Sometimes the best holiday is the one you spend being a tourist in your own city. Whether you're exploring on your own or showing off the area to visiting friends or relatives, the New Westminster Public Library has a wealth of books to guide you.

Start with the New Westminster Visitors Guide, published by Tourism New Westminster (www.tourismnewwestminster.com). Available for free at the library and other tourist locations, this handy guide has lots of activities and places to see. (Note the library's phone number with the map should read 604-527-4660.) Also look at www.newwest150.ca for ways to celebrate the city's 150th anniversary.

Exploring Vancouver is easy with many guidebooks. Take a look at Vancouver: Insight City Guide; DK Eyewitness Top 10 Travel Guides: Vancouver & Victoria; Vancouver & Victoria Colour Guide; and Lonely Planet - Vancouver. Best Places Vancouver is described as the locals' guide to the best restaurants, lodgings, sights, shopping and more.

Enjoying the outdoors is one of the area's major attractions. Hiking and walking ideas can be found in Best Walks of Southwestern British Columbia, Easy Hikes & Walks of Southwestern British Columbia and 103 Hikes in Southwestern British Columbia. If you want a bit of history with your walk, check out the SkyTrain Explorer: Heritage Walks from Every Station and Michael Kluckner's Vancouver Walks.

If you have time, explore a bit farther afield. Jack Christie has an abundance of ideas in 52 Best Day Trips from Vancouver and Best Weekend Getaways from Vancouver. Both Christie's The Whistler Book and Whistler: The 10 Premier Hikes, by Kathy and Craig Copeland, help you explore the area around the site of the 2010 Olympics.

In The Wild Side Guide to Vancouver Island's Pacific Rim, Jacqueline Windh shares her secrets of visiting Long Beach, Tofino, Ucluelet, Port Alberni, Nitinat and Bamfield.

Wherever you visit, enjoy the summer.