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Vancouver Island Transportation

Sea
BC Ferries allows vehicle traffic from the British Columbia mainland to Vancouver Island from:

Horseshoe Bay (West Vancouver) to Departure Bay (Nanaimo)
Tsawwassen to Schwartz Bay (Victoria)
Tsawwassen to Duke Point (Nanaimo)
Powell River to Comox
Prince Rupert to Port Hardy

Washington State Ferries serve the Anacortes to Sidney route. The M.V. Coho allows vehicle traffic from Port Angeles, Washington to Victoria, BC.

Passenger only service includes the Victoria Clipper from Seattle to Victoria. The Victoria Express serves Port Angeles to Victoria (May through September) and Victoria San Juan Cruises serve Bellingham to Victoria BC (May through October).

Road
Trans Canada Highway 1 follows the eastern shores of Vancouver Island beginning at “mile zero” at Victoria through Chemainus and Duncan to Nanaimo where it continues at the Departure Bay ferry terminal over the Georgia Strait to Horseshoe Bay in West Vancouver.

British Columbia Highway 19 runs between the Duke Point ferry terminal south of Nanaimo all the way up Vancouver Island to Port Hardy. The scenic “Oceanside Route” Highway 19A (also known as the “Old Island Highway”) begins just south of Parksville and winds through Qualicum Beach, Fanny Bay, Courtenay, and up to Campbell River.

BC Highway 4 starts in both Parksville and Qualicum Beach through Coombs and Port Alberni to the west coast of Vancouver Island at Ucluelet and Tofino.

Rail
The E and N Railway (E&N) runs from Victoria to Courtenay, with branch lines from Parksville to Port Alberni. The E&N line is owned by the Island Corridor Foundation and operated under contract by Southern Railway of Vancouver Island.

VIA Rail Canada runs a regular daily passenger train service, called the Malahat, from Victoria to Courtenay. VIA’s Budd-built cars run the E&N line with scheduled stops at Duncan, Nanaimo, and Parksville, with more flagstops (upon request) along the route.

Air
Air travelers to Vancouver Island have many options to choose from with regional airports in Victoria, Nanaimo, Comox, and Campbell River. Many Vancouver Island communities, such as Qualicum Beach and Tofino, have local airports that offer small aircraft travel to downtown Vancouver and Vancouver International Airport.

The above text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License - learn more at Wikipedia's Vancouver Island and E&N Railway pages.