Horseshoe Bay
49°23′ N 123°16′ WVillageWest Vancouver and Cypress
Horseshoe Bay is the ferry village at the western tip of West Vancouver, and it suits anyone with a sailing to catch who wants fish and chips on Bay Street first. Rooms are scarce, with the Horseshoe Bay Motel a minute's walk from the terminal and a 42-room hotel approved for Bay Street in July 2026 still waiting on an opening date.
Ferry notice
The Horseshoe Bay skywalk comes out until late November
Foot passengers at Horseshoe Bay usually walk onto ships at Berths 1 and 2 over a skywalk, and BC Ferries has closed it so crews can extend its working life. Crews lift it off the site between 19 and 24 October 2026 and put it back in late November. Until then, follow the terminal staff and the signs, and check your ticket for where you board.
Checked 2026-10-16 · bcferries.com
Photo by Dustan Woodhouse on Unsplash and others, credited in the gallery
Field card · Town · No. 010 · checked 16 Oct 2026
Troll's opens at 8 am, in time for a morning sailing.
Who should base here
Stay the night before an early sailing and the walk to the terminal takes a minute, by the motel's own count.
The name
The bay's horseshoe shape gave the name, which an 1892 survey plan already used and BC Geographical Names adopted in 1945 as the preferred local name.
English
An Admiralty survey named White Cliff Point for the weathered white cliffs south of the bay, and the land was surveyed as White Cliff City in 1909 for Sir Charles Tupper and Colonel Albert Whyte. Whyte persuaded the Pacific Great Eastern Railway to spell its station Whytecliff, and the post office used that name from 1 June 1920 until 9 April 1942.
SourceEat in Horseshoe Bay
Troll's RestaurantRestaurant
Family-run fish and chips at 6408 Bay Street since 1946, open 8 am to 7 pm daily with takeout from 11 am. Call ahead in the evening, because closing time depends on foot traffic.
Olive & AnchorRestaurant
Burgers and seafood at 6418 Bay Street on the same corner as Troll's.
Drink in Horseshoe Bay
The Lookout at Sewell's MarinaCafe
Counterpart Coffee and Flour Bake Shop pastries at the marina, with a tourist information desk. Check Google for its hours.
Things to do in Horseshoe Bay
Sewell's Marina fishing chartersFishing charter
Guided salmon fishing from 6409 Bay Street year-round, with owner-operator guides.
Horseshoe Bay ParkPark
The waterfront park at the foot of Bay Street, with public washrooms on the shore walk and paved paths open to leashed dogs.
Horseshoe Bay marks the entrance to Howe Sound at the western end of West Van, and its terminal is one of BC Ferries' busiest. Sailings leave for Langdale on the Sunshine Coast and Departure Bay in Nanaimo, and the Bowen Island boat docks at Snug Cove. Anyone driving onto a Departure Bay sailing has to book and pay ahead, since BC Ferries no longer sells drive-up fares on that route. The village itself is a couple of streets around Bay Street and Royal Avenue, with Horseshoe Bay Park on the water.
Troll's at 6408 Bay Street has been frying fish since Joe and Dorothy Troll opened it in 1946, at first only on weekends and holidays for the local fishermen. Gary and Carol Troll took over in 1972, and Gary's son Ab opens the doors every morning now. Troll's serves from 8 am to 7 pm daily with takeout from 11 am. Closing time depends on foot traffic, the family says, so call 604-921-7755 before you come in the evening. Olive & Anchor shares the corner at 6418 Bay Street and cooks burgers and seafood.
West Vancouver council approved a 42-room hotel for 6408 to 6418 Bay Street on 22 June 2026, with a corner restaurant and a café on the ground floor. Reports on the vote say Troll's will close at the end of 2027 to make way for it. The plans show the Spirit Gallery staying on in the western retail bay of the new building, and nobody has announced when the hotel will open.
Sewell's Marina at 6409 Bay Street has worked the bay since Dan Sewell Sr. arrived for the salmon fishing in the 1920s, and four generations on it runs about 400 slips. Its guided charters fish year-round for five species of salmon in Howe Sound and the Strait of Georgia. On the marina, the Lookout coffee shop pours Counterpart Coffee and doubles as a tourist information desk, and it asks you to check Google for its current hours. Whytecliff Park is a 25 to 30 minute walk by the motel's reckoning, and West Van charges for parking there all year from 7 am to 10 pm.
Plan the trip home before you board a late boat back. BC Ferries warns that public transit may not be running when a late sailing lands, and the 257 express and the 250 both run into Vancouver. A taxi stand waits at the terminal.
Worth knowing
- Troll's opens at 8 am, early enough for breakfast before a morning sailing.
- If you're driving onto a Departure Bay sailing, book and pay in advance, because BC Ferries no longer sells drive-up fares on that route.
- Coming off the Trans-Canada Highway, take Exit 1 and follow the signs for Horseshoe Bay Village.
Quick answers about Horseshoe Bay
Can you walk from the Horseshoe Bay ferry terminal to the village?
Yes. The Horseshoe Bay Motel on Royal Avenue puts the terminal a minute's walk from its door, and Troll's on Bay Street sits two minutes from the motel.
Do you need to book the ferry from Horseshoe Bay to Nanaimo?
Yes, if you're driving. BC Ferries requires everyone travelling by vehicle from Horseshoe Bay to Departure Bay in Nanaimo to book and pay in advance, and it no longer sells drive-up fares on that route.
Is Troll's in Horseshoe Bay closing?
Yes. Reports on West Vancouver council's 22 June 2026 approval of a 42-room hotel at 6408 to 6418 Bay Street say Troll's will close at the end of 2027. Until then Troll's opens daily from 8 am to 7 pm.
What was Horseshoe Bay called before?
Horseshoe Bay was surveyed as White Cliff City in 1909, and its post office and railway station went by Whytecliff because Colonel Albert Whyte bought land around the bay and persuaded the railway to spell the station name that way. BC Geographical Names changed the settlement's name to Horseshoe Bay on 28 July 1945 as the preferred local name.
What does the name Horseshoe Bay mean?
The name Horseshoe Bay means the bay's horseshoe shape gave the name, which an 1892 survey plan already used and BC Geographical Names adopted in 1945 as the preferred local name.
Is Horseshoe Bay a good place to stay?
Stay the night before an early sailing and the walk to the terminal takes a minute, by the motel's own count.
Within 12 km
Places to stay nearby
Within 12 km
Places to eat and drink nearby
Within 12 km
Sights nearby
In the journal
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