The classic visitor mistake is writing Victoria, Tofino, and Nanaimo into one weekend as if the island were a city with three neighbourhoods. It is not.
Pick one weekend loop. Victoria and Sooke. Nanaimo and Parksville. Tofino and Ucluelet. Not all three.
Why the big triangle fails
Victoria to Tofino is not a quick side trip. Add ferry timing, terminal waits, traffic, Highway 4, parking, check-in, meals, and the drive back, and your weekend becomes a transportation project. Nanaimo may look like a neat midpoint, but it does not magically make the west coast close.
The problem is not only distance. It is that each place asks for a different kind of trip. Victoria rewards walking and lingering. Tofino rewards tides, dawn, dusk, and weather. Nanaimo is a ferry and east-coast jumping-off point. Treating them as checklist stops flattens all three.
Three weekend loops that work
Loop one: Victoria, Sidney or Butchart, Sooke, and maybe Port Renfrew if you have a full day. Loop two: Nanaimo, Parksville, Qualicum, Coombs, and a short Oceanside drive. Loop three: go straight to Ucluelet or Tofino, sleep there both nights, and accept that the drive is the price of admission.
Each loop has a clear centre. That is what makes it restful. You know where you sleep, where the long drive sits, and what you are not doing.
The good weekend test
A weekend route should have one anchor activity per day, not four. If the itinerary requires perfect weather, no ferry delay, no roadwork, and no one getting hungry, it is not a plan. It is a dare.
The best Vancouver Island weekend leaves something undone. That is not failure. That is how the island convinces you to come back.
How to decide
Use this article as a fit check, not a command. If your trip needs a trip that feels like a holiday instead of a transit diagram, this stop or route deserves a serious look. If your group would be happier avoiding you are determined to collect place names instead of experiences, skipping it is not failure. Vancouver Island gets better when you stop treating every famous place as mandatory.
Before you commit, check the current road, ferry, weather, park, and opening-hour details that affect this exact day. A good island itinerary has a Plan B: a shorter walk, a closer meal, a rainy-day version, or permission to leave one thing for next time.
The final test is simple: does this choice improve the route, or is it only there because you recognized the name? Keep the stops that make the day calmer, richer, or more local. Drop the ones that only make the map look more impressive.
Plan with: BC Ferries | DriveBC | Vancouver Island Travel. Last reviewed June 2026.
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