Texan wanting to drive to Victoria from Vancouver~am I crazy???

[BirmanCrazy]

Hi! My hubby, Mother and I want to see Butchart gardens but the only time I can see it is when we debark from the ship. We are staying at the Pacific Palisades and I see there is a Thrifty car rental place nearby. There are bus tours available, which is what I really wanted, but they leave at 8:45am. It would be difficult to go through customs and drop off our luggage and then try to catch the bus all by 8:45am~especially with it being a weekday and 4 ships in port that day! Is it difficult to understand road markings,signage being from the US. Is it an easy drive to Victoria? We really want to ride on the ferry as well~to see whales. Has anyone done this? Thanks for your help!

[weathermom]

shouldn't be a problem at all. If you really want to maximize your time, rent from national/alamo - they're the only ones at the canada place cruise terminal with cars on site..the rest are a shuttle ride away.

You'll have no problems at all with the signs. We may be a different country, but the signs are the same & are all in English.

It will take you about an hour to drive to the ferries (just south of Vancouver ). The ferries run hourly in the summer & odd hours in the off season. The ferry itself takes just over and hour and a half & is a lovely ride. Once you're off the ferry on the Island, the route to Butchart Gardens is well-marked.

It's a lovely day trip!

[BCHappyGal]

It will make it a long day for you and you need to be at the ferry terminal min of 30mins prior to sailing - there is often a long line up especially on weekends. You might want to make a reservation if you are trying to sail on a weekend to guarantee your spot on the sailing of your choice - reservations cost an extra $17.50. You still have to be at the terminal 30 minutes before sail time but at least then you know you are on that sailing.

(On weekends in the summer it is not unusual for there to be a 2 - 3 hour line up)

It is a nice trip and the Gardens are not that far from the ferry dock. About another 20 minutes only.

[BirmanCrazy]

We are doing this on a Friday morning....BUT...there are 3 ships at Canada Place that morning. This might be a traffic problem???? We can walk to Canada Place from the hotel but getting out might not be fun. Will the line to the ferry be long on a Friday~late morning? Thanks!

[Langley Cruisers]

Are you staying overnight in Victoria that night? In my opinion, it will be an excruciatingly long day if you are not staying the night, but you certainly could do it.

 

 

We really want to ride on the ferry as well~to see whales.

 

No offense, but it is a common misconception that you will see whales from a BC Ferry. I have lived in the area for over 40 years and have ridden the ferry many, many times; I have never seen a whale in all that time. We have whale sighting excursion companies and they take you out to sea where the whales are moving. I just wanted to let you know that it is possible you will see eagles and perhaps a sea lion, but it's highly unlikely you will see whales.

 

All told, have a great trip! Victoria and Vancouver are absolutely beautiful cities.

[BirmanCrazy]

I have researched my options using the information ya'll have given me. I'm thinking I'm pushing it with the time factor. It wouldn't leave us much time at the gardens. I didn't realize how long it took just to get there via Ferry as well as the difficulty of doing this just after disembarking the ship etc. We'll just tour the city and Stanley park. Perhaps take a horse drawn carriage ride around the park. Something fun but leisurely! Thanks for all the info all of you have given me to help me make this decision. I hope to be able to see the gardens one day! :)