Canadian Family Adventure

Fourteen nights in British Columbia, self-drive, from Vancouver to Vancouver Island and up to Whistler, arranged for a family.

The shape is three cities and a wilderness: Vancouver, Victoria, then four nights on the open Pacific at Tofino, and five in the mountains at Whistler, with a ferry crossing in the middle.

Three nights at the Fairmont Waterfront open it, with Stanley Park, Gastown, Granville Island, the Capilano Suspension Bridge and the North Shore, with the Grouse Mountain Skyride and a seaplane flight available. BC Ferries then crosses to Victoria for two, with the Butterfly Gardens and their free-flying birds, axe throwing, Butchart Gardens and a whale watching cruise. Tofino follows for four at the Wickaninnish Inn, out on the edge of the ocean, with black bear tours, a Zodiac search for orcas and other whales, and kayaking, surfing, cycling and fishing available: this is the surf capital of Canada and feels it. Whistler closes the trip for five, reached by the Sea to Sky Highway.

The rental car, the ferry crossings, the named properties, economy flights from London, the transfers and UK airport lounge passes are all included; the FlyOver Canada and Butchart Gardens admissions, the whale and bear tours, the private mountain tour, the seaplane and the ziplining are all extra. The price shown is per person sharing. No wildlife sighting can be promised, on the bear tours or at sea. June to September is the window for all of it, when the ferries run often, the Tofino weather is at its kindest and Whistler is given over to biking and hiking rather than skiing. Fifteen days is enough to do the island properly rather than treating it as a day trip from Vancouver.