Victoria-Gardens-1pm to 11pm

[krev]

We are going to use the Express Shuttle in front of the Empress to get to the Gardens. There are 3 ships in port that day. Do the shuttles sell out or are there long lines? Just wondering if we should book ahead of time.

 

 

I really don't know but I'm always a fan of prebooking, saves disappointment. Butcharts is a very popular place.

[Cruise_More_Often]

I would definitely pre-book through CVS. We were there last Thursday (our ship docked at 1:00 p.m.), and everything worked perfectly.

 

We took one of the local buses that meets ships at the pier, and we were dropped off in town a few blocks north of the Empress. We had a little less than an hour to stroll back to the hotel and get on the CVS bus, which was not completely full. Our driver was very good, pointing out sights along the way, sharing with us the history and geography of Victoria and Vancouver Island.

 

We were at the Gardens until the last bus at 6:15 p.m. There were less than 10 people returning to Victoria on that last bus. We could have spent more time at the Gardens as it is just jaw-droppingly gorgeous! Each of us took probably 400 photos, and we spent so much time in the Sunken Garden that we never made it as far as the Rose Garden or the Japanese Garden. (Yes, we will return.)

 

We were dropped off across the street from the Empress, and we decided to walk back to the ship along the water and stop off at Barb's at Fisherman's Wharf for fish and chips. Just as we started walking, we spotted one of the mini-ferries docked at a nearby pier, and we walked over to see if the ferry was still running. When we told the captain we were headed to Fisherman's Wharf, he told us to jump on. We had a nice 5-minute cruise through the Inner Harbour to Fisherman's Wharf.

 

After a delicious meal at Barb's (highly recommended), we walked along the water to the Westerdam.

[Markanddonna]

We went there just last week with Nico from "I Love Victoria" tours. We were a group of 12 and it cost $14 pp for transportation and then the cost of admission. I highly suggest doing this rather than the bus. Butchart Gardens were great.