Fly Drive Canada

Depart the UK on your chosen scheduled flight to Vancouver. Upon arrival, independently make your way to your hotel, where you spend the first night of your adventure.

Pick up your motorhome from the Vancouver depot. You need to have checked ferry times and booked for the Tsawwessen-Swartz Bay Ferry, which will take you on a ninety minute trip across the Alaska Marine Highway. Allow four hours to get to the Ferry Terminal in case there is traffic and to be in good time to board. Head south for the Transcanada Highway. You are taking the ferry across to Sannich, in south Vancouver Island. When you are off your boat, West Bay Marine Village is just 20 miles. The West Bay RV Park is unlike any other in Canada. Situated right on Victoria’s harbour it has spectacular views of the city. Open year round it offers full service sites with easy access to the city centre. The closest RV Park to Victoria, all the main attractions are a mere five minutes drive away. If you would prefer to not take your vehicle downtown, this is not a problem. The jaunty Victoria Harbour Ferries can take you straight from the park to the heart of the city. Visit: Victoria – The waterfront, the architecture the seafood and everything else that makes British Columbia’s capital city such a magnet for tourism.

Sightseeing in Victoria

Once you leave the urban/suburban areas on today’s drive, the highway climbs over the rugged Malahat highlands, made up of volcanic rock covered by 400 year old Douglas fir trees that in colonial days were common all around Victoria. The rivers in this area have gravel beds, left behind from early glaciers and subsequent erosion, and are home to thousands of salmon. The Malahat Summit provides a number of stunning vantage points for viewing the Saanich Inlet, which is a backwards fjord, facing into the direction of the glacial flow. The lowland valleys have lush farmlands, tree farms and orchards, and the rivers are home to Steelhead trout of up to a metre in length! Still heading north and overlooking the Straights of Georgia, at Rosewell Creek you may want to turn off Hwy 19 on to 19a, through some of the coastal areas, until you reach Campbell River. Take the short crossing on the Campbell River-Quadra Island ferry north to Quadra Island and on to Ripple Rock RV Park at Browns Bay Resort. Cruise ships on the Discovery Passage go right past Ripple Rock RV Park on their way to Alaska and back. Visit: the wide sandy beaches at Rathtrevor Beach Provincial Park.

Sightseeing on Vancouver Island

Located on the northwest tip of Vancouver Island, Port Hardy is “where the highway ends, and adventure begins.” You might see killer whale pods and schools of dolphins and porpoises jumping over the cresting waves. Cape Scott Provincial Park, which sits on the northern point of the Island, provides a great opportunity to explore the fourteen mile long beach where seals and sea lions frolic offshore. Beachcombers find old Native trade beads or a glass float that has been swept in on the waves across the Pacific Ocean. Roads only head back south-east from here so head back on Highway 19 for just over 26 miles. Ten miles off the highway towards the coast, you’ll find Beaver Cove and Telegraph Cove beyond it. Your RV Park is open all year with all amenities, ocean views and a marina. Visit: Cormorant Channel Provincial Park on the way to your campsite.

Sightseeing on Vancouver Island

You’ll still be returning the way you came so, if you missed anything on the way north, this is the opportunity to stop now. Provincial Parks along the way past Campbell River include Morton Lake, Elk Falls and Miracle Beach. You’re headed for the Qualicum Bay Resort, by leaving Highway 19 between Qualicum Beach and Fanny Bay. For much of the way between Courtenay and Campbell River the Island Highway runs beside Qualicum Bay, an area rich in seafood. Pullouts beside the road give easy access to the bay’s sand and pebble beaches. At several places you can buy fresh seafood, brought to the docks daily from local waters. Visit: Little Qualicum Falls. You maybe didn’t expect waterfalls around here.

Sightseeing on Vancouver Island

It’s only a very short drive today to enjoy Vancouver Island’s second city. Nanaimo offers natural beauty at every turn, thanks to its location between Mount Benson and the Straight of Georgia. The thriving local arts and music scene has something happening every day. History enthusiasts will enjoy walking through Nanaimo’s winding downtown and checking out historic buildings, many which have been transformed into charming shops, restaurants or museums particularly in the Old City Quarter. There are also abundant shopping opportunities but, for the more energetic, there’s bungy jumping, rock climbing walls and much more. After fun, excitement or just shopping, head for your Campground where “The only thing we overlook is the water!” It’s fifty-three natural acres of oceanfront , forest and riverside with lots to do. Visit: The Bastion, the Hudson Bay Company’s old fortress and stop for a drink at the (colourfully) historic Palace Hotel.

Sightseeing on Vancouver Island

The Horseshoe Bay-Departure Bay Ferry is ten minutes from your campground. Your ferry crossing is about two hours and then from Horseshoe Bay drive to Burnaby Cariboo Campground on the outskirts of Vancouver. The campground has a bus stop with a half-hourly service into the city right outside the door or you can take a 15 minute walk and catch the Skytrain. Vancouver is one of our favourite cities and it definitely deserves some more of your time. Visit: Stanley Park, the Harbour Centre, Granville Island, the Capilano Suspension Bridge, Grouse Mountain and so much more.

Sightseeing on Vancouver Island

Return your motorhome to the Cruise America depot, make your way to the airport and check in for your flight back to the UK.