Our girls are now 2 and 4, and family bike rides have proved a bit challenging until now. Our 4YO has mastered her run bike, and just moved on to a real bike with pedals but refuses to ride it without the training wheels on. Our 2YO loves her tricycle, but has no interest in a run bike yet. When given the chance to try out family-friendly gear from English Bay Bike Rentals (location right near Denman & Davie downtown Vancouver, and owned by local family man Joe Kainer), we jumped on it!
Here is a short video clip of our beautiful ride around the Stanley Park seawall a few weeks ago as a family, and below are more details about our experience, and info about how to enter to win your own 1/2 day family bike rental package!
Options for families with young kids include bike trailers, kid seats that attach behind the adult rider, and a tandem bike where your kid pedals on a bike attached to the adult bike (with the adult fully in control). As you can see in this video, our 4YO chose the tandem option to “help” her dad pedal, and I chose to put our 2YO in a seat on the back of my bike. The staff at English Bay Bike Rentals had us geared up and ready to go in minutes (impressive considering we showed up later than we were supposed to, and they had other customers to attend to). Much appreciated by a mom of 2 little ones who can be quite impatient!
This was my first experience riding around the Stanley Park seawall with kids (had only done it as a child-free couple in the past!). Given my post-baby energy is not was it used to be, I LOVED how flat most of the ride was, and was pleasantly surprised to find we could complete the whole circuit around the park with two little ones in under an hour! This was great considering we’d chosen to come on a weekday evening after work and bedtime for the girls was not far off. It was just enough time for us all to take in the incredible ocean views, stop a few times for water and snack breaks, and arrive back at English Bay Bike Rentals as evening meltdowns were just beginning….next time we go during the day, I’m definitely bringing a full picnic lunch and planning to make lots more stop around the seawall at the various playgrounds, waterparks and amazing ocean-front pool at Second Beach.
A big thanks to the helpful staff at English Bay Bike Rentals for helping our family choose kid biking gear to suit their ages and abilities to ensure we had a really fun experience as a family. New family outings with little ones can certainly be hit or miss, and all four of us declare this one a HIT!
To enter to win a 1/2 day family bike rental for 2 adults and up to 3 kids (approx. $80 value depending on the gear you pick) from English Bay Bike Rentals, please enter through Rafflecopter below. Contest ends at midnight on Thursday, August 28th, and winner will be announced the next morning!
For more reviews on this awesome company through TripAdvisor online, click HERE.
Connect with English Bay Bike Rentals through their website, Facebook and Twitter.
ENJOY MAMAS!
15 months and almost 4. It would be so much fun!! (Right???)
4 and 1. This would be a blast!
4 and 18 mos – would be a great family outing! 🙂
10 and 11
3 years old and never been biking to Stanley Park, would be awesome!
4 and 2. It will be awesome!