# Vancouver Island - car rental & things to do



## dreamin (May 23, 2014)

I'm going to Pacific Shores Resort in Nanoose Bay in June.  One of the reviews I read recommended taking the ferry from Horseshoe Bay to Departure Bay in Nanaimo.  I need to rent a car once I arrive on the Island.  Any recommendations on whether I should be looking for a rental from the city of Nanaimo or at the airport?  Do any of the rental companies offer a pick-up service at the ferry dock or would we have to take a taxi?  A quick search resulted in weekly rental rates of $280 and up for an economy car (not including insurance).  I'm really hoping to find a better rate!

This is a Last Call trip so I only have a week to do some research on the area.  Any helpful suggestions on day trips, hiking, restaurants, as well as tips on this resort would be most appreciated.  I went to Victoria about 20 years ago but did not visit any other areas on the island.


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## eal (May 23, 2014)

Did you try Costco? Enterprise in Nanaimo has a rate of $179 all in for June 14 - 21and they will pick you up.


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## Tacoma (May 23, 2014)

You must take the trip to the other side of the island to visit long beach and Tofino.  There is a stop about half way (I think it involves large trees) that looks good but I have not stopped yet.   I'm sure you will also drive down to Victoria one day so other than that I would stay quite close to the timeshare as that is enough driving for a week.

Enjoy
Joan


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## LAX Mom (May 23, 2014)

dreamin said:


> One of the reviews I read recommended taking the ferry from Horseshoe Bay to Departure Bay in Nanaimo.  I need to rent a car once I arrive on the Island.  Any recommendations on whether I should be looking for a rental from the city of Nanaimo or at the airport?  Do any of the rental companies offer a pick-up service at the ferry dock or would we have to take a taxi?  A quick search resulted in weekly rental rates of $280 and up for an economy car (not including insurance).  I'm really hoping to find a better rate!



Interested in a similar trip. How will you get to the ferry if you don't rent a car until you arrive in Nanaimo? 

I assumed we would fly into Vancouver or Seattle and then drive to the ferry. Is there another way that makes more sense?


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## gtripps (May 23, 2014)

LAX Mom said:


> Interested in a similar trip. How will you get to the ferry if you don't rent a car until you arrive in Nanaimo?
> 
> I assumed we would fly into Vancouver or Seattle and then drive to the ferry. Is there another way that makes more sense?



Probably the best way to see the Island is to fly into Victoria and rent a car and drive.  Live here so I know the summers are gorgeous and because of that we don't travel July 1 til September 1


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## BevL (May 23, 2014)

Seattle will be much cheaper and Vancouver would give you more options for flights.


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## Icc5 (May 23, 2014)

*Years Ago*



dreamin said:


> I'm going to Pacific Shores Resort in Nanoose Bay in June.  One of the reviews I read recommended taking the ferry from Horseshoe Bay to Departure Bay in Nanaimo.  I need to rent a car once I arrive on the Island.  Any recommendations on whether I should be looking for a rental from the city of Nanaimo or at the airport?  Do any of the rental companies offer a pick-up service at the ferry dock or would we have to take a taxi?  A quick search resulted in weekly rental rates of $280 and up for an economy car (not including insurance).  I'm really hoping to find a better rate!
> 
> This is a Last Call trip so I only have a week to do some research on the area.  Any helpful suggestions on day trips, hiking, restaurants, as well as tips on this resort would be most appreciated.  I went to Victoria about 20 years ago but did not visit any other areas on the island.



We went there years ago by flying to Seattle then took a puddle jumper to the island.  At that small airport we got our rental car which we had done thru Costco.  At that time the Resort was great.  The developer had so many people talking about the landscape that he opened a nursery on site.  
He also had a composting system set up in front of each 2 units and this was before we ever saw anyone composting.  We are into gardening so this really impressed us.  
Bucharest Gardens was fantastic and a place that was built into a hill with a thatched roof and goats on the roof was a lot of fun.
Bart


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## qb_bc (May 23, 2014)

The best answer will depend upon what you do at Vancouver when you arrive. If you are coming directly to the island, there are two options depending upon how much luggage you have. The cheapest option is to take the sky train from the airport to downtown Vancouver and the bus from downtown Vancouver to Horseshoe Bay. This requires you dragging your luggage a couple of blocks. The other option is taking a taxi from the airport to Duke Point terminal, which will set you back about $65.

To take a car on the ferry each way it is $53.25 plus $16.25 for the driver and for each passenger. You will pay the $16.25 regardless if you drive on or walk on.

As said, Enterprise will pick you up at the ferry terminal, or you can take a taxi into Nanaimo.

When all is said and done, choose the most convenient or least costly option for renting the car, Vancouver airport or Nanaimo. There is not enough savings on the rest to spend a lot of time thinking about.

If you fly into Seattle, you need to get to downtown from Seatac to catch the passenger ferry. I believe it is the Victoria Clipper.

For flying from Manitoba, the best option is Westjet to Nanaimo, Comox or Victoria and not stopping at Vancouver.

You absolutely need a car at Pacific Shores, as it is about 10 km from Parksville.

Enjoy your vacation. I'm also one that never leaves the island from May to October. No where nicerhttp://tugbbs.com/forums/images/icons/icon7.gif


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## Karen G (May 23, 2014)

Icc5 said:


> Bucharest Gardens was fantastic


I think you must mean  Butchart Gardens  and that's a place you'll want to visit! Beautiful!


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## Greg G (May 23, 2014)

Other places to see

- The murals in Chemainus
- Go shelling in Craig Bay at low tide.
- Very scenic drive along highway 4 across the island (from Parksville to Ucluelet) It's about a 2.5 hour drive 
- Lighthouse loop of the Wild Pacific Trail near Ucluelet
- Goats on the Roof Old Country Market - Coombs - Farmers Market and Resataurant.
- Englishman River Falls Provincial Park 
- Cathedral Grove MacMillan park
- Rocking Horse Pub- Nanoose Bay - Nice pub food lunch. They have a pretty outside eating area.
- Pacific Brimm Coffee - Parksville - Nice for lunch. Great sandwiches and soup.
- Chemainus Bakery - Good Pastries.

Greg


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## LAX Mom (May 23, 2014)

Thanks for all the suggestions! It sounds like a great place to visit. I've been to Vancouver several times and Whistler, but haven't made it to Vancouver Island yet. Definitely on my short list of places to go!


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## eal (May 25, 2014)

Wow! Greg G sounds like a local!  Great advice. 

I would also recommend Top Bridge Park, very near Pacific Shores, the Notch and Enos lake in Fairwinds, and Little Qualicum Falls.

Cuckoo's restaurant at the end of the Coombs Market Rd is also very nice and has a lovely outdoor patio.


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## dreamin (May 25, 2014)

*Ready to go....*

Thank you for all the great suggestions.  I have made notes on all the places to see as well as good restaurants to eat at.  It's going to be a busy week!

I should have explained that I am flying into Abbotsford Airport where I will be meeting up with my sister who lives in Maple Ridge.  My nephew will be driving us to the ferry terminal either at Departure Bay which will take us to Nanaimo, or to Tsawwassen which will take us to Victoria.  My sister doesn't have a car so that is why we will need to rent.

I've learned that there is an Island Link bus that will take us from the ferry to the Nanaimo Airport for a fee of $37.98 each.  Unfortunately, Enterprise is closed on Sunday, the day we arrive.  CAA has a Hertz rental for $246 and Costco has a Budget rental for $340.  Yikes!!  This is like renting a car in Hawaii!!

So now I'm planning to take the ferry to Victoria and renting from the airport location.  I have a Budget compact car rental for $200 all-in, using a discount code from Costco Travel.  Surprisingly, the airport location was cheaper than downtown.  Budget will pick us up at Swartz Bay, about 10 minutes away,  only if they aren't busy with flight arrivals.  Otherwise there is a Victoria city bus that will take us from the ferry to the airport but we have to transfer to a second bus.  Cost is $2.50.  Or we can take a taxi for about $20, which is likely what we will do.  It took a bit of work on the different car rental websites and a phone call to the Budget airport location, but I'm happy with this solution.  I believe it's a 2 hour drive to the resort from Victoria so this will give us the opportunity to spend an afternoon in Victoria.  

Looking forward to another adventure!!


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## qb_bc (May 25, 2014)

Sounds as you have it worked out. 

I looked on Expedia.ca for rentals in Nanaimo, not Nanaimo airport. Enterprise had a compact for 197 for a week. I checked June 7 - 14. NanaimoAirport is a fair run from the ferry terminal.

If you do go to Victoria allow lots of time to visit. We live on the island and will go there for a week to be tourists.

Try to get to Pacific Shores before dark as the road is not lit and it is easy to miss the turn off from Northwest Bay Road.


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## Running Man (May 31, 2014)

Welcome to Vancouver Island.  There are lots to do. It depends on what you want to do and how far you want to go.  You will definitely need a car. The resort is just outside of Parksville. Around the area there is Nanaimo, Coombs, and Parksville.  If you want to drive, going to Pacific Rim National Park and Tofino is a good day trip.  As for around the area, there is Parksville and Qualicum Beach - they are nice quaint beach community. There are lots of golfing, fishing, and hiking in the area.  Just google for Parksville Tourism. 
 Enjoy your trip!


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## herindoors911 (Jun 7, 2014)

dreamin said:


> Thank you for all the great suggestions.  I have made notes on all the places to see as well as good restaurants to eat at.  It's going to be a busy week!
> 
> I should have explained that I am flying into Abbotsford Airport where I will be meeting up with my sister who lives in Maple Ridge.  My nephew will be *driving us to the ferry terminal either at Departure Bay which will take us to Nanaimo*, or to Tsawwassen which will take us to Victoria.  My sister doesn't have a car so that is why we will need to rent.
> 
> ...




A quick tweak for others reading ...  Departure Bay IS the Nanaimo ferry terminal.  You got it right in the first post.   I think the terminal name you were looking for was Horseshoe Bay, the ferry taking you to Nanaimo.  


Hope you are having fun!  You got it right in the first post.


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## glenn1000 (Jun 12, 2014)

We own at Pacific Shores and have tried just about every route coming from the Bay Area. We think that the best way is to fly into Vancouver, rent a car and take it on the ferry from Tswwassen to Nanaimo. Driving to the ferry from the US side (i.e Seattle) can be tricky and lead to long delays (or even missed flights). Best to have a car at all times. Seems expensive to take the car on the ferry but is well worth it.


We have our week coming up in late July but sadly can't make it this year.


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