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British Columbia: the Inside Passage, Prince Rupert and Haida Gwaii

10 days from Vancouver: up Vancouver Island to Port Hardy, the 15- to 16-hour Inside Passage ferry to Prince Rupert, a grizzly boat into the Khutzeymateen, the 7-hour crossing to Haida Gwaii for four nights, and a flight home.

10 days · Round trip from Vancouver · up to 12 guests

The facts

At a glance

Length
10 days, 9 nights
Start and end
Round trip from Vancouver
Group size
7 to 12 guests
Activity level

Moderate

Moderate because of the boats, not the walking. Two long ferry days (about 15 to 16 hours and about 7 hours) with lounges, decks and restaurants, a full day on a covered bear-viewing boat and a full day in an open Zodiac with beach landings, where you step over the side in waterproof boots. Walking is easy to moderate: up to about 5 km a day, with steep wooden stairs at Tow Hill. You can sit out any walk.

Meals included
9 breakfasts, 7 lunches, 3 dinners
Room of your own
+ CAD 1,340 (estimated price)
Season
June to August

Highlights

Why this trip

  • The Inside Passage by day on the BC Ferries summer sailing, on deck for whales, porpoises and eagles in about 16 hours of daylight
  • A full day by boat into the Khutzeymateen Grizzly Bear Sanctuary, watching grizzlies on the sedge flats from the water
  • The crossing of Hecate Strait to Haida Gwaii, about 7 hours, with lunch on board
  • The Haida Heritage Centre at Kay Llnagaay, its poles facing the beach at Skidegate
  • A full day by Zodiac in Gwaii Haanas, ashore at an old Haida village site with a Haida Watchman, weather permitting
  • Tow Hill and the North Beach of Naikoon Provincial Park, at the northern tip of the islands
  • Four nights in one base on Haida Gwaii, and the flight home instead of the ferry back

What makes this trip different

  • Free time is part of the plan

    Free time and choices are marked on the days they fall.

  • Solo without the penalty

    A room of your own is + CAD 1,340 (estimated price).

Day by day

Itinerary

HAIDA GWAIIVANCOUVER ISLANDBRITISH COLUMBIAHecate StraitQueen Charlotte SoundPacific OceanStrait of Georgia1234VancouverDays 1 to 2, 9 to 10Qualicum BeachDay 2Campbell RiverDay 2Port HardyDays 2 to 3Prince RupertDays 3 to 5Khutzeymateen (by boat)Day 4North Pacific CanneryDay 4Skidegate (Haida Heritage Centre)Days 5 to 6Daajing GiidsDays 5 to 9TlellDay 8Port ClementsDay 8Masset and Old MassettDay 8Tow HillDay 8K'uuna Llnagaay (Skedans)Day 7SGang Gwaay (floatplane option)Day 7

Tap any stop on the map to open that day

Arrive in Vancouver

Vancouver International Airport to your hotel downtown

  • Welcome dinner
  • Stay in Vancouver
  • Drive about 30 min
Downtown Vancouver towers and BC Place stadium above False Creek, with a Canadian flag in the foreground and the North Shore mountains behind
Photo: Quintin Soloviev, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Skyline_of_Vancouver,_BC.jpg)

Fly into Vancouver International Airport (YVR), about 15 km south of downtown, and a driver meets you in the arrivals hall for the half-hour drive to a central hotel. Plan to land by about 3 pm; the latest arrival time is confirmed with your final itinerary.

Afternoon

The afternoon is free and easy on foot: the seawall around Coal Harbour, the seaplanes landing beside Canada Place and the North Shore mountains across the water.

Evening

In the early evening your See Sight Tours guide meets the group for a briefing on the days ahead, and it is worth hearing: one night here, the drive up Vancouver Island, the two long ferry days and why we sail them, and how the weather shapes the Haida Gwaii days. Then we walk into Gastown, the oldest part of the city, for a welcome dinner of west coast food. Get some sleep: tomorrow is the one long road day.

Included

  • Pick-up at Vancouver International Airport (YVR)
  • Welcome briefing with your guide
  • Welcome dinner in Gastown

Free time: Free until the early-evening briefing

  1. Vancouver1 night
  2. Port Hardy1 night
  3. Prince Rupert2 nights
  4. Daajing Giids (Haida Gwaii)4 nights
  5. Vancouver1 night
  • Overnight stop
  • Day trip
  • By boat or train
Print itinerary

Wildlife and weather: June to August is the calm, long-light season on this coast: about 16 hours of daylight in June, cool days around 13 to 18 C, and rain or fog on any day. On the Inside Passage, humpback whales, orcas, Dall's porpoises and bald eagles are often seen, but never guaranteed. In the Khutzeymateen, grizzlies feed on the estuary sedges from late spring to about July; in August they move up the rivers for salmon, so August departures take a whale-watching boat from Prince Rupert instead.

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Before you book

Right for you?

Good for you if you want

  • Travellers who want the north coast of British Columbia and Haida Gwaii without arranging ferries, boats and flights themselves
  • Wildlife watchers happy to spend long hours on deck for whales and grizzlies
  • Anyone interested in Haida art and history, told at the Heritage Centre and by a Watchman on site
  • Solo travellers who want a small group and a guide for every ferry and boat

Not for you if you want

  • Anyone who dislikes long days on the water: two ferry days of about 16 and 7 hours and two full boat days
  • Travellers prone to bad seasickness: Queen Charlotte Sound, Hecate Strait and the Zodiac can be rough
  • Hikers after long trail days
  • Anyone needing a guaranteed grizzly or a fixed day in Gwaii Haanas: wildlife and weather decide

Book flights after we confirm your seat.

9 nights

Where you'll stay

Your hotels are named in your trip confirmation.

  • Vancouver1 night
  • Port Hardy1 night
  • Prince Rupert2 nights
  • Daajing Giids (Haida Gwaii)4 nights
  • Vancouver1 night

One price

What's in the price

Included

Accommodation

  • 9 nights in hotels of at least 3-star-plus standard: 1 in downtown Vancouver, 1 in Port Hardy near the ferry, 2 in Prince Rupert, 4 in Daajing Giids on Haida Gwaii, 1 in Vancouver
  • Rooms shared, or your own for a supplement

Transport

  • Pick-up at Vancouver International Airport (YVR) on day 1 and drop-off there on day 10
  • Our own vehicle and driver from Vancouver to Port Hardy, and a local vehicle and driver on Haida Gwaii
  • BC Ferries from Horseshoe Bay to Nanaimo
  • BC Ferries Inside Passage sailing from Port Hardy to Prince Rupert (about 15 to 16 hours)
  • BC Ferries from Prince Rupert to Skidegate (about 7 hours)
  • BC Ferries from Skidegate Landing to Alliford Bay and back on day 7, and again on day 9
  • Scheduled flight from Sandspit (YZP) to Vancouver (YVR)
  • The Khutzeymateen boat (or the August whale boat) and the Gwaii Haanas Zodiac

Your guide

  • A See Sight Tours guide for the whole trip, with licensed local boat crews in the Khutzeymateen and Gwaii Haanas, a local guide at the Haida Heritage Centre and a Haida Watchman at the village site

Activities

  • Vancouver Island: Qualicum Beach and Campbell River
  • Inside Passage: a day on deck with your guide
  • Prince Rupert: full-day Khutzeymateen Grizzly Bear Sanctuary boat (June and July) or a whale-watching boat (August)
  • Skidegate: Haida Heritage Centre at Kay Llnagaay with a guided tour
  • Skidegate: Balance Rock
  • Gwaii Haanas: full-day Zodiac trip from Sandspit, a Haida Watchmen village site, orientation and fees
  • Naikoon Provincial Park: Tow Hill, the blowhole and North Beach
  • Masset and Old Massett

Meals

  • Breakfast daily (9)
  • 7 lunches: Campbell River, on the Inside Passage ship, on the Khutzeymateen boat, on the Haida Gwaii ferry, Skidegate, Gwaii Haanas and Masset
  • 4 dinners: welcome dinner in Vancouver, on the Inside Passage ship, arrival dinner and farewell dinner on Haida Gwaii

Not included

  • International flights to and from Vancouver
  • An eTA or visa for Canada, if you need one
  • Travel insurance, which should cover trip interruption by weather
  • Meals not listed: dinners on day 2 in Port Hardy, day 4 in Prince Rupert, days 6 and 7 on Haida Gwaii and day 9 in Vancouver, lunch on day 9
  • Drinks
  • Tips
  • Optional activities: a cabin on the Inside Passage ship, the floatplane to SGang Gwaay, the North Pacific Cannery
  • Excess baggage on the Sandspit flight
  • Personal expenses
  • Extra nights before or after the trip

Extras

Room of your own
CAD 1,340 (estimated price)

When you can go

Dates and prices

Pick your start date when you request to book. We check that date and confirm it in your quote.

Prefer to travel without a group or guide? Ask us about arranging hotels, transport and city tours for you to travel independently.

Before you book

Booking terms

Nothing is charged now. Full terms and the cancellation schedule come with your quote, before you accept.

Business addresses

See Sight Tours Trips (USA): 3172 N Rainbow Blvd, Las Vegas, NV 89108, United StatesSee Sight Tours Trips (Canada): 5305 50 Avenue, #1091, Red Deer, AB T4N 4B6, Canada+1-888-961-6584

Guest reviews

What guests say

Reviews from guests on our day tours.

Cornelius Amann
October 06, 2026
google

5/5

Parminder did a great job guiding us around, giving us tips & teaching us the history of the falls. A great experience!

Jane
October 06, 2026
gyg

5/5

Good views of the surrounding area of Halifax in a comfortable minivan

Susan
October 06, 2026
gyg

5/5

June was brilliant- made good contact beforehand and really attentive and knowledgeable. Made me feel like I was special- something only experience can do. Thank you June.

Tom L
October 05, 2026
tripadvisor

5/5

Our host was very knowledgeable, friendly and even provided some humor.

MandL83
October 05, 2026
tripadvisor

5/5

Peter was a very good guide, giving us insight into the various parts of the Park, including parking lot congestion details, trail and viewing location suggestions.

Darren O
October 05, 2026
tripadvisor

5/5

Excellent morning spent with my guide Nancy. Very knowledgeable and friendly. Thoroughly enjoyed my trip

4.7/5 from 38,601 guest reviews

Good to know

Questions

What does the price include?

Nine nights in hotels, breakfast daily, seven lunches and four dinners, airport transfers, our vehicle and driver, all four BC Ferries sailings, the flight from Sandspit to Vancouver, your See Sight Tours guide throughout, the full-day Khutzeymateen grizzly boat, the full-day Gwaii Haanas Zodiac with its fees, and the Haida Heritage Centre.

How big is the group?

The small-group trip runs with 7 to 12 guests, never more. That size fits one bear-viewing boat and one or two Zodiacs, so the group stays together on the water, and everyone hears the Watchman at the village site.

Who leads the trip?

A See Sight Tours guide travels with the group from the airport on day 1 to the airport on day 10, on every ferry and boat. Licensed local crews run the Khutzeymateen boat and the Gwaii Haanas Zodiac, a local guide leads the Heritage Centre tour, and a Haida Watchman hosts us at the village site.

How long are the ferry days, and will I get seasick?

The Inside Passage sailing from Port Hardy to Prince Rupert is about 15 to 16 hours, early morning to late evening; the Hecate Strait crossing to Skidegate is about 7 hours. We confirm the exact summer times at booking. Queen Charlotte Sound and Hecate Strait can roll, so bring seasickness tablets if you need them; summer is their calmest season.

How fit do I need to be?

Moderately. The walking is easy, up to about 5 km a day, with steep stairs at Tow Hill. The demands are the boats: long ferry days, a full day on a covered bear boat and a full day in an open Zodiac with beach landings in shallow water. You can sit out any walk.

I am travelling solo. What will I pay?

A room of your own is CAD 1,340 on top of the shared-room price, shown up front with nothing added at checkout. Solo travellers share the same table, deck and boat as everyone else, and are often a good part of a small group.

When is the best time to go?

June to August only. That is when the Inside Passage sails by day, Haida Watchmen are at the village sites and Hecate Strait is at its calmest. June and July are best for Khutzeymateen grizzlies; in August the bears move up the rivers, so August departures take a whale-watching boat instead.

Will we see grizzlies and whales?

Likely, but no one can promise it. In June and July grizzlies graze the Khutzeymateen estuary and are often seen from the boat, though not on every trip. Humpback whales, orcas and porpoises are often seen from the ferries and the Zodiac. Your guide is on deck to spot them, and the boat days are worth it for the coast itself.

What happens if the weather stops the Gwaii Haanas trip?

We have two chances: the Gwaii Haanas day and the north island day swap if the forecast is better on the second day. If the sea is too rough on both, the operator cancels for safety, we refund the Gwaii Haanas cost, and your guide plans a day on Graham Island instead.

How does booking work?

Pick a start date and request to book. We check availability and provide the final quote, itinerary and booking terms before you accept. No payment is taken when you send the request. Dates are set around the ferry timetables. The small group starts from CAD 7,885 per person sharing, taxes included, and the private trip from CAD 14,195 per person.

Can we travel privately or on our own dates?

Yes. Besides the small group, the trip comes as a private trip for your party only, on a date you choose that fits the ferry schedule, with your own guide and vehicle. If you would rather travel independently on your own dates, ask us from the dates section and we will quote the same ferries, boats and hotels.

Do I need a visa for Canada?

Most visitors flying in need either an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA), applied for online before you fly, or a visa, depending on your passport. US citizens need only a valid passport. Check the Government of Canada rules for your nationality before you book flights.

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