We are new customers at Van Isle Marina and have been impressed with them since my first phone call…read moreto them. We store our 30' Bayliner in their Yacht Park and love the service they provide. When we want to use our boat, a quick call to schedule with Laura or Emma ensures it is waiting for us, and when we are done at a prearranged date and time, they take care of hauling it out and putting it in blocks. Their staff are friendly and professional, the marina is in beautiful condition, and the Seagrass Bistro is a wonderful place to eat. It seems few companies deliver what they promise these days. Van Isle Marina is an exception and we are thrilled to call it our home port!

From the owner: Moorage, Haulouts, Fuel Dock, Dry Storage, Yacht Sales,read more

We had a great time just admiring the beautiful islands, as well as some basking sea lions and a…read morehumpback whale. Captains Nate and Ben were awesome and extended our excursion to make sure we saw whales. Highly recommended!

What an amazing time and fun experience!!! First, my mother was hesitant to go due to her thinking…read moreshe would get sea sick and the driver reassured her she would be fine and she was. Our Guide took us out with a small group of people and had so much knowledge about Orcas and sea life around. This tour went beyond my expectations and definitely was a trip of a lifetime. Thank you Darrion for the amazing experience!!

I've done several whale watching, but this one was by far the most incredible of all! They only…read moretake maximum 12 passengers and we were a small group of 8 (6 of us plus a other couple) Captain Jackie made sure to find the orcas and would always have the best spot of the other boats to watch them! Best of all we stayed longer than planned on the tour so every other boat were leaving and we were then the only one to observe the huge pod of orcas. That is when one of them decided to breach and say hello to us... magic!!!! Captain Jackie was very fun and stopped on the way back so we could see eagles even though she already extended the tour on her personal time. Just amazing. If you ever wonder who to choose, you'll have the best tour with Seeking Adventure.

With the abundance of whale watching tours available in Victoria it gets overwhelming and confusing…read moretrying to determine which is best. I had started with an online search prior to my arrival in Victoria but then decided not to book ahead and instead search a place out on foot while touring the city. This ended up being a great decision as I had not come across SeaKing Adventures in my google searches... or perhaps it just didn't stand out enough which may be largely due to the small company that it is. When I walked into their office in Fisherman's Warf I was greeted by Ron and had a good impression of him straight away. Very friendly and very informative. What I liked most is that he's the owner operator. Supporting small business is very important to me. He also has a small boat and you're never with more than 10 people (big bonus for us as we didn't want to be fighting for a view of the whales). I had pretty much decided that this was our guy but didn't want to book as I wanted to chat with the rest of my group first. I also took the time to search out reviews online where I found just two negative reviews. I must admit, after reading the reviews I had second thoughts about going with them but we decided as a group to stick with my initial impression and book the tour (I might also add that their tour is the cheapest I found and offers basically the same package the other companies offer). When we had visited the office earlier in the day it was indicated that they had room on both departures yet when I called to make the reservation I was told the morning departure was full. No problem - was my fault for waiting to book.... however, we ended up walking down to Fisherman's Warf a few hours before our departure (and during the time that the morning tour would have been out on the water) and found Ron at the dock seemingly preparing his boat for what would be our 2pm departure. I would have respected them telling me there's a minimum # of people required to get a boat out (we were just 3) and felt it was a bit shifty to tell me the boat was full. Anyway, the tour itself was awesome. Ron is fantastic and we saw everything that you would see with the other tours but with a more small business feel, which I really appreciate. Ron was informative and had a good sense of the whales and how they move in the water. He did his best to get us as close to the action as possible.

We took the tour yesterday, with Simon as our skipper/guide. Although this tour cost about twice as…read moremuch as the "cattle boat" tours in some other places, it is 10 times the experience! My mind is still reeling from all that we saw. We followed a gathering of 19 orcas for more than an hour. Exceeded every bucket list dream I ever had, for seeing these animals! Simon is very, very knowledgeable; he also collects data for Canada Fisheries, so he knew the pods and individuals we were watching. And that wasn't all. We were guided to view a Humpback whale, 2 kinds of sea lion, seals, bald eagles, and even an island which had been stocked as an exotic game preserve, and still has wild animals from other parts of the world roaming around it. There were only 9 people, plus the skipper, so everybody had a great view of everything. And the boats are really fast, so they can go quite a distance in the search for those ever-moving orcas. An experience of a lifetime...even if (like me) you've taken many other whale-watching excursions.

Such a fun way to learn about the Orcas and to see them hunting and feeding from your small group…read moreof 10 on a Zodiac. Don't hesitate, just do it. You will not regret this amazing experience. Great for kids too. These boats are fast, you will see so much and cover incredible distances. Don't worry there is a WC on board for emergencies! Sign your paperwork, get your sunscreen on, and suit up in your warm floatation suit/life vest. Keep your phone handy as you will see all sorts of wildlife along the way, seals, eagles, eagle nests, then the killer whales. It's amazing how you can check the binder and identify each pod by name with their offspring. On our way back as we returned to dock we even had a bonus viewing of some whales right in Cowichan bay.

I recently chartered a Jeanneau 440 through Island Cruising--a stunning yacht with sleek lines and…read moresuperb sailing performance. Having owned a similar vessel and chartered more times than I can count, I know what separates a top-tier charter company from a floating headache. Island Cruising, unfortunately, falls squarely into the latter. Let's start with the good: the boat itself was excellent. Well-equipped, comfortable, and ideal for a couple--or two. The twin rudders do have a knack for attracting kelp, but that's a minor quirk in an otherwise delightful sailing experience. Now, the company. Island Cruising's operations are a masterclass in how not to run a charter business. I won't echo the more colorful reviews suggesting Larry, the owner, return to South Africa--but I will say he's one of the most combative individuals I've encountered in the boating world. I understand being protective of an $800,000 yacht, but Larry's approach is less "professional caution" and more "ego on parade." When I submitted a perfectly reasonable sail plan, he pounced on the fact that it crossed ferry lanes--as if I'd never sailed from Sidney to Salt Spring before. Spoiler: you have to cross ferry lanes. His critique felt more like a self-aggrandizing performance than a concern. Ironically, in Larry's own marina, there's a submerged buoy that becomes a stealth hazard at high tide. When I asked why it hadn't been fixed, he shrugged and said he'd get to it "someday." Apparently, safety is negotiable. Our charter began with half a tank of fuel. Larry's solution? "Fill it up and I'll sort it out later." Famous last words. I trusted him and set sail. Things went smoothly until we headed from South Pender to Port Friday in the U.S.--where I discovered the boat's registration was missing. The manual said it should be in the chart table. It wasn't. I called Larry and he insisted I wasn't looking hard enough (I was). Eventually, he sent me the bill of sale, which U.S. Customs obviously deemed useless - Obviously, Larry didn't seem to know the difference between a bill or sale and a boat's registration. I had to pay a fee to enter and exit the country. Larry's response? Indifference. Would I charter from Island Cruising again? Only if I could bypass Larry entirely. His communication style is transactional at best--emails only get answered when money's involved. He charged us for linens that turned out to be torn sleeping bags, and one storage compartment was a science experiment of leaking beer cans and slime. We paid for a 4 p.m. pre-board, but Larry was still pressure-washing the deck at 5. Larry's goal is to sell the company and retire. Based on my experience, he'll need more than a mop and a smile to clean up his reputation. As of today, I've received no compensation for the fuel or customs fees, despite multiple follow-ups. In short: the boat was a dream, but the charter experience was a headache. If you value professionalism, steer clear of Island Cruising--unless you enjoy navigating bureaucracy more than the open sea.

Our third charter with Island Cruising was a great experience leading us two up the Broughton's…read moreArchipelago with the powerboat "Melisssa Ruth" covering easily 650 nm in 20 days. Though the boat had some unexpected issues Larry was permanently attainable by what's up phone and always found a solution. After a challenging journey passing twice the Seymour Narrows and the Johnstone Strait we returned safe and in time. I'd like to add that the homebase Deep Cove Marina has quite a tricky approach due to some large rocks and can be reached only with a tide over 2m and best with very low or no wind. In doubts fix the boat at a buoy and ask for help. Larry will give his best to assist you.

Took my 4.3 inboard for service after making the appointment several months in advance. Three weeks…read morelater they called and said they aren't going to work on inboard engines any longer and told me to pick up my boat. Classy.

Had two motor swapped between two boats. The Final price was 2 times there original estimate…read more I took by boat back there for 4 simple repairs and service (big mistake). They had it for a month and only said they had completed 2 of 4 tasks. They lied about having completed one of the repairs and when I showed up to get my boat and do the work myself I found out that the work they claimed to have done was not done yet. I took my boat back and will never go there for service again. I had bought my $70,000 boat there. This is how the treat there returning customers. I still had not learned my lesson and went back to get a quote on ordering a 200,000+ dollar boat. The sales person told me that they were not allowed to tell me what options were available for the boat. (the option are listed on the Hewescraft web site) I will never buy anything from this dealer again and will buy my new boat in Vancouver or Salmon Arm. Update Bought a new 25 Alaskan Hewescraft and they will not do the warranty work because I gave them a bad review. Love the boat but will never deal with Sherwood again.

Excellent customer service, efficient and very knowledgeable. The Owner, Nathan, is friendly,…read morerespectful and great to work with.

We worked with Nathan to solve our problem with our port engine and he was analytical in going…read morethrough each step to eliminate things working and finding what wasn't. We will be using Bayside for our annual maintenance, even though we are U.S. and the boat is stored in Anacortes, we bring it to Sidney before going north

Chartered a 36' sailboat out of the Powell River branch and had a fantastic trip. The service and…read moresupport were excellent, and the boat was spotless on arrival and in even better condition that when I had chartered it a few years earlier.

From the owner: Call TODAY to saved your preferred date for you Bareboat Charter, skip the car rental, airbnb, and…read moreget it all in one, with one of our BOATS! Schedule NOW! The experiences our clients have exceed their expectations. This is our reason for being. Whether it is chartering a vessel out of Bellingham, participating in an Alaska group flotilla, attending one of our training classes, purchasing a vessel, having your boat maintained by our exceptional service department or participating as one of our charter boat owners. The goal is simple: We will exceed your expectations. Bareboat yacht charters, flotilla adventures, and in-house brokerage.