I will be in Seattle in July and am thinking about spending an extra week to visit the Vancouver area or Vancouver Island. We love nature and bird watching, but also like staying in nice hotels. The Tofino area looks rather intriguing. I have a few questions however I hope you can assist with:
.If we were to fly from Seattle to Vancouver Island or other outlying areas, are we subjected to the new flight rule about having to check ALL of your bags? I am not excited about having to check my camera, binoculars, medications, etc. Can we just use a puddle jumper from Seattle to somewhere in BC in which case the baggage checking won't be an issue since we'll just throw the bags in the back of the plane?
.What if instead we drove from Seattle to somewhere in BC? Is there a nice natural area not too far from Vancouver which would not be too long of a drive?
.Is it a really long drive from Seattle to Tofino? It seems pretty long on the map but I didn't know what the road conditions are like and if it looks quicker than it is. Are there other areas of Vancouver Island you'd recommend for us?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
JoniC

<i>"Can we just use a puddle jumper from Seattle to somewhere in BC in which case the baggage checking won't be an issue since we'll just throw the bags in the back of the plane?"</i>

The short answer is Yes but <i>'puddle jumper</i>' means <u>seaplane</u> which means luggage weight restrictions usually 10kg/person.Easy to fly Victoria to Seattle that way with Kenmore Air-I thought they used to fly to Tofino but maybe no more http://www.kenmoreair.com/index.php

<i>"What if instead we drove from Seattle to somewhere in BC? Is there a nice natural area not too far from Vancouver which would not be too long of a drive?"</i>"

That's Vancouver Island-all of it.

<i>"Is it a really long drive from Seattle to Tofino?...Are there other areas of Vancouver Island you'd recommend for us?</i>'

You're aware that you can drive the whole way you need to take a ferry?

My suggestion is to fly Seatac to Victoria, rent a car and drive to WCVI if that's where you want to go it's about 5 hours from Victoria an easy drive.

Failing that you could head along Highway 14 to Port Renfrew and explore that area, do some kayaking, whale watching maybe fishing, all found.

http://www.soulecreeklodge.com/

http://portrenfrew.com/botbeach.htm

http://drivebc.com/

Considering driving in a circle.

Seattle to Port Angeles, Washington.

Ferry to Victoria.

Drive to Tofino, or just stick in the Victoria area.

Ferry boat back to Vancouver. There are two routes, one of which (more northern) gets you to beautiful territory, to.

Drive into Vancouver, vist a while, and then drive sout, back to Seattle, staying on roads and bridges, but no ferryboats.

I've done this several times, and its a great trip. (I used to live in central Canada but have offices in Vancouver, Bellingham -just south of the US border - and Seattle, and much preferred driving between them, rather than taking a plane.

BAK

I agree with the circular driving route suggestion and I'd definitely continue on to Tofino if you can go for at least 3 days. So long as you break up the trip from the Seattle area to Tofino with overnights or longer in Victoria and Vancouver it's not so bad--about 5 hours travel time to/from either of those places.

However, I'd do the suggested route counterclockwise (cross to Vancouver first) due to shorter lineups going into Canada than coming back to the US. Coming back you'll be on the ferry and the border crossing is part of that, it's easy. Do make reservations on the ferries so your wait time is reduced.

Wow great idea about the circle; never thought of doing that. Do you have recommendations about specific areas to visit for nature/hiking/birds on this route, recommended time to spend in each area and nice places to stay?

As always I really appreciate your advice!

JoniC

JoniC, another idea is a circle drive using the BC Ferries CirclePac ticket: http://www.bcferries.com/travel_plan...pac/index.html

There's also a suggested itinerary and some good links posted on the BC Ferries website. We are planning to do that for our upcoming trip to the area.

We've also visited Tofino and it is spectacular. We've not been able to stay 3 nights, though, just 2 -- and in my opinion that is pretty rushed considering that it is a long drive across the island. Middle Beach Lodge is our favorite place, with a lovely blending of nature/rustic and upscale resort. http://www.middlebeach.com/

You don't have to go very far at all out of Vancouver to find spectacular scenery and wildlife.