Can you fly direct to Comox from Vancouver?

Yes. Comox Valley Airport (YQQ) is served by Pacific Coastal from Vancouver, and by WestJet and Air Canada from Vancouver, Calgary, and Edmonton seasonally. The flight from Vancouver is short, around 30 minutes, and the airport is a few minutes from the towns of Comox and Courtenay.

How far is Comox from Nanaimo by car?

About 110 kilometres, or roughly an hour and 20 minutes north on Highway 19. Many visitors cross to Nanaimo by ferry with a car, then drive up; without a vehicle, the direct flight to YQQ is usually quicker and simpler.

Getting to Comox: Direct Flights, Floatplane & Ferry to the Valley

Q: Is there a floatplane to the Comox Valley?

Harbour Air serves Comox among its Vancouver Island destinations, giving a downtown-harbour-to-Comox floatplane option in the warmer months. It flies by sight, so fog can ground it from November to March; the wheeled flights to YQQ run year-round.

Gateway

Comox Valley airport (YQQ) · Comox harbour floatplane

Fastest from Vancouver

Regional flight to YQQ, ~30 min in the air

Also direct from

Calgary & Edmonton, seasonally

By road from Nanaimo

~110 km · ~1h 20m north on Hwy 19

Onward

Mount Washington, Strathcona Park, Campbell River

Best for

Skiing, the valley, a north-Island base

Comox, Courtenay, and Cumberland make up the Comox Valley, partway up the Island's east coast about 110 kilometres north of Nanaimo. It is a rare north-Island spot with a proper airport and direct flights from more than one city, which makes it the simplest base for the central and northern Island, the ski hill at Mount Washington, and the trailheads into Strathcona.

Your options from Vancouver and beyond

Regional flights to YQQ

~30 min from Vancouver · also Calgary & Edmonton, seasonal

The obvious choice. Pacific Coastal flies from Vancouver, and WestJet and Air Canada add seasonal service from Vancouver, Calgary, and Edmonton, so prairie travellers can often reach the Island without backtracking through YVR. The flight is short, the airport is minutes from town, and it runs year-round. If you are flying in from anywhere east, this is usually the easiest door onto the Island.

Harbour Air floatplane

downtown harbour to Comox · warmer months

Harbour Air includes Comox in its Vancouver Island network, giving a downtown-Vancouver-to-Comox floatplane option in the warmer months. It is the scenic way in, landing at the waterfront with no airport at either end. As a floatplane it flies by sight, so the wheeled flights are the more dependable choice from November to March.

Ferry plus the drive north

cross to Nanaimo, then ~1h 20m on Hwy 19

For your own car or a touring trip, cross to Nanaimo by ferry and drive up the Island Highway. It is about an hour and twenty minutes of easy, scenic driving, and the only way to arrive with a vehicle. This is the right call if Comox is one stop among several, or you are continuing north to Campbell River.

Which one to pick

Fly if

You want the quickest trip: the direct flight to YQQ is about half an hour from Vancouver.
You are coming from Calgary or Edmonton and can fly straight in.
You do not need a car, or will pick one up at the airport.

Drive if

You need your own car, or are travelling with a pet or gear.
You are touring the Island and Comox is one stop of several.
You are continuing north to Campbell River or into Strathcona.

The short answer

The easiest reach on the north-central Island.

Simplest, all year: a direct flight to Comox (YQQ). From the prairies: seasonal direct service from Calgary and Edmonton. Scenic, in summer: the Harbour Air floatplane to the harbour. With a car: ferry to Nanaimo, then about an hour and twenty north.

Where to next

Read up on the option you are leaning toward, or see how every crossing compares.

Regional flights → Harbour Air → Getting to Campbell River → All the ways to the Island →