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Things to do in Victoria, BC
Cowboy-Bebop
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
I'm flying out to Victoria on May 13th until May 20th to visit a friend who's working there. During the day she's going to be busy with her job so I will have a lot of free time.
I'm looking for places to see and things to do, I'm open to most anything. I'm also interested in good places to eat in the area and if anything special is happening between those dates. I am of the legal drinking age so any bars/night life activities would be great too.
Currently the only thing I know I'm doing is taking a whale watching tour- can anyone recommend a specific one?
Thanks
I'm looking for places to see and things to do, I'm open to most anything. I'm also interested in good places to eat in the area and if anything special is happening between those dates. I am of the legal drinking age so any bars/night life activities would be great too.
Currently the only thing I know I'm doing is taking a whale watching tour- can anyone recommend a specific one?
Thanks
Cowboy-Bebop on
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As far as whalewatching goes, the largest operation is Prince of Whales Tours. They have a whole deck to themselves in the harbour. Eagle Wing is supposedly one of the highest rated businesses out there, so you might like to try that one. At the very least you're going to be spending a $100 CAD. That seems to be the baseline for adult rates for a standard 3 hour tour. In any case, they should be roughly all the same, but google it and look into the little things that might differentiate the different companies. What's their safety record? What are your chances of seeing whales?
Personally, two of the places that I love to visit when I am in Victoria are the Royal London Wax Museum and the Royal B.C. Museum. Don't know if the wax museum is your thing but it's cooler than it sounds, especially their entire wing dedicated to cruel and unusual means of torture. I have nothing to say about the Royal B.C. Museum other than that I love the place, despite not being much of a museum person, and I could spend all the day there. You kinda get lost in it.
edit: And I haven't been to Victoria often enough to recommend any particular eating establishments but I guarantee you'll find something you like, it's got a number of great places. Try the fish and chips!
For bars, restaurants, and things to do, can you give us a better idea of your likes and dislikes for music, food, and whatever else? Also, will you have a car at your disposal? In what part of town are you staying?
Edit: Here are a few to get you started:
Thai:
Siam 512 Fort 383-9911
Sookjai Thai, 893 Fort - http://www.sookjaithai.com/
Indian:
The Spice Jammer http://www.spicejammer.com 852 Fort Street
Nepalese: The Mint at 1414 Douglas Street - really good food with almost a bar atmosphere
Italian: Pagliacci's - 1011 Broad St - 250-386-1662
Smoken Bones Cookshack!! With the best phone number ever...250-391-MEAT
http://www.smokenbones.ca 101 - 721 Station Avenue - The owner is big with the local organic ingredients and such.
Lady Marmalade 608 Johnson St. - http://www.ladymarmalade.ca/
The Tapa Bar 620 Trounce Alley - http://www.tapabar.ca/public/index.html - you'll want reservations if you go here
Ferris' Oyster Bar & Grill 536 Yates St. - http://www.ferrisoysterbar.com/
If you like flowers, there's Butchart Gardens (you'll want a car to get there), Royal Roads (castle and gardens - it's where they shot a bunch of the X-Men movies), and Beacon Hill park. Actually, just spend some time in the park regardless.
Luxton Rodeo and the Highland Games are on during May Long. You'll want to wander around downtown and check out the Inner Harbour. For pubs, check out the Sticky Wicket.
If you ever need to talk to someone, feel free to message me. Yes, that includes you.
Preferably at the Empress, but you can find it in more than a few places. English High Tea is fantastic. Keep in mind that the Empress is very regal and has a strict dress casual policy (i.e. no jeans).
My favourite place for lunch is La Fiesta. They make giant burritos/wraps.
Check out http://livevictoria.com/ for shows and happenings at local bars/clubs.
I think they have tours of the Parliament Buildings sometimes, otherwise you can usually go in and look around yourself.
If you ever need to talk to someone, feel free to message me. Yes, that includes you.
make sure to go through Chinatown, as well as into the Market Square.
Royal BC Museum is a "must". Undersea Gardens is right down in the inner harbour, and I've always enjoyed it.
The empress can be fun to walk through, and while others seem to like the 'tea at the empress' experience, i call "balls" to that. I've done it, it was just overly priced tea and a scone in a fancy room. You can get the same effect by grabbing a Starbucks tea and walking through the place.
Also, I second the Sticky Wickett. Best pub on the Island.
If you ever need to talk to someone, feel free to message me. Yes, that includes you.
And yeah, I say Royal B.C. Museum is a must if you're even slightly interested in museums.
I'd definately go to the Fifth Street Bar and Grill http://www.fifthstreet.ca/
Great beer, great food at prices that are pretty damn cheap.
I'd also recommend the noodle box for a quick meal for a southeast asian-ish flavour.
There's Pagliacci's or Pags for amazing pasta/italian.
Also be warned that it's playoff hockey time and this is Canada so be prepared to have an awesome exciting time in any pub you visit
Throw me a PM if you have any questions or maybe just need company at the pub!
I had a Dragon Stout and a Kingston Quesadilla. Really good. Plantain chips were fucking phenomenal. I'm definitely going again before I leave. Gonna try something a little more Jamaican. Oh, and the girl serving me was pretty cute too.
edit - Fifth street is awesome. I used to, pretty much, live across the street from it. their Buffalo burger is super delicious.
Man, I love Vancouver Island.
$10 for a huge, super tender, savory buffalo burger at 5th street.
$12 for a generic, flat, forgettable burger at Red Robin (family diner)
I honestly have no idea how 5th street stays in business with their prices. It must be razor thin margins.
The Museum is also advertising an exhibit with a bunch of stuff from The British Museum right now, which is probably worth seeing.
If you get really bored, you can amuse yourself trying to count the rabbits on UVic's campus.
Shit, I can't believe its been like four years since I last visited Victoria.
I don't think I can count that high. Kinda like trying to count how many Canadian geese there are in Stanley Park in July.
Thanks! That's the place at Blanchard, next to the "Capitol 6"?
Ever hear of a "Lotteria's"?
And yes I have been to Lotterias but I can't remember anything about it aside from the fact that I did not like it very much and found it extremely claustrophobic and not much fun at all.
That closed down last year.
Nooooo! Is there any alternative available for any sort of gaming-fun in the downtown-ish area?
For a more casual cup of tea, Special Tea on... um... Blanchard and Fort, I think, is great.
Incidentally, the Reef is a mini-chain with two outlets in Vancouver, one on Main and one on Commercial. And all three locations make an awesome Dark 'n Stormy with their in-house ginger beer.