| THE FACTS ABOUT VANCOUVER ISLAND | |
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WHY GO Vancouver Island in Canada is a rugged wilderness of dark forests and ice-cold lakes. But guests at its luxury hotels and tented camps are cocooned from harsh reality. Adventures in this big outdoors include deep-sea fishing trips for halibut, salmon and chinook, whale-watching excursions or kayaking in the inlets of the Pacific Rim National Park. Exploring the wilderness can be done on horse or on foot along the many trails in the fir-lined woods that spread across the islands in the endless navy-blue sea. WHERE TO STAY CLAYOQUOT WILDERNESS RESORTS AND SPA (00 1 250 726 8235; fax: 725 2681; www.wildretreat.com). This includes the Wilderness Outpost and Quait Bay. Built in the middle of a temperate, old-growth rainforest at Bedwell River, Wilderness Outpost offers accommodation in 16 luxury tents. Once devoted to logging and gold-mining, this area is now protected as part of a biosphere known as Clayoquot Sound. The canvas tents have wooden decks, driftwood Adirondack furniture, remote-controlled propane stoves, duvets and oil lamps. There are also hot tubs, a spa, a library tent, great open fireplaces and a dining room where executive chef Timothy May prepares 'modern natural cuisine'. The floating resort at Quait Bay (closed for 2005) is a 16-room hotel made out of an old barge which floats in a tree-lined inlet. A wooden boardwalk connects guests to a series of hikes through the unkempt terrain of ancient rainforest around three freshwater lakes. The hotel's Healing Grounds Spa is built next to a waterfall and offers treatments combining a wide selection of minerals. Both resorts have activities programmes and place particular prominence on their kitchens. £££££ WICKANINNISH INN Osprey Lane, Tofino (00 1 250 725 3100; fax: 725 3110; www.wickinn.com). This three-storey cedar-wood hotel, managed by Charles McDiarmid, is on beautiful Chesterman beach. All rooms have ocean views, and some have Jacuzzis. There is a spa, and various activities can be arranged. £ WHERE TO EAT POINTE RESTAURANT Wickaninnish Inn (as in Where to Stay). Sophisticated menu and spectacular views. SHELTER RESTAURANT 601 Campbell Street, Tofino (00 1 250 725 3353; www.shelterrestaurant.com). Owned and run by young people, very good food. SoBo Tofino Botanical Gardens, 1084 Pacific Rim Avenue, Tofino (00 1 250 725 2341; www.sobo.ca). A purple van out of which good Thai food is served for local picnicking. TOUGH CITY SUSHI 350 Main Street, Tofino (00 1 250 725 2021; www.toughcity.com). Hip hangout in a gabled inn looking out on the harbour. WHAT TO DO WHALE WATCHING Jamie's Whaling Station (00 1 250 725 3919; www.jamies.com) and Remote Passages (00 1 250 725 3330; www.remotepassages.com) offer whale-watching excursions from Tofino. EXCURSIONS Ocean-going excursions and wilderness walks with First Nations guides are organised by Tla-ook Cultural Adventures (00 1 250 725 2656; www.tlaook.com). SURFING Pacific Surf School (00 1 250 725 2155; www.pacificsurfschool.com) runs surfing classes for all. Surf Sister (00 1 250 725 4456; www.surfsister.com) is run by women for women. TOUR OPERATOR Frontier Canada (020 8776 8709; www.frontier-travel.co.uk) offers an eight-night Vancouver Island itinerary. This includes return Air Canada flights from London to Vancouver, return flights from Vancouver to Tofino and accommodation. WHEN TO GO The island's tourist season is from April to November. The best time for outdoor activities is high summer, when conditions are at their warmest and driest. For whale watching, visit between March and May when 21,000 whales, including the grey whale, migrate from California to Alaska. TOURIST INFO | |