Victoria Tour: Explore Historic Sites and Butchart Gardens

Embark on a scenic tour of Victoria, British Columbia, exploring its historic landmarks and the breathtaking Butchart Gardens. Discover the beauty of Vancouver Island and indulge in the serenity of themed garden displays.

Duration: 14 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Canada Place - Please meet us at Canada Place for a fun-filled daytrip to Victoria. Your bus and tour guide will be waiting for you.

  • Tsawwassen - A 45 minute drive from downtown Vancouver to the Tsawwassen Ferry Terminal. While we are waiting to get on the ferry, enjoy the little ferry terminal market.

  • Gulf Islands National Park Reserve of Canada - Enjoy a 90-minute “cruise” to Vancouver Island. After about 40 minutes, the ferry enters Active Pass and you will cruise through the Southern Gulf Islands, a popular vacation spot for locals.

  • Inner Harbour - As you arrive in Victoria’s Inner Harbour, you will visit the top sighting locations. Starting at Mile O, Ogden Point, Empress Hotel and Historic Chinatown, including the famous Fan Tan Alley and shops.
    Later, enjoy free time to explore on your own or book one of our optional activities.
    Whatever your purpose for exploring Victoria today, our guide is ready to assist you with suggestions on the best restaurants, top breweries, shops and hidden gems.

  • Victoria - Meet your guide at the bus after your free time and we continue to the famous Butchart Gardens

  • The Butchart Gardens - Visit Butchart Gardens: a National Historic Site covering 55 acres and showcasing over 900 species of plants.

  • Swartz Bay BC Ferry Terminal - Relax as we cruise back to the Mainland this evening, explore the outside decks and views.

  • Canada Place - Once we arrive at Tsawwassen Ferry terminal, our coach drives off the ferry and we head back into Vancouver. Arrive back in Vancouver at approx. 9:30 pm

What's Included
  • Great discount on optional activities
  • Roundtrip Ferry aboard BC Ferries
  • Deluxe coach transportation
  • All fees and/or taxes
  • Onboard entertainment & commentary throughout
  • Admission to the Butchart Gardens
  • Experienced, friendly, and fun Driver-Guide
What's Not Included
  • Food and drinks
  • Gratuity
Additional Information

Regarded as one of the splendid cities globally, Victoria serves as the capital of British Columbia and is situated on the splendid Vancouver Island. It is renowned for its historic attractions including the Empress Hotel, Parliament buildings, and the stunning Butchart Gardens. The journey from Vancouver involves a scenic ferry trip from the Vancouver mainland, passing through the Gulf Islands to Swartz Bay on Vancouver Island. From this point, you will undertake a driving tour to Victoria, featuring the cityscape of Victoria which includes the Inner Harbour, The Fairmont Empress Hotel, Mile 0, and the traditional Chinatown. There will be leisure time to discover downtown Victoria freely. Additionally, you will visit the globally recognized Butchart Gardens which exhibit 55 acres of themed garden displays encompassing a Japanese Garden, Italian Garden, and Rose Garden. Conclude your day with a tranquil return sailing via BC Ferries, leading you back to your tour’s starting point.

  • Guests 16-18 years of age may travel on the trip without a parent or guardian but MUST have one present on the departure day to sign the waiver forms held by the tour guide.
  • Anyone 15 or younger must have a parent or guardian travel on the trip with them.
  • No booster seats available.
  • The tour still operates when it rains and no refunds will be given within the 24 cancellation policy.
Location
Vancouver Cruise Pier
Canada Place
Please meet us at the covered benches, in front of the Vancouver Convention Centre, next to the Flyover Canada Ticket Booth, 15 minutes before departure and meet your Discover Canada Tours guide (wearing bright green). Your guide will be guiding you to the correct bus.
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.8
(374 Ratings)
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Charlesi885
Sep 30, 2024
Fantastic tour & guide - This is a wonderful tour, and our guide, Ian made it fantastic. His knowledge of the area is only surpassed by his humor. Victoria is great, lots to see and historic. Butchart Gardens is not to be missed. We had a beautiful day there and took tons of photos. I can't decide which to use as my screen saver!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Shopethomas
Sep 26, 2024
Book the Trip - Corey with an E..made this rainy day bright and wonderful! Corey was a wonderful guide providing us with so much information from the moment we started our journey. He even had some jokes to keep us smiling in the rain. The amount of time in Victoria and at the gardens was perfect. Loved Victoria, but the gardens were spectacular. Book your day trip. It’s well worth it!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Corinna
Sep 25, 2024
Lots of fun despite the rain! - It rained off and on all day, but the entire group still managed to have a good time. Corey was exceptional. He gave clear guidelines, told semi-funny jokes (ha!) and did an excellent job providing us with interesting stories and facts throughout the tour. This is quite an accomplishment given the tour lasted 14 HOURS! We had a fabulous time seeing the sites in Victoria and would definitely recommend it to anyone. Cheers, Corey!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Michael_t
Sep 22, 2024
Butchart Gardens & Victoria A Great Tour - While The Butchart Gardens were the favorite part of this tour, the whole experience was terrific. We were picked up as promised at Canada Place right on time. Our guide, Shiloh, was very knowledgeable about Vancouver, it's history, the present, and future. As we were driving through the city streets, Shiloh pointed out various building, explaining their importance to the city, etc. We had nice drive south to the Tsawwassen Ferry Terminal, where we took a 1 1/4 hour ride to Victoria Island, then to Victoria BC. We were surprised at how large Victoria was and enjoyed exploring the city. We found a cool place for lunch with adult beverages next to the info center. Butchart Gardens was the highlight - I was a little worried that the gardens might be done since it was the first day of fall, but they were beautiful. The day was long, but exciting. Shiloh kept us informed about every aspect of the trip, from the ferries, driving thru Victoria, and more. He was an excellent guide.
Review provided by Viator
Shihok299
Sep 20, 2024
Our tour guide Kim was great! - We really enjoyed this Victoria tour. The selections of places were great and Kim was a wonderful guide. She was knowledgeable and personable. Her deep local knowledge added colors to the explanation and the history of Victoria. We will definitely recommend this tour and her!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Bzbeehive
Sep 17, 2024
Another bucket list item fulfilled - A very long day but it was well organized, informative, and fun. Shiloh was wonderful with his safe driving and delightful stories. Trivia, history, tales, and knowledge all combined together made it a very exciting day. He had great recommendations for places to eat, shop, and even where the nicest restrooms were. I was exhausted after the 14 hour day but the memories were well worth it.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Helen_f
Sep 16, 2024
Beautiful sites - Our tour guide was funny, friendly and informative and Victoria and the gardens were beautiful, wonderful trip!
Review provided by Viator
Peter_k
Sep 11, 2024
Good tour - We had a wonderful time.Butchard Gardens is the most beautiful garden we have ever visited and Victoria downtown is nice and interesting.
Review provided by Viator
Doyles37
Sep 8, 2024
Wonderful experience for two days guided tours! - We absolutely loved both tours , Thursday and Friday consecutive days…..first tour was Discover Vancouver. We toured Glanville Island and Stanley Park. Both were wonderful, educational and all this was because we had the best tour guide, Rene! He was kind, informative, sparked our attention continually and had the best sense of humor. We were so happy to find out we had him the next day for our Victoria and Butchart Garden tour. What an amazing tour. It was a very long day but worth every minute. We came away so grateful to Rene for guiding us both days and giving us two tours that we’ll always remember. Thank you Discover Tours and thank you Rene! Blessings, Doyle and Lynne Spears
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Darlene_w
Sep 7, 2024
8-1/2 hours travel time - Bernie was great. Unprepared for long ride to ferry, 45 minute wait time for ferry, 100 minutes on ferry, long ride from ferry to Victoria. And again the reverse. 8-1/2 hours of travel. Victoria is amazing. Gardens are beautiful.
Review provided by Viator
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October 2024
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