Vegan Calamari

Day-two itinerary

Vegan breakfast at Heirloom Vegetarian Café

If you’re getting a late start on a weekday or are visiting on a weekend, Heirloom Vegetarian Restaurant is the best vegan brunch spot in Vancouver. You can order a classic Smashed Avocado Toast, give into your sweet tooth and choose the Pear & Fig Toast, or indulge in one of their benedicts either as the Avo Benny or the Truffle Mushroom Benny, which can be ordered with tofu instead of eggs to make it vegan. If you want to get an earlier start to your day, head across the street to Heirloom Juice Co. where you can get vegan breakfast wraps, smoothies, and juices to go!

Heirloom Juice Co Vancouver Vegan Wrap

Morning activity: Stanley Park

For sweeping views of the bay, West Vancouver, North Vancouver, Kitsilano, and Downtown Vancouver, walk the Seawall in Stanley Park, roughly a six-mile loop. You will pass a few beaches, walk under Lion’s Gate Bridge, and see the totem poles of the First Nations. There are plenty of scenic spots along this popular walk so bring your camera and watch out for bikers, boarders, runners, and strollers.

Lunchtime: healthy vegan bowls at Kokomo

After a long excursion through Stanley Park, your body will need to refuel with a healthy meal. Kokomo has a nutritious menu packed with macro bowls, salads, and smoothies that are always incredibly flavorful and made with clean ingredients. I recommend the Beet Poke Macro and the Coastal Macro bowls.

Kokomo Vegan Bowl Vancouver

Afternoon activity: Yaletown, Gastown, and Chinatown

All within a mile walking west from Kokomo, begin to explore the boutiques, coffee shops, breweries, parks, and architecture in the Chinatown, Gastown, and Yaletown neighborhoods. In Gastown, you can see the famous Steam Clock, as well as many buildings that are the backdrop to many popular Hollywood films. For a quieter activity, stop for a coffee at one of the many shops in Yaletown, and peruse a long list of bookstores in the heart of Downtown Vancouver.

Dinnertime: one more vegan pizza at Virtuous Pie

Yes, this is a second vegan pizza restaurant in our two-day Vancouver itinerary, but trust me, these restaurants are very different. Everything is house-made at Virtuous Pie, from their cheese to their ice cream. One of their most popular pizzas is the Stranger Wings pizza with spicy buffalo cauliflower, but I’m partial to the Superfunghi with wild mushrooms and a truffle almond ricotta.

Vancouver is truly one of the best vegan destinations in the world. If you’re considering visiting a new destination specifically to experience vegan cuisine, move Vancouver to the top of your list.

View of Stanley Park and North Vancouver

More Vegan Eats in Canada

If you’re looking for another vegan hot spot in Canada, be sure to check out Toronto! It is a vegan heaven and I have the perfect lineup of the best spots for vegan and gluten-free food, incredible vegan bakeries, and a full vegan travel guide to Toronto.

Main image photo credit: Virtuous Pie

About the guest author

Brianne Neminoff

Brianne Nemiroff is the co-founder of a vegan travel blog, It’s Bree and Ben, as well as the Product Sourcing Specialist for a vegan and cruelty-free beauty box, Kinder Beauty. For more vegan guides to American and Canadian cities, sign up for our newsletter at ItsBreeandBen.com and follow us on Instagram.

About Author

Rebecca is the founder of the vegan travel company Veggies Abroad. In 2021, she bid her 15-year career goodbye and ventured into the world of ethical business with the launch of a vegan travel blog (the one you’re reading!). As the blog flourished, Rebecca expanded her vision to encompass personalized travel planning services and launched Veggies Abroad's inaugural vegan tour to Thailand, marking the beginning of many more eco-conscious, plant-powered adventures to come. Follow her adventures on Instagram or Facebook @veggiesabroad