My mother and I took the Clipper to and from Victoria for Mothers Day weekend and loved it. It ran…read moreon time both ways and the staff was very friendly and seating was comfortable. Much of their amazing staff has been let go with sailings cut due to the current political situation reducing ridership which is a shame. Also the terminal location in Victoria is quite confusing to be dropped off at as it is temporary and not well marked. Looking forward to riding the Clipper again.

I've taken the ferry numerous times over the years and it's been wonderful. Easy travel and…read morefriendly staff. But this past trip was a complete nightmare. The date of my trip was changed due to a miscommunication on behalf of the agent. The manager at the Seattle terminal did not offer any alternatives. There was no email or phone confirmation about the change and did not find out until I arrived at the terminal. I made the trip weeks later and had to change my departure return twice. The first agent did not tell me that the ferry left at an earlier time on Thursdays. I did not receive a confirmation email and the only reason I found out about the earlier time was that I went to check my seat selections. I called again and the first representative I spoke to, Dana, was incredibly rude on the phone. I requested to change my departure date and she replied, "Do you have a booking number or what? What do you want me to do with this?" I asked for a different agent and she said I could call again. I ended up speaking with Gail, who was rudcondescending and kept interrupting. I'm not sure if these agents are overworked or not getting paid enough but they need a refresher on their customer service skills. It's a shame because I used to recommend the Clipper and looked forward to these trips which I usually take 2-3 times a year. But this past experience has made me hesitant and might consider using an alternative route.

We took the ferry from Port Angeles to Victoria. The ride itself was nice, though a tad rough. In…read moreorder for you to make the crossing, you need to bring travel ID, like a passport, passport card, or NEXUS card, as you are crossing into another country. The ferry ride itself was about 90 minutes. It took another 30-45 minutes to get off the ferry and go through Canadian customs (border patrol). The ferry drops you off in a great location in the Victoria Harbor. We liked the ferry and the ride. Dealing with customs, whether USA or Canada is always rough.

August 8 & 11, 2025 - Port Angeles/Victoria…read more As booked months ahead for our vehicle on the Black Ball Ferry from Port Angeles to Victoria ($218 round trip). Boarding was smooth--staff guided us through every step, from passport and pet vaccination checks to parking on the ferry. The vessel was clean, comfortable, and had indoor/outdoor seating, snacks, and spotless restrooms. Crossing took about 90 minutes each way. Customs in both directions was quick and straightforward. Before our return, we got an email about a cycling event closing nearby roads--appreciated the heads-up so we could plan an alternate route. Overall, an efficient, well-organized, and stress-free experience for first-time ferry travelers.

It's a good port even though I didn't get to see much of it. It was the start of Summer Solstice on…read morea super windy day. There was still a lot of daylight left at 8:15 pm even though it was very cloudy. Everything was organized. The line for our tour was easy enough to find after asking for assistance. We immediately started our walking tour after getting a shuttle bus stamp on the back of our hand for our return trip. It's a very walkable city. Just head to the pedestrian walkway on Dallas Road as you're leaving Ogden Point. It will eventually take you to Fisherman's Wharf. It's a short walk. There are many transportation options including a water taxi. You don't really need it, but it does take longer if you decide to walk to Chinatown. There is a shuttle bus at the port that can be used for a fee. Our return ride was included in the tour. The walking tours leave you in front of Rogers' Chocolates Heritage Store on Government Street. There is a dedicated cruise ship shuttle bus stop at that location. It initially looked like chaos to me at 11:00 pm at night. There were 4 ships in port, and everyone's departure time was somewhere around 11:59 pm. WTF! The line was wrapped around the building. A little over a block long. Our guide said not to worry as it moves quickly. She was right. The shuttles are these huge high-capacity double-decker BC transport buses. As one pulled out, there was another one close behind it. We only waited about 15 minutes to board the next one. I think the only thing I didn't care for was being on a full bus with every single seat taken. There must have been about 100 people on it. I'm not exaggerating. Call an Uber if you're a germaphobe. Either way, they were efficient in getting all the passengers to the port on time. Everything else went smoothly after that. It was definitely a Bliss-ful (an intentional pun of the ship name) evening for us. Despite the dramatic story of rushing to the cruise ship in the end. I'd probably do it all again. Lol!

I understand why the cruise ships dock away from the main tourist area and appreciate that there…read morewere multiple options for transportation to and from but very much prefer when it is just a short walk away. A 30 minute walk best case scenario is not what I would consider a short walk. While there some individual options, the primary recommendation was a round trip shuttle for $15 per person on double decker buses. When we had to wait for a "shuttle" shortly after arriving at the port, we should have realized that they didn't have enough shuttles running to accommodate the number of people from the cruise ships. Despite arriving at the return stop well before the recommended return time we had to wait in a long line of other cruisers for well over 45 minutes before finally starting our return. This added a significant amount of stress because we were nearing the "gangplank up" time for our ship. After arriving back at the dock there was another very long line of returning passengers. Multiple additional lines were opened at security to help accommodate the hundreds of late arrivals trying to return to their ship. As we were finally reboarding I overheard a crew member saying that one of the excursions had not made it back yet either. While we enjoyed our short time in Victoria, the extended wait and concern for the return trip made it a less enjoyable experience overall.

We weren't even planning on getting off the ship but decided to jump off and see if we couldn't…read morepick up a few last minute souvenirs. On the way off the dock we ran into the John T. with Victoria Pedicab Co. who offered us a scenic tour of Victoria and the opportunity to do a little shopping. We figured what the hell, it's more interesting than Uber. It turned out to be one of the highlights of our vacation. John was personable and interesting, friendly and engaging. We got to see all the highlights of the beautiful city, plus the history and stories that went along with it. The historic neighborhoods, the beautiful city park, parliament, and China Town. John stopped at cool places for photos & offered to take pics for us. He also stopped by great shops where we could grab those last minute gifts for family. As the sun went down, he offered a blanket to keep us warm and made sure we saw the magnificent sunset. When it was all over, we felt like we had a decent knowledge of Victoria, and we had a new friend in Canada. If your cruise ship stops in Victoria, I highly recommend taking a trip with the pedicabs, especially if the weather is great. It's well worth your time.

We used them to get to and from our cruise ship, and in both cases our guides were sweet,…read moreinformative, and convivial. Nate took us past some amazing houses, and shared his love of the island and city while steering us into the city. We had a blast with him. On the way back Brian took us a different route so we saw another side of the neighborhoods, and learned about housing on the island. Both were great rides and if you find yourself in Victoria, these fine people will make getting around a dream.

We had a great experience with Tally-Ho. The tour was fun and relaxing, and the staff were friendly…read moreand easy to talk with. They answered questions without making us feel rushed. I especially appreciated how patient they were with older adults in our group. It was a very pleasant way to see part of Victoria.

We had a great time on our 30 minute carriage ride. Making reservations was very easy, the coach…read moreperson was informative and very friendly. We learned all about our horse Maggie and historical things around town on our ride. I would do it again next time I visit Victoria BC.

Great idea for a one day stop on any cruise! It was so easy. I made reservations ahead of time…read moreonline so all we have to do was pick it up. We had plenty of bikes to rent, even if we hadn't taken care of it ahead of time. Bikes are all in great condition and staff were really great! So glad we didn't take a long bus ride with all the tourists to Bouchard Gardens, the gardens and parks just a half a mile from the port are so beautiful and a lovely way to spend the afternoon! We downloaded a $10 audio cast and had a great tour of the area! With all the money we saved, we went to we must exquisite in the Fairmont Empress Hotel. This was the best day of our trip! Highly recommend!

We arrived on a cruise- had no idea what we were going to do because we did not purchase an…read moreexcursion. We wanted to just relax and see things. We stumbled upon Ryan in the port. Straight forward honest guy. We decided on the pedicab tour. The 4 of us loaded up and off we went. Ryan was AMAZING! We saw so much on our tour. We would have never seen all we did if we walked. Fisherman's wharf, Emily Carr home, China town, Empress Hotel, Beacon Hill Park, The Parliament buildings and so much more. He even stopped us along the way for water and a taste of the fish at the fish market. Downtown we stopped for a 15minute quick shopping adventure. Hands down the best day! Thank you Ryan for taking care of us and so much information about the area!

I've taken this ferry from Victoria to Vancouver a handful of times over the years. This was the…read morefirst time I had reservations. Because of an accident, I had to change my reservation to a day earlier. We needed to get off the island ASAP and get back to the states in case my wife needed to see a doctor or be hospitalized. Customer service was good to work with. They listened to my story and helped me change my reservation a couple of times. No waiving of fees, not that I was hoping for fee waiver. They did their job and was able to make reservations on the ferry that my wife wanted. Car boarding instructions was a little unclear. I wanted to keep my wife in the car as we made our crossing. I was told that we were supposed to go up to the seating area. Later on I found out that she could've stayed in the car. It was a nice ferry ride from Victoria to Vancouver. It was very smooth compared to the Port Angeles to Victoria ferry ride where it was a little rough. Also, the BC Ferry to/from Victoria and Vancouver is scheduled for almost every hour. BC Ferries is like a well oiled machine. I most likely will take it again to make up for what our medical emergency made us miss.

The Swartz Bay terminal is really well organized and labeled. I have used both the vehicle side and…read morethe walk-in side many many times. For walk-on, the waiting area is very close to the entrance to the terminal and so you can arrive quite late and still make it on to the ferry. There is a free luggage check-in service from Swartz Bay to Tsawassen that I use all the time. Just weigh the bag, attach a heavy tag if necessary and slide it down the baggage slide! I love it as I don't have to carry luggage onto the ferry. Luggage arriving from Vancouver get put on the carousel outside - it can sometimes take awhile to arrive. From the vehicle side, it's very easy to get on with a ferry reservation. If arriving early enough, there is very little lines to get in and service is very fast. There is a small cafe once in the waiting area to use the washroom and grab snacks. The terminal staff are all very nice and informative. Everything is well labeled so visitors won't get lost. It is also pretty clean considering how many people travel through each day. On holidays and weekends, it can be crowded. There are two bus lines that go to downtown which are very slow and get crowded quickly. Sometimes it won't even be able to fit everyone and people have to wait at least an hour for the next one. There are taxis that typically wait outside the terminal, but there are usually very few so be sure to get outside quickly.

What a cool experience! It's a ferry that takes you to your destination when traveling around…read moreVictoria Harbour. You can totally see why it's needed just by looking at a map of the city. The harbor is divided into 4 active sections. The cruise ships dock at Ogden Point in the Outer Harbour. The water taxi services the Inner, Upper, and Middle Harbour. It's a great transport option that is more affordable than a standard taxi. There can be a wait time. You may want to book a water taxi ahead of time if you're traveling in a group. The boat can only take up to 12 passengers. Our BC Bites & Sights guide booked it in advance so there was only a 10 minute wait at the Fisherman's Wharf pick up point. We saw a couple of sights along the way. There was a great view of the seaplane port, and the Empress Hotel in the Inner Harbor. We also passed under the Johnson Street Bridge with its beautiful aqua blue lights. We arrived to our destination (Mermaid Wharf) in a matter of minutes. Yes, I know we could have walked to Chinatown. It was already part of the tour, so why not? It would have taken longer to walk, and it was a cold & windy day. Some people in our group said it felt like being near the Great Lakes. The wind around Shoal Point was brutal that evening. I'm sure it's much worse in the Winter. It was fun! I think this is considered to be a Top 10 attraction here, and not just a ferry service. They do offer tours of the Inner Harbour as well as the Gorge Waterway. The latter one would be great for wildlife enthusiasts. That's definitely a tour I'd like to take one day.

Such a delightful way to get around Victoria's waterfront…read more These adorable little ferries are such a fun and scenic way to get around. Whether you're hopping between docks or joining a guided tour, the experience feels personal and relaxed. Boats seat just 11-12 passengers, making it a cozy ride with front-row views of the harbor. Even if you're just catching a lift, one-way fares are available and super easy to pay. QR codes at the docks make it seamless, and for those who are old-school, tickets can be purchased from a few local businesses or directly from the captains onboard. We didn't have time to jump on one of their narrated tours through historic waterways and neighborhoods, but it's definitely on our list for next time.