Galiano Island Guide & 14 Things to do on Galiano Island

If you’re planning a trip to Galiano Island British Columbia and looking for the best things to do in Galiano Island you’re in the right place.

Galiano Island is one of the Southern Gulf Islands that sit between mainland British Columbia and Vancouver Island.

It’s the closest Gulf Island to Vancouver and is just under 1 hour away by ferry from Tsawwassen Ferry Terminal (as long as the ferries are operating correctly; they weren’t when we went!).

Galiano Island BC is home to impressive sandstone rock features including the Galiano caves and absolutely delicious food, there are plenty of things to do on Galiano Island for a weekend trip from Vancouver!

Galiano Island map

Check out this map of the best things to do on Galiano Island.

It’s got everything I’ve mentioned below pinpointed so you can see where they are in relation to the other Galiano Island attractions and things to do that you want to tick off during your stay here.

Simply click the image below (or here) to open this map of Galiano Island in your Google Maps app or in a new tab.

12 Best Galiano Island things to do

One of the best things to do on Galiano Island is to just relax and cozy up in a cabin but, if you’re like me and struggle to sit still, then here are the top activities on Galiano Island!

1. Go Kayaking

Much like on Gabriola Island, one of the highlights of Galiano Island is its coastline, and the best way to see the coastline is to kayak around parts of the island.

You can rent kayaks, canoes, and paddleboards from Gulf Island Kayaking. Kayak rentals start at $45 for 2 hours.

2. Cosy up in a Cabin

Galiano Island is full of beautiful wood cabins and choosing the best accommodation on Galiano Island could be hard.

We stayed at Bodega Ridge in one of their 3-bed cabins and enjoyed beautiful sea views, and a wood stove fire and woke up to the sound of the chickens and cockerels.

If you’re staying in the summer there’s plenty of outdoor space too for grilling and eating al-fresco!

3. Eat at Pilgrimme Restaurant

Pilgrimme is one of Canada’s best restaurants with a chef who worked at the famous Noma in Copenhagen. It’s also the best Galiano Island restaurant.

It’s usually only open from spring-fall and bookings are essential and only done over email. We have friends who’ve eaten here and were very impressed!

The restaurant itself is tucked away in the forest and is super cute and cozy inside. You’ll feel a bit like you’re around your friend’s house for dinner!

Though not open when we visited, we were able to go inside and enjoy some of the best pizza I’ve had in Canada from Charmer Pizza.

The toppings were unique and ever so tasty and the sourdough pizza base was delicious!

Usually, they operate behind Pilgrimme restaurant but this winter they were inside Pilgrimme.

4. Get Breakfast or Lunch at Oxeye Cafe

Another awesome food option at Galiano was Oxeye Cafe. Oxeye Cafe is in the heart of Sturdies Bay and we stopped by for lunch after exploring in the morning.

They put a Pacific Northwest stamp on modern café cuisine and aim to grow community and collaboration with island artisans, growers, and residents.

We were very impressed with the lunch we got and the space inside was lovely too!

5. Get Lost in the Bookstore

Galiano Island’s bookstore is huge and has a load of local and BC-focused books.

I love browsing bookstores and could’ve spent a long time here (& a lot of money). I was not expecting to find such a big bookstore on such a small island!

6. Pick up Some Tea

The Galiano Island post office doubles as a tea shop!

There were loads of different flavors including both caffeinated black teas, fruity rooibos teas, and other herbal teas. There’s also a selection of cards and stationery items that were super cute.

7. Walk the Beaches

Galiano is famous for its wild west coast beaches and you can find beach access points all over the island.

They’re not always easy to come across, so I’d recommend picking up a map (or see below) that has all the access points listed.

One of my favorite places we visited was Montague Harbour Marine Provincial Park.

We walked out towards the Grey Peninsula and took in the views of the ocean and Parker Island.

8. Hike at Bodega Ridge Galiano

Bodega Ridge is probably the main park on Galiano Island and offers the best Galiano Island hiking, it’s one of the top things to do on Galiano.

You get great views out towards Vancouver Island and you can enjoy the trees and plants of Galiano.

9. Find the Galiano Island Caves

This is the one thing I knew about Galiano before visiting, having seen amazing photos of people exploring the sandstone caves on Galiano Island.

Though they’re not exactly Galiano Island hidden gems since lots of people know about them, they’re still quite hidden away.

To get there you’ll need to head to the end of Retreat Cove Road and then head along the coast to the left (not through the private property) until you come out at the Galiano caves.

You can see similar sandstone features on the beaches on Hornby Island too if you don’t have luck finding them on Retreat Cove Galiano.

10. Visit Dionisio Point Provincial Park

Another popular thing to do on Galiano Island is to visit Dionisio Point, Provincial Park. It’s a wild park on the northeast tip of the island with both sandy and rocky beaches.

There’s a campsite towards the far end of the park if you’re looking for Galiano Island camping, and it’s a popular spot for boaters.

If you’re wondering how to get to Dionisio Point Provincial Park, officially the only way is by boat (including kayak/canoe).

That’s because Dionisio is a marine park.

However, it is possible to hike in.

You can drive to the end of Bodega Beach Drive and park on the side of the road. It’s marked as the Dionisio Provincial Park Entry Gate/Trailhead on Google Maps.

From here, it’s about a 2 km walk on a paved road with a couple of hills until you reach the park itself. You’ll know you’ve reached it when you hit the forest!

From there, there are several clear trails that you can follow, some along the coast and some through the forest. Keep your eyes open for seals, or even whales!

11. Visit the Farmers Market

Galiano Island has a Saturday farmers market with fresh fruit vegetables and other goodies.

It’s usually open from May to early October and is well worth visiting if you’re in Galiano at the weekend!

12. Go camping on Galiano Island

There are two beautiful places to go camping on Galiano Island. One is accessible by car and walk-in and the other is boat-in only.

Camping on Galiano Island is the perfect way to experience the peace and beauty of this Gulf Island.

13. Take a walk in Bluffs Park Galiano

Bluffs Park on Galiano Island is a great place for an easy walk in the forest with ocean views.

From the edge of the park along the coast, you’ll get some lovely views of the neighboring Gulf Islands too.

You’re sure to see some other walkers here but it’s not normally what you could call too busy either.

14. Hike to the top of Mount Galiano

Mount Galiano sits on the southern edge of Galiano Island and is where you’ll find one of the best viewpoints of the neighboring Gulf Islands and the ocean.

If you’re looking for something more challenging than Bluffs Park (above), this is your best best.

The trails can be a little bit tricky to follow sometimes, so make sure you’ve got AllTrails+ where you can download the offline map for this route and use your phone’s GPS to stay on track.

Where to stay on Galiano Island

While there aren’t many Galiano hotels, there are quite a few options when it comes to cabins!

Bodega Ridge & Bodega Cove

We stayed in one of the 3-bedroom cabins at Bodega Ridge.

The cabin was huge and had a well-stocked kitchen, living space, and bedrooms.

There were great views from the balcony in the main bedroom and off the living room too.

Bodega Cove is just down the hill from the ridge and these smaller cabins looked super cute.

They’re not quite as remote as they appear on the website, they’re just set back from the road and on the opposite side of the road from the beach.

However, the road is quiet so I can’t imagine there’s much noise from it.

Galiano Oceanfront Inn & Spa

If you’re looking for a highly relaxing place to stay in Galiano you can’t beat this Galiano accommodation.

The Galiano Oceanfront Inn & Spa is just a 1-minute walk from the beach and has a full spa including yoga facilities.

You can also rent bikes and kayaks from the Galiano Inn.

You can also enjoy a wood-burning fireplace and spa bath in your room at this Galiano Island hotel!

Galiano Island Cabins & Airbnb for Galiano Island

There are some super cute cabins available to rent through Airbnb and VRBO. These Galiano Island cabins are super cute and have incredible ocean views.

Sunset cabin on Galiano Island with hot tub

This absolutely gorgeous Galiano cabin is perfectly located for watching the sunset from your private hot tub.

This mid-century modern cabin has spectacular ocean views of Montague Marina, Parker Island, and out to Salt Spring Island.

Dragonfly Cottage

Dragonfly Cottage is a short 10-minute walk from the ferry so it’s the perfect Galiano Island accommodation if you’re travelling to Glaiano without a car.

This cabin is nestled amongst a woodland garden and has an open-plan kitchen and an enclosed deck.

One of the bedrooms has a skylight to stargaze at night and there’s a wood-burning stove which I imagine you’d get a lot of use out of if staying in Galiano in winter.

You’ll also have access to a private dock for swimming.

InTheBluff on Galiano

InTheBluff is located on Active Pass which means you get gorgeous views of Mayne Island and the ocean.

This VRBO on Galiano is a gorgeous log home surrounded by private woodland and plenty of opportunities to spot wildlife. You might even see humpback whales!

There’s an amazing deck with an infinity-edge hot tub which I could imagine spending many evenings in!

Waterfront Escape on Galiano Island BC

This stunning home with panoramic ocean views has an outdoor shower, and the main room is full of greenery and is lovely and bright. You have access to swimming right in front of the home.

It’s on a 2-acre lot with plenty of hiking nearby.

How to get to Galiano Island from Vancouver

Almost the only way to get here is to take the ferry to Galiano Island. If the ferries are running fully, it’s less than an hour between mainland Vancouver to Galiano Island.

You can take the Galiano Island ferry from Tsawwassen Ferry Terminal straight to Sturdies Bay (view the Galiano Island ferry schedule), Galiano Island.

This ferry is popular and gets booked up fast on weekends. I would strongly recommend you book in advance as the alternative is a much, much longer trip!

When we visited Galiano, the Vancouver – Galiano ferry was canceled so we took the longer route. This route involves going from Vancouver to Victoria then from Victoria to Galiano.

The journey is much longer with about 3 hours on ferries, about 1-1.5 hours from Swartz Bay to Galiano plus the 1.5 hours from Vancouver to Swartz Bay AND waiting time in between them.

On the way back, our ferry from Galiano stopped off at a couple of other Gulf Islands, including Pender Island, making the journey even longer!

So, book the ferry so you don’t spend most of the day traveling, especially since the closeness of Galiano is one of the reasons it’s such a good weekend trip from Vancouver.

Alternatively, you can also get a floatplane from Richmond (YVR) to Galiano Island with Seair Seaplanes. The flying time is 10 minutes.

Things to know about Galiano Island

• Galiano Island wildlife: Hundreds of bird species, orca whale spottings in the right season, otters, sea lions, seals, and more.
• How big is Galiano Island?: The island is 27.5 km long and 6 km wide at the widest point. It feels a bit longer though as the roads are a little windy and narrow.
• Galiano Island population is just over 1,000 residents – and quite a lot of the island is private property
• There’s good cell reception and data coverage in most places.
• There are a couple of small shops on the island (unlike Savary Island), but if you plan on cooking in your Galiano Island accommodation then it’d be best to bring your own supplies over.
• In the winter months, some popular attractions such as rentals on Galliano Island and other attractions on this what to do in Galiano Island list, may not be open and businesses may have reduced opening hours.
• Galiano Island weather:
• Galiano Island day trip from Vancouver: If the 1-hour ferry is running from Tswassen to Galiano then a day trip from Vancouver to Galiano Island is totally possible!

FAQs on what to do on Galiano Island BC

Final thoughts on the best things to do in Galiano Island British Columbia

Galiano Island Canada is one of the most peaceful Gulf Islands off the coast of Vancouver Island. It’s easy to get to from Vancouver and Vancouver Island but feels almost like a different place entirely.

From kayaking and hiking, to beach combing and checking out the shops on Galiano Island you’re sure to have a great trip to this special place with this list of things to do Galiano Island has to offer.

If you’re looking for more Gulf Island travel guides, be sure to check out this guide to camping on Hornby Island, what to do on Gabriola Island, the best Salt Spring Island restaurants, and where to camp on Pender Island.

Last Updated on September 20, 2023 by Hannah