Highlights in this park
For an experience rich in history, culture and entertainment, do what people have been doing since the 1930s and hop on a boat to Saysutshun (Newcastle Island Marine) Park.
Bring your own boat or take the passenger ferry from Nanaimo (a 10 minute ride that deposits passengers on Newcastle Island), located just a few hundred metres offshore from Vancouver Island. From a distance you’ll see an island shoreline dominated by steep sandstone cliffs and ledges, interspersed with sunny beaches. A marked contrast to the interior of the island, which is studded with mature Douglas fir, Garry oak, arbutus and Big Leaf maple trees.
Visitors to Newcastle Island can choose from an extensive network of walking and hiking trails that lead to various historic points around the island. Indigenous middens offer mute evidence of at least two Salish villages, which were deserted before the discovery of coal in this area in 1849. Subsequent decades saw the island’s fortunes rise and fall as it went through various incarnations while supporting a fish-salting operation, a sandstone quarry and a shipyard.
Today, park services and facilities include walk-in campsites complete with flush toilets and showers, as well as facilities for group camping and picnicking. The Pavilion can also be rented for dances, corporate picnics and wedding receptions.
Know before you go
Advisories
Safety information
- Please remember that you are in cougar country, and cougars are known to visit the island from time to time (especially in spring and summer). Park visitors are strongly advised to exercise caution if visiting the park.
- Information on cougar safety
- For your own safety and the preservation of the park, keep to designated trails and obey posted signs. Shorelines may become unsafe or cut off from the trail during high tides and storms.
Special notes
- A park interpreter is in attendance during the summer to provide visitor information and to interpret the island’s unique human and natural history. Contact the park operator for information about dates, time of walks, talks and other program details.
- The Pavilion may be booked for use by groups and organizations.
- Saysutshun (Newcastle Island Marine) Park benefits from excellent adjoining commercial facilities. Shopping, recreation and entertainment are available in the nearby city of Nanaimo. During July the annual Nanaimo Bathtub Race departs from the Inner Harbour. Petroglyph Park, just south of the city, has some excellent native rock carvings. There are a variety of marinas offering boats and fishing gear to take advantage of the plentiful salmon in the surrounding waters. At Departure Bay is the Pacific Biological Research Station, which has public displays.
- The trail across the dam is closed for repairs.
In order to prevent racoons from becoming a nuisance, please follow these important guidelines:
- Ensure your boat is secure to prevent racoons from getting food from your vessel.
- Do not feed raccoons.
- Be aware that raccoons will become aggressive when approached or cornered.
- Never take food inside tents.
- Store all food, including toothpaste, in the food lockers.
- Dispose of all garbage immediately.
- Remember that Newcastle Island is home for many species of animals and the island provides plenty of natural vegetation for all its inhabitants.
Ferry service schedule to Saysutshun (Newcastle Island Marine) Park
- See the park operator website for fees and other ferry service information.
Notice to Boaters
- Pull-out of kayaks and vessels for overnight stay is permitted only on the south end of the park, near the ferry dock on the developed beach.
- Mooring buoy and dock facility use fees apply throughout the winter. The maximum length of stay is 14 days per calendar year.
- 43 new mooring buoys have been installed in Mark Bay. There are two types of mooring buoys as follows:
- those for boats 30 feet length overall or less
- those for boats 40 feet length overall or less
Note: Mooring Buoy Rings and Chains do not lift up.
- The chains on Newcastle Island mooring buoys are now much larger than often found on past buoys. This increase in size better protects your boat in storms, but does not allow you to pull the chain up due to the its larger size and weight.
- The most efficient method to use when tying to the mooring buoy is from the stern of your vessel. Slip your line through the eye on the mooring buoy, then walk the line to the bow of your vessel and secure it there.
- In addition to the mooring buoys, BC Parks also provides moorage at the park dock. For information on moorage in Nanaimo, contact the park operator.
| Mooring (to buoy) fee | $14 per vessel per night |
| Dock facilities use fee | $2 per metre per night |
Review the detailed guides under visit responsibly for more information on staying safe and preserving our natural spaces.
Visit responsibly
Follow these guides to ensure your activities are safe, respectful, and ecologically friendly:
Maps and location
Getting there
Newcastle Island is accessible by boat only. Once you’ve reached Nanaimo (mainland visitors can ferry over via Horseshoe Bay), take the foot passenger ferry for the 10 minute ride from Maffeo-Sutton Park, just north of downtown Nanaimo on Hwy 1. The ferry schedule is available through the park operator’s website.
Private boat owners can simply tie up to the wharf or anchor at Mark Bay. Berthing facilities for more than 50 boats are available at the island. Boaters can reference marine chart #3447 (Nanaimo Harbour) for more information on this area.
| Mooring (to buoy) fee | $14 per vessel per night |
| Dock facilities use fee | $2 per metre per night |
Dates of operation
The park is open year-round
- Facility type
- Group camping
- Number of campsites
- Walk-in sites: 1
- Main operating season
- 2024: year-round
- 2025: year-round
- Winter season
- 2024: January 1 to April 30
- Booking required
- 2024: May 15 to September 15
- 2025: June 1 to October 1
- Winter season note
- Island Access via boat or ferry, no vehicles. Winter camping is available at this park.
- Facility type
- Frontcountry camping
- Number of campsites
- Walk-in sites: 18
- Main operating season
- 2024: year-round
- Winter season
- 2024: January 1 to April 30
- Booking required
- 2024: May 15 to October 1
- Winter season note
- Island Access via boat or ferry, no vehicles. Winter camping is available at this park.
Camping
- Total number of campsites
- Total reservable frontcountry sites: 18
- Total groupsites: 4
- Total walk-in sites: 18
Campsite reservations are accepted and first come, first served sites are also available. Group campsite reservations are accepted at this park through the BC Parks reservations system.
All campsite and group site reservations must be made through the BC Parks reservations system. When reservations are not available all campsites function as first come, first served.
There are five group campsites at this park. They come with a picnic shelter, tables, fire rings, barbecues, fresh water, as well as a pit and flush toilets. The group campsites are located within a five minute walk from the dock and are open all year, when accessible. Food lockers are supplied to protect food from raccoons. Click here for reservation information.
Sites 1, 2, and 3
| Youth group camping fee | $1 per person (6+), with a $50 minimum and $150 maximum. Children under 6 are free! |
| Regular group camping fee | $80 per group site per night, plus $5 per adult (16+, minimum charge for 15 adults), plus $1 per child (6-15). Children under 6 are free! |
Sites 4 and 5
| Youth group camping fee | $1 per person (6+), with a $50 minimum and $150 maximum. Children under 6 are free! |
| Regular group camping fee | $50 per group site per night, plus $5 per adult (16+, minimum charge for 15 adults), plus $1 per child (6-15). Children under 6 are free! |
For information on the youth group policy see the group camping page.
Walk-in camping is allowed at 18 designated sites in the park. These sites are located in the forest, approximately a five minute walk from the dock and shower building. Food lockers are supplied to protect food from raccoons.
| Walk-in camping fee | $18 per party per night |
| BC seniors’ rate (day after Labour Day to June 14 only) | $9 per senior party per night |
For information on the BC seniors’ rate, see the camping fees page.
| Walk-in camping fee | $11 per party per night |
| BC seniors’ rate (day after Labour Day to June 14 only) | $9 per senior party per night |
For information on the BC seniors’ rate, see the camping fees page.
Things to do
Bicycles must keep to roadways. Bicycle helmets are mandatory in British Columbia.
Please note that bicycles with electric assist motors (e-bikes) are not allowed on the trails within Saysutshun (Newcastle Island Marine) Park. E-bikes are restricted to park roads and areas where motorized use is permitted. The only exception to this policy will be for authorized and identified trail maintenance bikes conducting work on behalf of BC Parks.
Children will enjoy fishing from the wharf. Salmon fishing in nearby waters can be rewarding.
Anyone fishing in British Columbia must have an appropriate licence. To learn more, see the fishing and hunting guide.
A well developed 22km trail system on Newcastle Island provides access to all locations on the island. These easy hiking trails lead from the dock and day-use area and link with other trails at various locations in the park. Directional signs are located along the trails.
For your own safety and the preservation of the park, obey posted signs and keep to designated trails. Shortcutting trails destroys plant life and soil structure.
A park interpreter is in attendance during the summer to provide visitor information and to interpret the Newcastle Island’s unique human and natural history. Contact the park operator for information about dates, time of walks, talks and other program details. Interpretive signage is also located at various points of interest along the trails.
Pets and domestic animals must be on a leash at all times and are not allowed in beach areas or park buildings. You are responsible for their behaviour and must dispose of their excrement. Backcountry areas are not suitable for dogs or other pets due to wildlife issues.
Pleasant swimming is offered at Kanaka Bay and east of the foot passenger ferry docks.
There are no lifeguards on duty in BC Parks.
Facilities
Accessibility information is available for this park.
Campfire rings are provided at each individual and group campsite. While campfires are allowed, we encourage visitors to conserve the environment by minimizing the use of fire and using stoves instead.
Firewood can be purchased from the park operator. Fees for firewood are set locally and may vary.
To preserve vegetation and ground cover, please don’t gather firewood from the area around your campsite or elsewhere in the park (this is a ticketable offence under the Park Act). Dead wood is an important habitat element for many plants and animals and it adds organic matter to the soil.
You can conserve firewood and air quality by keeping your campfire small. Be prepared to bring a portable stove for cooking.
Campfire bans may be in place. Before lighting a fire, check for bans or restrictions on BC Wildfire Service and on local or Indigenous government websites.
This park has a large day-use and picnic area with a playground, picnic tables, information shelter, swimming beach, toilets, horseshoe pits as well as a large grassy area. This popular day-use area is located at the entrance area to the park.
There is a public wharf that can accommodate over 50 boats.
| Mooring (to buoy) fee | $14 per vessel per night |
| Dock facilities use fee | $2 per metre per night |
About this park
History
A brief walk around Newcastle brings you to the site of Saysutshun Village, where recovered native artifacts bear silent witness to the life of a Salish village that was deserted some time before coal was discovered in 1849. For centuries the Salish had occupied this village between the months of September and April, leaving every spring in order to fish for cod and gather clams and tubers on Gabriola Island. Although the Salish were among the island’s first coal miners, they were soon “supplemented” by boatloads of British. These men christened the island after a famous coal town in northern England and diligently worked the mines until 1883. Newcastle Island’s supplies of sandstone lasted longer than did the coal. This attractive building material, used in many constructions along the west coast, was quarried from 1869 until 1932.
Newcastle Island also played a role in the fishing industry of the province. By 1910 the Japanese, who dominated fisheries, had established a small settlement just north of Shaft Point on the west side of the island. Here they operated a saltery and shipyard until 1941 when all the Japanese-Canadians who lived along the coast were sent to internment camps in the Interior.
In 1931, the Canadian Pacific Steamship Company purchased the island and operated it as a pleasure resort, building a dance pavilion (now the visitor centre), teahouse, picnic areas, change-houses, soccer field and a wading pool. An old ship named Charmer (later replaced by the Princess Victoria) was tied to the dock at Mark Bay (Echo Bay) and served as a floating hotel. The island became very popular for company picnics and Sunday outings, with ships from Vancouver bringing as many as 1,500 people at a time. The advent of the Second World War caused a decrease in the number of ships available for pleasure excursions and Newcastle Island suffered a consequent decline in popularity.
Cultural Heritage
Newcastle Island provided a home to the Coast Salish Peoples prior to the discovery of coal in 1849.
Conservation
The park offers an island shoreline dominated by steep sandstone cliffs and ledges punctuated by beaches and provide a marked contrast to the interior of the island studded with Douglas fir, arbutus, Garry oak and Big Leaf maple trees.
Reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples
BC Parks honours Indigenous Peoples’ connection to the land and respects the importance of their diverse teachings, traditions, and practices within these territories. This park webpage may not adequately represent the full history of this park and the connection of Indigenous Peoples to this land. We are working in partnership with Indigenous Peoples to update our websites so that they better reflect the history and cultures of these special places.
Contact
NCI Ferry Service
saysutshun@petroglyphdg.com
Office: 1-866-788-6243
NCI Manager: 1-866-788-6243
newcastleisland.ca