The unofficial BC Travel & Tourism Guide
Tsawwassen
The Vancouver area is well known for its geographic diversity. This is never better illustrated than on a grey and wet day when the downtown is cold and shrouded in cloud, while 30 minutes to the south, Tsawwassen is under bright blue skies with balmy air and sunny seaside vistas.
The small community is set well in the rain shadow of Vancouver Island and is as popular with tourists as it is with retirees and commuters.
Besides the unusually temperate climate and near record-breaking hours of sunshine, the community has a lot to offer. Set between the open waters of south Georgia Strait and Boundary Bay (named for its location in both Canadian and US waters), Tsawwassen has the light and feel of an island, yet it is an easy drive away from Vancouver, Surrey and the upper Fraser Valley. The town is also only minutes from the busiest ferry route in BC, the Tsawwassen Ferry terminal, which has departures not only to Victoria, but Nanaimo and numerous Gulf Islands as well.
There are two golf courses, RV camping and an extensive wildlife park on the shores of Boundary Bay. There is also a first class water park, with 13 water slides, paint ball games and many other recreational opportunities, from windsurfing and kite surfing to kayaking, shell-fish harvesting and fishing.
The shores of Boundary Bay are famous for wildlife, including numerous migratory waterfowl and the pure-white snowy owl. Each spring and fall, more than 250,000 birds stop at Boundary Bay, making it a critical area on the Pacific Flyway. At low tide, kilometers of sand flats are exposed and provide hours of barefoot walking and nature viewing. A sea mist often rises from the sands. There is no better place to view the magnificent snow-capped volcanic peak of Mount Baker (site of the world’s largest recorded snowfall), star gaze or watch a full moon rise. Hikers and cyclists will also enjoy kilometers of trails along the top of the dikes that rim Boundary Bay.
Tsawwassen has numerous shops and accommodation choices, including full-service hotels. It is also the Canadian border crossing point for the little American community of Port Roberts. The name Tsawwassen (pronounced Sa-wa-sen) is derived from the First Nations band, that still have large reserves in the delta lands to the west and south of the main community.
The Vancouver area is well known for its geographic diversity. This is never better illustrated than on a grey and wet day when the downtown is cold and shrouded in cloud, while 30 minutes to the south, Tsawwassen is under bright blue skies with balmy air and sunny seaside vistas.
The small community is set well in the rain shadow of Vancouver Island and is as popular with tourists as it is with retirees and commuters.
Besides the unusually temperate climate and near record-breaking hours of sunshine, the community has a lot to offer. Set between the open waters of south Georgia Strait and Boundary Bay (named for its location in both Canadian and US waters), Tsawwassen has the light and feel of an island, yet it is an easy drive away from Vancouver, Surrey and the upper Fraser Valley. The town is also only minutes from the busiest ferry route in BC, the Tsawwassen Ferry terminal, which has departures not only to Victoria, but Nanaimo and numerous Gulf Islands as well.
There are two golf courses, RV camping and an extensive wildlife park on the shores of Boundary Bay. There is also a first class water park, with 13 water slides, paint ball games and many other recreational opportunities, from windsurfing and kite surfing to kayaking, shell-fish harvesting and fishing.
The shores of Boundary Bay are famous for wildlife, including numerous migratory waterfowl and the pure-white snowy owl. Each spring and fall, more than 250,000 birds stop at Boundary Bay, making it a critical area on the Pacific Flyway. At low tide, kilometers of sand flats are exposed and provide hours of barefoot walking and nature viewing. A sea mist often rises from the sands. There is no better place to view the magnificent snow-capped volcanic peak of Mount Baker (site of the world’s largest recorded snowfall), star gaze or watch a full moon rise. Hikers and cyclists will also enjoy kilometers of trails along the top of the dikes that rim Boundary Bay.
Tsawwassen has numerous shops and accommodation choices, including full-service hotels. It is also the Canadian border crossing point for the little American community of Port Roberts. The name Tsawwassen (pronounced Sa-wa-sen) is derived from the First Nations band, that still have large reserves in the delta lands to the west and south of the main community.