Tofino's amazing diversity and scale of landscape, seascape, habitat and wildlife make it an ideal touring destination. Wonderful things to see lie within easy reach of town. Whales, bald eagles, seals, sea lions, sea otters and puffins are inadvertently included. Tours are the most affordable and social way of taking it all in. Find wonder. Make friends. Take pictures.
Several outfits offer tours to Hot Springs Cove, 1.5 hours north of Tofino. Welcome to the homeland of the Hesquiat people and Maquinna Provincial Park. The Whale Centre offers a year-round, 6-hour tour aboard its 9.14m/30ft cruiser, Hootka Kootla. After disembarking, a 20-minute walk leads through old-growth rainforest to a natural complex of hot springs pools and cascading waterfall.
Water temperatures in the natural sulphur hot springs are roughly 50°C/110°F), so prepare for a deeply relaxing soak. Good walking shoes and water shoes for the pools are essential.
Hot Springs & Whale Watching
Remote Passages Marine Excursions offers the best of two worlds with a combined hot springs and whale-watching tour. Ocean Outfitters and West Coast Aquatic Safaris offer a Hot Springs tour option of cruising one way and flying back the other in a floatplane.
Innchanter – Floating B&B
Those who'd like to experience this remarkable region under a sky full of fat Pacific stars can book accommodations at the Innchanter, a floating, 5-room B&B in an old-time coastal packer. The B&B is known for superior linens on the beds, good food, an extensive literary collection and the hot springs just around the corner. After the mainstream tours depart, the hot springs pools tend to be clothing-optional and nudity is common.
Freedom Cove Tour
One of Tofino's most off-the-beaten-track tours Browning Pass Charters' voyage to "Freedom Cove", as named by its artist settlers. Explore a ruggedly individual eco-lifestyle first-hand. The artists' home is a merry pile of studios, bridges, planks, chimneys, hoses, pots, plants and flowers. Raised walkways cleverly allow kayakers to roam the complex without having to disembark.
The single most riveting moment, however, is first glimpse of the home jumping out of the island greenery in violent fireweed and turquoise hues. Bone carvings, scarves and pottery make distinctive souvenirs.
Cougar Annie's Garden
Located in Hesquiat Harbour in remote Clayoquot Sound, Cougar Annie's Garden is coastal legend: Cougar Annie established a flourishing commercial nursery in 1915. She earned her nickname defending her family from repeated cougar attacks. Nowadays her garden haunts visitors, captivated by space, silence and beauty on all sides. Ocean Outfitters offers a 7-hour day trip and interpretive tour from May to Sept.
Clayoquot 101
The enterprising Tofino Botanical Gardens offers this 2-hour guided tour with a naturalist. Survey the flora and fauna of Clayoquot Sound's ancient rainforest, beaches and mudflats. It involves a moderate hike, so good walking shoes are a must. Also from the Botanical Gardens are Rainforest & Garden Tours, available daily through July and Aug.
Flightseeing Tours
Alteo Air Tofino Seafaris offers aerial thrills over Clayoquot Sound, rainforest, mountains and even a glacier. Its tours begin with a 30-minute Wildlife Seafari and success rate at spotting whales from March through Sept is 98%. The Glacier Seafari runs 45 minutes, sweeping flyers over old-growth rainforest to the glaciers of Strathcona Provincial Park and searching for whales on the return flight.
The 1.5 hour Adventure Tour combines the Glacier Seafari, a mountain landing and picnic and a journey along the coast in search of sea lions, whales, lighthouses and beaches. Charter flights to Hot Springs Cove are easily arranged, too.
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