Situated in the southwest corner of British Columbia, just off Canada’s west coast, Vancouver Island is a large, beautiful, lush island, with a temperate Mediterranean climate, stunning mountain ranges, long expanses of gorgeous beaches, and natural rainforests.  

At 480 km in length, and 80 km at its widest point, this amazing island is large enough to have six diverse regions with major urban centres, as well as numerous smaller communities and villages. Victoria, BC’s capital city, is the largest community, situated on the southernmost tip, with about 350,000 of the island’s approximately 750,000 inhabitants.

There are seemingly endless possibilities for relaxation and recreation, with a world-class tourism infrastructure in place, upscale accommodation and spas, fine dining, shopping, and outdoor adventures, offering everything from kayaking, canoeing, fishing, whale watching, wildlife viewing, bungy jumping, seasonal skiing, and Canada’s best surfing on the island’s pacific coast.

LGBT life is also alive and well on the island, with the most developed activities in Victoria and to some extent in Nanaimo, but with a little research, you can find gay owned and operated, and LGBT friendly businesses in various locations outside the main urban centres.

Major areas of interest:

Victoria

Nanaimo

Sooke

Courtney 

Comox Valley 

Cowichan 

Campbell River 

Parksville and Qualicum Beach 

Port Alberni 

Ladysmith 

Tofino 

Uclelet 

Port Hardy