Should you visit Capilano Suspension Bridge or Lynn Canyon in North Vancouver?

Go to Capilano Suspension Bridge Park if this is your first trip and you want the long bridge plus the treetop and cliffside walkways on one ticket. An adult pays $76.95 online in 2026 plus GST, and a free shuttle runs from Canada Place all year. Go to Lynn Canyon Park when you'd rather spend nothing. The District of North Vancouver charges no entry to cross its bridge over Lynn Creek, and the Twin Falls loop gets you back to the car park in about half an hour. Lynn Canyon asks more of you on the way there and in the canyon itself, because the bus ride is longer and the water below is dangerous.

We compared the two parks from the operators' own pages, the District's safety notices and TransLink's fall 2026 timetables, all read on 16 and 17 October 2026. Neither visit happened in person for this guide. Prices carry the year they apply to and say whether tax sits inside them.

How do the two parks compare?

	Capilano Suspension Bridge Park	Lynn Canyon Park
Where it is	3735 Capilano Road, on the 236 bus route to Grouse Mountain	The end of Peters Road in Lynn Valley
Adult entry	$76.95 online, $79.95 at the window (2026, plus GST)	Free, with the Ecology Centre by donation (2026)
What entry covers	The 137 m bridge, Treetops Adventure, Cliffwalk, the Story Centre and Canyon Lights in season	The suspension bridge, the canyon trails and the Ecology Centre
The bridge	137 m long and 70 m above the Capilano River	About 50 m above Lynn Creek
Time to allow	Two to two and a half hours, by the park's average	35 minutes for the Twin Falls loop on the District's map
Hours in late October 2026	10 am to 8 pm daily, with later closes for Canyon Frights	Dawn to dusk daily, with lot gates from 7 am to 7 pm
From downtown without a car	Free shuttle from Canada Place, 25 minutes on the 2026/27 timetable	SeaBus, then the 228 and a 15-minute walk
Parking	$9 for up to three hours in the small lot (2026)	$3 an hour from 1 March to 31 October, free from November to February
Wheelchairs and strollers	The suspended walkways aren't wheelchair accessible, and wheelchair users get in free	The bridge and trails can't take wheelchairs or strollers
The drawback	Cost, with timed tickets you book ahead	Cold, fast water and cliffs that have cost more than 40 lives in 50 years

Who should pick Capilano Suspension Bridge Park?

First-time visitors and cruise passengers do best here. The bridge has crossed this canyon in one form or another since 1889, and today's span runs 137 metres at 70 metres above the river. One timed ticket also gets you onto Treetops Adventure, seven small bridges strung between platforms up to 33 metres above the forest floor. Cliffwalk follows the granite wall of the canyon for 213 metres and stands about 90 metres above the canyon floor at its highest. Free guided talks run all year.

Getting there is the easy part. The park's free shuttle leaves Canada Place, the Hyatt Regency and the Blue Horizon Hotel, and its 2026/27 timetable gives 25 minutes from Canada Place. Keep your ticket for the ride back, because the driver asks for proof of admission. Cruise passengers can leave bags at the Canada Place stop for free same-day storage. TransLink's bus 236 from Lonsdale Quay stops outside the gate in 18 to 20 minutes too.

From 20 November 2026 to 10 January 2027 the park becomes Canyon Lights and opens from 11 am to 9 pm, closing only on Christmas Day. Regular admission covers it. On 23 to 25 and 30 to 31 October and 1 November 2026 Canyon Frights keeps the gates open until 9 pm.

The catch is the bill. Two adults and two children aged 6 to 12 pay $213.80 online in 2026, and 5% GST brings that to $224.49 on our sum. Every ticket is a timed entry, and the park warns that arrival windows run short at peak times, so book ahead. Buy only on capbridge.com or from its authorized partners. The park won't honour tickets sold through capbridge.ltd or capilanobridge.com.

Who should pick Lynn Canyon Park?

Pick Lynn Canyon if you'd like a canyon bridge and an hour in the rainforest for free, and the bus doesn't bother you. The District opened the park in 1912, and a private bridge that charged 10 cents a crossing opened the same year. The rebuilt bridge now hangs about 50 metres over Lynn Creek, and it reopened on 22 December 2025 after crews replaced the boardwalk and stairs on its east approach.

Cross the bridge and turn right for the Twin Falls loop. It drops through the forest to Twin Falls Bridge and climbs back to the car park, and the District's 2021 park map gives it 1 km and 35 minutes. Salmon can swim no farther up the creek than the pool below Twin Falls. Turn left instead and Thirty Foot Pool is about 20 minutes away. Start at the Lynn Canyon Ecology Centre at the end of Peters Road for a trail map, and in winter it opens on weekdays from 10 am to 4 pm and on weekends from noon.

The trip from downtown takes longer. Ride the SeaBus to Lonsdale Quay and catch the 228 at Bay 2 to Lynn Valley Road at Peters Road, then walk 15 minutes down Peters Road. The 227 from Phibbs Exchange stops five minutes from the gate, and its last weekday bus back from Lynn Valley Centre leaves at 8:42 pm. The park shuts at dusk, so in December and January plan to head home by mid-afternoon.

Drivers have the better deal from November to February, when the District switches off its $3-an-hour pay parking. The free east lot off the north end of Lillooet Road takes the overflow on busy days.

How dangerous is the water at Lynn Canyon?

Dangerous enough that you should admire the pools from the trail. The District of North Vancouver said on 21 July 2025 that more than 40 people have died in Lynn Canyon over the last 50 years, and it strongly advises against cliff jumping. Its fire chief warned in 2024 of rocks hidden under the surface and very strong currents, and the District says the water is cold enough for hypothermia to set in very quickly, even in summer. Water levels can change fast. Stay on the trails and behind the fences in every season.

Phones work near the Ecology Centre, the café and the bridge, and the signal drops in parts of the canyon. North Shore Rescue asks anyone heading farther in to leave a trip plan and carry its ten essentials. Rangers patrol all year, and the first aid station beside the café is staffed from May to September.

Can you skip the ticket and still see the Capilano canyon?

Yes. Capilano River Regional Park runs along the same river below Cleveland Dam, and Metro Vancouver charges no entry. You won't cross a suspension bridge there. You get the view up Capilano Lake to the Lions from the dam and a 1 km Coho Loop over the Cable Pool and Pipeline bridges. Fisheries and Oceans Canada closed the hatchery to visitors on 1 October 2026, and work on a new Cable Pool platform brings short delays on the Coho Loop this fall. Metro Vancouver warns that water released over the dam can raise the river fast, and it marks the park no swimming.

Can you do both in one day?

You can, because the 236 and the 228 both leave from Lonsdale Quay. In winter, take Lynn Canyon in the morning while the light lasts and ride back to the Quay for the 236 to Capilano in the afternoon. During Canyon Lights the bridge stays open until 9 pm, and guests may stay an hour past the posted close. Pay by tap or Compass Card so your transfers carry across the SeaBus.

Quick answers

Is Lynn Canyon better than Capilano Suspension Bridge?

Lynn Canyon Park suits visitors who want a free canyon bridge and a short forest loop. Capilano Suspension Bridge Park suits a first visit with more to do on one ticket, at $76.95 for an adult online in 2026 plus GST.

Is the Lynn Canyon suspension bridge free?

Yes. The District of North Vancouver charges nothing to cross the Lynn Canyon suspension bridge, and the Ecology Centre takes donations. Parking costs $3 an hour from 1 March to 31 October.

How long do you need at Capilano Suspension Bridge Park?

Capilano Suspension Bridge Park puts the average visit at two to two and a half hours, and crossing the bridge itself takes 5 to 15 minutes.

Which bridge is higher, Capilano or Lynn Canyon?

The Capilano Suspension Bridge hangs 70 metres above the Capilano River. The Lynn Canyon suspension bridge hangs about 50 metres above Lynn Creek.

Can you take a stroller to either bridge?

No. Capilano Suspension Bridge Park keeps strollers in a parking area off its suspended walkways, and Lynn Canyon Park's bridge and trails can't take strollers, with about 30 steps down to the bridge.

Is there a free shuttle to Lynn Canyon?

No. Lynn Canyon Park has no shuttle, so ride TransLink's 228 from Lonsdale Quay or the 227 from Phibbs Exchange. Capilano Suspension Bridge Park runs the free shuttle from Canada Place.