Canada
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Victoria section done - Vancouver coming (note some links not working will be revised shortly)
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Canada |
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Home Australia Canada England Mexico U.S. E-Caribbean W-Caribbean |
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Victoria section done - Vancouver coming (note some links not working will be revised shortly) |
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General: |
Because we live in the Pacific Northwest (Washington State) we visit Canada quite often. We visit Victoria and Vancouver BC most often. We have also been to the Edmonton mall. I enjoy Canada and like to go there for weekend visits. Some of the places are very scenic especially in and around Victoria. | |||||
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Victoria: |
If you stay downtown Victoria, you won't need a vehicle. Everything is within walking distance and there are tours available around the city or to outlying areas. I have not used a taxi so I'm not sure of the pricing. They also have bus service. | |||||
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Victoria is a beautiful place to visit and is great for tourists. Although there are some places I call "tourist traps" there are lots of things to see and do that are really great. Visiting Victoria you get a taste of English/Canadian culture all within easy traveling distance. | |||||
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My first visit to Victoria was aboard the Marguerite, a Canadian ferry ship that traveled between Seattle and Victoria. This route is no longer available. The trip would take about four hours, but on a busy day it could take an hour to go through customs when you arrive in Victoria. Parking in Seattle may be difficult to find and sometimes a little costly. We made the mistake of trying to visit and return the same day and we did not have much time to do anything there since it took so long to clear customs. | |||||
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Ferry Info
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There are a variety of options for getting to Victoria from Seattle. There are Washington ferries running from Anacortes to Sydney (about 25 miles north of Victoria-there was no bus service to Sydney) and the Coho, a private ferry that runs from Port Angeles.(It takes a good 3 to 4 hours to drive to Port Angeles from Tacoma, which is about 45 minutes south of Seattle, but price is very reasonable.) The Victoria Clipper is a passenger only catamaran that runs from Seattle direct to Victoria. It only takes about 2.5 hours ship time but is a little more pricey. You'll need to check schedules and prices as they vary depending on time of year and day. | |||||
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From Victoria you can also catch a Canadian ferry to Vancouver. The ride takes about 90 minutes. We did this on one trip and then drove down from Vancouver back to Seattle. Air travel is also available but I have never used any in my visits to Victoria or to Vancouver. | |||||
| Most of these ferry websites listed above have additional travel information about these areas. Check the links on each site. | ||||||
| One trip I took with a Weyerhaeuser bike group. We took the Washington ferry from Anacortes to Sydney. From there we road our bicycles the 25 miles to Victoria. We spent the night at a hotel and then road our bikes back the next day. We had some time for site seeing going both ways. This was a great trip and you get a chance to really enjoy the scenery. The ride was not very strenuous, except for a couple hills. We stayed on mostly back roads so traffic was not a problem. | ||||||
| Fun things I like to do in Victoria: | ||||||
| Take pictures - great opportunities-be sure to take your camera. | ||||||
| Eating and shopping - quite a variety of both. | ||||||
| Royal BC Museum and Thunderbird Park | ||||||
| Maritime Museum | ||||||
| Royal London Wax Museum | ||||||
| Empress Hotel | ||||||
| Victoria Bug Zoo (the kids will like this) | ||||||
| Beacon Hill Park | ||||||
| Parliament Buildings | ||||||
| These are a little too far to walk, but not far out. | ||||||
| Fort Rodd Historic Site and Lighthouse | ||||||
| Craigdarroch Castle | ||||||
| Oak Bay Beach Hotel (we had tea here) | ||||||
| Anne Hathaway's Cottage | ||||||
| Outlying areas: These are a ways out but worth doing. | ||||||
| Butchart Gardens (a must see-buy a tour if you don't have a car-about 25 miles north of Victoria.) | ||||||
| Butterfly Gardens - near Butchart Gardens. | ||||||
| More Links: | ||||||
| Map Downtown hotels | ||||||
| Info and Images | ||||||
| Points of Interest | ||||||
| Events & Attractions | ||||||
| BC Travel.com | ||||||
| HelloBC - includes a map of downtown Victoria | ||||||
| Vancouver: | ||||||
| Tourism Vancouver | ||||||
| Back to top: | (will add this section later) | |||||
| Yukon | See Chilkoot Trail - with Alaska. | |||||
| GST - Rebate info: | ||||||
| Back to top: | ||||||
| Conclusion: | This concludes my notes on traveling the areas of Canada that I know about. There are many other areas to discover. Transportation is reasonable, but you may need to do some checking before you go to be sure you can get around without a car. For instance you may want to stay in a hotel that is downtown or close to the monorail when staying in Vancouver. There is no subway system downtown but most places you can get to by walking or taking a bus. Unless you prefer the expense of a taxi. | |||||
| Disclaimer: | The links provided are links I found in searching the net. Some are to travel agents or other services. I have not used most of these services, so I am not recommending any. I am only adding these links to provide additional information to my travel documentaries above. | |||||
| I suggest you do your own research before traveling and only book your travel adventures through a reputable travel company. Buyer beware: there are lots of scam artists that use the travel industry to make a quick buck, don't be a victim. If it sounds too good to be true it probably is. | ||||||
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| Updated 3/27/04 | ||
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