A BC Ferries schedule is essential reading for the vast majority of visitors to Hornby Island.
Charter floatplane and water taxi service is also available. There are no buses or taxis on the island, but islanders routinely offer lifts to hitchhikers and other footloose visitors.
BC Ferries
Reaching Hornby by car, bike or on foot requires two brief ferry rides. The first travels to Denman Island from the BC Ferries terminal at Buckley Bay, an hour's drive north of Nanaimo on the road to Courtenay (via either the multi-lane Highway 19 or the scenic Oceanside Route through Parksville and Qualicum Beach).
Once on Denman (known to local residents as "the bridge"), drivers follow the signs east along Denman Road and then south on East Road to the Gravelly Bay terminal (a 20-minute drive approximately). The 15-minute sailings to Hornby occur six days a week.
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BC Ferries provides regular service to Nanaimo and Swartz Bay (near Victoria) from its terminals at Horseshoe Bay and Tsawwassen near Vancouver on the BC mainland. Island visitors from the US often arrive via the Black Ball Ferry (Port Angeles, WA to Victoria) or Washington State Ferries (Anacortes, WA to Sidney, BC).
Bus and Water Taxi
Water taxi service to Hornby is available from the Comox Bay Marina by request. IslandLink's shuttle bus to Vancouver Island's major airports, ferry terminals and east-coast population centres makes regular daily stops at the Buckley Bay terminal. So too does Greyhound. A car-stop program similar to those run on Pender Island and Mayne Island was in the planning stages in 2009.
Air Travel
Domestic and some international flights via Air Canada, WestJet, Transat, Pacific Coastal, and Central Mountain Air fly regularly into the Comox Valley Airport (1250 Knight Road, Comox; use exit #117 off Highway 19). This modern facility is about 40 minutes north of the Buckley Bay ferry terminal. Rental cars are available at the airport.
Those looking for a fast, direct route to the island can charter flights with Harbour Air or Saltspring Air from Vancouver International Airport's (YVR) south terminal.
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Hornby Island