January. Bleurgh. We all know the feeling.
Never fear, spring is near! Well, on Vancouver Island anyway. Did you know that the average temperature on the Island come February hovers around 9°C? Even better, in March it’s more like 12°C! Head east to Alberta and Ontario, and you’re looking at around maybe 5°C. (On a really, really good day.) As for the Prairies…Well, the less said the better at this time of year.
Of course, with all this bounty of beautiful, snow-free weather comes something else to smile about: spring golf.
As one of the very few destinations in Canada where golf courses are actually open this early in the year, golfing on Vancouver Island offers the pent up, mid-winter golfer everything he or she could desire. Lush green fairways. Barely a blade of winter kill to be found. Sunny skies. Temperatures that even allow for short sleeves. And, given that nearly all the golf courses on Vancouver Island are open year-round, the quality of golf you’re going to get is pretty much unrivalled in Canada: you’re looking at near-summer playing conditions as early as March!
So here’s a thought: skip the January blahs and start dreaming about your Spring golf trip to Vancouver Island instead. You don’t even have to plan a thing, we’ve done it all for you…
Woods and whales
Play golf : Head for the Parksville Qualicum Beach region if it’s an oceanside spring escape you’re after. Here you’ll find three wonderful oceanside golf courses in Fairwinds Golf Club and Morningstar Golf Club . We’ve even set up a really great Parksville Spring Beach & Golf Special for you – three rounds of golf (one at each of the above courses) and a two night stay for just $435 pp. All you have to do is show up!
Play tourist : Just two and a half hours northwest of Parksville lies Tofino where, come spring, whale watching is the sport of choice. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to see grey whales at play. Bonus round: the Pacific Rim Whale Festival is tentatively planning to run from March 18-26, 2022.
If you’re after an exhaustive list of things to do after golfing, look no further than this list of 47 Things To Do in Parksville Qualicum Beach .
Fairways and flowers
Play tourist : While most of Canada is still shivering under a blanket of snow, Vancouver Island is already awash with blossoms – Greater Victoria boasts an annual bloom count of over 26 billion! So get out and smell the cherry blossoms…
Play golf : While you’re at it, why not take in a round or five at the four fantastic golf courses no more than half an hour’s drive from the city centre. Highland Pacific, Bear Mountain (Mountain Course and Valley Course ), and Olympic View all boast challenging, invigorating golf guaranteed to get you back into the swing of things. Take advantage of packages like the shoulder season Golf Fever Getaway if you can’t decide which course to play – play them all.
Putting greens and pinot grigio
Play tourist : The majority of Vancouver Island’s wineries and some of the best cideries are located in the Cowichan Valley. It’s also possibly the only place in Canada where you can enjoy a wine tour right now without a winter jacket. Only the Cowichan Valley can give you this unforgettable combination of golf, restaurants, wine, and water at a pace that will have the stresses of winter gone by the first sunset. Check out our other post on 3 Experiences To Discover on a Cowichan Golf Vacation .
Play golf : Enjoy the finer things in life with the Cowichan Golf and Wine Getaway , where you’ll get to experience picturesque tree-lined holes at Cowichan Golf and Country Club and take in all the scenery at Arbutus Ridge . Around your play time, relax and indulge yourself in a five-hour private winery tour through the valley. This is truly a golf getaway to remember.
Balls and bikes (and birdies, hopefully!)
Play golf: One venue, two spectacular courses… Bear Mountain Resort offers 36 holes of Jack Nicklaus designed golf. (It is the only 36 holes of Nicklaus Design golf in Canada, by the way.) It is also two of Canada’s top golf courses, named to the PGA of Canada’s Top 100 on their Top 50 Public/Semi-Private golf courses list . So, if the pros think it’s the place to place, then it must be good enough for a spring golf vacation. Plus in the summer…and winter…(you see where we’re going with this).
Play tourist: Rent a mountain bike and kick up some dust on Vancouver Island’s most familiar bike park and home to the Canadian National Mountain Bike Team at the Bear Mountain Bike Park .
Looking for more ideas? Check out the Things To Do in Langford resource list
Scorecards and skis
Play tourist : Spring skiing at Mount Washington on Vancouver Island is one of those things people add to their bucket lists, with March apparently their best month of the year. But the very best part? It’s just a 40-minute drive from four of the Island’s most-loved golf courses: Crown Isle, Storey Creek , Campbell River , and Quadra Island .
Visit Destination Campbell River for a detailed resource of things to do, places to see and restaurants to eat at.
Play golf : With Crown Isle Golf Resort tucked under the shadows of the massive Comox Glacier, and your Storey Creek four ball often joined by soaring eagles, wandering wild deer and ambling black bears, this is golf in perfect commune with nature. Amp up your game with Campbell River’s high-tech Velocity Range or enjoy the ethereal quiet of the forest and broad vistas of the ocean and mountains at Quadra Island. What better season to take advantage of that?
Yep, Vancouver Island really is the perfect place to cure golf fever – with the added bonus of plenty to do off the tee. It’s time to flip winter the birdie and hit the fairways on Vancouver Island with a spring golf vacation . You know you want to.
Spring Image Credit: Deanne Gillespie
This article was originally published in January 2016, it has since been updated.
March 19, 2023, by: Golf Vancouver Island