One of the major benefits of Vancouver is that it is less than a 2 hours drive from world-class skiing in Whistler, and the drive itself along the Sea to Sky Highway is one of the highlights of the trip. Make sure to give yourself a bit more time to stop and gawp at the views, in particular along the coast near Howe Sound.
Just a note on skiing in North America vs Europe, which I do find very different. In Europe, you tend to find seemingly endless interlocking valleys, ski-fields and genuine alpine villages that have often developed before the boom of skiing. North American is very different and Whistler is the classic example of this – much more commercialised, even if often more subtle. For example, the alpine village and lovely wooden chalets that look like they’ve been there for hundreds of years, get given away a touch when you notice they have 5 floors of modern car park below them. But, then again there are some very pleasant modern benefits – for example, sitting in the hot tub after a day of skiing is . . . ahhhhh. In terms of the skiing itself, you don’t get the endless mountains – but you do get two, with Whistler Mountain and Blackcomb Mountain, which are more than enough to keep you busy.