Circle Tours in British Columbia

See the best of British Columbia when you embark upon one of the many circle tours that take in Vancouver Island, the Discovery Coast, the Sunshine Coast, the Okanagan winelands, the Native Heritage tour, or the remote Northern British Columbia. The coastal tours involve exciting rail, road and ferry trips on BC Ferries, and scenic highways flank the coast, taking you through charming beachside communities, rolling farmlands and majestic mountain ranges. Start your journey by selecting one of the Circle Tours below, designed to assist you in planning your journey by road through beautiful British Columbia.

The Trans-Canada Highway runs through Mount Revelstoke Provincial Park, Kootenays, British Columbia, Canada

Follow a winding ribbon of road north from Vancouver up the scenic Sunshine Coast to Powell River (two ferries) before crossing the Strait of Georgia to Vancouver Island on a BC Ferry. Travel down the east coast of Vancouver Island to Nanaimo, or further south to Victoria. A fourth ferry experience completes the circle in Tsawwassen, south of Vancouver.
Approximate Distance: 360 km (excluding ferry trips).
Approximate Duration: 3 to 5 days.

Cross to Victoria or Nanaimo on Vancouver Island from Vancouver, and head north, boarding BC Ferries in Port Hardy. Return to the mainland at Bella Coola, and the grassy plateaus, rolling meadows, picturesque canyons and the high mountain peaks of the Chilcotin. The old Cariboo Wagon Road will lead you back to Vancouver through the heart of the Cariboo region.
Approximate Distance: 1400 km (excluding ferry trips).
Approximate Duration: 7 to 10 days.

Cross to Victoria or Nanaimo on Vancouver Island from Vancouver, and head north, boarding BC Ferries in Port Hardy, destined for Prince Rupert. The hauntingly beautiful Queen Charlotte Islands (Haida Gwaii) beckon to you before venturing east on the Yellowhead Highway to Prince George, and south through the peaceful Cariboo to Vancouver along the historic Cariboo Wagon Road.
Approximate Distance: 2,000 km (excluding ferry trips).
Approximate Duration: 7 to 14 days.

Follow the same route as The Inside Passage circle tour, and take in some of the wonderful examples of Native art to be seen in Northern British Columbia, both ancient art and modern creations. View haunting totem poles, mystifying petroglyph stone carvings, heritage First Nation villages, and Native arts and crafts skillfully carved by First Nations people of British Columbia.
Approximate Distance: 2,000 km (excluding ferry trips).
Approximate Duration: 7 to 14 days.

From Prince George in Northeast BC, travel north through the Rocky Mountain foothills via the Alaska Highway 97 to Watson Lake in the Yukon, before heading south again on the Stewart/Cassiar Highway 37. The wildlife population in this vast and remote territory is so prolific that this portion of the Northern Rockies has been dubbed the Serengeti of North America.
Approximate Distance: 2,600 km.
Approximate Duration: 7 to 14 days

Head north out of Vancouver on the intensely scenic Sea to Sky Highway to the magical winter resort town of Whistler, and continue on to Lillooet and Pemberton. Cross paths with two historic routes, the Pemberton Trail and the Gold Rush Heritage Trail, which linked the coast with the interior in the days before the automobile. Return via the Okanagan and Fraser Valleys.
Approximate Distance: 850 km (excluding ferry trips).
Approximate Duration: 3 to 5 days.

Travel the sunny interior of British Columbia, north through the Okanagan to Sicamous, following Highway 1 into the mountains of the BC Rockies. From Golden, head south through the Columbia Valley to Creston, and west through the Southern Okanagan, starting and ending your sun-drenched voyage in Osoyoos, the place where two lakes come together.
Approximate Distance: 1,100 km.
Approximate Duration: 4 to 7 days.

British Columbia has a large number of hot springs, many of which are situated in the BC Rockies, in some of the most scenic areas in the world. While most springs in the region are located in delightfully undeveloped areas, often reached after a long hike up a mountain valley, many of the hot springs have been developed into international resort destinations.
Approximate Distance: 800 km.
Approximate Duration: 3 to 5 days.

Explore the rural farmlands and forests of the fertile Fraser Valley of the Lower Mainland, which runs more than one hundred miles inland from the Pacific Ocean at Vancouver to the small town of Hope. Travel outbound on the scenic route north of the historic Fraser River, returning westwards along the Trans Canada Highway 1 to Vancouver, and back to Lotus Land.
Approximate Distance: 150 km.
Approximate Duration: 1 to 2 days

Driving the Pacific Marine Circle Tour is an excellent way to explore the historic West Coast of Southern Vancouver Island. The wilderness route traces the coastline of the south island, from Victoria west through the communities of Sooke and Port Renfrew, continuing inland to the Cowichan Valley, and looping back down the Trans-Canada Highway via Duncan to Victoria, the capital of BC.
Approximate Distance: 255 km
Approximate Duration: 2 to 4 days.

Embark on “The Most Spectacular Train Trip in the World”® from Vancouver by rail on the world-famous Rocky Mountaineer® and journey through the Canadian Rockies to Banff, Alberta. Enjoy a luxury coach ride to Jasper, and travel onboard the train back to Vancouver. The Canadian Rockies Circle Tour includes 11 nights accommodation, tours of Vancouver, Banff and Jasper, the Banff Gondola ride, Icefields Parkway Tour and Snocoach ride.
Circle Tour Duration: 11 nights/12 days