The 290-mile Canadian island in the Pacific Ocean has beautiful beaches, green rainforests and snow-covered mountains and is the indigenous home to the Kwakwaka'wakw, Nuu-chah-nulth and Coast Salish peoples. The island was first named for its late 18th Century European explorers Spanish adventurer Juan de le Bodega y Quadra and British Royal Navy Office George Vancouver, but Quadra's name was later eliminated. Popular island attractions are Royal British Columbia Museum, The Whale Centre Maritime Museum, Fisgard Lighthouse, World's Largest Hockey Stick & Puck, Abkhazi Garden, Butchart Gardens and Maritime Museum of British Columbia as well as many historic houses and mansions. Vancouver Island was named "#1 Island in Canada and the Continental U.S." in 2012 by "Travel + Leisure" magazine. Show All
