Ideas for Victoria, BC

We are going to be sailing in May the on the Norwegian Pearl to Alaska, with Victoria BC being our final port stop. We will be getting in fairly late ( 6pm till midnight), and was hoping I could get some help figuring out what there would be to do in Victoria at that time. Any input is appreciated :D

Victoria is in Canada, of course, so it is covered on the Canada board, here:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=39

Butchart Gardens is the big draw in Victoria.

The harbor area is quite lovely. If you have good weather you might be content to wander around the harbor, Empress Hotel, Parliament Bldgs, house boats. Victoria has a VERY interesting chinatown.

You could also walk to or from the ship via Fishermans Wharf.

http://fishermanswharfvictoria.com/

Look thru trip reports for RT Seattle sailings to see what others did. Check the city web site for ideas:

http://www.tourismvictoria.com/plan/vacation-guide/

Victoria is in Canada, of course, so it is covered on the Canada board, here:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=39

I didn't even think of it as Canada, I just included it in my Alaska trip In my mind :D:p. Thanks for the link.

Butchart Gardens is the big draw in Victoria.

 

The harbor area is quite lovely. If you have good weather you might be content to wander around the harbor, Empress Hotel, Parliament Bldgs, house boats. Victoria has a VERY interesting chinatown.

You could also walk to or from the ship via Fishermans Wharf.

http://fishermanswharfvictoria.com/

 

Look thru trip reports for RT Seattle sailings to see what others did. Check the city web site for ideas:

http://www.tourismvictoria.com/plan/vacation-guide/

Thanks for the suggestions, and I'll definately check out the links you posted :)

Pubs, pubs or pubs are my suggestion for a Victorian evening. Walk if the weather is nice - lots of lit-up, old-school and very British looking buildings around the harbour, and two of a frighteningly-small number of bars outside the UK that serve their beer at the correct temperature live in Victoria (Swans and Spinnakers - personally I recommend the former over the latter in quality as well as convenience, being closer to downtown and convenient to visit if you're in Victoria's teeny-tiny Chinatown). A hand-pulled, cask-conditioned pint of Buckerfields ESB served at 8 Celsius is something anyone who claims to enjoy beer needs to experience at least once in their lifetime...

If you ever wondered whether you'd like London (England), Victoria is an excellent taster - as well as the architecture, it's full of surly old retired white people including many British ex-pats, has good museums and red double-decker buses. Not that everyone in Victoria is surly - but whenever I start reminiscing about life back home too romantically, my wife suggests a weekend in Victoria and the almost-as-bad-as-British customer service reminds me why we moved to Canada in the first place;-)

Highlights for me....

• Butchart (depending on the growing season... the flowers may not be in full bloom in May)
  
• Leglislature Building free tour (https://www.leg.bc.ca/info/2-2-4.htm)
  
• A walk around the Inner Harbour
  
• Provincial Museam http://royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/
  

Other ideas...

• some like to do high tea at the Empress Hotel. Otherwise it's a popular tourist inner habour bathroom stop. http://www.fairmont.com/empress-victoria/dining/afternoontea/
  
• some enjoy a carriage ride http://www.victoriacarriage.com/carriage-tours.asp
  
• there's a castle to check out.... http://thecastle.ca/
  
• anyone tried the harbour ferry tour? http://www.victoriaharbourferry.com/tours-services/harbour-tours
  
• Orca whale watching http://princeofwhales.com/victoria-departures/
  
• http://www.tourismvictoria.com/things-to-do/tours/
  
• http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2014/02/03/victoria-most-romantic-city-canada-amazon_n_4718347.html
  

Pubs, pubs or pubs are my suggestion for a Victorian evening. Walk if the weather is nice - lots of lit-up, old-school and very British looking buildings around the harbour, and two of a frighteningly-small number of bars outside the UK that serve their beer at the correct temperature live in Victoria (Swans and Spinnakers - personally I recommend the former over the latter in quality as well as convenience, being closer to downtown and convenient to visit if you're in Victoria's teeny-tiny Chinatown). A hand-pulled, cask-conditioned pint of Buckerfields ESB served at 8 Celsius is something anyone who claims to enjoy beer needs to experience at least once in their lifetime...

 

If you ever wondered whether you'd like London (England), Victoria is an excellent taster - as well as the architecture, it's full of surly old retired white people including many British ex-pats, has good museums and red double-decker buses. Not that everyone in Victoria is surly - but whenever I start reminiscing about life back home too romantically, my wife suggests a weekend in Victoria and the almost-as-bad-as-British customer service reminds me why we moved to Canada in the first place;-)

That has me a little more excited about Victoria than I was previously, it actually sounds like a fun port to visit lol :D

Highlights for me....

• Butchart (depending on the growing season... the flowers may not be in full bloom in May)
  
• Leglislature Building free tour (https://www.leg.bc.ca/info/2-2-4.htm)
  
• A walk around the Inner Harbour
  
• Provincial Museam http://royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/
  

Other ideas...

• some like to do high tea at the Empress Hotel. Otherwise it's a popular tourist inner habour bathroom stop. http://www.fairmont.com/empress-victoria/dining/afternoontea/
  
• some enjoy a carriage ride http://www.victoriacarriage.com/carriage-tours.asp
  
• there's a castle to check out.... http://thecastle.ca/
  
• anyone tried the harbour ferry tour? http://www.victoriaharbourferry.com/tours-services/harbour-tours
  
• Orca whale watching http://princeofwhales.com/victoria-departures/
  
• http://www.tourismvictoria.com/things-to-do/tours/
  
• http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2014/02/03/victoria-most-romantic-city-canada-amazon_n_4718347.html
  

Wow, thanks for all the ideas! I'm hoping a lot of these will still be open when we get into port, since we won't be in till the evening. I'm starting to wish we had a little more time in this particular port.

Wow, thanks for all the ideas! I'm hoping a lot of these will still be open when we get into port, since we won't be in till the evening. I'm starting to wish we had a little more time in this particular port.

Butchart is open til 10pm from June 15 til September 5, but you want at least an hour to enjoy it. Victoria has sunlight til around 9:30pm in the summer.

http://www.butchartgardens.com/visit/hours

Hmm.... I recommend the Butchart/Victoria highlights evening tour to make best use of limited time.

http://www.ncl.com/excursion_detail?shorex_code=VIC_03

Butchart is 30 minutes from the cruise ship and you want to make best use of the limited time with a ship excursion. Otherwise, you can catch a post-cruise ferry from Seattle to Victoria for an extended visit.

http://www.clippervacations.com/schedules-fares/

There are interesting things to do in Victoria, but some suggestions don't apply because of your quick evening visit. The Museum will be closed, tea at the Fairmont Empress will be over, and personally I wouldn't go to the Butchart Gardens as I think it's too tight a time frame. You would be running through the gardens trying to see everything and get back to the ship on time (IMO, as I said).

The Canada board is the best place for info, as mentioned. Victoria has been discussed there hundreds of times. :)

We used to live there for 35 years and as it turns out, will also be back there for the obligatory quick port call on a cruise this year. I think we are just going to walk around the Inner Harbour, maybe get a huge roast beef sandwich at Sam's Deli, and then go buy some Roger's Chocolates (both on Government Street).

Have fun.

There are interesting things to do in Victoria, but some suggestions don't apply because of your quick evening visit. The Museum will be closed, tea at the Fairmont Empress will be over, and personally I wouldn't go to the Butchart Gardens as I think it's too tight a time frame. You would be running through the gardens trying to see everything and get back to the ship on time (IMO, as I said).

 

The Canada board is the best place for info, as mentioned. Victoria has been discussed there hundreds of times. :)

 

We used to live there for 35 years and as it turns out, will also be back there for the obligatory quick port call on a cruise this year. I think we are just going to walk around the Inner Harbour, maybe get a huge roast beef sandwich at Sam's Deli, and then go buy some Roger's Chocolates (both on Government Street).

 

Have fun.

I totally agree with this. You won't have much time, and I would suggest taking cab to the harbour area (inexpensive) to spend a few hours there. Lots to do in the area.

Pubs, pubs or pubs are my suggestion for a Victorian evening. Walk if the weather is nice - lots of lit-up, old-school and very British looking buildings around the harbour, and two of a frighteningly-small number of bars outside the UK that serve their beer at the correct temperature live in Victoria (Swans and Spinnakers - personally I recommend the former over the latter in quality as well as convenience, being closer to downtown and convenient to visit if you're in Victoria's teeny-tiny Chinatown). A hand-pulled, cask-conditioned pint of Buckerfields ESB served at 8 Celsius is something anyone who claims to enjoy beer needs to experience at least once in their lifetime...

 

If you ever wondered whether you'd like London (England), Victoria is an excellent taster - as well as the architecture, it's full of surly old retired white people including many British ex-pats, has good museums and red double-decker buses. Not that everyone in Victoria is surly - but whenever I start reminiscing about life back home too romantically, my wife suggests a weekend in Victoria and the almost-as-bad-as-British customer service reminds me why we moved to Canada in the first place;-)

I was always an Appleton Brown Ale kind of guy

we just spent a couple of hours strolling in downtown area, which is about 20 mins walk from the dock

I know this is kind of late, but if you are visiting in May, the Gardens are only open until 5 p.m., so it will be closed when you get there.

The Gardens will most likely remain open for cruise ship tours in the evening (but only for cruise ship tours, not the general public)

I might look into a shop excursion for this port if we decide on the gardens. Or may just meander around for a little while just to see what there is to see close by