Tofino

Tofino is a unique village located on the west coast of Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. It offers all the unique sights and sounds that are exclusive to Canada. It has a population of 1,650 residents. In the summertime, the population doubles or triples as it is a popular vacation sight and many people have summer homes there. Tofino is named after a Spanish scientist who lived until 1795.

Tofino is located near many notable parks including the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve and the Maquinna Marine Provincial Park. This is the reason it is popular for vacation goers who love the outdoors. There are many outdoor activities popular to travelers. Tofino attracts surfers, campers, fisherman, whale watchers and sight seers.

Tofino happens to be one of the best places available to participate in an activity called "storm watching." In certain locations in the village, you can enjoy the sight of storms taking place over the water. Rolling dark clouds and lightning are visible to anyone with a decent view.

The most lucrative business in Tofino is the tourism. Many residents have made good livings running locally owned inns and luxury resorts. Many different accommodations are available to anyone who is looking. A tourist can have a very comfortable stay making it attractive to hundreds of visitors each year.

There are also many exclusive restaurants in Tofino. There are different styles to suit any tourist and most of them are locally run and operated. They mostly rely on the summer season because that is when the most potential patrons are in town. Everything from seafood to Italian is available.

Another notable aspect of Tofino their beach, Long Beach, and the popularity of surfing. Surfing in Tofino is by far one of the more popular outdoor activities that attract the outdoor adventurer. Because Tofino resides along the pacific ocean and the last stop on the pacific coast before reaching Japan and Asia, their beaches receive some of the strongest waves, making it an ideal surfing mecca.

There are several ways to travel to Tofino. One is to fly to the small nearby airport ten minutes from town. This airport is only accessible by small passenger planes. Another method is to take a floatplane that will land on the water near town. The flights are usually delayed until the afternoon because fog is too thick in the morning. Another way to get to Tofino is by car or bus. These are shuttled by a ferry across from Vancouver. After the ferry, it is still a few hours drive across the island. However those tourists and travelers, who are considering the long drive through Vancouver Island to Tofino, may not end taking the full day drive to travel to the city, and opt to stay in a lake front cottage such as Andersen Paul cottage in Sproat Lake, Port Alberni around the mid-way point. Sproat Lake is only est. 2 ½ hours from Tofino and is a popular tourist destination that anyone traveling to the island should see. .

A notable occurrence in recent history was the water shortage of 2006. Tofino gets its water from a reservoir that relies on rainwater. In 2006, due to drought and an increased population, the reservoir became dangerously empty. Tourism ground to a halt as no one was allowed to travel to the village. Local retailers ran out of bottled water to sell and residents were forced to boil their water. Eventually a local business man came to the aid of the town by paying for 50,000 gallons of water to be trucked to Tofino daily and used to fill the reservoir.