It was another busy summer for Vancouver Island tourism, but the latest numbers show the story is not quite as simple as packed hotels and crowded ferries. Greater Victoria recorded an average hotel occupancy of 88 per cent between Victoria Day and Labour Day, compared with 92 per cent during the same period last year. “Last year was our strongest year in over a decade. So, it’s been on par,” said Paul Nursey, CEO of Destination Greater Victoria. Destination Greater Victoria says international soccer events during June and July shifted typical travel patterns, with occupancy returning to normal levels once the events were over. There is another interesting detail behind the hotel numbers. The average daily room rate reached $370 this summer, up 7.3 per cent from last year. So while a slightly smaller share of rooms was occupied, the industry was bringing in more from each room that was sold. Nanaimo had an even steadier summer. Hotels in the Harbour City were between 88 and 94 per cent full on average during July and August, matching the city’s strongest summer on record in 2025. But the bigger change was in where Nanaimo’s visitors were coming from. Tourism Nanaimo says spending by overseas visitors jumped 17 per cent compared with last year, while spending from U.S. visitors increased 10 per cent. That is notable for Nanaimo, where B.C. travellers have traditionally made up a large share of the visitor market. The trend is also spreading beyond the Island’s best known tourism destinations. Tourism Vancouver Island says Victoria and Tofino remain leading draws, but more travellers are heading to communities along the east coast and farther north. “We’re seeing a lot more visitation up to the East Coast like Parksville, the Comox Valley, Campbell River and then the North Island,” said Brian Cant, president of Tourism Vancouver Island. Cross border travel is another sign of a stronger summer. Black Ball Ferry Line’s Coho ferry carried 206,884 passengers between Victoria and Port Angeles during June, July and August, about nine per cent more than during the same period in 2025. That recovery has not brought traffic back to 2024 levels, but it is a clear improvement from last summer. Nanaimo’s cruise industry also made a comeback. The Harbour City welcomed eight cruise ship visits this year, the most since before the pandemic. For tourism officials, those passengers can become future overnight visitors if they like what they see during their time on the Island. “Whether you’re coming into Victoria or Nanaimo on a cruise ship, and maybe it’s your first time to Vancouver Island. You typically see a lot of people having that desire to return,” said Cant. Nanaimo’s cruise season wraps up Friday when Holland America’s Noordam makes its third visit of the year. The ship is scheduled to arrive at 10:30 a.m. and depart at 9 p.m. Greater Victoria’s cruise season continues, with more ships expected before the end of the year. Tourism is also being spread beyond the summer calendar through conferences and sporting events, giving the region another source of visitors when leisure travel slows. For Vancouver Island, the latest numbers do not point to another across the board record. Instead, they show a tourism industry that is holding strong after an exceptional 2025, attracting more visitors from international markets and sending more of them beyond the Island’s traditional tourism hotspots. The summer may not have broken every record, but it showed Vancouver Island continues to be a destination visitors want to return to.
