September is usually a beautiful month in the Lower Mainland. Just when summer appears to be over, September arrives and delivers some pretty good weather.

More often than not, the forecast for at least a couple of weeks is for warm sunny skies.

September Vancouver Weather

If you want to avoid the crowds and hotter temperatures of the summer, and don’t have to be indoors back at work in September, then September is one of the best months (in the top 4 or 5) to be in Vancouver.

Average September Weather

September temperatures average highs of around 18 degrees C (or 64 F for our American friends), and the lows are around 10 C (or 50 F). Vancouverites expect about 63 mm (so just 2.5  inches) of rain in the month, which more often than not comes at the very end, just before October and the start of Vancouver’s six or more month rainy season.

Recommended September Activities

Vancouverites recognize that the weather is soon going to change, so September is when everyone spends as much time as possible outdoors pretending it’s still summer, soaking up the last rays of sunshine before the rains start and everyone returns to a life of fall/winter-time hibernation.

You won’t find many sane people still swimming in September, but the region’s lakes and ocean beaches are still popular, and amazingly so on the Labour Day long weekend. Although school is finally back in session, what were Vancouver’s best places to be in the summer still apply in the month of September.

Top 6 Things to Do in September

Given that the month is usually a fairly dry one with more than its share of sunny skies, the following are 6 best things to do in September.

1. Savour the last few weeks of Vancouver’s amazing summer weather and long (but increasingly shorter) days by taking part in any of Vancouver’s best summer activities.
2. Go camping (or at least spend the day) one last time at Alice Lake, Rolley Lake, Alouette Lake, Porteau Cove or Cultus Lake.
3. Go for a drive up the Sea to Sky Highway and visit its attractions along the way.
4. Go for a hike along the Baden Powell Trail (or any of the other great parks on the North Shore), through the trails at Pacific Spirit Regional Park near UBC, or through the trails or along the seawall at Stanley Park.
5. Go to the Pacific National Exhibition (PNE) and enjoy the fair, including its Dinosaurs Alive displays, Peter Pan musical and free evening concerts.
6. Stock up on home office supplies at all the “Back to School Sales” around town.

For a full list of things to do this month, check out Vancouver’s September Calendar of Events.