A summer sail on the North Coast with BC Ferries

BC Ferries' marketing plan for the North Coast and Haida Gwaii is underway, a pretty impressive little bit of image making that offers up the coastal waterways and Island crossing as a cruise of discovery for folks from afar.

While the locals await further word on the fate of the northern routes (and any service cuts and cost increases that may arrive) the branding of the current schedule has begun for those looking for something a little different for their summer travels.

BC Ferries Vacations is offering a variety of possible excursions for travellers, featuring four distinct options for those that may wander up our way.

Included in the Vacation package is:
(click on blue titles for description of each tour)

The Best of Northwest BC
The Inside Passage Wilderness Circle Tour takes visitors from Vancouver, up Vancouver Island to Port Hardy, with two days to explore the Prince Rupert area and then travellers are off through the Bulkley Valley to Prince George and then back to Whistler and finishing off in Vancouver.  Travellers are provided with eight nights of accommodation along the way, ferry reservations and either a whale watching or Grizzly Bear tour while in Prince Rupert. The summer rate is $1129

Inside Passage Coastal Adventure
Described as an Adventure in B. C.'s Northern reaches, the seven day tour offers travellers a Vancouver departure and a journey across to Nanaimo and up Vancouver Island to Campbell River for the day, the next day it's north to Port Hardy. From there travellers embark on the Inside Passage Cruise to Prince Rupert, three nights at the Crest and a chance to explore the region before heading back to retrace their steps.  The summer rate for this option is $1432

Haida Gwaii Adventure-Haida House
A five day excursion across to Haida Gwaii, offering up four nights accommodation at the Haida House at Tllaal, the many options for exploration offer up a chance to take in much of the scenery of the Islands. The summer rate for this excursion is $539

Discovery Coast Circle Tour
A nine day trip through the province which starts in Vancouver takes the traveller to Campbell River and then Port Hardy. A trip to Bella Coola for a couple of days is next and then it's some overland travel through to Williams Lake, on to Whistler and back to Vancouver. The summer rate for this journey is $970.

Prince Rupert plays a central role to three of these four options and on two of them, the city is host to an extended stay for further exploration.

A recent item on the BidOnTravel website seems to find favour with the concept of an Inside Passage journey,  Dan Nadeau offered up this review of the trip aboard the Northern Expedition, giving it a high recommendation  for would be travellers.

We imagine that those dependant on the North Coast Tourism industry, are hoping that the word of the journeys through Prince Rupert spread far and wide.