With its red double deckers, rose gardens and cricket fields, British Columbia’s picture postcard provincial capital has long been hailed North America’s most English city. But rest assured Victoria is no Ye Olde England theme-park, but a vibrant city with great restaurants, craft brewers, Bohemian boutiques – and interesting twists on tradition. Afternoon tea at 11.30am in the morning anyone?
Set on one of the world’s finest harbours, the city is small enough to explore on foot, with plenty of historic residences and flower-decked streets to enjoy. But if you prefer getting around on two wheels, then Victoria has more cycle routes than any other Canadian city.
Use any method you choose to explore the city’s must-visit places of interest which include the second oldest Chinatown in North America, the Royal BC Museum, with its lively exhibits that trace the region’s history, and the British Columbia Parliament Buildings, an edifice that’s the epitome of British sense and sensibility – not to mention a night-time dead ringer for Harrods thanks to its 3,000 plus lightbulbs.
Victoria’s mild climate has long been an inspiration for the green fingered. Blazing a trail for the likes of Cornwall’s Eden Project, the early part of the 20th century saw Jennie Butchart turn her husband’s old limestone quarries into a 55-acre paradise. Today over a million visitors a year flock to enjoy the year-round blooms at Butchart Gardens. Lesser known, but still worth a visit, is the Abkhazi Garden, where you can find not only plenty of flora but fauna too, with its collection of ducks and turtles.
If you like your wildlife a little larger, then it’s worth noting that the waters off the coast of Victoria are home to one of the world’s largest Orca populations.
Accommodation comes in all shapes, sizes and price brackets, from the ivy-covered Fairmont Empress, that is as much historic monument as it is luxury hotel, to the rather more eclectic Hotel Zed, complete with its myriad of charming retro flashbacks.
For all your high-end, bespoke leisure and corporate travel needs to Victoria, please contact our Travel Managers on 0203 535 9290 or info@simplexitytravel.com today.
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