Banff

Here is what the current itinerary looks like:

2 nights Vancouver
2 nights Victoria
3 nights Tofino
1 night Kamloops
5 nights Banff
1 night Calgary

Here is my dilemma - we have two weeks in the Pacific NW and the Canadian Rockies with 2 boys on a limited budget. Right now we are scheduled to take a car over to VI and spend five nights there but the costs are quickly adding up.

The question I have - is VI worth it?

We are budgeting $400 for activities during that portion of our trip but I find that one 2 hr whale watching tour in Victoria will max out that sum of money. That means that over our five days on VI we will only have 2 hrs of scheduled activities for the boys. I know we can do a little hiking/beachcombing/etc. but honestly, our entire trip will include spectacular hiking. Is Tofino worth a trip with 2 boys if all you can do is hike? Is there enough to do in Tofino?

Should I cut out those five nights on VI and redistribute them to Washington state? Seattle? North Cascades? Salt Spring Island for a day trip as a walk-on ferry passanger? Victoria day trip as a walk-on ferry passanger?

Personally, one of my favorite places on earth is Cannon Beach in Oregon. I've heard that Tofino far exceeds Cannon Beach but from what it sounds like you really have to have money to get out on the water there to enjoy it.

Thanks for any help.

laverendrye

Why not do your whale watching trip from Tofino and use the time in Victoria for other activities which your boys might find interesting?

You won't have all that much time for them to get bored in Tofino anyway as two of the days will include travel to and from there.

Banff

1) The reason why we don't plan on doing the whale watching from Tofino is b/c of the Orcas. From all of my research it sounds like whale watching from Tofino is much more hit or miss and those who see whales there usually only see one or so while in Victoria they usually see pods of Orca whales. Just seems a little more exciting for the boys to see large pods of Orcas.

2) Laverendrye - you bring up another point I forgot to mention - 2 days of drive time to and from Tofino. Again, is it worth it? Considering time and money?

Sam_Salmon

<i>"Is Tofino worth a trip with 2 boys if all you can do is hike?"</i>

I'm tempted to say <u>No</u>!

It's all about the water and if that doesn't fit your budget forget the Island altogether and spend time in the Okanagan Valley instead.

Beautiful beaches safe swimming sure to Please.

laverendrye

<<2 days of drive time to and from Tofino. Again, is it worth it? Considering time and money?>>

Based on what you have told us, I don't think so. It will be about a 5 hour drive from Victoria to Tofino, and from Tofino to Kamloops will be a full day.

I'd still visit Victoria for the orcas, but as Sam Salmon advised, take a day or two in the Okanagan en route to Banff. Forget Kamloops and either head directly to Kelowna and area via the Coquihalla Hwy, or take Hwy 3 from Hope to Osoyoos and then head north.

MrShort1

Sure it is a crazy drive to Tofino. You do have the Cathederal Forest to view. The Pacific Rim Trail? in Ucluelet is pretty amazing. There are a few other rain forest trails between Ucluelet and Tofino. Some wrecks. And Long Beach, nothing like it on a hot day. If you are watching your budget try Invermere instead of Banff. Water sports on the lake, hiking, trail rides natural hot springs as well as developed hot springs, lots of camping budget motels, grocery stores. Not to mention you could also go to the Columbia Icefields for a trip and work your way back to Calgary via Rocky Mountain House and the Brazeau Dam area. Go to the water slides at Sylvan lake. Depending on the ages of the kids they will be all about the long naps between the long areas of boredom. If you research the David Thompson highway there is a lot to do with very little $$$ with the exception of the Saskatchewan River Crossing where you should make sure you have fuel and supplies as you are a captive consumer. I think we paid at least .10 cents a litre more for fuel last year than in Calgary. Of course if you miss Banff then you miss the Lake Louise Gondola ride( good way to spend several hours) hiking up Johnston Canyon and wild life.

Tootsall

Must agree with the others: given the limited budget and time constraints I'd give Tofino a bye for another time. We spent a lot of time camping up there when our kids were younger and it takes time to get there (almost a full day drive from Victoria and, with the ferry schedules, another full day to make it over to Vancouver). Better use that time for land-based activity.

Don't get me wrong, Tofino/Ucluelet is definitely worth a trip (we're making a 4-day visit there as part of a larger, 3 week trip to Vancouver Island in July this year)... but perhaps one with whale watching/kayaking and/or hiking the West Coast Trail & etc. as the primary goal(s).