When I wrote this travel book in 2000, my kids were aged eight, five and two. I saw this project as a great opportunity to include Mark, Megan and Matthew in my work. And, it was. We ate out at kid-friendly restaurants, visited dozens of parks and gardens, hiked forest trails, went to attractions and uncovered places and things to do that we never knew were there.

Near the end of the book the kids were begging to stay at home.

I expected to see that much has changed in the two decades since I wrote the guide, but instead when I flick through the pages, I see much has stayed the same.

Sadly, you can no longer ride the Royal Hudson as we did when the kids were small, buy a latte for $2.85 or a Vancouver Sun for 60 cents.
But Stanley Park hasn’t changed, the Vancouver Aquarium is still there, and I was pleased to see how many other attractions and restaurants have survived, including the annual Polar Bear Swim, North Vancouver’s Tomahawk restaurant and the Vancouver Police Museum.