Sometimes you don’t need to get on a plane to feel like you’re hundreds of miles away from Vancouver. All you need to do is hit one of the many island getaways in BC.
Instead of heading to Seattle or other parts of Washington, play tourists in your own backyard! We’ve had memorable weekender trips to Galiano Island, as well as, Qualicum Beach and Nanaimo on Vancouver Island.
But our favourite BC island getaway to escape to has to be the Sunshine Coast.
We celebrated birthdays and anniversaries at the Rockwater Secret Cove Resort at Halfmoon Bay and in Madeira Park. This time around, we returned to Madeira Park to stay at a little gem of a place, the Painted Boat Resort Spa + Marina. A friend of mine had invited us to check out the resort as her guests.
We got in late Friday night and was delighted by our very spacious 1,351 square feet, 2 bedroom plus a loft accommodations. That’s a lot of space for just the 2 of us, but we didn’t mind at all. We like our space! Bonus: ensuite bathroom with 2 person soaker tub and a balcony with waterfront view of Pender Habour!
As comfortable as the villa was, the beauty of the Painted Boat Resort Spa and Marina was of the resort itself. Sean took a couple of drone photos from above and it’s was just so tranquil and scenic.
We drove to the town centre nearby and had some lunch at Mama’s Japanese Kitchen.
But as it was hella hot outside, we went back to our villa and relaxed before hitting up the resort’s spa garden.
The Painted Boat’s spa garden is reminiscent of Whistler’s Scandinaive Spa, but on a much smaller level. Although it may not have Scandinaive’s steam baths, Nordic waterfalls, cold plunge baths and solariums, it does have a warm salt water floatation pool, multi-jet hot pool with massaging waterfall, outdoor rain shower, sauna, and outdoor fire pit.
When we arrived at the spa garden in the late afternoon, we were surprised to find that Sean and I were the only ones there. And we made sure to luxuriated in all that peace and tranquility, while surrounded by towering, conifer trees.
Seriously, it was heavenly. I wish that I had this set up in my own backyard!
To top off what was a relaxing afternoon, we had dinner at the Rockwater Secret Cove Resort restaurant. We would’ve tried out the Painted Boat restaurant, which is suppose to be amazing, but it was all booked out for a wedding reception.
We started with the seared prawns in lemon butter and thyme, followed by the scallops in beure blanc, and apple bourbon sauce. For our mains, we ordered the pan seared sockeye salmon, with rice pilaf and steamed bok choy. It was really delicious and hit the spot after our spa time.
The thing about being on the Sunshine Coast is that you do have to drive everywhere. From Gibson’s Landing, where the ferry terminal is located, to Madeira Park is about an hour drive. And then you have Sechelt and Half Moon Bay in between. But that was fine by us, because a nice drive after dinner is a great way to digest our food.
Plus if it’s timed out right, driving around during the golden hour is a beautiful way to enjoy and appreciate the scenery.
All in all, a wonderful weekend was had. We will definitely be coming back to the Painted Boat Resort Spa + Marina and Madeira Park. Special thanks to my friend Kathryn for setting this up!
View more photos of our getaway on my Flickr album or here for my Instagram pics + stories.
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