Attractions and Museums in the Region of Pacific Rim: Rare charm and incredible sightseeing highlights make your trip a memorable experience.

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Pacific Rim attractions and museums

No visit to Port Alberni would be complete without a visit to the McLean Mill National Historic Site, Canada’s only working steam-operated sawmill. The sawmill is surrounded by restored historic houses, out buildings, a school, a dam, and a mill pond, creating a little village that brilliantly preserves the area’s logging past. From June to September, actors bring the mill’s intriguing history to life with colorful dramatic performances. To get to the McLean Mill, you can cycle or hike the Log Train Trail Regional Park (see Hiking and Cycling), or board the Steam Train from the historic Port Alberni Railway Station. A wonderful attraction in itself, the Steam Train operates five days a week, from mid­June through September, and takes you through the splendid forest scenery of the Alberni Valley to the McLean Mill in about 35 minutes. The Maritime Discovery Centre in Port Alberni is another must-stop sight on your Alberni Valley tour. This impressive museum features the rich, story-filled history of the area depicted in hands-on exhibits and fascinating displays. Local and traveling exhibits are also presented periodically. More insight into the area’s past is presented at the Alberni Valley Museum with wonderful displays on First Nations heritage, pioneer history, and folk art. Art lovers will want to check out the Rollins Art Centre, which showcases several local artists and serves tea on the terrace of this historic home during the summer. If you want to see where millions of the area’s coho, chinook, and steelhead get their starts in life, drive up Great Central Lake Road from Port Alberni to the Robertson Fish Hatchery. It’s especially exciting to visit the hatchery in the fall, when the colorful, fascinating phenomenon of spawning salmon returning to the river of their birth takes place. Cougar Annie’s Garden is another of the Pacific Rim’s top attractions. Located just north of Tofino on the edge of Clayoquot Sound, this beautiful garden in the midst of the rugged wilderness was established in 1915 by Cougar Annie, a West Coast legend who earned her name defending her family from multiple cougar attacks. The garden is now maintained by the Boat Basin Foundation and is accessible by boat or plane from Tofino. The Whale Centre Museum in Tofino is another great stop and where you’ll find marine artifacts and whale skeletons.

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