The Okanagan Valley was voted one of Frommer's Top Travel Destinations for 2007

This lush region of British Columbia, dubbed by some as "Napa North" or "the Tuscany of Canada", boasts a mild climate, with rolling hills and plentiful fruits, nuts and grapes. Vineyards are the big business now -- with more than 120 in the region, it is an ideal place for wine tasting. As in Napa, the topography and climate of Okanagan Valley make it a great place for hiking, kayaking, and biking (bike tours will even take you from winery to winery). The gateway to the region is Kelowna and the center of the wine region is a town called Naramata.

The Okanagan Valley is located at the northern most end of the Sonora Desert resulting in a semi-arid climate, boasting long warm summers and short mild winters. Okanagan Lake stretches for 70 miles through the valley between the Cascade and Monashee Ranges. The city of Kelowna is the largest community in the region and has become one of the fastest growing in North America. The Okanagan people, also spelled Okanogan, are a First Nations and Native American people whose traditional territory spans the U.S.-Canada boundary in Washington and British Columbia. Known in their own language as the Syilx, they are part of the Interior Salish ethnological and linguistic groupings. Many of the region's names are derived from their language including Kelowna, which means "female grizzly bear." And it is the Interior Salish stories of a lake creature or "N'ha-a-itk," exchanged over a hundred years ago, that started the current legend of Ogopogo. To catch a glimpse of the lake monster visit the statue of Ogopogo found on Bernard Avenue near Kelowna's City Park.

The region's many wineries are regularly winning national and international wine competitions and offer public tours and tastings. The local cherries, apricots, peaches, apples, plums, and raspberries also thrive in the long growing season and one can take a tour of an orchard or enjoy the fresh produce at the city's many restaurants. Kelowna's budding cultural district covers a six-block downtown area and features some excellent culinary options as well as a concentration of galleries, museums, theatres, a casino, artists' studios, unique shops and a vibrant cultural life.

Kelowna has miles of beautiful parkland, several sandy beaches and wonderful opportunities for boating, swimming, scuba diving, waterskiing, wakeboarding, windsurfing and fishing. The area plays host to hundreds of birds in dozens of varieties and offers some of the best shore-birding, gull-watching and urban-birding experiences in the province. And there are over 14 quality golf courses to choose from as well as plenty of options for hiking, biking, rock climbing and horseback riding.

In 1916 a railroad through Kettle Valley was completed to provide a way to transport silver ore, which was mined in the southeast corner of British Columbia, to the west coast. The section of railway between Myra station and June Springs station, just south of Kelowna, required 18 wooden trestles and two tunnels in order to traverse the deep canyon. Over the years the abandoned rail line became a haven for hikers and cyclists until the fires of 2003 destroyed many of the trestles. The Myra Canyon Trestle Restoration Society is rebuilding the damaged sections of this historic and recreational site, and plans to be finished by June 2008. For more information please visit the Myra Canyon Trestle Restoration Society

More information about Kelowna and the surrounding area can be found at the official website of the City of Kelowna. Visit Google Maps for location of Kelowna.

View Kelowna web video kindly provided by Tourism Kelowna.