Van life country guides · Sept – Oct 2023

🇨🇦 Canada

British Columbia & Alberta, in a rental camper

25 days · 3,188 km · 10 places

At a glance

Best time to go: Sep – Oct; Autumn colours. Snow possible from late Sep, wildfires in 2023
Fuel: Fairly cheap; We no longer remember the exact price
Campsite per night: CAD 38 – 100; National parks 38 – 44, Whistler and Tofino 75 – 100
Free camping: not tried; We had everything booked in advance
Tolls up to 3.5 t: None noted; Vancouver Island ferry CAD 127.80 each way
Internet: Mostly good; No signal in Wells Gray

Camper rental: €3,523 for 21 days · Fraserway C-Small, including €451 one-way fee, around €168 a day

What we would tell you first.

Book campgrounds early
They fill up fast. We booked the whole route in advance and could still leave early.
Avoid sites next to the tracks
At Lake Louise freight trains honked all night. We left a day early.
Book day-use passes ahead
For Joffre Lake near Whistler, for example.
Get a park pass and bear spray in Vancouver
We sorted both right at the start, before heading into the parks.
Keep an eye on wildfires
Until we flew, it wasn't clear whether we could drive our route. We were lucky.

Ship our own camper over and stay longer.
Plan more time for Tofino and Vancouver Island.
Skip Lake Louise: it's overrun, and many people only come for the perfect photo.