Strategically located on the Inside Passage, 98 nautical miles north of Port Hardy and 78 nautical miles west of Vancouver, Bella Bella has become a major transportation hub for the Central Coast of British Columbia.
Bella Bella has amalgamated from the Heiltsuk tribes that occupied numerous non-permanent villages in the winter and spring. When the European explorers arrived to the coast in the 18th Century, there were natives from numerous different cultural groups here, unable to establish permanent villages. These complex cultures all had their lust for a ‘rich spirit life’ in common - a theme that continues to this day and of the 1,450 (approx.) residents here, about 90% are Heiltsuk and 5% First Nations, the other 5% classed as non-First Nations.