Beyond Victoria, BC: A Fabulous Destination Worth Exploring

Victoria, BC and Beyond – fabulous place to visit

Victoria, BC Inner Harbour

My home is on the southernmost tip of Vancouver Island in a neighbourhood of the city of Victoria, BC called James Bay.  It is one of the oldest residential areas in the Pacific Northwest with charming heritage homes preserved and still intact.  It is a vibrant and diverse neighbourhood with stunning waterfront and Fisherman’s Wharf, a collection of floating houses and restaurants.

The Salish people roamed this area for centuries prior to the arrival of Europeans.  Together they lived in big houses surviving on fish, carving totem poles, ceremonial masks and canoes, and weaving incredible blankets and tapestries.  You can see a wonderful collection of First Nation culture in the Royal BC Museum in Victoria’s Inner Harbour.  Around the museum grounds you’ll find a display of Totem Poles created in 1941, in Thunderbird Park.

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The capital city of Victoria is an intriguing place to explore, keeping its British heritage alive.  The seaside cliffs, historic castles and lighthouses, the Inner Harbor lined with vintage buildings that give way to Victorian communities like mine, James Bay.  Surrounding the harbour are quaint old-world shops, high tea, and stunning English gardens that extend beyond the city into parks and recreational areas.  A wonderful park in the city is Beacon Hill Park.  A place of 1800’s stone bridges, gardens, ponds, ducks and peacocks.

Craigdarroch Castle

Vancouver Island offers breathtaking views of nature, wildlife sightings like eagles, salmon runs in October, and small forest creatures. Numerous waterways, lakes and Provincial Parks abound, where giant trees still remain in protected forests that have stood the test of time. Along the Juan de Fuca trail expect to see baldhead eagles, blue heron, cormorant, and more.  The urban seaside along Juan de Fuca strait is a wildfowl sanctuary. The only one in Canada. On Vancouver Island you’ll have a chance to enjoy nature, breathtaking views, and fantastic waterways like the Gorge, Cattle Point Beach, and stunning Cordova Bay.   Quaint communities spread all along our coastlines.  And along the Saanich peninsula, 30 minutes-drive from downtown Victoria, is Butchart Gardens.  The most famous of all the gardens on the island attracting a million visitors each year.  Here you’ll savour wonderful seafood and farm to table food.  Vineyards and breweries abound.  Victoria and Vancouver Island offer the perfect blend of culture, history, and nature at its best.