Beautiful beach, stunning views. Fantastic at low tide to explore tide pools and plenty of sandy…read moreplaces to play and swim. Breathtaking place to spend the day. Picnic tables for your lunching needs and public bathrooms and rinse showers available.

Great family campground. We stayed here for two nights with our three kids. Lots of other families…read morethere and our kids made friends in the park right away. Not a wilderness campground but our site was far enough we couldn't see our neighbors on either side. Short walk to the beach, saw deer on the campground. Great weekend away.

A very nice scenic and relaxing beach and a very nice place for a nice relaxing walk.read more

Lovely public space on the neck of the park. The water isn't very clear, but it's nice and warm in…read morethe summer. Goose Spit is surrounded by a lot of sand and mud bottoms, making it great for wading in the water. Access from Hawkins Avenue by car, or the Hawkins Greenway on foot. There is ample free parking beachside, fire pit rings, and porta potties. At the tip/end of the Spit is the Naval base and civilians are restricted from visiting. If you want nice views, head for the Nob Hill Greenway. The trail begins with a set of stairs near the beginning of the Spit which lead up to residential areas. If you keep going along the narrow blackberry trail, you get even wider vistas.

This is quite the gem for any rock collector out there. It's a bit hidden so it's nice and quiet…read more LOTS of trails and beach to explore. Also, a TON of wildlife!

A beautiful beach on Vancouver Island, just north of Bowser, BC. You will descend a fairly narrow…read moreroad down to the beach, where there are a couple spots to park and there's a bench overlooking the beach and a great view towards the coastal mountains. It's mostly rocky, but you may find a lot of wildlife here (and will probably see some bald eagles).

My parents live 5 mins from here, so it tends to be our go-to for one of our Island Beach Days!…read more They have a really great playground & water squirt park, clean change/rest rooms. The beach itself isn't bad, but it can be quite rocky so I would strongly suggest to wear a cheap pair of rubber flip flops on the beach and wear them in the water! Also, the water is COLD! You can swim in it, but it's a rough go on the way in! Another thing to be aware of is the tide. At times you can walk and walk and walk before you get to swim. However, the tide will come in quickly, so watch your bags, towels etc. When we were there the first week of July, we decided to go onto a rock mass that was above sea level by quite a bit and had a Tee Pee on it! It was quite private as there was only another coupon on it at the time. We swam (froze) but generally had fun. We had waded across below the knee level to get to it. When we decided to leave, it was no longer knee level- it came up past my chest (I'm 5-8) I slightly panicked as I didn't know how we were going to get back to the beach. Luckily my husband is 6-2, but he had to carry the bags above his head in order for him to safely get across without getting our phones etc. wet! Funny after the fact, not so much at the time !!

This is a huge park! There are plenty of parking all over. We parked somewhere in the middle near…read morethe children playground. Lots of families were there on the day we went. There is a green space in the middle where the arboretum is. It feels peaceful to walk in the greenery under the cover of the trees. During low tide, you can see the seabed as far as the eyes can see. Families will take the opportunity to be out there with their beach towels. I did not venture out there but I think you will also see shellfish in the seabed. The advisory was not to harvest them as they are contaminated. My favorite part of this park is at the end where there is a Legacy Labyrinth. It is quieter here. You can meditate while walking the labyrinth. There are also many cairns set on the logs. Pretty neat to see them.

I'm going to let the secret out to everyone! Tonquin beach is the most beautiful small beach in…read moreTofino. Secluded, exclusive, and private, yet free access for everyone. I came here in October during the evening, and there was only one person sitting on the beach. I was expecting more people because it was so beautiful. It was so quiet and peaceful too. I could only hear the waves and the wind blowing. The sands were almost completely untouched by beachcombers; so pristine, and very clean. The sunset on the beach was like a Roy Henry Vickers painting.

Amazing little spot…read more It is a quick drive from the Tofino town center. I would even say within walking distance. The whole park has just recently been completely updated with new trails, walkways and beach access. Parking is pretty limited. Walk down the path, down some cool stairs to the beach. It is quaint and very much undiscovered from the general tourist population. Talk about stereotypical west coast beauty. The rocks and trees make for a beautiful little cove. When you get down to the beach from the path, another trail picks up to another set of wooden stairs up to a wonderful trail system through the park. The trail walk took my wife and I about an hour with lots of breaks to enjoy the views and explore the surroundings. It was a great pre-lunch walk to build up our appetite to eat at Sobo nearby (best food in Tofino... scratch that, one of the best places on the Island!) This was my first discovery of the park/beach after seeing it on Yelp and it did not disappoint. Tonquin Park will be one of the places I will visit every time I go to Tofino from now on.

For an easy, scenic walk with ample parking, come to Rathtrevor Beach Provincial Park! You can walk…read morethe trails, on the beach and sit on one of the many beautiful benches they have provided. Vancouver Island is simply beautiful and scenic and reconnecting with nature is so easy in this lovely land. Highly recommend and will definitely return, eh!

While we were at Parksville on Vancouver Island, we took a morning stroll along a good length of…read morethe Rathtrevor Beach Provincial Park. This is a beautiful place whether you want to stay for a couple of hours, or camp overnight (we didn't, so I couldn't tell you where the campsites were). Washrooms are conveniently spaced apart, there are lots of trees and shaded areas, and dozens upon dozens of solid picnic tables galore. I could imagine hauling all of our food with lots of friends/family down to this beach and NOT worry about having to find parking or a picnic a spot. There are plenty of trees to provide ample shade, and the sandy beach is never more than a minute away. The beach is the most awe inspiring and beautiful when it is low tide; you will see a stretch of sandy flats as far as the eye can see!

A beautiful seaside stop on Vancouver Island! Qualicum Beach is an excellent place to take a break…read moreduring your island road trip, especially with its convenient public washrooms and plenty of free seaside parking. One of the highlights for us was visiting the north side of Qualicum Beach, especially the Seaside Nature Park - Faye Smith Memorial Pavilion. This area was very educational and a great place to learn more about the local environment. There are lots of interesting displays and information about animals from the land, air, and water, as well as local plants and the surrounding islands. We visited on a rainy day, so we couldn't fully capture the beautiful coastal landscape in photos. Even with the weather, we could see the potential of this area and how beautiful it would be on a sunny day. We will definitely be back to explore more, walk along the beach, and enjoy the ocean views when the weather is nicer. A relaxing coastal stop with beautiful scenery, easy parking, and a great educational experience for visitors of all ages.

Qualicum Beach, a small town located on Vancouver Island near Nanaimo, is a popular local vacation…read morespot. However, until last week, when my husband and I were invited to join a friend at her parents' vacation home in Qualicum Beach, I had never had the opportunity to go. We were only there for a few days so we did not have the opportunity to see much, but it was a nice, relaxing, much-needed mini vacation. One of the things we did was walk along the beach, and we saw several eagles and a heron, in addition to many, many geese. There were also a ton of tiny crabs skittering about on the sand, and we had to be careful to ensure that we did not step on them. I would like to go back and see more of Qualicum Beach, although as a non-driver, I would need to get a ride with a friend who drives. There is technically transit in Qualicum Beach -- I saw some bus stops, and once, I saw a bus -- but essentially, you need to have access to a car to get anywhere.

Stopped in for a break in the day while we were traveling from Tofino to Ucluelet back to our lodge…read morewhere we were staying. Despite it being a cold day, it was packed with surfers ready to hit the waves. Thankfully, we claimed what I think was probably the last parking spot within walking distance. I needed to use the restroom, so I hit that first. Only one or two were in operation, sadly but at least they had them. There were also changing rooms available so that was nice for the surfers who were changing. The beach itself is cool. It butts up right against forest, so there were tons of old downed, sand-beaten trees that sculpted a beautiful backdrop for the mellow ocean waves. The beach itself was very clean & the walk was quite nice and serene. This beach is a nice little hidden (or maybe not-so-hidden treasure to find) and I welcome a return visit if we ever visited this area again.

Chesterman Beach was a nice stop for an evening walk. There were plenty of fire pits going with…read moregroups sitting around them on the driftwood. We saw a few people surfing as the sun was setting. It's perfect for an easy, long walk. It's a quick drive south of Tofino and we found it easy to park with a very short walk from the parking lot to the beach. There are restrooms near the parking lot as well. Overall, a great beach.

A very very nice scenic are along the Puntledge river and a nice place to sunbath and relax but I…read morerecommend being very careful swimming in that area because of strong currents and undertows.

Easily the unexpected highlight of our trip to BC and, especially the Comox Valley. This is a…read moreregional park near Courtenay that's easy to find and worth a side trip for the falls. Its a nice, short hike to the falls, which are just beautiful and super fun for the whole family. Its hard to describe but picture a clear stream with rocks and deeper pools that you can walk or swim across. When we were there, we ran into quite a few families, as well as travelers, many of whom appeared to be ready to spend much of the day there. Super chill and just gorgeous. Don't miss.