I’ve driven off the ferry in Nanaimo dozens of times on my way to various Vancouver Island adventures, but until recently I hadn’t really spent much time in the city. I wasn’t sure what to expect on my visit, but I was pleasantly surprised by the access to nature, the incredible food, and the sense of local pride.
In the three days I spent getting to know Nanaimo, I hiked, kayaked, wandered through neighbourhoods, and ate amazing locally sourced food. I watched sea lions, whales, and otters splash around. And despite a full schedule, I feel like I’ve just scratched the surface of all the things to do in Nanaimo – I know I’ll be back.
I’ve put together a quick guide to the best things to do in Nanaimo for you. It includes:
- A map of Nanaimo that shows all the places I mention in this post.
- The 10 best things to do in Nanaimo (in my opinion), including hikes, parks, shopping, and more.
- More things to do in Nanaimo (things I’ve bookmarked for my next trip)
- Where to eat in Nanaimo: My picks for the best restaurants and cafes.
- Where to stay in Nanaimo: The places I stayed and recommend.
- Nanaimo Travel Tips: How to get there? How long to spend? What’s the weather like? And lots more.
Hey there: Thanks so much to Tourism Nanaimo for hosting most of my experiences on my recent trip. Previous trips were at my own expense. All opinions in this post are my own. Some of the links in this post are affiliate links, which means I earn a small commission at no cost to you. Thanks for your support. -Taryn
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Map of Nanaimo
To help you plan your trip and find your way around, I created a custom Google Map of Nanaimo for you. It includes every place I mention in this post.
10 Best Things to Do in Nanaimo
Harbour Front Walkway and Maffeo Sutton Park
One of Nanaimo’s nicknames is “The Harbour City“, which makes sense since the downtown area is concentrated around the protected harbour. The views from the harbour are spectacular: you can see Protection Island and Saysutshun (Newcastle Island), the BC mainland in the distance, and lots of seaplanes, ferries, and other boats zipping around.
The best way to experience the harbour is to walk the Harbourfront Walkway. The main section runs through downtown to Maffeo Sutton Park on an elevated path that hugs the edge of the water and gives access to boat docks and a few restaurants.
I spent a pleasant hour strolling the Harbourfront Walkway on a sunny afternoon. We enjoyed people-watching, walking out along the Fishing Pier, and we even spotted some rambunctious river otters playing on an old boat. The human-made Swy-a-Lana Lagoon in Maffeo Sutton Park is so cool – it’s an ocean-fed yet protected beach with swimming in the summer.
If you want to take a break and soak up the scenery, there are lots of benches along the way. Maffeo Sutton Park also has food trucks if you need a snack. Don’t miss the iconic Nanaimo sign near the food trucks.
Nanaimo Bar Trail
I grew up in the Vancouver suburbs, so I’ve been eating Nanaimo Bars as long as I can remember. At every big family gathering I attended as a kid, one of my great aunts always brought a plate of homemade Nanaimo Bars. It wasn’t until I got older that I learned that Nanaimo Bars are really regional and most people have never heard of them!
If you’ve never had one, a Nanaimo Bar is a no-bake square dessert with a coconut crumble base, a custard icing layer in the middle, and chocolate ganache on top. The bars date back to at least the 1950s and, although their exact origins aren’t clear, they are definitely from Nanaimo.
These days, Nanaimo bakeries, cafes, and restaurants have embraced all things Nanaimo Bar. In addition to traditional bars, you can get specialty versions with peanut butter or salted caramel, gluten-free versions, ice cream versions, cheesecake versions, cupcake versions, cocktail versions, and so much more. It’s all part of the Nanaimo Bar Trail.
On my visit, we sampled the traditional (but giant) Nanaimo Bar from Misty Pines Cafe & Bakery. But next time I go, I want to try the Nanaimo Bar springroll at Noodlebox and the Nanaimo Bar waffle at Waffle Magic.
Saysutshun
From downtown Nanaimo, you can see several islands across the harbour, but only one, Saysutshun, is a park. Newcastle Island officially reverted to its Snuneymuxw name, Saysutshun, in 2021 and is a provincial park jointly managed by BC Parks, the Snuneymuxw First Nation, and the City of Nanaimo.
The island has a long history of traditional Indigenous use, especially as a seasonal village in late winter and early spring during the herring spawning season. Saysutshun is also an important source of traditional medicines and is associated with healing.
After settlers arrived in the Nanaimo area, the island had many industrial uses, including coal mining and a sandstone quarry. Later, the island became a popular day trip destination for CPR steamships.
Today, Saysutshun has a walk-in campground, hiking trails, viewpoints, and beaches and is a popular spot for visitors. On my most recent visit, I stopped during a kayak tour to take a brief walk on the beach. But most visitors arrive via the foot passenger ferry from Maffeo Sutton Park that runs daily in the spring, summer, and fall.
If the ferry is running while you are visiting, I recommend spending a few hours walking the trails of Saysutshun. I camped there years ago and loved visiting the historical sites.
On my last trip, my kayak guide shared some Snuneymuxw stories about Saysutshun, which helped give me helpful Indigenous context about the island and the surrounding area and really deepened my understanding of the landscape. If you visit, my guide recommend checking out the “A Place of Healing and Rejuvenation” guided audio/video tour from elder and knowledge keeper Dave Bodaly.
Commercial Street
Downtown Nanaimo has lots of cute boutiques and cafes along Commercial Street just back from the harbour. I spent part of an afternoon wandering here. We stopped at Red’s Bakery for one of their sausage rolls and then stopped into a few thrift stores. I recommend Rumours Vintage and Funk Revival. If you want a coffee, Brix + Mortar is really cute.
Old City Quarter
Another area I really loved was the Old City Quarter, which is just up the hill from the harbour. (It’s about 6 blocks, so it’s an easy walk.) This area was Nanaimo’s original business centre, and today it’s a mix of heritage buildings and new development that has an old-city vibe with pedestrian-only walkways to access shops.
We browsed at Windowseat Books, ate pastries at Misty Pines Cafe, and got lost in the huge selection of imported cheeses at Old City Cheese Market. At the time of our visit, our beloved 22-year-old cat had just passed away, so it was bittersweet to stop in to Kitties and Cream cat cafe to play with some of their adoptable rescue cats.
Piper’s Lagoon Park
Located north of downtown in the Hammond Bay neighbourhood, Piper’s Lagoon Park is a small, but oh-so-scenic oceanfront park. It has a small stretch of beach and a view of the lagoon, which has great reflections when the weather is calm. It also has some short but rugged walking trails that go up and around a headland for great views of the ocean and the fishing shacks on the nearby rocks.
My spring visit was during the herring spawn, so there was so much bird and marine life activity. We watched sea lions feeding and cavorting in the waves. The local spring wildflowers were also out in full bloom, including fawn lilies, one of my favourites.
The parking lot here is pretty small, and fills fast on weekends and during the summer. Go early or late in the day to get a spot. Be respectful of the surrounding residential neighbourhood and follow all parking regulation signs.
Neck Point Park
Neck Point Park is located a few minutes from Piper’s Lagoon Park and has similar scenery with oceanside paths and trails over headlands. The park has more trails than Piper’s Lagoon, and it also has a few wooden viewing platforms.
On my visit, I really lucked out and saw four orcas feeding and breaching just offshore. We watched them through binoculars and the zoom lens of our camera for nearly an hour! It was honestly one of the best whale sightings of my life… and that includes whale watching tours and kayaking with whales on Northern Vancouver Island!
Like Piper’s Lagoon, Neck Point has a small parking lot that fills fast on weekends and during the summer. There is some overflow parking on Morningside Drive in front of the elementary school, but it’s still a good idea to go early or late in the day to get a spot.
Rock formations at Neck Point
Kayaking
If you have the chance to get out on the water in Nanaimo, do it! Kayaking in Departure Bay with Caleb from Coastal Expression and Trak Kayaks was one of the highlights of my trip. We launched from Departure Bay beach in the unique Trak Kayaks folding kayak, paddled around the outside of Saysutshun, and then landed at Maffeo Sutton Park.
I really enjoyed getting to see the city from the water! The best part was paddling through some hidden sea caves on one of the islands in Departure Bay. Until you got right up to them, you wouldn’t even know they were there – they look just like cliffs! I also loved getting to stop and take a break on the quieter west side of Saysutshun.
If you want to go kayaking in Nanaimo, you can rent from Jeff’s Kayaks on Saysutshun during the summer. Coastal Expression (the company I went with) is relocating in 2026, but they hope to be open for rentals and tours in 2027.
Ammonite Falls
If you’re looking for a short but rewarding hike in Nanaimo, check out Ammonite Falls in Benson Creek Falls Regional Park. The trail leads through the forest to a great set of viewing platforms with stairs next to the waterfall. The falls are best in fall, winter, and spring when they are fed by rainfall and snowmelt. They dry up a bit in summer.
There are two trails you can use to reach the waterfall. Traditionally, most people hiked in from the small parking area on Creekside Place. The hike from that direction is 5 km round-trip and is mostly on old logging roads.
Recently, the Regional District built a new trail from the north and a large parking lot on Weigles Road. That’s the trail I took. It’s a 3 km round-trip hike (so it’s shorter), but the trail does have more elevation change since it heads down into a canyon on a set of steep stairs and walkways, crosses a bridge, and then uses more stairs to climb up the other side. It’s definitely a more interesting and more scenic trail than an old logging road!
Once you arrive at Ammonite Falls, you’ll head downhill on more stairs to the viewing platforms and base of the falls. The falls got their name from the ammonite fossils you can find in the rocks. Unfortunately, the water levels were too high when I was there so we didn’t spot any.
Allow about 1.5 hours for the hike from Weigles Road or 2 hours from Creekside Place.
Mount Benson
If you’re a keen hiker, you’ll want to hit the Mount Benson Trail in Mount Benson Regional Park. The 1,019-metre-tall summit looms over Nanaimo. The trail up to the top is steep, gaining 686 m from the parking lot to the summit in just 3.6 km. The round-trip hike is 7.2 km and takes about four hours.
There are two viewpoints along the way with great views of Nanaimo, the Georgia Strait, and the surrounding islands. It started to rain on my hike, and I wanted to spend more time exploring other parts of Nanaimo, so I didn’t end up going all the way to the summit. Instead, I just went to the two viewpoints, which means I did about half of the trail.
If you are short on time or fitness, I definitely recommend this approach. The part of the trail that we hiked has been newly refurbished and rerouted, so it’s in great condition. The viewpoints were great, so I didn’t feel like I missed out by skipping the summit. It’s still on my list for next time, though!
More Things to Do in Nanaimo
I didn’t have enough time to do everything on my list during my trip to Nanaimo, so here are a few places I’ve bookmarked for next time:
- Nanaimo Museum: This downtown museum has interactive exhibits about the history of Nanaimo. They also offer guided walking tours, including one that goes inside the historic Bastion, a few blocks away.
- Westwood Lake Park: This wooded park near Mount Benson has an easy 5.5 km-long loop trail around the lake that sounds like a lovely hike.
- The Abyss and Extension Ridge Trail: A short hike to a unique deep crevice in a rock formation.
- Protection Island and the Dinghy Dock Pub: Tiny Protection Island in Nanaimo’s harbour is home to about 350 people who commute by boat. But the real reason to visit is to eat and drink at the Dinghy Dock Pub, Canada’s only floating pub. You can get there via the foot passenger-only Protection Island Ferry from downtown Nanaimo.
- WildPlay Nanaimo: This adventure park south of town has a zipline, bungee jumping, and ropes courses. I’m dying to try it out.
- Horne Lake Caves: You can take an underground tour through these spectacular limestone caves, a few minutes north of Nanaimo. I took a short tour here years ago and want to come back to do one of their tours where you rappel deep into the caves.
- Gabriola Island: Located next to Nanaimo, this quaint Gulf Island includes the incredible sandstone formations at Malaspina Galleries. I went during university and would love to go back.
- More incredible restaurants: Spots I’ve bookmarked for next time include the iconic Vault Cafe, Milk Jam Donuts (although they apparently sell out early), and a dinner of share plates in an old train station at Black Rabbit Kitchen.
Where to Eat in Nanaimo
I only spent a few days in Nanaimo, so I didn’t get to try all of the places I wanted to eat. But here are the places I ate at and enjoyed.
Horang
From the outside, Horang doesn’t look like anything special: it sits in the same roadside parking lot in North Nanaimo as a Wendy’s and a fried chicken place. But inside, it’s all sleek surfaces, trailing plants, and a gleaming bar. I was so impressed by the food (and the cool factor) at this restaurant.
The menu is huge and features all kinds of modern takes on traditional Korean food. Be warned: the portions are large. We ended up taking some food home, and it was delicious reheated!
We started out with local oysters and a delicious tuna ceviche with an East Asian twist: ponzu sauce, gochujang, and cilantro. But we also saw lots of tables ordering the Kimbap rolls, which looked delicious.
The menu has an entire section for tacos and burgers, which at first glance doesn’t sound Korean. But the spicy Korean beef in the Birria Galbi Jim tacos was seasoned perfectly and definitely Korean.
By far the showstopper of the evening was their signature dish, the Flaming So Galbi. It’s the most tender beef short ribs ever, and is served with a special sauce that they light on fire tableside. So fun! It comes with banchan (side vegetables), soup, rice, and lettuce so you can make your own wraps.
It’s also worth trying their flights of Makgeolli, a sparkling and sort of milky rice wine. I liked the chestnut one the most.
Camas
I was lucky enough to have a second stand-out meal in Nanaimo. We also ate at Camas in Lantzville, just north of Nanaimo near the Snaw-Naw-as Campground. It’s a small fine-dining restaurant run by a husband and wife chef team in a converted house. They are only open three nights a week, so reservations are essential.
And trust me, you’re going to want to reserve here. The food was incredible and so thoughtful. The focus is on sourcing local ingredients, butchering their own meat, and making their own bread, pasta, and ice cream. They also do unconventional (but delicious) things with ordinary ingredients, like their steamed crab and pork dumplings that came with a mint mayo and papadam crisps.
Thanks to the generous chef, we were able to try small portions of most of the items on their small menu during our spring visit. The stand-out was the miso-crusted sable fish with spinach spatzle. The sable fish was melt-in-your-mouth buttery, which was a lovely contrast with the crispy miso crust. We also loved the rabbit karage with yuzu.
The menu changes often and depends on what is in season. In general, I recommend getting their three-course fixed price dinner since it’s a good way to sample a few dishes. And of course ask if there are any specials – they are bound to be good.
Gabriels Cafe
If you’re looking for brunch or lunch downtown Nanaimo, head to Gabriel’s Cafe on Commercial Street. It’s a counter-service cafe that highlights meat, eggs, and veggies from local farms in salads, sandwiches, rice bowls, and breakfast plates. They are also licensed if you want to enjoy a beer or cocktail with your meal.
I had a great Korean pulled pork sandwich here (I guess I still had Korean food on my mind after Horang). It had a great sweet hoisin BBQ sauce that was a good contrast for the slightly spicy kimchi. I sampled my husband’s breakfast and can confirm that the bean and corn cakes in the Ian Staple plate are delicious.
Misty Pines Cafe & Bakery
For coffee and baked goods, I recommend Misty Pines Cafe & Bakery in the Old Quarter. We grabbed breakfast here one morning, and I had a great blueberry Danish. They change their Danish flavours monthly, along with their croissant, muffin, and donut flavours, so keep an eye out for what is seasonal.
They also have a fridge with grab-and-go Nanaimo bars, so we bought one to enjoy later. It was huge and delicious. As a BC-local, I grew up eating Nanaimo bars, and this one of the best classic Nanaimo bars I’ve had – the custard layer wasn’t overwhelmingly sweet, and the coconut crumb base was nice and chewy.
Regard Coffee Roasters
If you want the best coffee in Nanaimo (and perhaps the best coffee on Vancouver Island), head to Regard Coffee Roasters in North Nanaimo. This is a place for serious coffee snobs who value meticulous pour-overs and niche beans. My coffee-snob husband was in heaven.
(As a non-serious coffee drinker, I also enjoyed my latte and cardamon bun while letting my husband have his moment of coffee nirvana.)
Red’s Bakery
Red’s Bakery on Commercial Street has a big display case of options. We’d already had a Nanaimo bar that day, so we opted for one of their famous sausage rolls. However, we saw everyone else ordering the Nanaimo bars and had a bit of FOMO. They also have individual portions of cheesecake in lots of flavours, which looked delicious.
White Sails Brewing
We stopped at White Sails Brewing near Maffeo Sutton Park for a drink and snack after kayaking. We sampled a flight of beers brewed on-site and washed it down with a deliciously salty German soft pretzel with gooey cheese dip.
Where to Stay in Nanaimo
Snaw-Naw-as Campground Cabins
I spent two nights in one of the newly built cabins at Snaw-Naw-as Campground, just north of Nanaimo. This Indigenous-owned campground is right on the ocean in Nanoose Harbour, so you can walk on the beach, watch the waves, and smell the salty air.
The one-bedroom cabins have everything you need for a comfortable stay: a little kitchen, a BBQ, and outdoor chairs so you can enjoy your morning coffee with a view. I loved coming back here to relax after a day of adventures. It’s a bit outside the city, so it feels more secluded and relaxing.
Coast Bastion Hotel
If you’d rather stay in the heart of downtown, across the street from the Harbourfront Walkway, and easy walking distance to Maffeo Sutton Park, and the shops and cafes on Commercial Street, book at the Coast Bastion Hotel. For my trip, I was torn about booking here versus the Snaw-Naw-as Campground.
It’s located right on the water and has incredible harbour views. It also gets the best reviews among all Nanaimo hotels. However, it is a bit spendy.
Courtyard by Marriott
If you’re looking for a slightly more affordable downtown option, check out the Courtyard by Marriott. It’s located just behind the Nanaimo Museum, so it’s really close to Commercial Street and the Harbourfront Walkway. It gets great reviews and is owned by the Snuneymuxw Nation, so it’s an easy way to support an Indigenous-owned business.
Nanaimo Travel Tips
How to Get to Nanaimo
Nanaimo is one of Vancouver’s Islands’s major cities, so it’s very easy to get to.
BC Ferries has two terminals in Nanaimo. The Departure Bay terminal (central Nanaimo) has ferries coming from Horseshoe Bay just north of Vancouver, and Duke Point (south Nanaimo) has ferries from Tsawwassen, just south of Vancouver. You can walk on to the ferry as a foot passenger or drive your car on. If you plan to bring a car, make a reservation in advance, as it does get booked up.
You can also take the foot passenger-only Hullo ferry from downtown Vancouver to downtown Nanaimo.
Nanaimo Airport (YCD) is south of the city and has regular flights to Vancouver International Airport (YVR) as well as other Western Canadian cities.
If you’re looking for a scenic option, you can fly directly from downtown Vancouver to downtown Nanaimo on a seaplane with Harbour Air or a helicopter with Helijet.
If you are already on Vancouver Island, you can drive to Nanaimo from Victoria in about 1.5 hours.
Getting Around Nanaimo
Downtown Nanaimo is very walkable, so you don’t need a car if you plan to stick around that area. However, if you want to visit any of the parks or nature spots around the city, I recommend driving yourself.
You can rent cars at the airport or in downtown Nanaimo. I like to use DiscoverCars to book car rentals since the site lets you compare prices across different rental companies.
It is possible to get around Nanaimo on BC Transit buses. The buses go to most of the places I recommend in this guide, but they don’t go to Mount Benson or Ammonite Falls.
Nanaimo also has taxis and Uber, but not Lyft.
How Long to Spend in Nanaimo
I spent three days in Nanaimo (essentially a long weekend), and it was the perfect amount of time to see the main sights and go for a few hikes. I think most visitors will want to stay for two or three days. If you’re really outdoorsy, I recommend booking a few extra days to dedicate to hiking.
Best Time to Visit Nanaimo
Since it is located on the east coast of Vancouver Island in the rain shadow and has relatively mild winters, Nanaimo is a year-round destination.
Winters are a bit wetter and colder, so it’s a less popular time to visit. Whale sightings are also less common in the winter compared to the other months.
I visited in the spring and found it was perfect hiking temperature (not too hot and not too cold). A fall visit would have similar weather.
Summer is the most popular time to visit since it is the warmest and driest. But that also means accommodation prices and crowds increase.
Nanaimo Weather
Nanaimo has a temperate marine climate with mild, wet winters and warm, dry summers. Since it is in the rain shadow, it gets less rain than many other parts of Vancouver Island.
Winters are mild with temperatures between 1°C and 8°C. The winter months are also the rainiest: about 10 to 14 days per month.
Spring and fall temperatures are a bit warmer: typically between 3°C and 19°C. Rain is still possible, but there are fewer rainy days (about 6 to 10 days a month.)
Summer is the warmest and driest, with temperatures usually between 11°C and 22°C. And it only rains 3 to 7 days a month.
What to Pack for Nanaimo
What to pack for Nanaimo depends on when you go.
No matter what time you visit, bring a rain jacket since it can rain at any time. I love my Outdoor Research Aspire Rain Jacket. (The men’s version is called the Foray.) It’s light and packable, so it’s easy to stash in my backpack. But it’s very waterproof and breathable too. My favourite feature is the extra-large underarm vents – Vancouver Island can be humid, so it’s great to have a rain jacket that can vent and prevent overheating.
On the flip side, I also recommend bringing sunglasses year-round. Even if you get drizzle in the morning, you might get sun in the afternoon. And the glare off the ocean can be brutal without sunglasses.
Quick-drying hiking clothes and hiking boots are also a good idea if you plan to hit the trails. If you are going kayaking, pack sandals or neoprene water shoes.
I also recommend binoculars and/or a camera with a zoom lens. We lucked into tons of wildlife sightings (otters, sea lions, whales, eagles!), and it was so much easier to view them with binos or our zoom lens. I carry the tiny Pentax AD 8×25 binoculars, but the Silva Pocket Binoculars are a bit less expensive, yet still great.
If you are visiting in spring or fall, bring a warm layer like a puffy jacket or fleece. You can layer it under your rain jacket. On my spring visit, I ended up wearing my MEC Boundary Light down vest a ton. Even when it was sunny out, the wind off the ocean was a little chilly, so it was nice to have a cozy layer for warmth.
In the summer, you’ll want a bathing suit for swimming in the ocean (chilly) or the lakes (warmer).
If you forget to bring your outdoor gear, MEC has a new store in Nanaimo. I dropped in for a visit and was impressed with how big and well-stocked it was.
Indigenous Context in Nanaimo
Nanaimo is located on the traditional territory of the Snuneymuxw, Snaw-naw-as, and Stz’uminus First Nations. The city of Nanaimo takes its name from Snuneymuxw, pronounced “snuh-ney-mookw”. Many of the places now recognized as key sights in Nanaimo, including Saysutshun Island and Departure Bay Beach, are places held with deep respect and reverence. These lands and waters are relatives and teachers, so it is important to be respectful when you visit.
It’s also important to support Indigenous-owned businesses where possible, such as the Snaw-naw-as Campground, where I stayed, or the Courtyard Marriott Nanaimo, which is owned by the Snuneymuxw First Nation. If you are visiting in late July, check out the annual Snuneymuxw Days community event, which includes war canoe racing.
Final Thoughts
Over the last few years, a few Vancouver acquaintances have moved to Nanaimo, and, to be honest, I didn’t understand the appeal. I get it now! Nanaimo has a good food scene, a couple of cute shopping areas, and most importantly for outdoorsy me, great access to hiking.
And while I can’t promise that you’ll have the same experience, I do have to admit that the epic whale sightings I got on my trip may have clouded my judgment because anywhere you can watch whales from land for FREE goes on my repeat visit list!
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