I initially wrote this for somewhere else, as part of a series, but it never quite happened. So after polling friends back home in Vancouver, I am sharing local women-owned businesses to support on your next trip to Beautiful British Columbia.

In 2011, I was given the greatest travel editorial assignment ever: I covered seven festivals across Canada in partnership with Destination Canada and The New Yorker.

My beautiful university city (UBC), Vancouver has become a hot destination for people around North America, for it’s natural beauty, and nearby skiing in Whistler.

The Maritimes are Canada’s eastern provinces: Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island are jewels on the waterfront and should not be missed.

For over 125 years, the greatest rodeo in North America has been the Calgary Stampede. This may surprise some, but the annual annual rodeo, exhibition and festival held every July in Calgary, Alberta attracts over one million visitors per year.

Happy Canada Day! Today marks Canada’s birthday and we couldn’t be more thrilled to celebrate such a beautiful and progressive country.

Toronto is the fourth-largest city in North America and perhaps the most culturally diverse. So it should be of no surprise that some of the largest international festivals happen here, and I recently attended both the International Film Festival and Luminato International Arts Festival.

Though it is not readily known internationally (yet), this wine region to the North (Canada), Okanagan Valley is a true gem and one of my favorite places to go in the summer.

One of the most internationally recognized annual repertory theatre festivals happens in a charming town in Canada: Welcome to The Stratford Shakespeare Festival

For all of you lovers of the great outdoors (and who wouldn’t be), there are so many incredible national parks to enjoy in both the USA and Canada, what are you waiting for?

One of the most original Cities, Montreal knows how to live. Great art, great music, great food (in my top 3 food cities).