Tofino is a small village located on the north end of Esowista Peninsula in spectacular Clayoquot (Tla-o-qui-aht by Nuu-chah-nulth First Nations) Sound on the West Coast of Vancouver Island. The area can be reached by car via Highway 4, otherwise known as the Pacific Rim Highway. The journey is scenic and takes you through some wonderful scenery, make sure you have gas in the tank and are aware that you will be out of cell phone range for a good part of your trip out to the west coast. One other important tip, if the sign says SLOW DOWN, do […]

Read more

In British Columbia there is a lot more ski country than just Vancouver and Whistler. Over on the eastern side of the province there is an area known as the Kootenay Rockies, along the “Powder Highway”. The snow is deep and dry and they have ski resorts coming out of the woodwork and the helicopter skiing is amazing. This region has the highest concentration of ski resorts. It is also the birthplace of chopper skiing approximately 40 years ago. Some of the known resorts are located in towns such as Fernie, Kicking Horse, Revelstoke, Whitewater and the Red Mountain Resort […]

Read more

In downtown Victoria many of the streets are predictably named after prominent historic figures – Douglas, Yates, Begbie, Blanshard – or obvious landmarks: Government St., Fort St. But every city also has at least a few curious street names and Greater Victoria is no different. If there is a “Cedar Hill Road”, where is “Cedar Hill”? Why would anyone name a short cul-de-sac “Long Gun Place”? What other city in the world has a “Foul Bay Road”? Cedar Hill is easily identified. It is located at the north end of Cedar Hill Road overlooking Cordova Bay with a commanding view, […]

Read more

Oak Bay VillageMy favourite walk in Victoria starts out in Oak Bay Village.  I like to do this walk with friends and we always start at Ottavio’s, one of Victoria’s destination delis.  Fuelled with a cappuccino and a croissant, we head west down Oak Bay Avenue and continue along Prospect Place that begins at the junction of Oak Bay Avenue and Newport Avenue.   There is a flight of stairs leading down to Beach Drive just a few steps along Prospect Place.  Once on Beach Drive we turn right, walking along the sidewalk overlooking the beach and Oak Bay Marina.  […]

Read more

BC Lodging and Campgrounds Association is a non-profit trade organization representing over 700 motels, motor inns, resorts, lodges, campgrounds and other accommodation properties throughout British Columbia. There are more than 700 members who represent 16,000 rooms, 20,000 campsites and employ over 7,000 people. Visit the BCLCA’s website to learn more.

Read more

Oceanside is a group of fascinating and colourful communities with many of Vancouver Island‘s best beaches. This eastern region of Vancouver Island welcomes visitors from around the world who want to escape the crowds and sample the true spirit of Vancouver Island. The communities that make up this beautiful destination include Parksville, Qualicum Beach, Nanoose Bay, French Creek, Arrowsmith/Coombs and the Lighthouse Country (Qualicum Bay, Deep Bay and Bowser). The Parksville and Qualicum Beach region are best known for attractions such as: The warmest ocean swimming beaches north of California including Parksville, Qualicum, and Rathtrevor beaches The towering old growth […]

Read more

Many areas within British Columbia have organizations whose mandate is to promote their particular destination in partnership with individual tourism-related businesses. Quokka Systems, the company that owns the family of TravelIn sites, is pleased to work with many organizations, trying to help bring their members into the public domain. Some of the tourism associations are called Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs). Examples include Tourism Vancouver, Tourism Victoria, Cariboo Chilcotin Coast Tourism Association and others. These fall under the bigger Tourism BC umbrella. However, there are also more targeted tourism associations like Tourism Richmond, which covers the smaller city of

Read more