Independent Travel vs. Ship's Excursion to Butchart Gardens

[andrea]

I typically avoid ship's excursions, because I don't like being herded around like sheep and like to dictate my own schedule. However, there are some instances when booking a tour through the ship is the most convenient option and there isn't a significant price difference from trying to do the same thing on my own.

 

I wonder if a trip to Butchart Gardens would be one of the cases where it would be easier to just book through the ship.

 

The people I'm primarily concerned about are me and my boyfriend. Boyfriend is an amateur photographer and likes to not be rushed so he can have all the time he wants to set up his shots and work at his own pace.

 

We are also traveling with 8 other adults (for a total of ten adults) plus 4 children (for a total of fourteen people, including children).

 

Would it make sense economically to try to arrange private transportation to the Gardens with that size of a group? What if we did it just for the two of us?

 

I don't think I'd be interested in trying to navigate the bus system. I think I've read here that taxis are very expensive to and from the Gardens.

 

Does anyone have any experience with making independent travel arrangements to the Gardens?

 

Thanks for any advice.

[NancyIL]

What is your port time? I usually don't book ship tours, but I did for Butchart Gardens because we were in port only from 7:00-midnight. Unfortunately, it was too windy for us to dock in Victoria, so I don't know how efficiently the ship tours run.

[Budget Queen]

Yes, I would think, if the entire group does want to go to Butchart, you could definately arrange your own transportation. IF you have a short port time, be certain to have dock pick up and not Inner Harbor pick up.

 

On the Victoria BC visitor web site there are listings of transportation options. Compare these with the ship tour.

 

The ship tour in Butchart, is transportation and admission ONLY. You are free to go anywhere you wish in the garden on your own. You will be told a return time, as you would with any pick up.

[DaveOKC]

Assuming that you have enough time, I would book a car from Budget downtown. I recently checked a price for a day from them and it was right around $50 and they will shuttle you to/from the ship. Its about a 30-40 minute drive to the gardens on good roads and farily easy to find.

 

We did this a couple of years ago and it worked great.

 

DaveOKC

[andrea]

Thanks for everyone's replies. We are in port from 9am to 6pm, so we should have plenty of time in port.

 

I'll look into the Budget car rental. Are there any restrictions or concerns I should know about being a U.S. Citizen renting a car in Canada? I've never rented a car outside the U.S. before.

 

Does anyone have any recommendations for a company that has cars for hire (where a driver would pick us up and take us to the Gardens and maybe take us on a tour)? I'll look at the Victoria BC Visitor's website Budget Queen recommended, but I was wondering if anyone had any personal experiences.

 

Thanks again for everyone's input. I appreciate it!

[andrea]

Assuming that you have enough time, I would book a car from Budget downtown. I recently checked a price for a day from them and it was right around $50 and they will shuttle you to/from the ship. Its about a 30-40 minute drive to the gardens on good roads and farily easy to find.

 

We did this a couple of years ago and it worked great.

 

DaveOKC

 

For others considering this option, I thought I'd share some of my research with Budget Rental Car:

 

Pick-up: 757 DOUGLAS STREET - YY1 VICTORIA , CA

 

Return: same as pick-up location

 

 

They will pick up and return to the cruise port for free. Did a currency conversion and right now the Canadian dollar is about even with the U.S. dollar.

 

standard reg pick-up 49.95 CAD

economy 2- or 4-door 54.95 CAD

compact 2- or 4-door 54.95 CAD

intermediate 2- or 4-door 58.95 CAD

standard 2- or 4-door 62.95 CAD

full-size 2- or 4-door 62.95 CAD

standard wagon/estate 79.95 CAD

intermediate crossover 89.95 CAD

premium 2- or 4-door 99.95 CAD

standard SUV 99.95 CAD

intermediate SUV 99.95 CAD

luxury 2- or 4-door 109.95 CAD

full-size SUV 109.95 CAD

mini pass van 109.95 CAD

 

The cheapest ship’s excursion to Butchart Gardens is $67pp (admission into the Gardens is included).

 

Admission to Butchart Gardens is approximately $30pp (which we would have to pay if we rented a car).

 

A full-size car rental with tax is approximately $74.26.

 

If we rented a seven passenger mini-van the cost of the car rental (with tax) is approximately $126.90.

 

Cost summary:

Ship’s excursion for two people = $134

Full size car rental plus admission for two people = $104.26 (plus gas)

Minivan car rental plus admission for two people (cost of rental split 7 ways) = $96.26 (plus gas)

[andrea]

Cost summary:

Ship’s excursion for two people = $134

Full size car rental plus admission for two people = $104.26 (plus gas)

Minivan car rental plus admission for two people (cost of rental split 7 ways) = $96.26 (plus gas)

 

Just realized I did a miscalculation. The full-size car rental plus admission for two people should be $134.26 (plus gas). I accidentally only included admission for one person in my original calculation. Therefore, the ship's excursion and a full-size rental car works out to be about even, price-wise.

 

Now I need to determine if being on our own schedule is worth the extra hassle and liability of having our own transportation.

[InternetAgeTraveler]

If you did the group, I would look into limo or van companies.

 

The rental route is probably cheaper but I think the extra logistics might offset the savings. Also, don't forget to add insurance, taxes, gas, etc, which they might not have included in the price quote.

 

For just the 2 of you, it probably is going to be easiest to do the ship tour or a local company rather than a rental. As BQ said, you only have to deal with being shepparded on and off the bus, once there you are on your own.

 

But if you do decide to rent, it's not any harder than in the US. The drive is pretty easy as well and well marked.

[scottbee]

Bus system really isn't that tough, although it does involve one change, and it's about an hour each way. If you have the time it's a pleasant trip, and the princely sum of $2.50 ea way. #30 or #31 from the cruise terminal to Royal Oak, then #75 to Butchart Gardens. Full details at http://bctransit.com/

[Langley Cruisers]

Does the entire group want to go to the Gardens? Do the children? How old are they? It's a big place - acres of walking paths. Will they be all right? Just asking if everyone wants to go because they could certainly do many other things in Victoria. Check the "Ports of Call - Canada" board for more threads on things to do in Victoria.

 

Are there any restrictions or concerns I should know about being a U.S. Citizen renting a car in Canada? I've never rented a car outside the U.S. before.

 

 

I worked for Budget for five years in Victoria. As long as your licence is valid and you are 19 or over with a major credit card, you should have no problem.

[DaveOKC]

One thing I would consider is paying for the added insurance. I normally do not get it (here in the US), but I did in Victoria just for piece of mind.

 

When we did it a couple of years ago (rented from Budget) we had 4 people, so the math worked out great. Plus, one in our party could not walk alot, so we used it to get around the city area (Empress Hotel, the castle house, the museum, etc. Plus, we were able to stay at the gardens as long as we liked.

 

We are going next week and I likely will just take the ship's tour, since there are only two of us and two hours at the gardens should work fine. Its not worth the small savings in this situation.

 

Hope this helps. Victoria is a great city to visit IMO.

 

DaveOKC

[Budget Queen]

Frankly, with all that time, I would take the city bus. Pick up is on Douglas, behind the Empress. Goes direct to Butchart. I've taken it and worked out excellent. :) http://www.transitbc.com/regions/vic/

 

You do need Ca money.

[Mal2105]

any idea what a taxi would cost by comparison?

[andrea]

Does the entire group want to go to the Gardens? Do the children? How old are they? It's a big place - acres of walking paths. Will they be all right? Just asking if everyone wants to go because they could certainly do many other things in Victoria. Check the "Ports of Call - Canada" board for more threads on things to do in Victoria.

 

I haven't discussed this with the rest of the group yet. Just thought I'd get all of my facts together and options before I presented it to the rest of the group (and for boyfriend and I to decide for ourselves if we'd rather just venture out on our own or invite the whole group to go with us ;)).

 

The children are smallish - around 4 to 7 years old? (Not having any kids myself, I'm horrible with guesstimating ages.) If we did the rental car option, I figure not everyone has to go, since we have a group of 14 and only 7 will fit in a minivan (or we could take two minivans and one group could stay longer than the other group). I realize the children likely will be much more antsy to leave than we will, and I'm taking that into consideration of my proposal to the group.

 

 

I worked for Budget for five years in Victoria. As long as your licence is valid and you are 19 or over with a major credit card, you should have no problem.

 

Thanks for sharing that experience. I'm glad to know it's basically the same.

 

One thing I would consider is paying for the added insurance. I normally do not get it (here in the US), but I did in Victoria just for piece of mind.

 

 

The rental route is probably cheaper but I think the extra logistics might offset the savings. Also, don't forget to add insurance, taxes, gas, etc, which they might not have included in the price quote.

 

 

The prices I used in my calculations included tax (and I noted gas would be extra). I did not include insurance in my calculation because I never take it in the U.S. but wondered if it would be wise for this trip. Any other guidance on whether or not to take the rental company's insurance?

 

They quoted $25 for the day for insurance, which seems high.

 

 

Frankly, with all that time, I would take the city bus. Pick up is on Douglas, behind the Empress. Goes direct to Butchart. I've taken it and worked out excellent. :) http://www.transitbc.com/regions/vic/

 

You do need Ca money.

 

Bus system really isn't that tough, although it does involve one change, and it's about an hour each way. If you have the time it's a pleasant trip, and the princely sum of $2.50 ea way. #30 or #31 from the cruise terminal to Royal Oak, then #75 to Butchart Gardens. Full details at http://bctransit.com/

 

I'm glad to hear the votes of confidence on the bus system. Maybe I'll change my mind on that. It sounds like it could be a nice way to get to explore the city.

 

I'm having trouble remembering where you get foreign money for port? Do they exchange it for you on the ship, or do you do it ashore?

[Budget Queen]

 

 

 

 

 

I'm having trouble remembering where you get foreign money for port? Do they exchange it for you on the ship, or do you do it ashore?

 

Atm's are easy to find. But for small change, you can just head into McDonalds etc order something with a big bill and you will get change back in Ca Funds. I have never seen Ca money exchange on Alaska cruiseships?

[negc]

 

I'm having trouble remembering where you get foreign money for port? Do they exchange it for you on the ship, or do you do it ashore?

 

US and Canadian dollars are close to par and we have never experienced any difficulty in using US dollars when we have visited Canada. The Canadians are certainly more accommodating about accepting our currency than we in the US are about accepting Canadian currency.:rolleyes: ATMs will be readily available in Canadian ports if you wish to get Canadian currency and banks will provide you with currency exchange at the official rate.:)

[negc]

Checking today's exchange rate, it appears that $1 Canadian dollar is worth approximately 98 US cents. Even if you extend the numbers out to larger amounts the difference is almost negligible, so I wouldn't be overly concerned about exchanging my US dollars into Canadian. You'll pay more onboard the ship to get money in the casino using your seapass card.;)

[InternetAgeTraveler]

Checking today's exchange rate, it appears that $1 Canadian dollar is worth approximately 98 US cents. Even if you extend the numbers out to larger amounts the difference is almost negligible, so I wouldn't be overly concerned about exchanging my US dollars into Canadian. You'll pay more onboard the ship to get money in the casino using your seapass card.;)

 

BQ's original comment about having Canadian dollars was for the bus. Sometimes public transit is not as willing to take foreign currency. I'm not sure how much the bus needs, but I would get it before going (which you could easily do at a local store, etc).

[travelbug11]

The bus is a very good idea. The ships shuttle takes you to the Empress Hotel and the bus is a block away. That way you can stay as long as you like.

 

You can also take the Grayline tour in front of the Empress which includes the entry fee.

 

And, there are always plenty of limos at the port when you get off the ship.