Alert Bay

Canada banned the potlatch from 1885, and in 1921 police raided a large potlatch held at Village Island by Chief Dan Cranmer, arrested participants and confiscated masks, coppers and regalia, which were dispersed to museums and private collectors. The U'mista Cultural Centre at Alert Bay was built in 1980 to hold the pieces as they were repatriated; u'mista means the return of something taken away. The masks are displayed in the order they would appear in the ceremony, without glass in places, with the community's own account of the seizure. The village also has one of the tallest totem poles in the world and a big house.

What you actually see

• The U'mista collection - potlatch regalia seized in 1921 and returned.
• The community account - the ban and the raid told by the Kwakwaka'wakw.
• The totem pole - one of the tallest in the world, raised in 1973.
• The big house - a community ceremonial building in the village.

When to go

May to September, when the ferry runs more often and the centre keeps full hours; it closes some days in winter. Dance performances run on a summer schedule.

Honest expectations

This is a living community, not an attraction, and photography is restricted in parts of the centre. Ferry timings shape the whole visit. Facilities on the island are limited.

Nearby

Telegraph Cove lies across the water; Port McNeill is the ferry terminal.