A few years ago, once both my parents were retired, they decided to spend the cold Canadian winter, in the warmest part of Canada: the west coast of British Columbia. My parents got married in Victoria, a beautiful island off the coast, and lived there for a few years before migrating east for work. Victoria holds a nostalgic place in their hearts and so, when I had the opportunity to travel there to visit them during their winter getaway I jumped at the chance to see the beautiful island that forms the foundation of their story.

Victoria is a small city, but the central one, on the large island of Vancouver. The island is known for its stunning landscape, which includes gorgeous ocean shores, protected dunes, a rainforest with trees hundreds of years old, and gorgeous mossy rocky mountains to hike. Victoria is also known for its arts and cultural offerings, a mixture of Indigenous arts that have had a place on the island for centuries, and the art of newcomers to the island. Victoria has a beautiful harbour, complete with seals and otters smiling at visitors (for real!), water taxis, and a seaplane airport, so you can watch planes landing on the water.

Victoria has a historic downtown with lots of famous local shops, galleries and places to get food. However, Victoria also has well developed neighbourhoods (‘villages’) that have all the amenities, cafes, and so on, within walking distance, so they are very much worth exploring — we especially loved Cook Street Village. Victoria also has various local hiking spots for people of all fitness levels, including my mother who was just out of a total knee replacement. We enjoyed hikes at Mount Douglas and Mount Tolmie.

We were happy to read in a local paper while we were in Victoria that approximately 40% of residents are vegetarian. Say what?! This helped explain the ample options around town for plant eaters like us, and the fact that no one rolled their eyes at us when we asked for almond milk or Daiya cheese. After a few days in Victoria, I was ready to conclude that I could move there and be quite happy for the rest of my life. It had the perfect mix of urban attractions and the beauty of natural spaces.

This is not a sponsored post, but I wanted to share some of our favourite places for families looking to travel to Victoria. I would say it’s a great place to go, there’s a lot to experience that costs no money at all (raise your hand if you are budget conscious — that’s us!), and the general vibe of the residents is very welcoming. There is so much to experience that one week there just wasn’t enough, so we will definitely make a trip back!

Here are our highlights: [ LOTS MORE PHOTOS at the END of this POST ]

Eating

• Moka House Coffee – We visited this coffee house most mornings either before or after our walk to the beach. Food and drink were great, with lots of creative options. My favourite was the seasonal Lavender Latte, which was a naturally flavoured warm lavender drink. So good!
• Hot and Cold Café – We dined here twice, the space is quite small, but worth the squeeze. The food suits all diets, so everyone can find something they love. I had the green curry and let me just say I’m still thinking about it! The coconut pudding desserts were out of this world delicious, even for my children who aren’t fans of coconut.
• Hot House Pizza – On a lazy evening we ordered pizza from Hot House and we were pleasantly surprised. If you like traditional deep dish pizza, with a nice thick crust and no shyness when it comes to toppings this place is for you. While they had all the conventional pizza types, including dairy cheese and meats, you could adapt any of them to vegan diet, including delicious melty vegan cheese. No regrets!
• Re-bar Modern Food – Found in the downtown area, Re-Bar is a fairly well-known local restaurant, that boasts its own cook book. The restaurant offers mostly vegetarian options, although it also serves fish. The number of desserts on the menu is pretty impressive, so if you have a sweet tooth you won’t be disappointed. We went twice and tried a few different dishes and *literally* everything was insanely good. My daughter had a salad that she became slightly obsessed with trying to replicate at home. It was that good – and it was salad. Go figure!
• Pour – a coffee shop in downtown Victoria that has absurdly delicious coffee, as well as a variety of fresh baked goods and gelato. After my first visit, I woke up every day wanting one of their Americanos.
• Discovery Coffee – This is a local, trendy coffee chain, that focuses on serving really good coffee. We enjoyed a nice drink at the downtown location, and loved that they had a living wall in the café.
• La Taqueria – While exploring the downtown area, I noticed a long line of people down a sidewalk that led to a small taco restaurant. Long lines for food mean one thing: delicious food. We crossed the street and joined the line, which happened to move fairly quickly. We got tacos that were crazy delicious! The menu includes lots of  meat and 4 (!) vegetarian options. We went back a second time because it was THAT good.
• The Very Good Butchers – inside a gentrified market space we found a vegan deli that makes plant based cheeses and meat analogues (sausages, chicken, etc), they also serve comfort food meals, such as mac’n’cheese, poutine, nachos, burgers, and salads (my daughter counts salad in the category of comfort foods!). Although often vegan versions of cheese and meat are underwhelming, tasteless or unhealthy, the foods at this deli are none of these.

Shops

• Munro’s Books – Visit this space even if you don’t read! A gorgeous independent book shop that occupies and old bank building. There is an adorable little annex in the back for children’s books and things, with space to read and enjoy. A great collection of books, we loved this shop. It’s also a great place to find tasteful souvenirs and local finds.
• Roger’s Chocolates – Local and famous chocolatier, this is a great spot to have a little treat or to get a special edible gift for someone. They offer samples copiously so be ready to taste a few.
• Victoria Public Market – Mentioned above, this is a gentrified market complex, with various goods and souvenirs, local food shops, eateries, specialty shops and community spaces. Worth a visit, especially if you are hungry!

Attractions

• Royal BC Museum – A deceptively vast museum space, which included a large collection of Indigenous art and artifacts, as well as a natural history collection of animals and flora. Worth a visit! It has a really nice gift shop, as to be expected with most galleries and museums.
• Hiking – Mount Douglas and Mount Tolmie – we hiked both of these famous summits, and neither was particularly challenging, although I definitely recommend solid footwear for Mount Douglas, which I dangerously ascended in moccasins and a linen dress! While both can be hiked on foot, I’ve been told that you can also take a back road up in a car to a lookout spot.
• Beaches – We visited the beach everyday, don’t think that cold temperatures should keep you away from the beach, there is so much to do and explore. My kids spent hours building forts with drift wood, I collected sea glass, and we all had a great time. Our favourites were  Willow Beach (note the photos at this link do not do the beauty of the beach justice) and Dallas Road Beach. Willow is sandy, while Dallas is mostly pebbles.
• Beacon Hill Park – This is an expansive multi-use park, that includes a number of play structures, a botanical garden, a petting zoo for rescued animals, mild hiking, and more. We saw wild deer and peacocks multiple times while walking through the park. Definitely worth a visit and it is located on a main street so there are places to grab snacks if hunger or thirst strikes.
• Inner Harbour – Victoria has a beautiful inner harbour that is located in the downtown, where you can see and ride water taxis, visit float houses (so cool!). You’ll probably also get to see sea planes landing on the water.  Across the street there are two of the most beautiful buildings: the BC parliament and the historic, luxury Empress hotel.
• Empress Hotel – If you aren’t staying at this hotel it is still worth a visit! The gardens in front and around the back are gorgeous, and inside the hotel you’ll find beautiful interior decor, magnificent chandeliers, unique shops and welcoming staff. It’s fun to explore the fancy side of life!

Accommodations

• We stayed in an AirBnB, however there are lots of beautiful hotels to stay at too.

Victoria is well worth a visit, and is definitely the kind of city that would satisfy most people. There’s good food, lots of outdoors activities and ways to stay fit while on vacation, lots of family friendly activities, lots of arts and culture to take in, and a good general vibe from the local residents. The city is very walkable and is full of natural beauty at every turn. We will definitely go back again!

NOTE: Seneca’s clothing was graciously gifted to us by one of our favourite Canadian clothing designers: Petits Vilains. Petits Villains designs handmade organic clothing, including basics like leggings and tops, as well more formal clothing, including adorable jumpers, blouses, overalls and more. Please check them out and support small makers and designers doing good things in a sustainable and ethical way!