John was an absolutely amazing fishing and wildlife guide! He was an incredible host, with some…read moreamazing stories to share, and went out of his way to ensure we had the best experience possible. We visited Broughton Island and fished off the back of Malcolm Island. We saw more humpback whales than I thought possible, lots of porpoise, and had a memorable visit with the sea lions. Thanks John for such great memories, we thoroughly enjoyed our day out on the ocean.

We had a great stay. The accommodations were clean, comfortable, and had everything we needed…read more Andrew and Nicole were friendly, helpful, and easy to communicate with. We also did a two-day fishing charter with Andrew, and it was a great experience. He worked hard to make sure we got our limits both days and was very knowledgeable about the area. His guidance and local knowledge helped make the trip even more enjoyable. We would definitely recommend both the accommodations and the fishing charter to anyone visiting the area. Dan

One word to describe our experience fishing with Andrew: EPIC…read more He knows what he is doing. His boat and gear performed flawlessly. He expertly cleaned and filleted the fish. The accommodations were clean and comfortable. Highly recommended. Thanks Andrew and family.

great Captin. lighting fast boat. Limited out on fish. cant wait to go back next yearread more

Spent a few days on the water with Billy prawning, cruising and fishing. had a great time. caught a…read morepossession limit of prawns and a few fish. The schools of fish hadn't arrived yet so we were hunting around looking for them. great boat with excellent electronics and down riggers all new. look forward to a next adventure with Billy and the Dirty Worm.

If you are looking for a kayaking paradise, or just a relaxing location away from the crowds, this…read moreis the place. Couldn't recommend it more. The almost infinite number of paddling trip options out from this inn are all filled with stunning scenery and wildlife spottings. Paddled right by a black bear foraging on the shoreline. The cabins are very clean, colorful, comfortable, and well stocked for cooking or grilling the food you bring. The innkeepers are great people, helpful, and are very interesting to talk with. If you're driving, you'll need to take a short boat ride to get to it and back from Telegraph Cove. The ride is fun, laced with good conversation, has beautiful scenery all around, will take all of your gear and kayaks, and doubles as an excellent whale watching excursion as it crosses the Johnstone Strait and environs.

Paddler's Inn is absolutely amazing! Such a luxurious way to finish our trip after camping in tents…read morefor nearly a week. I'll begin by stating Bruce and Josee are absolutely wonderful hosts. They were responsive to all our questions as we planned our 7-day kayak trip almost a year in advance of our stay and were kind enough to accommodate us for an extra night at the last minute when we changed our schedule to permit a little more time in the area. Bruce picked us up in his boat promptly along with another couple and dropped us off on an island of our choice to begin our adventure. We spent 4 days paddling the archipelago before our rendezvous at Paddler's Inn for a gorgeous and tranquil finale. We stayed 3 nights in total, two of them in the Cliffside Cabin, which we absolutely loved. Bruce and Josee have spent decades developing their property into the attractive getaway it is. They have a couple trails you can follow to a sizeable lake, a cliffside lookout, and a scenic sunset view with a nearby bench. If you are eager for some creature comforts or souvenirs, you can paddle a short distance around the point to the local store/mail house on your way to Bill Proctor's house/museum. We cannot recommend Paddler's Inn enough! They can accommodate both large and small groups and they recently added a central gathering lounge out on the water with a roof and propane fireplace. We had a chance to get to know some other paddlers as they began their adventures, though those seeking solitude can easily find space to not be disturbed. We will definitely return the next time we are in the area and look forward to visiting with Bruce and Josee again. Don't think twice about planning your stay at Paddler's Inn! - Tyler and Brett

Our zodiak whale watch tour out of Telegraph Cove was the highlight of our trip to Vancouver…read moreIsland, no question. We had a beautiful day, which helped. But what made it really special was our wonderful James. He was the perfect blend of knowing the wildlife and their local habits combined with a warm and charming personality. We didn't see orca, but there were quite a few humpback whales. And we were lucky enough to closely see a pod of Dall's Porpoises (tiny orcas, so cute!). It was a great experience.

From the owner: With locations in Victoria, Vancouver, and Telegraph Cove, Prince of Whales Whale & Marine Wildlife…read moreAdventures is a family-owned and operated eco-tourism operator that aims to educate, inspire, and provide access to a world that the average person knows little about. We share stories of the ocean along with its varying waterscapes and diversity of animals in a way that entertains and educates.

We were really excited about booking a whale watching tour outside the busier Victoria area. We…read morespecifically chose a more intimate experience in Alert Bay because we thought the secluded setting would make the longer drive from Victoria worthwhile and give us a more up-close experience. Unfortunately, that wasn't really the case. Sea Smoke had a friendly, knowledgeable crew, a new and comfortable boat, and the overall process was smooth. Our main criticism was simply how far away we remained from the wildlife. Other whale-watching boats, tour boats, and even research vessels were consistently much closer to the whales than we were. I completely understand the importance of maintaining a respectful distance from wildlife, but the distance we maintained felt excessive compared with the other vessels operating in the same area. In the end, we spent much of the experience watching the whales through binoculars and even then it was too far. What was particularly disappointing was that the photos and videos on TripAdvisor, Google, etc. gave the impression of much closer wildlife encounters. That simply wasn't our experience. We chose Alert Bay specifically because we were willing to make the extra effort for what we hoped would be a more intimate and memorable experience. Had we known beforehand that the viewing would be from such a distance, we likely would have booked elsewhere. Especially since they advertise their new electric motor so much. I hope Sea Smoke takes this feedback constructively.Everyone (12 people on our boat felt the same) The crew was nice and the boat was excellent unfortunately, for us, the distance from the wildlife made the experience fall short of what we were expecting from a whale-watching tour.

What is nice about doing whale tours from Port McNeill is it's not too hot and more importantly the…read morewhale viewing area is only 30 minutes from the port. Most whale tours you typically have to go much further from the port. This is one of the reasons why we chose Seasmoke Whale Watching. The Seasmoke Whale Watching boat was pretty good. Binoculars were supplied, Nikon Prostaff P3 10x42 which are decent, but only one per group. Everyone was given a flotation suit which does a wonderful job of keeping you warm. With whale tours, you never know what you will see. In the past we have been lucky and have had Orca pods and Humpback whales surface so close to our boat that we got amazing views. Unfortunately on this tour that did not happen. Our guide was extremely knowledgeable and helped make the tour interesting. But on this day the Humpback whales were more timid than usual, using the words of guide, and we did not see much at all. I took no photos because whenever we did see a whale it was far away and for just a fleeting moment. Then one of the boat's engines stopped working which added a bonus hour to the tour. We did end up seeing a resident Orca pod because of the delay but the pod was so close to the shore that you could barely make them out. Considering that just the day before we saw more whales on a tour that was not for whale watching we were a bit disappointed. But that's the luck of the draw with whale watching. For almost $200 per person I am not sure if we will do this tour again. Because even if we did see more whales they would probably be far away and one has to ask is that worth it.

Went out on a 2 days charter with Captain Steve and it was great! We got into some chinooks as well…read moreas some halibut, sun and fishing with a pro outfit. As a bonus we got a ling cod! Would recommend Hook n Them Up!

From the owner: Hook’n Them Up Fishing Charters is a family owned & operated local business whose captain has over…read more27 years of guide experience in these pristine northern waters. We are proud to present our World Famous Guided Salmon, Halibut & Lingcod Sport Fishing Charters located in the beautiful & remote location of Port Hardy/Port McNeill in Northern Vancouver Island BC. Thank you in advance for thinking of us.