Category: Art, History and Culture

Hammond Bay Studio Tour 2018

May 17, 2018

Discover your 360° What Makes Art Beautiful? What makes a piece of art beautiful? This is a question often asked of artists and something that is hard to define. When we interviewed local painter and lead organizer of the Hammond Bay Studio Tour, Carla Stein, we asked this very question. Carla responded by stating that “beauty, as the saying goes, is in the eye of the beholder.” While Carla couldn’t say what makes art beautiful for everyone, she finds that skill and understanding of the materials an artist chooses to work with can greatly enhance the conceptualization of an artist’s […]

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Cold Weather Activities in Nanaimo

December 15, 2017

While we’re certainly not heralded as snow destination, Nanaimo does get its fair share of chillier days. If you’re travelling during the off season, you can reap all the benefits of areas being less crowded, a stunning fog that rolls over the city, and year-round hikes. The city’s weather is mild in comparison to other parts of Canada, but we still like to bundle up from time to time and hide away from the frost! Here are a few cold weather activities for your stay in #ExploreNanaimo. Shop Local Nanaimo’s downtown streets fan out from the center, the Bastion, with […]

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On This Spot: Jump Back In Nanaimo’s History

November 3, 2017

Andrew from the new On This Spot app chats with us about the app, his favourite points of comparison, and a bit of Nanaimo’s history. Can you tell us a bit about On This Spot? What do people need to know? The On This Spot app takes people on guided walking tours through the history that surrounds them. At each stop on their journey users will find themselves standing on the spot a historic photo was taken. They can view a then and now photo comparison, use the built in camera to create their own, and read about Nanaimo’s history […]

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Yellow Point Country Christmas Tour

November 1, 2017

Christmas shopping is a breezy adventure at the annual Yellow Point Holiday Tour in the Cedar Valley. A relaxed Christmas shopping trip in the country in late November sure beats the prospect of competing for a parking spot at a crowded mall in December. The Yellow Point Country Christmas Tour, November 22 -25, 2018, is a delightfully stress-free and slow-paced way to usher in the holiday season and check off your Christmas gift list at the same time. Make a weekend of it and, with Christmas gift list in hand, download the trail map to find the shops, farms, boutiques, […]

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The play’s the thing – Shakespeare by the Sea and more in Nanaimo

August 17, 2017

More than 400 years after William Shakespeare penned a play, we still can’t get enough of the loveable Bard. It’s no wonder Will’s timeless wit, wisdom, tragedies and comedies keep people coming back every year for Nanaimo’s immensely popular festival, Shakespeare by the Sea. This year it will be held Sept. 15 -17. The seaside location at Pioneer Waterfront Plaza puts a Nanaimo spin on Shakespeare’s works, as does the Vancouver Island Shakespeare Arts Society (VISAS) interpretation on his plays. This year, VISAS will perform the tragedy, King Lear, along with an abridged version of The Complete Works of William […]

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Sip & Savour Nanaimo’s Farmers’ Markets

July 25, 2017

Nanaimo is a community rich in the homegrown: from handmade beverages (we are home to four craft breweries and 2 wineries) to free-range buffalo raised on the land, farm-fresh produce and of course fish straight from our cold waters. We also have a vibrant artistic community, blending everything from tinctures to teas, and crafting traditional First Nations art, as well as glass work and wood sculpture. All of these delights, for each one of your senses, can be found at one of our three outdoor Farmer’s Markets, which typify our homemade handmade lifestyle and the local colour that makes Nanaimo […]

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Sarah Etoile Shares Saysutshun – 7 Images of Newcastle Island

June 28, 2017

All words and images by Sarah Etoile. ʔukᵂaqiłs Sarah. Diitiidʔaaʔaqsp. I’m a First Nations photographer, steward and storyteller based on Vancouver Island. This week as @tourismnanaimo’s #guestagrammer I will be sharing Saysutshun, otherwise known as Newcastle Island, which is unceded Snuneymuxw Territory. My classmates and I paddled from the harbour to Saysutshun, and were graciously welcomed by Snuneymuxw First Nation by this totem pole. Our host, who also provides guided tours of Saysutshun, shared the history and connections with this island. After our welcome and guided tour with Snuneymuxw First Nation, we were allowed to wander around before lunch. Most […]

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Come to Nanaimo for a Slice of Canadian Coastal History

June 27, 2017

Nanaimo may be known as ‘The Harbour City’, but it could just as easily be known as ‘The City of Firsts.’ The Vancouver Island destination is home to some remarkable historic did-you-knows, such as B.C.’s first telephone, Western North America’s first railway and the first ocean-going ship built in B.C. While exploring Nanaimo—meaning “gathering place” in Island Hul’q’umin’um’ spoken by the Snuneymuxw Nation—you’ll also discover how rich it is in First Nations history and culture. Planning to make Nanaimo part of your Canada 150 celebrations? Here are some must-do activities while you’re in the area. Bastion Image by Nancy Shields […]

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Haunted Nanaimo

October 29, 2015

Boo! It’s Halloween! To help get you in the spirit, we rounded up some “allegedly” true stories of Nanaimo’s haunted history. Beware, though – Nanaimo does have a dark side… Beban House One of the most well-known ghost stories of Nanaimo is the hauntings at Beban House. Once the home of a wealthy sawmill owner, Frank Beban, the house was featured on Creepy Canada in 2001. There have been stories of people hearing balls bounce down the hall, children talking and playing with a boy that no one else can see but them, sights of women passing through the halls, […]

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Rainy Day Activities in Nanaimo

October 10, 2014

Well, it looks like our luck has run out this week – rain is in our forecast. Of course, our weather changes so unpredictably, so who knows, maybe by the time you’re reading this it’ll be sunny the rest of the month. However, just in case the rain is here to stay, here are a few Tourism Nanaimo approved activities for those grey, rainy days: Take in Nanaimo’s History Explore the Nanaimo Museum where you can completely immerse yourself in Nanaimo’s proud and diverse culture. From First Nations to Coal Miners to Chinese Immigrants, there is so much to learn about our […]

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