Does anyone have a cruise itinerary that includes a longer visit to Victoria?

[dgc2861]

We just got off a 12 day R/T Vancouver that took us to Victoria all day. We saw so many tulips daffodils, azaleas....We'd like to go back the summer of 2023 to see other flowers, but would like more time than the 6/7-10pm most cruise lines offer. Princess isn't offering this itinerary in 2023, but maybe a different cruise line will have a longer visit in Victoria.

 

Thanks!

[JT1962]

Check the port schedule for Victoria at this link:

 

https://secureservercdn.net/198.71.233.189/2xl.54d.myftpupload.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/VIC-Victoria-2022.pdf

 

That is for 2022, but will give you an idea of which ships have a longer time in Port and you can check their schedule for 2023. It looks like Norwegian, Celebrity and Royal Caribbean have some ships that stay longer in Victoria.

[donaldsc]

You could do a land trip to Victoria instead of getting there on a cruise.  Very easy.  You could easily spend several days in Victoria and on Vancouver Island.  Also, do one of your cruises and then several days DIY in Victoria.

 

DON

[3rdGenCunarder]

Cunard's Queen Elizabeth does longer days at Victoria. HAL did, too, but that's maybe 6 years ago, so I'm not sure they still do.

[1025cruise]

The stop in Victoria is to satisfy the PVSA. I've only seen longer stays on a handful of cruises. Otherwise its just a stop on the way into Seattle the last night.

[Heidi13]

15 hours ago, dgc2861 said:

We just got off a 12 day R/T Vancouver that took us to Victoria all day. We saw so many tulips daffodils, azaleas....We'd like to go back the summer of 2023 to see other flowers, but would like more time than the 6/7-10pm most cruise lines offer. Princess isn't offering this itinerary in 2023, but maybe a different cruise line will have a longer visit in Victoria.

 

Thanks!

 

A number of cruise lines offer Pacific Coastal cruises early/late season that spend a full day in Victoria, as do a few of the Seattle based ships going to Alaska. However, the full day in Victoria normally means minimal exposure to Alaska.

 

As a previous reply mentioned, check out the Greater Victoria Harbour Authority schedule once it is published for 2023. It provides ship names, dates and arr/dep times.

[nini]

I think the longer times in Victoria are due to the place of embarkation (Vancouver, BC) and/ or a cruise longer than 7 nights. We are on a 12 night in September, round trip from Vancouver and our Victoria stop is basically all day.

[Gardyloo]

 

 

 

In the summer Victoria can be pretty packed with visitors; not my favorite time personally.  Obviously Butchart Gardens is a big draw, but it might be useful to consider Vancouver's garden offerings if that's an important thing for you.

 

Vancouver's Queen Elizbeth II Park has gardens that, while not as large as Butchart, can rival Butchart in terms of beauty.  In addition, the Bloedel Conservatory (which you might recognize from numerous TV shows shot in Vancouver) is a fantastic environment, full of tropical plants and birds.  Unlike Butchart Gardens, admission to the park is free; there is an admission charge to the conservatory, but nowhere near as much as the pricey Butchart Gardens.

 

 

 

Not far from Queen Elizabeth II Park is another botanical gem, the VanDusen Botanical Gardens (also accessed with a small fee.)  These gardens include a maze, lots or regional species, fountains and a lake...

 

 

That's not to mention the wonderful rose garden in the magnificent Stanley Park, one of Vancouver's gems, nor the fascinating Dr. Sun Yat Sen Chinese garden in the city's vast Chinatown.  

 

For Seattle cruise departures (it's the Seattle cruises that stop in Victoria as their PVSA requirements) there are also garden visit possibilities, the most notable of which is the Bloedel Reserve (same family) on Bainbridge Island, accessed by the scenic ferry from downtown Seattle.  This makes for a fabulous day trip from the city.

 

 

Just some suggestions.

Edited May 19, 2022 by Gardyloo

[3rdGenCunarder]

Queen Elizabeth Park and VanDusen are my plan for the day after my cruise. I might try to get to the roses in Stanley park the day before my cruise. 

[Crew News]

Holland America has a Pacific Coastal in May 2023 on Volendam that will be in Victoria from noon until11:00 PM.  Since this is the only stop from San Diego to Vancouver, there should be no delays and being off the ship on time.

[dgc2861]

Thanks to everyone for the suggestions. I had never considered gardens in Vancouver. Will have to think about all of the suggestions.

[dgc2861]

7 hours ago, nini said:

I think the longer times in Victoria are due to the place of embarkation (Vancouver, BC) and/ or a cruise longer than 7 nights. We are on a 12 night in September, round trip from Vancouver and our Victoria stop is basically all day.

We just got off of the Royal on Sunday that did the (somewhat) same itinerary. They switched out Prince Rupert for another glacier, but otherwise the same. I took the Princess excursion to Bouchert Gardens but it was too short of a time...I wished I would have known just how large the gardens were.

 

If I win the lottery I'm going back in September for that itinerary and taking a cab to the gardens. 😄

S.

[Suzi66]

We are doing the last Celebrity Eclipse cruise for the upcoming season and have a full day in Victoria.  We leave Vancouver on September 11 and return September 22.  This will be our first trip out of South Pacific waters and I am quite excited.

[SightCRR]

If cruise ends in Seattle then board boat to Victoria and stay as long as you want. Maybe get off in Victoria and boat back to SEA but likely more hoops to jump through. 

Seattle to Victoria Package | Hotel & Clipper Ferry | Clipper Vacations

sightcrr