There are two things that we tend to do when summer reaches its peak in Vancouver: We look for ways to cool down and for ways to save money on activities and entertainment. According to a recent TD survey, 55% of Canadian parents with children under the age of 18 take on additional costs during the summer; in fact, 71% of them spend up to $999 per child.

If you’re visiting Vancouver on a budget or simply looking for awesome ways to explore your hometown while being easy on your wallet, I have put together a quick list of 5 Free Summer Activities in Vancouver.

Beach

Spanish Banks, Kitsilano, English Bay, Belcarra, Deep Cove, Ambleside, White Rock, you name it! We have some beautiful beaches in Metro Vancouver and they’re the perfect setting for an outing with the family. Watch the waves, build a sandcastle, play in the surf, toss a Frisbee around, and enjoy a beach blanket picnic. You can even take transit to many local beaches.

Stanley Park

Vancouver’s crown jewel and our city’s top attraction. Its perimeter Sea Wall filled with walkers, cyclists, rollerbladers, and runners while its forest trails provide a cool canopy under the evergreens. Spectacular lookout points, picnic tables, flower gardens, and much more to explore.

Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge

Located on the North Shore, the free Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge is a thrilling crossing 50 meters above the water. Complete an easy trail hiking loop then check out the cafe in the nearby Ecology Centre.

Markets

You’re bound to spend money at a market but these suggestions will definitely help you save. Pick up some fresh, local ingredients for a home-cooked meal on Granville Island. Kids can play at the indoor playground in the Kids Market ($9.99), or the outdoor playground near False Creek Community Centre and the whole family can watch buskers entertain in public squares, eat some ice cream by the water, and enjoy the bustling market activity. Download coupons for the Kids Market before you go.

On Fridays check out the free Shipyards Night Market in North Vancouver, and throughout the weekend visit night markets in Surrey, Vancouver, and Richmond (market admissions range from free to $2.25 depending on the location) for more frugal shopping and entertainment.

Vancouver Public Library

Many public buildings in Vancouver provide air conditioning, entertainment, and perhaps a little learning (just don’t tell the kids their visit will be educational). The Vancouver Public Library hosts story times, author talks, movie showing and LEGO parties all for free!

I know I said I would only list 5 free activities but really, there are dozens of options for inexpensive family fun in Vancouver. Free outdoor movies, free Sunday afternoon salsa at Robson Square for aspiring dancers, Take Off Fridays at YVR Airport, Fresh Air Fridays at Highstreet in Abbotsford, festivals, and more.

TD’s Top Five Tips for Summer Cost Saving

• Check your rewards balance – redeem some of your loyalty rewards, such as points from your First Class Travel Credit Card, to help fund activities and travel. For example, you can use your loyalty rewards to redeem certain theme park passes or tours and excursions.
• The early bird gets the worm – some organizations may provide a discount on early registration; check the sign up dates and sign up in advance to save a few dollars.
• Budget and start saving early – save a little money each month and put into your TFSA; online budgeting tools, visit tdcanadatrust.com, can also help you determine how much to save each month.
• Shop around – municipally run activities through community centres or the parks and recreation department often offer lower cost programming.
• File your receipts – some summer costs could be tax deductible as a child care expense or under the child fitness tax credit on your tax return.

Enjoy some quality time without breaking the bank! You really don’t need to spend a lot to have a great time with family and friends this summer, in fact you can actually save and come out ahead by the end of the season if you follow some of these simple tips.

Follow @TD_Canada and hashtag #startsaving on Twitter for more summer saving info.

The FIFA Women’s World Cup has left Vancouver after inspiring young players, smashing records on and off the pitch, and giving the city a flashback to its 2010 Winter Olympics atmosphere. All in all, I attended 7 matches at BC Place, including group stages, Round of 16, the quarter-final, and the final, watching the seats fill from 20,000 spectators to over 50,000 in the last few matches in Vancouver.

The Canada v England match at BC Place was the highest attended and border line-ups were staggering as Americans came up to support their team throughout several stages of play. Flags waved on Robson Street and face paint was the official accessory of summer in Vancouver. The city came alive with national pride, whatever your nation, and that’s what made this event so special.

FIFA Women’s World Cup Canada Final Report

Here are some key figures released by FIFA at the end of the tournament:

Television

• Canada: CTV and RDS broke the Canadian viewing record for any FIFA Women’s World Cup™ match (quarter-final: average audience 3.2 million)
• USA: FOX scored its biggest ever audience for a football match (semi-final: average audience 8.4 million)
• France: W9 achieved its best figures on record and set a new French digital terrestrial viewing record (quarter-final: average audience 4.1 million)
• Japan: Fuji TV attracted more than twice the number of viewers for the semi-final than in 2011 (semi-final: 9.3 million)

In the United States, the average audience exceeded every game of the NBA Finals, the 2014-15 broadcast season average of every show in primetime, including Sunday Night Football, and the primetime average of the Sochi Olympic Winter Games.

Fan Zones

The Fan Zone areas in each host city were a great success with the Vancouver site proving the most popular destination with over 100,000 fans attending over the course of the tournament.

Canada 2015

I attended the closing FIFA press conference just ahead of the final match on Sunday, where executives praised the Canadian organizers for their “flawless” execution of the events. It was the first time FIFA had ever had a World Cup take place across 5 time zones and there were a lot of logistics to work out.

In terms of Team Canada’s performance, Peter Montopoli, Chief Executive Officer of the National Organising Committee and Canada Soccer General Secretary said that Canada is the only nation to have U-17, U-20, and Women’s World Cup teams that have all advanced past group stages in international tournament play. Montopoli added that four years ago, Canada’s Women’s National Team was ranked 16th in the world and today, they are 6th out of 209 FIFA eligible teams, which is a great step forward.

Now we move on to the legacy of the Women’s World Cup in Canada, encouraging and engaging youth, especially young women, to get involved in soccer across Canada as well as in the countries that had their World Cup debuts at this tournament. Côte d’Ivoire, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Spain, Thailand, the Netherlands, Switzerland and Cameroon all made their first appearances with Netherlands, Switzerland, and Cameroon all making it to the Round of 16.

“This World Cup should serve as inspiration to all the member associations,” commented Lydia Nsekera, Chairwoman of the Committee for Women’s Football and the FIFA Women’s World Cup, at the tournament’s closing press conference. Nsekera also urged the champions not to rest on their laurels – while the seventh women’s world finals are now over, the eighth are already coming into view. Women’s national teams will now compete in the PanAm Games, regional tournaments like the East Asia Cup, the Rio 2016 Olympics, and the next FIFA Women’s World Cup in France, 2019.

This summer you can support children with life-threatening illness in Vancouver by donating to Canuck Place Children’s Hospice. Throughout the month of July, your donation will go even further as the Robert L. Conconi Foundation has pledged $200,000 for a match campaign.

Conconi Challenge

All donations made through the Conconi Challenge link online or by calling 1-800-882-2288 will be matched throughout July, up to $200,000. You can donate $10 and you will have a $20 impact. Challenge friends to do the same and you’ve made an impact of $60 just like that!

Over 600 newborns, children and teens with life-threatening illnesses and their families receive care from Canuck Place through outreach programs and two provincial hospice locations; Vancouver and Abbotsford. Services include clinical respite and family support, pain and symptom management, 24-hour phone consultation support and in-house clinical care, art and education, recreation therapy, grief and loss counselling and end-of-life care.

Established in 2003, the Robert L. Conconi Foundation is a private family foundation started by Robert and Diane Conconi. Their mission is to inspire and empower individuals throughout British Columbia by supporting organizations in the areas of health, poverty, education and the arts.

Make your donation before July 31, 2015 and watch it have double the impact for a child, and their family, in BC. Follow Canuck Place on Facebook and Twitter for more information about ways to give.

The largest Latin American festival in the Pacific Northwest takes place this weekend as Carnaval del Sol welcomes all ages to its new festival location on the north side of False Creek. Carnaval del Sol is the signature cultural celebration of Latin American Week and over the last few years, over 100,000 attendees have enjoyed the festivities on Granville Street downtown. This year, Carnaval del Sol moves to Concord Pacific Place.

Carnaval del Sol

When Saturday, July 11th and Sunday, July 12th
Where Concord Pacific Place (88 Pacific Ave)

Attractions this year, in the new and expanded space, include:
Over 20 artists on the Main Stage such as Latin Grammy winner Alex Cuba, and the popular Cuban band Gerardo Cantino y ​Los Habaneros who are both flying in from New York. Bloco Energía with Brazilian ​Samba Fusion, Mariachi del Sol & Viva Mexico, and more entertainment from all over Latin America.

The Sol Y Playa Lounge is a 400 seat beer garden with 100 tons of sand for playing beach badminton. Relax and enjoy the main stage performances from their urban beach. The Kids Plaza will have a wide array of activities with a dance stage, sand art, bouncy castle, magician, workshops, and piñatas!

Enjoy the Travel and Education Plaza, the Arts and Cultural Plaza, the soccer tournament at the Sports Plaza, health and wellness at the Family Plaza, and of course spend some quality time at the Food Plaza with vendors dishing up vibrant flavours and dishes from every corner of Latin America.

For all of this information and more, follow Latincouver on Facebook and Twitter and learn more about Latin American Week in Vancouver online.

The last time I wrote about wildfire haze over Downtown Vancouver was back in 2010, but I’ve never seen anything like what we’re experiencing right now. It’s not just a haze or smog-like plume of smoke drifting out of Burrard Inlet and hanging over the city, this is a fully enveloping cloud, from sidewalks up to tower cranes, that has engulfed the region and made everything, inside and outside of houses, smell like campfire.

Yesterday, NASA released a satellite image of the smoke hanging around Southwestern BC due to several wildfires on the island, around Sechelt, and Pemberton:

Two resources to rely on at this time are the BC Air Quality and BC Wildfire websites.

Air Quality

July 6, 2015 Sunshine Coast The Ministry of Environment in collaboration with the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority is continuing the Wildfire Smoke Advisory for the Sunshine Coast and surrounding areas because of forest fire smoke that is affecting areas from Powell River to Gibsons/Langdale and surrounding areas. Smoke concentrations will vary widely as winds, fire behaviour and temperatures change. This situation is expected to persist until meteorological conditions change. Avoid strenuous outdoor activities. If you are experiencing any of the following symptoms, contact your health care provider: difficulty in breathing, chest pain or discomfort, and sudden onset of cough or irritation of airways. Exposure is particularly a concern for infants, the elderly and those who have underlying medical conditions such as diabetes, and lung or heart disease.

A photo posted by Rebecca Bollwitt (@miss604) on Jul 5, 2015 at 9:27pm PDT

Wildfire Info

All open fires are currently banned in BC, this even extends to charcoal barbecues on beaches. Follow BCForestFireInfo on Facebook for the latest news. If you see a wildfire — not just smoke clouds in the city — call 1-800-663-5555 or *5555 on your mobile. For Wildfire information, call 1-888-3FOREST.

Thoughts are with those in the affected communities and also with those battling massive the blazes across our province.