Are you looking for a perfect place to spend your weekend or vacation? You can count on this surfer-inspired community of Ucluelet, BC.
You must have recalled seeing its signage when you are heading towards Tofino, thus showing that they are both neighboring communities.
In recent years, Ucluelet has continued to experience an increase in visiting rates of people both far and near, thanks to its stunning tourist attractions.
Some of its unique wonders and activities in Ucluelet include Pacific Rim Visitor Center, Ucluelet Aquarium, Thornton Creek Hatchery, and lots more.
You will never lack fun things to do in Ucluelet, BC, for couples, families, adults, kids, and for the weekend!
Where is Ucluelet, BC?
Situated on the west coast of Vancouver Island, Ucluelet is a district municipality on the Ucluelet Peninsula on the west coast of Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada.
Ucluelet is a Nuu-chah-nulth dialect, which means people of the safe harbor.
According to the most recent population census by Canadian Statistics, Ucluelet has 2,066 people, a significant increase from the 2016 statistics (1,717).
The Tofino District lies 40km northwest of Ucluelet on Highway 4, making it Ucluelet’s neighboring city.
Even though Ucluelet is a small city, you will still find many things to do there. Only a one-day tour around the city would give you all the answers you seek on the possible attractions and activities to do.
Below is our rundown of some of the best things to add to your list.
See Also: Things to Do In Victoria (BC)
Fun Things to Do In Ucluelet, BC
1. Private Surf Lessons
One of the top things to do in Ucluelet is to apply for a Private Surf Lesson, which is the perfect way to learn how to surf.
The Relic Surf Shop is always available to provide highly experienced teachers who will take you on whatever you need to know, either as a beginner or if you want to become a pro.
Relic Surf School is the Ucluelet’s top surf school, thanks to its ability to pay attention to details and provide high standards for every interested surfer anytime. The school aims to make surfing activities easy and fun for all its visitors.
There is a fun-filled group lesson, and if you prefer private lessons, the school is there to serve you.
The most interesting part of the school is that they offer complete Open Ocean certified, educated, and experienced surf teachers to attend to every individual, family, or group.
These teachers love the things they do and will transfer their inspiration to their esteemed students.
Therefore, even though you are coming alone, with family, or with a large group, they will not hesitate to serve you to the best of their abilities. Just tell them what you want and consider it done.
Address: Khan West, 2695 Tofino Ucluelet Highway, Ucluelet, BC VOR 3A0.
2. Ucluelet Brewery
In your free time, maybe, in the evening, you will be doing no wrong by joining others in the tasting room, a welcoming atmosphere for beer enthusiasts and newcomers in equal measure.
Apart from the numerous attraction centers in the city, you can also spend a few hours in Ucluelet Brewery. Here, you can be spotted relaxing and enjoying some of the best handcrafted beers you have ever tasted.
The Ucluelet Brewing Company is situated in a previous community church building, which is currently a legendary part of the city’s food and beverage center.
The brewery is sure to give you a warm, welcoming, and partially vibrant environment, which are significant features of Vancouver Island’s craft beer community.
You are free to come with your family and friends to enjoy the brewery’s local music and art while enjoying your favorite beer.
Address: 1601 Peninsula Road, Ucluelet, BC VOR 3A0, Canada
3. The Black Pearl
If you want the best outdoor relaxation, free from the little naggings of home, we recommend you visit The Black Pearl in Ucluelet.
It is a luxury boutique resort seated in the very heart of Coral Way and was constructed to the highest level of craftsmanship.
The resort is a 400 to 800 square feet building designed using the latest technology, outdoor natural cedar showers, hammered copper sinks with versatile kitchenette, natural wood-edged tabletops, Surfer and Sauna room showers, complimentary parking, private patio & BBQ, etc.
Address: 1165 Coral Way, Ucluelet, BC VOR 3A0, Canada
4. Kwisitis Visitor Center
If you have heard of Kwisitis Visitor Center and haven’t visited the arena, then you need to schedule a visit, as it offers a premium indoor experience.
Also called the Wickaninnish Interpretive Center, this center is seated on the bank of the Pacific Ocean at the far end of Wick Road.
Almost 3.5-km from Highway 4, the Kwisitis Visitor Center features numerous exhibits about the animals, the sea, the forest, and the people of the West Coast.
It features an interpretive facility and houses a gift shop, which deals with the natural and cultural heritage of the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve.
Feel free to tour around an identical longhouse and learn more about the First Nations. Then, you can move towards the huge observation deck, which offers spectacular scenery of the Pacific Ocean.
Here, you will find whales and watch storms. You can come with your pets to the beach.
Address: 485 Wick Road, Ucluelet, BC V0R 3A0, Canada
5. Ucluelet Aquarium
One of the best things to do in Ucluelet is to visit the Ucluelet Aquarium, a place visitors from all over the world frequent to explore marine wildlife and its features.
Established in 2004, the aquarium is a non-profit public center on the west coast of Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada.
Since its founding, the aquarium has continued to expand, thanks to its outstanding and selfless services to its local people and visitors.
In this aquarium, you will witness and learn more about local marine wildlife, especially invertebrates and fish discovered in the surrounding waters.
Thanks to its relentless efforts to offer the best services to its visitors, the Ucluelet aquarium has expanded to such an extent that on 1 June 2012, it established a new permanent structure.
Since it is a perfect catch-and-release aquarium, you can’t predict what you’ll expect on every visit, and it continuously changes its animals.
It is accessible from March to November.
Address: 180 Main Street, Ucluelet, BC V0R 3A0, Canada
6. Wild Pacific Trail
If you can only choose one thing to do in Ucluelet, we recommend you go for the Wild Pacific Trail.
We’ll tell you why! It is a short loop (the full loop is 2.6km) that is incredibly flat and slightly accessible by wheelchair, especially if your destination is the lighthouse.
From this trail, you will get an incredible sight of the lighthouse seated on the rocks at the tip of the coast. You will discover waves crashing along the rocks, and many little islands offshore can be sighted.
You’ll also get to witness several boats heading towards the harbors of the two towns. You’ll still find the remains of the water holding tank for the time the lighthouse was run by steam power during the 19th century.
It would help if you didn’t miss out on this exciting adventure of the Wild Pacific Trail.
Address: Ucluelet, BC V0R 3A0, Canada
7. Kennedy River Bog Provincial Park
Are you looking for the best thing to do during any of your vacation periods in Ucluelet? Think no further than Kennedy River Bog Provincial Park.
Though a small park, it features numerous air creatures, especially birdlife, offering excellent viewing opportunities for bird watchers and nature lovers.
Lying adjacent to the shores of the Kennedy River on the west coast of Vancouver Island, the Kennedy River Bog Provincial Park is for Ecological Reserve status.
Here, you can spot creatures like ospreys, Bald eagles, and a good number of ducks and songbirds.
Meanwhile, the best way to catch a good sight of these creatures is by canoe or kayak through a quiet paddle down the river from Kennedy Lake. Have you taken the time to check out the bog itself?
If you do, you’ll discover that it is a stunning sight, enclosed by an oxbow, which protects most of these creatures’ critical bird nesting habitat.
Address: Highway 4, Ucluelet, BC V0R 3A0, Canada.
See Also: 21 Fun Things to Do in Weymouth
8. Canuck Canoe Co.
The best place to enjoy your travels and have a new local experience is through a high-class Eco Tour. Explore the unique beauty and wildlife of the west coast up close in a distinctively Canadian method.
Plan a visit to the Canuck Canoe Co. and participate in an incredible canoe adventure.
The place features a large canoe that can carry up to six visitors. The canoe quietly sails through the river and leaves wildlife undisturbed, providing a different, enjoyable viewing adventure.
An expert is always available to guide you on your next memorable trip.
You’ll have the option of choosing from amongst great packages.
Address: Whiskey Dock, Main Street, Ucluelet, BC V0R 3A0, Canada
9. Florencia Bay
Nicknamed Flo by the residents, Florencia Bay is a calm 6km (3.5mile) strip of sandy beach around Ucluelet.
It is surrounded by cliffs, making an incredible beach backdrop. This bay offers a fantastic place to relax, watch surfers, or listen to the sea lions bark.
In Florencia Bay, you will always witness numerous surfers and paddleboarders. However, if you want to get down to the beach, you’ll have to navigate several stairs.
The bay is a very calm beach where you’ll often find surfers, kayakers, boogie boarders, and paddle boarders.
Florencia Bay was initially called Wreck Bay, thanks to its 200-tonne brigantine, otherwise known as Florencia, which capsized further north off Vancouver Islander in 1860.
After the ship was deemed repairable, it was towed back to Victoria, and Florencia was freed.
You won’t be surprised to witness seals and sea lions while surfing in this bay. The beach can also serve as a fishing hotspot. Therefore, boats can be found near the island towards the bay’s north end.
You can trail along the tree over the beach or trek down an extended stairway.
Address: Pacific Rim Highway, Ucluelet, BC V0R 3A0, Canada
10. Majestic Ocean Kayaking
Majestic Ocean Kayaking provides all-inclusive kayaking experiences like day trips in Ucluelet, Barkley Sound, and the Broken Group Islands of the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve.
It also offers memorable multi-day adventures to the Broken Group Islands, Ucluelet and Clayoquot Sound, Tofino.
Join other visitors to check out the little islands with silent coves as you camp on white sandy beaches. Several kinds of creatures are available for watching, including whales, eagles, bears, and numerous intertidal animals.
They offer various certified professional sea kayak guides that will share their extensive experience of the wealthy cultural past of the west coast of Vancouver Island.
Majestic Ocean Kayaking is fantastic and will offer you an unforgettable experience.
Address: 1167 Helen Road, Ucluelet, BC V0R 3A0, Canada
11. Pacific Rim Visitor Center
Pacific Rim Visitor Center is nestled in the traditional territories of the Nuu-chah-nulth locals just within the outskirts of Ucluelet, where the highway splits towards Tofino.
It is a perfect resource for maps, guidance about trail terms, and more knowledge for things to do in the area enclosed by the Long Beach Unit of Pacific Rim National Park.
This visitor center serves as a primary arrival and meeting point for those heading toward the Pacific Rim region on the West Coast of Vancouver Island.
Thanks to the resources of the ocean and temperate rainforests, the center has traditionally enhanced the social, cultural, and economic well-being of the Nuu-chah-nulth locals for generations to come.
Address: 2791 BC-4, Ucluelet, BC V0R 3A0, Canada
12. Wild Pacific Charters
For a great fishing expedition, visit the Wild Pacific Charters, as you would be given ample opportunities to tour through pristine waters to the most incredible fishing centers on the planet.
It offers the best waters around Ucluelet on the attractive West Coast of Vancouver Island.
The Pacific waters offer unending opportunities where you can taste your fishing skills with several sea creatures like Salmon, Halibut, Red Snapper, and others every year.
Due to its fantastic fishing expeditions, the Wild Pacific is considered among the world’s most fertile fishing grounds.
In 2019, there were several quality fishes in Ucluelet BC, and you can expect more of them in 2020. If you are looking to make a great catch or catch and release, then the best place for that is Wild Pacific Charters.
Please complete this place as your Salmon & Halibut fishing holiday destination.
Address: 2110 Lyche Road, Ucluelet, BC V0R 3A0, Canada
13. Little Beach
You might be wondering why it is called Little Beach. Well! Little or not, the beach offers many exciting adventures and activities that will make your vacation fun.
It is a little tiny, enjoyable area with a small parking lot and a few stairs that will take you down the beach.
These features make it an ideal place for hosting picnics or exploring low tide. It is open throughout the year for visitors to come and take part in the tour of Duplex Cabins lying across a quiet street from its area.
The Little Beach Resort is a family-owned resort that has existed for more than 17 years and offers travelers an unforgettable holiday encounter.
They have rooms that feature Ocean Views with different floor plans. There are various rooms, including Standard Rooms, Kitchen Suites, and Jacuzzi Suites.
Fridges, Microwaves, Cable TV, and Decks are in each room to keep visitors in a very relaxing mood.
The beach resort also offers complimentary Coffee Tea and Hot Chocolate, free Wi-Fi, Paved Parking, and Cedar Sauna. Pets are not allowed as some of their staff are allergic to pets.
After a day of adventure, the resort provides a great relaxing and enjoyable moment with the new cedar sauna.
Outside the area, around the Little Beach arena, you can join in the paddle boarding, kayaking, snorkeling, swimming, or just relaxing.
The Little Beach Resort is just a stone’s throw from town art galleries, spas & shopping.
Address: Peninsula Road, Ucluelet, British Columbia V0R 3A0, Canada
14. Amphitrite Point Lighthouse
It would be best to give yourself a few extra hours to enjoy sceneries from frequent benches. Off the coast of Japan, a wave gathers and then increases as it propagates four miles eastward over the Pacific Ocean.
At the very top, westerly winds from moisture-laden clouds as they blow over the warm waters. Anytime the two elements touch land for the first time, it produces a great force.
First established in 1906 in response to the shipwreck of the Pass of Melfort, the Amphitrite Point Lighthouse was renovated to the present building.
This current building is constructed formidably to withstand hurricane-force storms.
To get to the lighthouse, you’ll have to walk clockwise to your right from the 0km marker via a mossy rainforest leading to the renowned rugged and wind-swept coastline.
Join others to tour through this legendary sentinel, Amphitrite Lighthouse, which secures the Barkley Sound and the archipelago of the Broken Group Islands.
You are free to explore boats and seabirds changing with every season. More than 300 species relocate via the Ucluelet Peninsula.
Address: Ucluelet, BC V0R 3A0, Canada
15. Surf Junction Campground
Are you looking for a perfect place in Ucluelet to spend an extra hour of your free time?
Look no further than the Surf Junction Campground. It is a stunningly unique family-owned and managed campground and surf school close to the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve, Ucluelet, BC entrance.
The center prides itself on its unique customer service, artistic vibe, and a large group of like-minded campers.
It constantly works harder towards creating an area for a meeting, camping, surfing, and exploring by surfers, families, and outing freaks.
The campground is not situated on the beach but is not too far from it, as the area is just a 5-minute drive to where the campers surf at Wickaninnish Beach.
The campground features vast private sites, clean new amenities, and different services in a beautiful woodland setting.
In Surf Junction Campground, there are about 75 campsites, including tenting sites to huge full-service RV sites, located on 72 acres in the privacy and peace of the forest.
Meanwhile, the campground dissects into the Front Lot and the Back Lot.
Address: 2650 Tofino Ucluelet Highway, Ucluelet, BC V0R 3A0, Canada
16. Thornton Creek Hatchery
Thornton Creek Enhancement Society is a non-profit organization established by the Department of Fisheries & Oceans Canada (DFO) during the mid-1970s.
Meanwhile, its initial aim was to build a chum run followed by a fishery in the Ucluelet Harbor.
But as it stands, its mission has gone on from its initial goal to a modified one; to sustain and build salmon stocks in Barkley Sound and facilitate educational opportunities for residents and visitors in equal measure.
Meanwhile, the Thornton Creek Hatchery runs a little floating chinook rearing pen on Toquaht Lake while partnering with local schools to facilitate the salmon in the classroom program.
A program that teaches students how to raise salmon fry from eggs and release them into the local streams.
Again, as long as the incubator is concerned, it offers educational tour opportunities for interested visitors, grade school groups, and university student groups.
The place is a famous center for guests during the fall salmon run and offers hatchery tours by donation and dedicated volunteers.
Address: Thornton Road, Alberni-Clayoquot C, BC V0R 3A0, Canada
17. Kennedy Lake Provincial Park
Kennedy Lake Provincial Park is situated southwest of Kennedy Lake, Southeast of Tofino, adjacent to the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve.
It is one of the most popular parks in British Columbia, Canada, featuring two centers of fantastic views.
It only has day-use facilities and occupies over 258 hectares of land space, 104 hectares of upland, and 154 hectares of foreshore.
It is also a famous daily-use destination for lake and beach-based recreation. It has no created hiking trails within the park, and no one is permitted to camp.
Kennedy Lake Provincial Park provides excellent swimming opportunities, even though you can’t find any designated swimming site in the park.
You’ll find a day-use picnic center near the Log Dump Creek on the eastern banks of Kennedy Lake, featuring two picnic tables, a wheelchair-accessible pit toilet, a parking lot, and a boat launch.
Address: Alberni-Clayoquot C, BC, Canada
18. Pacific Rim Distilling
Are you looking for a fun thing to do with your free time in Ucluelet? You can come to say hi at the Pacific Rim Distilling. Pacific Rim Distilling is a little batch craft distillery operated in Ucluelet.
It was begun by Luke Erridge, a fourth-generation distiller who refined ancient family recipes dating back to pre-prohibition for the modern palette.
This distillery is crucial to developing the West Coast community and sharing genuine expressions of Barkley Sound.
Whatever ingredient is used for its spirits is locally crafted from British Columbia and ferments its spirits with a wild yeast culture from Barkley Sound.
The most exciting aspect of Pacific Rim Distilling is that it does not use any automation in its production processes.
It manufactures every nine botanical products for Lighthouse Gin, and its premier spirits are fermented with its own wild yeast culture, giving its Vodka a unique floral taste.
Address: 317 Forbes Road #2, Ucluelet, BC V0R 3A0, Canada
19. Toquaht Bay Marina
Although it was initially shut down in 2013, the Toquaht Bay Marina was quickly rebuilt by the Toquaht Nation.
During its destruction in 2013, the Secret Beach Campground and Kayak Launch were established, featuring 63 campsites and a lovely kayak/canoe launch.
The Toquaht Nation was also able to re-establish the boat launch and fenced it to enhance the accessibility of the launch, but not the close-by beach.
Even though it experienced some hurdles along the line, it was still able to agree with the Province and the Island Health Authority to re-open the marina for the summer of 2015.
In other words, as it stands, the Toquaht Bay Marina features a campground, marina, and boat launch completely in operation once more.
However, the former campground is still shut and awaits cleanup, which will take up to 3 to 4 years to complete.
Address: Toquaht Bay Road, Ucluelet, BC V0R 3A0, Canada
20. Archipelago Wildlife Cruises
Another fun-filled adventure that is worth every extra hour you spend in Ucluelet is Archipelago Wildlife Cruises.
Here, you will join others to partake in a whale-watching expedition and wildlife adventure into Barkley Sound via the Broken Group Island.
Give yourself a lovely treat by enjoying the incredible views and wildlife of a Vancouver Island nature cruise.
You can also join others to move aboard its big 53-foot motor yacht, the Raincoast Maiden, where you will enjoy whale watching and wildlife tours like never before.
The Archipelago Wildlife Cruise will give you a comfortable cruise with a personal touch.
It also features a large cabin, washroom, and relaxing seating within and out, which all help to give you extraordinary wildlife and a magical view with a taste of luxury.
You can book an individual or private tour to enjoy a nature cruise of a unique nature.
Address: Canadian Princess Marina, 1943 Peninsula Road, Ucluelet, BC V0R 3A0, Canada
21. Ukee Sunday Night Market
For the best shopping experience, you can spend some hours in the Ukee Sunday Night Market to indulge in a beautiful and memorable shopping spree with lots of things to shop for.
Located in Ucluelet, this night market is a delightful adventure that deserves to be on your list of things to do in the city.
This market is a place where the spirit of the community comes alive. It is mostly open every Friday night through Sunday, where resident vendors are allowed to establish welcoming shops selling handmade art, jewelry, knits, soaps, and crafts.
You will also find freshly baked bread, locally made coffee, and locally produced fruits and vegetables in the Ukee Sunday Night Market.
The market operates on Friday night from 5 pm to 9 pm. the market allows people to share and sell their art, crafts, or food products.
You will hardly lack anything to shop from this local market.
Address: 200 Main Street, Ucluelet, BC, Canada