Butchart Gardens and Victoria Tour from Vancouver
Description
Victoria, the capital of British Columbia, is located on gorgeous Vancouver Island and is considered one of the world’s most beautiful cities. It is famous for the historic Empress Hotel, the Parliament buildings and beautiful Butchart Gardens. Upon leaving Vancouver, you will take a scenic ferry ride from the Vancouver mainland through the Gulf Islands to Swartz Bay on Vancouver Island. From here, you will have a driving tour to Victoria, and of Victoria’s downtown area featuring the Fisherman’s Wharf, the Inner Harbour, The Fairmont Empress Hotel, Mile 0 and the historic Chinatown. There will be free time to explore downtown Victoria at your own pace. Then on to the internationally renowned Butchart Gardens. Today the garden showcases 55 acres of themed garden displays, including a Japanese Garden, Italian Garden and Rose Garden. Wind down your day with the scenic return sailing aboard BC Ferries and then back to where your tour began.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Please meet us at Canada Place for a fun-filled daytrip to Victoria. Your bus and tour guide will be waiting for you.
We depart Vancouver and drive south through the city and passed farmlands before we arrive at Tsawwassen Ferry Terminal where you will board the BC Ferries.
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.
As you arrive in Victoria’s Inner Harbour, you will visit the top sighting locations. Starting at Mile O, Ogden Point, Fisherman’s Wharf, 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.
Visit Butchart Gardens: a National Historic Site covering 55 acres and showcasing over 900 species of plants
Relax as we cruise back to the Mainland this evening, explore the outside decks and views. If you are lucky, you might even see whales from the outside deck of the ferry.
Once we arrive at Tsawwassen Ferry terminal, our coach drives off the ferry and we head back into Vancouver. Arrive in Vancouver at aprox. 9:30 pm
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- Anyone 16 or younger must have a parent or guardian travel on the trip with them.
- Guests 17-18 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.
- No booster seats available
Reviews(77)
Byron was amazing! My mom needed a mobility scooter and he was so helpful in helping us with that. The tour itself was Informative and had the perfect balance. He also managed to adjust the trip so we had zero rain, unlike other tours. Highly recommend!
Thank you for joining us for this tour! We are happy to hear that Byron made sure you and your mother had a comfortable and enjoyable experience. We really appreciate this review!
Rene did a fantastic job on this tour. Could not recommend his effort and assistance any higher. Highly recommended! Well done!
Thank you for your review 5-star review!
Our guide Ian was really great. He had a wealth of knowledge of Vancouver, Victoria and Butchart Gardens and some awful jokes (just kidding Ian!). It was very hot that day which made it less fun. For valid safety reasons we could not run the A/C while waiting for the ship's unloading doors to open so many folks were tapped out by day's end. Bottled water on the bus would have helped for this time between stops. Ian was great, taking return routes so some folks could be dropped at/near their hotels as we got back very late.
We're happy to hear you had a great time in Victoria and enjoyed Ian's great jokes. We appreciate your feedback regarding the A/C and water. Thank you for your review, we hope to welcome you back soon!
Wonderful comprehensive, but long day. Gardens are true highlight and while it is high tourist season, it is also high flower season.
We're happy to hear you enjoyed your tour. Thank you for your 5-star review!
We knew this would be a big day and it was. Our tour guide was great, really helpful and very knowledgeable. Loved Victoria and Buschart Gardens. Would recommend this tour if you have to do Vancouver Island and are time-poor.
We're happy to hear you enjoyed your daytrip to the Island. Thank you for your review!
My wife and I ended our Alaska cruise adventure in Vancouver. We were so lucky to have picked this wonderful tour of Victoria and Butchart Gardens. Our tour guide Kim was quite simply the best that we have personally ever had. She was a walking encyclopedia about every aspect - history, literature, sites, food, and even local sports teams! She narrated with a soothing voice, and also injected lots of humorous anecdotes and personal stories along the way. At the end of what was a 14-hour work day for her, she was still energetic and kind enough to drop us off closer to our AirBnB, saving us both time and money on an Uber. If you are fortunate enough to take this tour, I can't stress it enough... please ask for Kim!!
Thank you for sharing such a thoughtful review! We're delighted to hear that your tour to Victoria and Butchart Gardens was a memorable way to end your Alaska cruise adventure. It’s wonderful to know that Kim’s knowledge, storytelling, and personal touch made such a lasting impression. We’ll be sure to pass along your kind words to her. We appreciate you choosing to explore with us and hope to welcome you back in the future!
Brilliant tour. Our guide, Byron, was a legend tweaking the tour to avoid the other large groups without us missing anything.
This is a great trip if you want to visit the picturesque Victoria or the spectacular Butchart Gardens and don't want to bother with renting a car and working out how to catch a ferry yourself. We were picked up on time from Vancouver CBD and dropped off at the restaurant we booked on our return. It's worth noting that it's a very long day and even if the ferry runs on time, you're not going to get back to downtown Vancouver until 9.30 pm. Our tour guide, Rebecca, was awesome - super attentive, knowledgeable and helpful.
Well organized, smooth day. We choose to do the tour because it would’ve been very difficult to arrange the ferry, and transportation to Butchart gardens. Ian the tour guide was friendly, funny, and entertaining. The tour bus was comfortable- 16 people in our group was nice- not a huge group tour. We enjoyed stopping at Mile 0, downtown Victoria, and of course the gardens were beautiful.
The Butchart Gardens & Victoria Tour from Vancouver was fantastic. We started as a group from Canada Place - no time wasted on multiple hotel pickups, which made the day more efficient. After a scenic ferry ride (bring your binoculars to view seabirds and seals) and short drive to Victoria, we had free time to explore, shop, and grab lunch. Don’t miss Red Fish Blue Fish for amazing fish & chips and seafood chowder - it’s well worth the wait. Butchart Gardens was stunning and after a full day, drop-offs were conveniently made at various locations in Vancouver. What made this tour exceptional was our guide, Ben. He’s incredibly knowledgeable about the area and its history, and shares it in a way that’s both informative and entertaining. His sense of humor brought so much personality to the trip, and he has a real gift for engaging people. I’ve been on many tours over the years, and Ben is hands down one of the best guides I’ve ever had.
