Vancouver Lookout

For immediate orientation from downtown [1], catch the high-speed, stomach-sinking glass elevator up the outside of 40-story Harbour Centre Tower (555 W. Hastings St., 604/689-0421, daily 9 a.m.–9 p.m., until 10:30 p.m. in summer, adult $13, senior $11, child $9) to the Vancouver Lookout, an enclosed room 167 meters (550 feet) above street level.

The 360-degree views extend all the way to Mount Baker, Washington [2] 140 kilometers (87 miles) to the south. Walk around the circular room to read interpretive panels describing interesting facts about the panorama below and beyond.

Keep your receipt and you can return any time during the same day (the top of the tower is a great place to watch the sun setting over the Strait of Georgia).