Shellfish lure tourists to west Canada's Vancouver Island

Comox Valley, a small community on the east coast of Vancouver Island, west Canada, is emerging as an international tourist hot spot, with a distinct flavor.

Located about 225 kilometers north of Victoria, the Comox Valley and the nearby city of Courtenay is a mostly rural blend of rolling mountains, oceanside beaches and estuaries.

While the tourist numbers here are modest compared with other nearby vacation powerhouses like Whistler and Vancouver in British Columbia, the Comox Valley is seeking to get a firmer grip on its share of the global tourism dollar.

The strategy here to attract tourists has been fairly simple -- to showcase the region's most valuable asset, which is seafood, including the bounty of shellfish.

Danny Claire, shellfish tour boat operator, told Xinhua Tuesday that he took tourists out to the sea and treat them with most fresh sea food.

"Any of the trips to do with food and information on sustainable seafood are popular. I'm probably about 50 percent local tourists and the rest are world travelers," Claire said.

Launched nine years ago, the B.C. Shellfish and Seafood Festival is a 10-day ode to all kinds of shellfish in Comox. There are gala dinners, farm tours, seminars, tastings and parties. The events aim to educate locals and visitors alike about where the oysters, clams and mussels come from, and how the shellfish are produced.

The organizers say there have been about 1,000 additional visitors coming to the valley for the festival each year, and they aim to be the largest such event in Canada in the future.

Roberta Stevenson, executive director of the B.C. Shellfish Grower's Association, said the reason they started the festival was to educate the people that live here about what they are doing out there.

"You know, because the people that live here see us working they need to know exactly how we grow the shellfish. They need to take pride in the fact that the water is clean enough to grow the shellfish," Stevenson said proudly.

For culinary tourists, the sea farms, restaurants and shellfish culture provides the opportunity not only to taste the local flavors, but also to learn about how the food is farmed, processed and prepared. North Americans are increasingly interested in knowing more about the food they eat.

Getting to the valley has become easier with Canadian airlines now boosting service to the area. Visitors can also arrive via ferry, car or by floatplane from the larger nearby centers. Endite