Welcome to Duncan, the heart of the Cowichan Region. Our lovely city can be found just off the Trans Canada Highway, about half-way between Victoria and Nanaimo on Vancouver Island.

Our downtown features a number of heritage and vintage buildings, and a large array of small, exquisite shops and restaurants catering to all tastes. Enjoy the cultural comings and goings in our busy new City Square - part of our exciting revitalization plan – or tour our collection of 80 totems.

Duncan is a very walkable, people-friendly community that invites you to come, stay a while and enjoy the ambience.

Duncan and the surrounding Cowichan region is the one of the most beautiful places on earth! Our mild sunny climate offers endless opportunities for relaxation and fun. Take a Totem Tour, visit our many delightful shops and restaurants, enjoy the vineyards and farmer¹s markets that abound in our warm land, kayak our rivers and ocean, hike the Trans Canada Trail... the list of possibilities is truly endless!

• Duncan's tourism slogan is "The City of Totems". The city has 80 totem poles around the entire town, which were erected in the late 1980s, including the world's largest totem pole (in diameter), carved by First Nations artisan Simon Charlie.
• Duncan has a large First Nations community and is the traditional home of the Cowichan Tribes, who are the largest band among the Coast Salish people. The Coast Salish men and women of the Cowichan Tribes are makers of the world famous Cowichan Sweaters.
• Duncan boasts one of the largest Farmers' Markets on Vancouver Island. This market is now held in City Square in downtown Duncan and spreads into adjoining streets as needed every Saturday from 9:00 - 2:00. The Market offers local produce, nursery products, and crafts.
• Duncan is home to the BC Forest Discovery Centre. Before the U.S.-Canada softwood lumber dispute, Duncan and the whole Cowichan Valley were a thriving lumber centre in British Columbia.
• Duncan has the world's largest ice hockey stick, officially recognised by Guinness World Records on July 14, 2008,[4] which is on display on the side of the local (formerly known) arena- the Cowichan Community Centre. The centre is now called The 'Island Savings Center', (in 2008 Island Savings entered into a 10 year/one million dollar naming rights agreement with the CVRD). [5] The stick was made specifically for Expo 86 in Vancouver, and purchased by Duncan at the end of the event.