Tofino Inlet

Tofino (population about 2,000), reigns as jewel of Canada's west coast. The stunning beauty and ecological diversity of Tofino's location in the Clayoquot Sound UNESCO Biosphere Reserve is the source of all activities. Imagine, all in one place, fishing, kayaking, whale watching, bear-watching, bird watching, camping, hiking, storm-watching and First Nations cultural touring. Surfing is big here, and Tofino was named the best surf town in North America in Outside Magazine's 2010 Editors' Choice awards. For all this glamour, Tofino remains the rough-and-tumble frontier town it has always been, easygoing, outgoing, enterprising, unpretentious and resolutely friendly. Yet it also boasts swank beachfront resorts, excellent restaurants and a dynamic arts scene rooted in nature and First Nations culture. Welcome to the end of the road. Tofino is a world-renowned resort, but a very recent arrival on the world stage. Thousands of years before it was named after a rear admiral in the Spanish Navy, the people of the Nuu-chah-nulth First Nations lived and worked here. They've occupied the west coast of Vancouver Island for as long as 10,000 years. Tofino actually invites travellers to sit through winter storms of withering ferocity. The storms roll in from Japan from November through February, 10 to 15 every month, pouring down up to 5m/15ft of rainfall. View them from an oceanfront hotel or B&B. Or more adventurously from a sheltered outdoors location where polite conversation is drowned out by the wail of the wind and the roar of the waves.