A Traveler's Guide to Vancouver

Vancouver is a city that is located in the southwestern portion of the state of Washington. It sits on the northern bank of the Columbia River and is the fourth largest city in the state. The city of Vancouver, Washington is not to be confused with the city of Vancouver, British Columbia which is 300 miles north. Both cities were named in honor of Captain George Vancouver.

In 1806 the famous exploring duo of Lewis and Clark came down the Columbia River to the area. They found the area to be quite conducive to settlement and spoke very highly of it. It wasn't until 1824 that permanent residents moved to the area and started building an outpost. This was a settlement by the Hudson Bay Company and was originally intended to be a fur trading post. Over the years the city was the home to the US Army and some very famous people, including US Grant, George McClellan, and George Marshall.

During World War 2 a shipyard was opened near Vancouver, which provided plenty of jobs and revenue for the city. The population of the city doubled almost overnight.

The weather in Vancouver is classified as dry-summer subtropical. Summer temperatures rarely exceed 80 degrees Fahrenheit and winter temperatures can be brutally cold at time. Snowfall is common in the winter months, and the area receives most of its precipitation in the months of January through March.

There are several annual events of note in Vancouver. The Fourth of July Fireworks display is one of the grandest on the west coast. The fireworks are fired off from the Fort Vancouver National Historic Site and thousands of people come to the city each year to see them. The Vancouver Wine and Jazz Festival is the largest jazz festival in Washington each year. The Vancouver Sausage Fest each September is a throwback to the German immigrants who came to the area and traditionally celebrate Oktoberfest by cooking and eating traditional Bavarian dishes such as sausage.

The closest commercial airport is Portland International Airport. Please contact one of our customer service agents to book your flight to Vancouver. We offer cheap flight tickets to Vancouver as well as last minute flight tickets to Vancouver. Our company, EROS Travel Incorporated, is a travel agency that has been in business for 28 years and is based in Los Angeles, California. We are an internet search engine that provides cheap flight tickets, and we specialize in finding deals on last minute travel.