Pender Island Review - Gulf Islands

August 29, 2008 by Jeff · 1 Comment

We absolutely love Pender and Salt Spring Islands in the Gulf islands. That's why today and the next couple of posts are going to be discussing Pender Island, places we've stayed, things we do, where we eat, etc...

Pender Island is one of the larger Gulf Islands second largest in terms of population. The island is split into a North and South Pender Island. The north island is where most people live and the south island is much more remote with less services.

Food

There are many cute restaurants on Pender Island. In addition there is a co-op grocery store that has the normal selection of food. We normally like to stop at this store and pick up stuff from the deli and bakery for breakfast and lunch.

Activities

There is PLENTY of things to do on Pender Island.

Disc Golfing: Pender Island has one of the nicest disc golf courses in Canada. Nestled in the forest with plenty of short challenging holes makes it a great disc golf course for any skill level. Highly recommended.

Art Studios: There are lots of high quality art studios on Pender Island. These art studios range from painters, sculptors and potters. Although, if you're looking for pottery studios then Salt Spring might be your island of choice.

Hiking and Wildlife Viewing: Pender Island is one of the most scenic places we've ever been. Spending the day sight seeing and looking at all the wonderful views of the ocean and other islands is a terrific way to spend the day. While exploring spending a few hours walking along the beach and looking at sea life is always a nice way to spend a day.

Hotels / Motels / Inns / Bed and Breakfasts

I will do a full write up on the places we've stayed but for now let's quickly talk about the places to stay. There are really no hotels or motels on Pender Island. There are PLENTY of Bed and Breakfasts and Inn's though. We've stayed at the Pender Island Inn (which includes a breakfast) and also at Sahhali Serenity Bed and Breakfast (spectacular).

The camping on Pender Island is difficult to find and we've never really had much luck camping. We've been told by many locals that you can find great places to camp along the beaches near the ocean. However, when looking for these camp spots we've never been able to find them. If you do find a camping spot (or know of one) can you please leave a comment to let everyone know!

We absolutely love Pender Island and can't wait for our next vacation to the Island. If you have other recommendations of places to stay or things to do please leave a comment!