Victoria

About Victoria

Victoria, the capital of British Columbia, is the PVSA-required foreign port stop on nearly every Seattle-based Alaska round-trip — ships typically arrive in the evening on their final night and stay 4–6 hours. The cruise terminal is at Ogden Point, a mile south of the Inner Harbour, with shuttles or a pleasant 20-minute seaside walk connecting passengers to the Empress Hotel, Parliament Buildings, and Beacon Hill Park. Popular short excursions are a high-tea at the Empress, a spin through Butchart Gardens (about 25 minutes out of town), and walking tours of the historic downtown. Because most calls are after dark, many passengers opt for the evening gardens-and-lights tour at Butchart.

• Victoria is the capital of British Columbia and one of the oldest cities in the Pacific Northwest, with British settlement beginning in 1843 — predating the incorporation of many larger Canadian and American cities.
• The city's Chinatown is the second oldest in North America, after San Francisco's, reflecting the deep history of Chinese immigration to the Pacific coast.
• Known as 'the Garden City,' Victoria is famous for its mild climate (the mildest in Canada) and its Butchart Gardens, which draw over a million visitors per year.
• Victoria's two most iconic landmarks — the provincial Parliament Buildings (completed 1897) and the Fairmont Empress Hotel (opened 1908) — define the Inner Harbour and have been drawing tourists for over a century.
• The city sits just 25 miles (40 km) from Port Angeles, Washington, by ferry across the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and about 100 km from Seattle, making it a popular day-trip destination from the U.S.