This is a largely rural riding spanning central Vancouver Island from the Pacific Ocean to the Strait of Georgia. Most of Pacific Rim National Park Reserve runs along the western boundary. The Alberni-Clayoquot Regional District is here, as is part of Nanaimo Regional District and that section of Powell River Regional District south of Sabine Channel. Communities include Port Alberni, Parksville and Qualicum Beach, along with Nanaimo north of Wellington Road.
More than 16 per cent of residents are immigrants and nearly 19 per cent are older than 65.
Manufacturing, retail and the service sector are the riding's economic engines. CFB Comox is a major employer and tourism also plays an important role. Average family income was $58,654 in 2001 and unemployment was 10.5 per cent.
Nanaimo-Alberni existed from 1976 to 1986. It was re-established in the 1996 redistribution from portions of Comox-Alberni and Nanaimo-Cowichan. The riding was unchanged in the 2004 redistribution.
