Victoria travel guides
Browse and explore the best travel guides in Victoria.
Victoria travel facts
Victoria sits at the southern tip of Vancouver Island and is the most explicitly British-feeling city in Canada, with the Parliament Buildings outlined in lights above the Inner Harbour, afternoon tea at the Fairmont Empress and double-decker buses that are only half a joke.
It also has the mildest climate in Canada, which is why Butchart Gardens can flower nearly year-round and why the city runs an annual flower count in February while the rest of the country is under snow. The Royal BC Museum holds one of the strongest First Nations collections in the country, and Fisherman's Wharf's float homes sit a short walk from downtown.
Whale watching is the signature excursion, with resident and transient orcas, humpbacks and grey whales in the Salish Sea from roughly April to October. Beyond the city, the island opens up to the surf and rainforest of Tofino, four hours northwest.
Country
Canada
Region
British Columbia, southern Vancouver Island
Population
~92,000 (city), ~400,000 metro
Elevation
~23 m
Time Zone
Pacific Time (UTC-8, UTC-7 in summer)
Currency
Canadian Dollar (CAD)
Language
English; French is co-official nationally
Nearest Airport
YYJ (Victoria International, 25 km north); floatplanes land in the Inner Harbour
Airport to City Centre
~30 min by car; the YYJ Airport Shuttle takes ~40 min
Typical Cost Level
Mid-range to Expensive
Transport Pass
BC Transit day pass; the compact centre is very walkable
Spring (Mar-May)
4-15°C, the earliest spring in Canada with gardens in full bloom
Summer (Jun-Aug)
11-22°C, dry, mild and the sunniest season; peak whale watching
Autumn (Sep-Nov)
6-16°C, mild with the rain returning from October
Winter (Dec-Feb)
2-8°C, the mildest winter in Canada; snow is rare but rain is not
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Do you need a visa for Canada?
Entry rules, stay length and passport validity by nationality.
Climate averages · 1991–2020
When is the best time to visit Victoria?
Monthly temperatures, rainfall and sunshine — not a live forecast.
See Victoria weatherLatest travel guides
Victoria Destination FAQ
June to September is the driest and sunniest period and the peak for whale watching, gardens and the Inner Harbour. Spring arrives earlier here than anywhere else in Canada, with Butchart Gardens in bloom from March and the city's famous flower count held in February. Winter is mild and rainy rather than snowy, quiet and considerably cheaper, and storm watching on the island's west coast becomes an attraction in itself.
The BC Ferries crossing from Tsawwassen to Swartz Bay takes about 95 minutes and is scenic in its own right, with the terminal then 30 minutes from downtown Victoria; allow around four hours door to door. Floatplanes from Vancouver's harbour to Victoria's Inner Harbour take just 35 minutes and land in the middle of the city, which is the fastest and most spectacular option. Passenger ferries and helicopters also run.
The season runs from roughly April to October, peaking from June to September. Transient orcas hunting seals are the most frequently seen, along with humpbacks, minke whales and grey whales during migration; the endangered southern resident orcas are protected by strict approach distances and are seen less often. Operators run covered boats and open Zodiacs, and most offer a sighting guarantee with a free repeat trip if you see nothing.
Two days covers the city comfortably: the Inner Harbour, Parliament Buildings, Royal BC Museum and Fisherman's Wharf on one, Butchart Gardens and a whale watching trip on the other. A third day suits cycling the Galloping Goose Trail or driving out to Sooke. If you want Tofino and Pacific Rim National Park on the island's west coast, add at least three more days, as it is a four-hour drive each way.
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