thorspecken

I mentioned before that we don't want the extra $500 expense of airfare from Van. to Vic. I was online and saw there is a company called Prince of Whales that goes to Van. right to the Vic. harbor. Instead of waiting in line for the ferry we get right on the boat and then have a four hour trip and whale watching tour amongst the San Juan Islands. It is as expensive as flying but you get the double benefit of both a whale watching tour and the cost of getting there. Then we can save some on the car rental because we won't need the car until we leave downtown Vic. for the drive to Tofino. Has anyone done the Prince of Whales? Also no one has mentioned Telegraph Cove. That has a nice write up in the Fodors Book. Lastly I went to the Victoria Ferry website but I'm not clear where all the ferries land. Is there a ferry from Nanaimo or further north that goes to a place further up the coast on the mainland for a leisurely trip down the coast to Vancouver?

Cruiseryyc

Okay Thorspecken a word of advice - you now have three different threads going on the same topic. It would have been better to stick with your original thread and get everyone's answers and opinions in one spot.

Now to answer your latest question - I have heard of Prince of Whales tours in the form of whale watching tours; I did not know that they could get you from Vancouver to Victoria. What about your luggage? Telegraph Cover is lovely. The BC Ferries go either from Tswassen (30 minute drive from downtown Vancouver) to Sydney (30 minute drive to downtown Victoria) or from Tswassen to Nanaimo. Alternatively you can also go from Horeshoe Bay (North Vancouver) to Nanaimo - but this is not a very scenic route.

Meesthare

I might be wrong about this, but the Prince of Whales boats that I've seen are Zodiacs. They're large, but they're not meant for transportation from the Island to the Mainland, as far as I know. You can see the same whales from the BC Ferries boats or the Washington State ferries, as well - we've seen lots of them from both! I also don't understand where you're getting the $500 fare from, connecting Vancouver and Victoria. I think it's more like $125. However, the ferry would be cheaper.
Have you already booked your flight from Orlando? I think somebody on one of your other threads pointed out that you can fly directly to Victoria from there, with one change of planes in Toronto.

Carmanah

Prince of Whales does offer a Vancouver-Victoria transportation + whale watching option where they take you from one city to another and you go whale watching in between:

http://www.princeofwhales.com/vancouver_tours_2.html

Meesthare

Oh, OK - new information! Thanks. Might be interesting to do, some time.

thorspecken

Cruiseryyc--I know I have put up three threads. But I find that once people answer the intial post they don't seem to come back to them. I know I've been a bit obsessive but I find the board a fun way to research my vacation which I soundly deserve. Plus I seem to have put a new idea on the board on a scenic and fun way to get to Victoria. The luggage question is a good one. It seems to be a small day boat geared towards day trippers. But you can go one way. I was quoting the flight RT for the two of us. It's a toughy because we want the convenience of flying but if we do fly we still have to get from the airport which seems a bit of a schlep. Plus for Floridians a ferry could be fun. I liked the post about the Seaplane which would also be scenic. I'm not worried about the safety. I got sick from the fumes on a seaplane to the Dry Tortugas so I'm a little pensive about it.

Meesthare

Thorspecken - I can see what you mean in terms of why you have started so many new threads, but I think you'll find that if you go back to your original posts and acknowledge the people that have answered your questions, that is effective in bringing them back to have another look and answer more questions if they can. I'm not suggesting that you aren't acknowledging people, but I do find that people will come back to see if the OP has said "thanks" or whatever, and if they haven't, then responders tend to move on.

thorspecken

Thanks Meestshare. I am new to the board and don't know the etiquette. It's a great world with all the possibilites and it's fun to explore them all.