Review of Vacation (and Restaurants) in Victoria, B.C.

Victoria, B.C.

My wife and I vacationed in Victoria, B.C. from June 25-28 this year (1992). We stayed in a B&B called Sonia's by the Sea. We took tea in two hotels, ate a lot, saw some sights, and generally bummed around.

Getting There

We flew into Vancouver, B.C. at 6:00 PM and rented a car. Baggage check was 15 minutes, customs was a slide, the car rental fast. It was about a 1/2 hour drive south to the Tsawassen ferry terminal, where we just caught the 7:00 PM ferry. Since it was a Thursday, the next ferry was at 9:00, so we could have added 2 hours to the jaunt right there if anything had been a little slower. The ferry ride was great. The scenery was spectacular. It took 1 hr 40 min to get to Victoria. The ride was smooth (my wife felt great, and she gets seasick in a bathtub). We drove the ~ 15 miles to Victoria from the ferry, arriving at our B&B about 9:10. Since everything went perfectly, I would propose that the 3 hrs from plane to hotel is about a minimum for this route.

Options

You could fly to Seattle, and take a ferry. It is probably longer, and I don't know how often they run. I heard someone tell me that the Seattle ferry ride is rougher due to it not being in the lee of the islands all the way. There is also a ferry from Port Angeles, but I would guess it's harder to get to P.A. in the first place, even though the boat ride would be shorter.

Vancouver Island (the city of Vancouver is on the mainland, Victoria is on Vancouver Island --- kind of confusing, huh?) has an "International" airport, although my airline didn't fly there. That would, of course, be much faster than the other alternatives, leaving about an hour drive to Victoria.

Apparently, there are seaplane and helicopter options as well, but I guess they are kind of pricey.

Lodging

We stayed at Sonia's Bed & Breakfast, a typical "English" or "Continental" type B&B. In other words, it isn't filled with quaint antiques, lace curtains, and doesn't cost a fortune. Just a big room in a normal house, a filling breakfast and nice company. $80/night. (604)-385-2700. Sonia (she'll hate me for saying this) is a bit chatty, but her advice is good. There is a nice room upstairs with a decent view of the Straits of Juan de Fuca. Recommended.

There are several options for staying in Victoria:

1)    Big, fancy, touristy hotel. The Empress. Lots of money. The Empress is pretty impressive, but you can get the same impact just walking through it. Not a bargain.

2)    Big hotel. Harborview & Ambassador seem fairly unexciting and overpriced. The one that impressed me with its "quaintness" was the Oak Bay Hotel on the other side of the peninsula. Also has a great high tea (see below).

3)    Fancy B&B. There are a few. I don't remember the names. They're pretty expensive ($150+). Antiques, lace, etc.

4)    Normal B&B. Room in a residence. $80-$100. Seems about the right speed for us.

5)    Youth hostels, cheap hotels. They exist. I hear they're pretty cheap. I don't know any more, but if I were a single guy with a backpack and not much money, I could probably have a blast in Victoria while staying at one.

Transportation

A rental car is pretty much de rigueur if you want to see any sights. Parking downtown is difficult and/or expensive. Parking lots take Canadian quarters, and parking enforcement is strict. Pretty tense all around; kind of like Westwood...

Shopping

Yes. Lots of it. Prices are not generally low. The main tourist drag has a lot of T-shirt and trinket shops. One shop in the tourist district worth visiting is Roger's Chocolates.

Sights

Butchart Gardens is everything it's cracked up to be. Just amazing. Allocate at least two hours. Drives on any coastal road yield splendid views. Roads tend to be winding, one lane each way affairs with low speed limits and drivers who adhere strictly to them, so a drive can be much longer than it appears on the map.

Food

o     Take lunch at Butchart Gardens. The buffet there is great. o     For fish & chips, try Barb's Place (310 St.Lawrence St.) on the docks
      at the western extremity of the James Bay section of town. The road
      to the docks is near the intersection of Dallas and Erie. It's just a
      stand... no atmosphere. Great Cod.
o     We made reservations at the Sooke Harbor House because we heard
      from the computer network that it was exceptional. We drove for an
      hour to get to the bustling metropolis ;-) of Sooke Bay. The restaurant
      is associated with a fancy B&B, and is beautifully situated on a point
      overlooking the ocean. We strolled through the fresh herb garden
      before entering. The restaurant is sort of up-scale, trendy, and
      expensive. We gave them our names and were told they had no
      reservations for us! It turns out that there are TWO restaurants in
      Sooke Bay with almost identical names. Sooke Bay Harbor House, or
      Sooke Harbor House, or Sooke Bay House... well, you get the idea.
      We, of course, picked the wrong one out of the phone book, and the
      one we wanted had no open tables. We drove around trying to find the
      other restaurant with no luck, so we just drove back to Victoria. I was
      told by another guest at our B&B that we were lucky not to eat there
      because the SBHH is overpriced and undernourishing, so caveat
      emptor.
o     Garrick's Head Pub is on the tourist drag. We had Shepherd's Pie, and
      it was pretty good. Nothing flashy, but it is conveniently located.
o     Spinnakers is over the bridge on the west side of town. Large, two
      story restaurant. Decent view. Large selection of ales. Fairly crowded
      with singles and couples 20-40 yrs old. Didn't eat there, but the menu
      looked OK.
o     Sonia says that the Swiss Neighborhood Restaurant is really good, but
      like most other places, it was closed when we wanted to eat (~9:00).
o     Ate at Oxford Arms Pub. Great Steak and Crab. Medium size pub in
      a residential district. Nice atmosphere. Food service ends at 10, drinks
      at 11.
o     On the way back to the Saanich-Tsawassen Ferry, we ate at a
      delightful pub called the Stone House. Kind of hard to find, but if you
      get off the road just before the ferry, continue through the intersection,
      and then bear right (frog left?), you might luck into it. Worth finding.
o     Drove by an interesting looking cafe called Pluto's. Made out of an old
      gas station. Kind of funky looking. No other info.

o     Observation: Coming from the big city, my time scale may be different,
      but it seems that I should be able to get dinner fairly late on a
      Saturday. Many places stop serving food at 9 or 10, even on big
      weekend nights. Keep this in mind if you're a night owl like me. Also,
      the late sunset in the summer (~10PM) can mislead your stomach...

High Tea

The Empress. For $28.00, you can have a few small sandwiches, a smidgen of cream, and a packet of jam. I suggest you walk through the Empress, but not take tea there. Overrated. Overpriced. Undernourishing.

Oak Bay Hotel. Now this is more like it. At least twice as much food as the Empress at about half the cost. It's uncrowded, unhurried, the food's better, the price is lower, and view is substantially better. Other than that, I can't think of a thing to recommend it. ;-)

            frisbee