Waterfront in Nanaimo

Report by Sabrina H.

I spent a lot of my free time with friends at the Waterfront and it is clearly one of my favorite places in Nanaimo. It includes the harbor and is also the starting point of the seaplanes. It is a beautiful and peaceful place and perfect for going for a walk, having a coffee or, depending on the weather, even ice cream.

Enjoying the Waterfront

Usually I would go there with my friend, get a coffee and just walk along the water. Depending on the tide and the weather it is a great opportunity to watch all different kinds of animals. During my walks I saw many beautiful different starfish with varying sizes and colors and also different kinds of birds. If you are lucky, you can also watch sea otters playing in the water or even see them walking down their path to the water or back. When I observantly watched the water I would usually see one or more seals or even a sea lion. One time I was lucky enough to have a very close meeting with a sea lion at the dock which was considered to be a very rare event.

It is also a great place for children and you see many people walking their dogs there, too. There are playgrounds and different sports fields and during a nice day a lot of people come to the Waterfront to enjoy the day, however, it is still a peaceful and nice atmosphere and really relaxing especially during a stressful period at the university.

Blossom Season

In the end of March, beginning of April it was blossom season and the Waterfront turned into an even more beautiful place with all the different kinds of flowers and cherry blossoms. You can also see many different small Islands around and even visit a pub on a small island where you obviously need to take a boat to get there. Additionally, you can find nice restaurants, cafés and small shops around and as already mentioned above, it is not only the harbor for many boats but also for the seaplanes, which take people from Nanaimo to Vancouver Downtown within 20 minutes for example.

I really enjoyed going to the Waterfront regularly, going for walks, having coffee with friends and just enjoying the sun, the fresh air, and watching all the different types of animals. This unique scene is definitely one of the places I am going to miss the most about Canada.