Victoria has a wide choice of fine accommodations in all price ranges, most in the Old Town, in downtown, or around the Inner Harbour and within easy walking distance of the city's main attractions. As in Vancouver, you'll find a disarming friendliness when you check into a Victoria hotel.
Victoria has been welcoming visitors and adventurers for more than a century, so it knows how to do so with style. You'll find most of the accommodations downtown, Old Town, and the Inner Harbour. However, if you choose to stay farther afield, a half-hour drive takes you to all manner of marvelous resorts and inns, some on the ocean, some next to quiet bays and harbors, and some perched on mountaintops.
Getting the Best Deal
Hotels in Victoria fill up during the high season (June–Sept), with rates in the city fluctuating with the seasons. Most properties offer package deals outside the busy season; these are usually advertised on hotel websites. Spas are now an almost essential part of big hotels in Victoria -- so much so that the Inner Harbour has been dubbed Spa Harbour, with major spas at the Fairmont Empress, the Delta Ocean Pointe, the Hotel Grand Pacific, the Magnolia, and others throughout the city. Be sure to check the hotel websites for special packages, and promotional or seasonal rates cheaper than the summer rack rates listed here.
What You'll Really Pay -- Hotel listings provide the rack rates, or the rates you would receive if you walked in off the street and requested a room. The highest prices tend to be during high season from June to September. It is advised to make reservations well ahead for summer travel, but note that even stretches of April and May can be busy.
By checking the hotel's website, you'll almost always find lower rates, including special "romance packages" and weekend-getaway specials.
Prices quoted here don't include the 12% harmonized sales tax (HST).
Price Categories
Very Expensive C$275 and up
Expensive C$175–C$274
Moderate C$100–C$174
Inexpensive Under C$100
Reservation Services
You'll save big-time if you schedule your holiday from October to May. When the high summer season starts in June, rates tend to skyrocket, especially at the finer hotels. Reservations are essential in Victoria June through September. If you arrive without a reservation and have trouble finding a room, Tourism Victoria (tel. 800/663-3883 or 250/953-2033; www.tourismvictoria.com) can make reservations for you at hotels, inns, and B&Bs.
Alternative Accommodations
The majority of properties listed in this guide are hotels and bed-and-breakfasts. Bed-and-breakfasts especially can vary widely (from fussy frills to sleek and urban) and can be ideal for leisure travelers. For a list of quality local accommodations, check out the BC Bed & Breakfast Innkeepers Guild (www.bcsbestbnbs.com).
The Best Bed & Breakfast Registry -- If you prefer to stay at a B&B other than those listed here, check out www.BCsBestBnBs.com, which lists some great inns in Victoria as well as inns throughout the province, just in case travel plans take you farther afield. Canada-West Accommodations Bed & Breakfast Registry (P.O. Box 86607, North Vancouver, BC V7L 4L2; tel. 800/561-3223 or 604/990-6730; www.b-b.com) is another, much smaller outfit, which strives to match guests to the B&Bs that best suit their needs.
Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before planning your trip.
