Himwitsa Lodge — Hotel in Tofino

We found this property on Booking.com after we’d decided a big resort was not for us and we wanted to be in the village. It was perfect. We had a large room, with big balcony looking over Tofino harbour and main jetty. We were able to view wildlife in the bay from our bed on some occasions! We saw harbour porpoise, raccoons, bald eagles and otters. Watching the daily toings and froings from the jetty to the local island settlements was also interesting, great for people watching in an environment that relies on boats and seaplanes to travel, supply and get things done. The owners of Himwitsa are First Nations people who made our stay very welcome and comfortable and gave us anything we needed. It was also much quieter than I expected given it was right on the harbour. The only reason I gave it a 4 not 5 was because the kitchen area was very small with little room to prepare meals and the cutlery and kitchen utensils could do with a review as they were quite limited. However, it did not hinder us and we loved it. We bought smoked salmon from the wee fish store down stairs, owned by the family and also, in my view, the art gallery/ shop was one of the best in Tofino and we brought home some lovely souvenirs of our stay there. This was a great local option and I highly...

I would give this place a zero star as we had booked this place thru booking.com about 5 months ago and paid the 30%, as my credit card does have fraud protection they tried taking out the 70% numerous times without my knowledge and been declined as we usually pay the remainder on arrival or as we thought, upon arrival all the way from the mainland found out they cancelled our reservation after talking to someone the day before about our checking time in and was told no problem, they could have mention the issue with the credit card then which they did not. We arrived after 3 and 1/2 hour drive from Nanaimo to Tofino, not counting the ferry ride from the mainland, to find out our room was booked by someone who came in on our arrival time. They left us hanging with no place to stay after booking this place for so long with high expectations. Totally ruined our trip to Tofino. The people behind the counter were rude and all he kept saying to us was,"We are running a business here." Basically just throwing us out, we made sure we got our 30% refunded as he didn't offer after we mentioned it. Would never recommend this...

Our family stayed in the Himwitsa Lodge For two nights last week, while visiting a Tofino for the first time. We absolutely loved our beautiful room and my kids were crowing with joy as soon as we entered it. The view is unbeatable (my favourite part), the beds comfy, lots of space, the fireplace was pretty and the best part was the hot tub on the deck. We enjoyed that many times over the two days, starting and ending our day with a hot soak overlooking the bay. I made some simple meals in the small kitchen, which we ate with our five star view. We saw eagles, enjoyed watching the harbour planes take off a couple times, and enjoyed the peace and quiet. We also enjoyed walking to Tonquin beach, and the bakery, and to get anything we needed. I recommend this place heartily - it was so special. The staff (especially Kathy) were so welcoming and kind. I look forward to...