Fraser Valley

The Fraser Valley is an agricultural region of the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is gradually being transformed into suburbs of Vancouver.

Cities

  • 🌍 Langley — the birthplace of British Columbia stretches from the Fraser River south to the US border in the south and is home to a wealth of parks, wineries, agriculture and historical sites.
  • 🌍 Abbotsford — a major regional town with a significant commercial airport, and a hub of agriculture.
    • 🌍 Pitt Meadows has a small regional airport and sits at the confluence of the Fraser and Pitt Rivers. Pitt River drains Pitt Lake, the only fresh-water tidal body in the world. It is a destination for boating and fishing, with a few small resorts on the lake and the option to do an overnight canoe trip up Widgeon Creek.
    • 🌍 Maple Ridge hosts the only Lower Mainland location for Wild Play
    • 🌍 Mission — home to a Catholic Mission that can be toured
    • 🌍 Chilliwack — where the Fraser River emerges from the mountains
    • 🌍 Kent — largely rural area along the north shore of the Fraser River
    • 🌍 Harrison Hot Springs — a pretty vacation area next to the mountains
    • 🌍 Hope — gateway to British Columbia's interior and the eastern end of the Fraser Valley

    Other destinations

    Near Chilliwack

    • 🌍 Cultus Lake (see Chiliwack article)
      • Lindell Beach — on Cultus Lake
    • 🌍 Chilliwack Lake (see Chiliwack article)

    Near Maple Ridge

    • 🌍 Golden Ears Provincial Park — a rugged park set amid the Coast Mountains, used for hiking, horseback riding, camping, and boating (see Maple Ridge article)

    Understand

    The Fraser Valley has lush fertile farmland, which contributes a large portion of the local produce. The Fraser is also the world's greatest salmon producing river, and a focus for the region's economy, transportation and culture. The towns of Pitt Meadows, Maple Ridge, and Langley are transforming from agricultural to suburb. Abbotsford, Mission, Chilliwack, and Hope remain closer to their agricultural roots, but are also transforming.

    Get in

    Airport in Fraser Valley with scheduled commercial flights

    Other nearby airports with scheduled commercial flights

    By bus

    By train

    See also: Rail travel in Canada
    • VIA Rail Canada, toll-free: +1-888-842-7245. Operates train routes across Canada. Operates The Canadian up to three trips per week between Toronto and Vancouver with stops in both directions in medium to large cities and tourist destinations such as Sudbury, Winnipeg, Portage la Prairie, Saskatoon, Edmonton, Jasper, and Kamloops. In the Fraser Valley, for westbound trips toward Vancouver, trains stop at stations on the south side of the Fraser River, whereas for eastbound trips toward Toronto, trains stop at stations on the north side of the Fraser River. This route can offer a scenic view of the Canadian Rockies, depending on the train schedule, as the train operates day and night. This service connects with another route that travels between Jasper and Prince Rupert.

    By public transit

    By car

    Border crossings

    • 🌍 Huntingdon - Sumas (Abbotsford, BC (Highway 11) - Sumas, WA (WA-9)). 24/7. Open to all vehicles.
    • 🌍 Aldergrove - Lynden (Langley, BC (Highway 13) - Lynden, WA (WA-539, the Guide Meridian)). Daily 8AM to midnight. NEXUS lane to United States only. Open to all vehicles.

    Get around

    A rental car or other means such as a bicycle are needed to access more rural areas of this region or if unwilling to wait for buses, each which run every half hour or less frequently.

    By public transit

    • TransLink, +1-604-953-3333. Is the public transit service bus service provider for destinations within Vancouver and the surrounding area, including Langley.

    By car

    • North of the Fraser River, Highway 7 connects communities.
    • Bridges across the Fraser River are located as follows from west to east:

    See

    • Fort Langley National Historic Site of Canada in Langley helps to tell the story of local fur trade and agricultural pursuits, as well as the colonization story and the ongoing history of the area.
    • The Greater Vancouver Zoo in Langley is a mid-sized zoo with lions, tigers, giraffes, zebras, hippos and monkeys.
    • The Fraser Valley Bald Eagle Festival is held in Mission on the third weekend of each November to view the third largest gathering of bald eagles in North America.
    • The Abbotsford International Air Show is held the second weekend in August. Flight demonstrations primarily by Canadian and US craft.

    Do

    Golden Ears Provincial Park near Maple Ridge and the Chilliwack Lake Provincial Park near Chilliwack have plenty of easy to moderate hiking trails. Golden Ears is a major camping and recreation destination for Vancouverites, and has a day-use area for swimming and boating.

    Wine tasting

    Though it isn't quite the viniculture hotbed that the Okanagan is, there are a number of wineries in the Fraser Valley. See Domaine de Chaberton Estate, which started it all, and Township 7 Vineyards & Winery, Glenugie Winery, and Blackwood Lane Vineyards & Winery in Langley; The Fort Wine Company in historic Fort Langley; Blossom Winery (famous for ice wine and fruit wines) and Sanduz Estate Wines in Richmond; River's Bend Winery in Surrey; Lotusland Vineyards in Abbotsford; Blue Heron Winery in Pitt Meadows; and Kermode Wild Berry Winery in Dewdney; and St. Urban Winery in Chilliwack. Look for the handy Wine Map from Wines of British Columbia. Consider visiting only three to five wineries in a day, to give yourself time to enjoy the visit, available at most of these wineries. Many wineries will limit you to only three to five wine samples in one visit. Some may charge you a couple of dollars for the tasting, which might be waived if you purchase some wine.

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