Grizzly bear watching holidays in British Columbia, Canada

Spectacular viewing from hides and/or small boats of British Columbia's formidable grizzly bears in the wilderness of the Great Bear Rainforest.

From early May through October grizzly bear viewing excursions depart by float plane from Port Hardy to a lodge in a beautiful river valley on the central coast of British Columbia. Its remoteness ensures that it is beyond the reach of any day trip operators, so a maximum of 10 visitors have the valley entirely to themselves. Known as the Great Bear Rainforest, this area is one of the best places in the world to observe grizzly bears and many other forms of wildlife including black bears, wolves and bald eagles.

The two storey floating ecotourism lodge - the ideal base for photography and wildlife viewing tours - has five bedrooms with ensuite toilet and sink whilst hot showers are located on the main floor. The sitting room is a congenial place to relax, read or socialise with fellow guests around the fireplace, whilst the library carries a stock of natural history books. Guides and staff are always available and enjoy talking about the wildlife of British Columbia; evening presentations are made by resident wildlife biologists. Silent wind and solar power is in keeping with low-impact ecotourism and the natural wood decks of the lodge are a perfect place to enjoy a glass of wine and enjoy some of British Columbia’s most beautiful and remote scenery.

Occasionally, hump-back whales can even be seen breaching in the wide estuary. Guests dine together at meal times and the food here is excellent: the chef uses the freshest local ingredients and all organic food when available. One of the specialities is freshly caught salmon roasted on a cedar plank. Complimentary wine and beer is served with lunch and dinner. Return transportation from Port Hardy to Great Bear Lodge is included and is by sea-plane.

The Great Bear Rainforest is home to a significant concentration of coastal grizzly bears. During the late summer and early autumn/fall bears are drawn to the many salmon spawning streams feeding into the coastal inlets, where guests view the bears from wooden hides overlooking the river.

While the local bear population reaches its peak in the fall, during the spring and summer numerous bears feed on sedges, succulents and grasses that make up the dense bio-mass of the river estuary, and during these months viewing is from small aluminium boats that ensure you are able to silently enjoy prolonged, close contact with the bears. These ongoing sources of high quality food are why coastal grizzlies or brown bears are larger than inland grizzlies.

Please note: One night is spent in Vancouver, three nights on the floating lodge, one night in Port Hardy and one on the plane.

The following itinerary is based on a three night stay at the floating lodge. Tours can last from 1 to 7 nights. Tour itineraries change through the seasons as we need to allow for differing hours of daylight and tide changes (for spring and summer viewing). Bear viewing is excellent from June through to mid-October. June to late August viewing is by small boats as the bears graze on protein-rich sedge grass in the estuary. Late August to October viewing is from wooden hides overlooking higher reaches of the river as the bears feast on spawning salmon.