Island Rideshare
Catch a ride to or from Hornby Island by listing your travel times on Island Rideshare, a free service connecting people to carpool for trips. Go to islandrideshare.com to connect with a ride or to offer your own ride.
By Car
It takes three ferries to get from the Lower Mainland to Hornby Island. You travel from the Vancouver area to Nanaimo either via Horseshoe Bay to Departure Bay or via Tsawwassen to Duke Point. Your route choice depends on where you are coming from in the Lower Mainland. Horseshoe Bay is the Northern terminal reached via the Trans-Canada (Highway 1) and Tsawwassen is the Southern terminal.
Once you reach Vancouver Island, head North on the Island Highway (Highway 19) about 90km (55 miles) to Buckley Bay where the ferry departs to Denman Island on an hourly basis. This drive will take you around an hour
Follow signs across Denman Island to the Gravelly Bay terminal and the ferry to Hornby Island.
In the summer time and on long weekends all year round, it’s a good idea to reserve the mainland/Vancouver Island ferry to avoid sailing waits. In the summer, the Denman/Hornby ferries can be very busy so leave plenty of time for your journey.
Highways:
Road conditions
Drive BC 1-800-550-4997
Emcon Services 1-866-353-3136
For ferry schedules see the BC Ferries Website.
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By Public Transport
NOTE: If you are coming to Hornby by any mode of public transport, be aware that there is no bus service across Denman Island so you’ll have to arrange transport. It’s common to ask people in the ferry line up if they can give you a ride. Cars bound for Hornby are generally in lane 1. It’s usually quite easy to get a ride.
Bus
You can take the Greyhound Bus or Island Link Express from either Vancouver or Victoria and they’ll stop at Buckley Bay leaving just a short walk to the ferry terminal.
Plane
Comox Valley Airport has direct flights from a few major cities and connecting flights through Vancouver. There are a variety of transit options from the airport including BC Transit, Taxis, and a number of shuttles. See the airport link above for complete details.
Airlines Serving Comox Valley
Air Canada
Central Mountain Air
Pacific Coastal Airlines
West Jet
Water taxi:
Once you’ve arrived by plane/train/bus, you may want to expedite your journey to Hornby with a convenient water taxi. Call Inter Island Charters - 250-335-2996, Cell: 250-218-2996
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