The Okanagan area is part of the Thomson-Okangan tourism district.

The Okanagan Valley is located in south-central British Columbia, extending from the U.S. border near Osoyoos to its northern limit at Enderby (approx. 250 kilometers.)

The Okanagan is Canada's only desert like terrain. Over the years it has been famous for large fruit production, lakes and beaches. In recent years the Okanagan has become a major wine production area with many wineries creating world class wines.

Long a secret of the people of Western Canada and the United States the Okanagan was largely over looked by overseas tourists. With its many golf courses , wineries, beautiful lakes and beaches the Okanagan has become a major tourist destination in recent years.

The Okanagan has several large lakes: Okanagan, Kalamalka, Osoyoos, Swan, Wood and Vaseaux.


In the winter the area also boasts some of Western Canada's finest powder snow. There are 3 major ski hills in the area:
Silver Star near Vernon
Big White near Kelowna
Apex near Penticton
and further north (in the Thomson area) is Sunpeaks Resort near Kamloops.

For a unique experience try skiing all of them, they are all approximately 1 hours drive from each other.

Driving times: Vancouver to Kelowna: (400 kms) approx. 5.5 hours via the Coquihalla (Toll) Highway Vancouver to Penticton: 6 hours via Hwy 3 Calgary to Kelowna: (600 kms) approx. 9 hours via Trans Canada Hwy 1 and south on Hwy 97 at Sicamous Seattle to Kelowna: (500 kms) approx. 6.5 hours