Very worthwhile tour with knowledgable staff, Connor took us to the areas safely, Bryar's love of…read moreeach particular whale was infectious and Kennedy commanded the upper deck as well as capturing excellent complementary photos of the whales.

We had a fantastic time on our half-day whale-watching tour with expert guides Briar and Adam! Our…read morecaptains, Connor and Jake, were also great! It was a cool, overcast day, so we had excellent visibility out at sea without being blinded by the sun. We saw pods of orcas, Dall's porpoises, humpback whales, and Pacific white-sided dolphins; on land, we even spotted bald eagles and a family of black-tailed deer. Briar shared a wealth of fascinating information about whales, and her passion for the subject really shone through. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience!

REVIEWER #18…read more Visiting Victoria? Want to head to Butchart Gardens or the Butterfly Garden without renting a car? If you answered yes to all of these questions then CVS tours is definitely the way to go! Super easy, convenient and no driving necessary- for you atleast. I was looking into tour buses that will take me to Butchart Gardens as I was visiting Victoria for two days. I came across CVS Tours on the website: Viator as an option. For less than $55 you get a ride to and from Butchart Gardens, as well as entry in. Can't beat that, right? The buses pick you up right in front of the Empress Hotel, which is located on Government Street, right downtown! They advise you to arrive 10 minutes before your departure time to check in and receive your tickets. I love that the bus that are double decker! It makes the ride so much more fun and interesting as you're able to see the view from up high. Once you get to your destination, the buses drop you off right in the front. You're able to venture out on your own and the buses leave from the destination upon every hour of the hour. The last bus leaves Butchart Gardens at 5 p.m. The ride to The Butchart Gardens was great! The buses are very comfortable and doesn't seem to fill up quickly. During the ride, the drivers usually provide history and helpful information about the Gardens. For the price that you pay and the comfortable seats on the bus, it definitely makes the pricing all worth it! I would for sure recommend that you book through CVS if you plan to visit Butchart Gardens!

Booked a tour with this company to visit Butchart Gardens last Summer in 2019 while visiting the…read morecity of Victoria on a 1 day stop on a cruise ship They have a small booth in front of the Empress Hotel to reserve tours and to be picked up by their buses. We waited for over an hour on the street for their tour bus to come pick us up and were reassured it was "coming soon". After 1 hour we gave up and asked for a refund and wasted time standing around waiting for nothing. They said their tour bus broke down, but we later found out this company went to pick up and take care of cruise ship booked tours. Bottom line is they will simply drop you or leave you stranded if more lucrative or more profitable tours come their way...Buyer beware.

Fatih was amazing! He was knowledgeable, informative, and incredibly patient with our family,…read moreespecially since we were traveling with two children. He took us to so many wonderful places, including Butchart Gardens, the Butterfly Gardens, Chinatown, the Empress Hotel, Craigdarroch Castle, and Mount Tolmie Park. Each stop was enjoyable, and Fatih shared interesting information that made the experience even more meaningful. He also kindly helped us take beautiful photos that truly captured the memories of our trip. We really appreciated his friendliness, patience, and attention to detail. We highly recommend Fatih to anyone visiting Victoria!

Our guide, Alan, was amazing from beginning to end. We booked two tours for 11 people. The…read morerainforest tour was a slight hike in areas two hrs away from the city to Victoria. It was something different. The wine tour was to three different wineries that were all diverse in unique in its own way. We also utilized the shuttle service from the airport as well as to the ferry terminal. Alan's driving is soo smooth that those who have severe lit motion sickness didn't feel a thing in the giant shuttle. Alan was always on time for pick up and flexible for drop offs. I cannot express how easy it was working with this tour company. Also a shout out to Fatih who drove us to the ferry terminal. His driving was smooth and conversation was great! Don't hesitate to book a tour.

What a top quality historical tour! John Adams is an expert in the history of the Chinese in…read moreVictoria. He was informative, entertaining and incredibly knowledgeable! I went on 3 different tours with his company and they were all great! I especially appreciated the depth of historical knowledge, sensitivity to diverse perspectives and respectful sharing of our history both good and not-so-good. Highly recommended! It felt like an inviting lecture by an expert, not at all a canned presentation by a guide. Bonnie O

Ghost Walk Tour Jill was a great guide through Route 1 of…read moreVictoria. She was knowledgeable and nice, giving us a glimpse of Victoria's haunted past. The tour is a little over an hour and a great low price.

Our overall experience with Victoria Harbour Ferry was very positive! I was able to book my tickets…read moredirectly off the website and show up 5 mins before the ferry departed. These are small ferry rides with at most 7-8 other folks, so you almost get a very personal experience on the waters since the captain/host has the time to connect, take questions, etc. You are sitting almost at the water level which is another plus as well of these small ferries. The ferry left on time and brought us back on time. Our captain/host was amazing, well informed, spunky and just balanced the fun and the chatter perfectly. We did get a good amount of waves on the second half of the ride and the kids really got a kick out of it. We even managed to see a seal and see the pedestrian bridge open to allow a ferry carrying rocks to pass on our ride, which was just pure luck. Other things that you can expect to see is lots of seaplanes landing/taking off, a variety of boats - patrol, sailing, rowing boats and then the larger commercial ferries, private yatchs, etc. Even though we did not have to pay for our toddler, we thought that the tickets are still expensive and wish there were some discounted windows where folks could try to shave off a few dollars.

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.

A definite must activity in the island. This was our post lunch activity…read more What a beautiful property. We took the time to really check every nook and cranny of what once was a family home. Some of those rooms were super spacious. Our friend was nice enough to narrate the whole tour for our group by reading the leaflet provided at the entrance. Well done keeping the whole property looking pristine.

We actually saw the outside of this mansion/castle 2 summers ago on a city tour excursion from our…read morecruise ship. This summer, we were on a road trip and took the ferry across from Port Angeles to Victoria for a few hours. This was a perfect stop before lunch, and this time we did a self guided tour of the interior. Super friendly people work here. The ticket seller was very nice, the greeter inside the castle set us on our way, and even the souvenir shop lady was exceptionally nice. Maybe its just that they're Canadian? Or maybe they're just...nice. lol Be advised that there's a lot of stairs to tackle on this tour. This is a perfect place to see if you only have a few hours in Victoria. We took a cab from the ferry dock and back later. It was a short ride so not too expensive. Crowd wasn't tooo bad at the time we went in July.

My husband and I weren't sure how to spend the very short amount of time we were going to be in…read moreport during evening hours so we decided to try this walking and eating tour. I wasn't sure what to expect from the guide or the food. We were so pleasantly surprised with our guide who shared historical knowledge and was exceptionally personable. The food and drinks were on point too! He was also very accommodating for others who booked late without compromising others experience! Highly recommended!

Had a wonderful time with Erik last week doing the Modern Chinatown Tour. Exploring the history of…read moreold Victoria while enjoying a variety of fresh, delicious and locally produced treats was an amazing experience! A great gift idea or enjoy for yourself!

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 had a very short stop in Victoria on our cruise recently, and planned to walk into the city for…read morethe view and ride-share back to save time. We were bummed we may not get to see much. We love biking, but didn't even think about biking for this port stop with the port being so far from businesses. When we saw VBR conveniently posted in the port, we were ecstatic! Renting bikes from them was such an easy and quick process. No time was wasted whatsoever..within minutes of introductions, we were on the bikes fully geared up and exploring! We were able to see so much more than on foot or by car. We rode along the bike path along the coast, through a park, by the Parliament, and to Bastion Square. We went to an historical pub and watched the fireworks with the locals. Then a quick shortcut back by the landmarks, and a quick bike return with a proper farewell. We were able to squeeze in as much culture as is possible in 2 hours thanks to VBR, and it was amazing. Thanks...you're a lifesaver and breath of fresh air!