Hi all.

In December last year we booked the Executive House Hotel for our visit to Victoria (Vancouver Island) in October 2013 , and last Thursday we were advised the hotel is undergoing major refurbishment beginning in September. Our Travel Agent was advised there would be disruption to guests, and it would be advisable for us to find other accommodation. The Fairmont Empress was suggested so I tried to book but it would appear nothing is available. Does anyone out there have a recommendation for an hotel that is near the harbour and near to transport, please?

Thanks.

I have heard good things about the Magnolia Hotel. I am not sure of location so you can Google it and see if it is where you would like to be.

Have not stayed here but did have dinner. I think its a great location- its on the inner harbor but facing towards the parliament buildings. There is a nice walking path and I think the views from the restaurant is the best in town. The food at the restaurant was excellent.

Its a bit of a walk to the more commercial part of the harbor -

https://www.deltahotels.com/Hotels/D...nte-Resort-Spa

I found Tourism Victoria very helpful when I was there and needed a Vancouver hotel room.

Instead of booking online, I talked to a real person- very helpful

http://www.tourismvictoria.com

We've always stayed at the Laurel Point Inn. On the water. Close to the Executive House and Parliament buildings.

The Grand Pacific hotel is very nice. It is upscale and the water side rooms have beautiful views.

http://hotelgrandpacific.com/

Thank you all for your suggestions. I have checked them all out, and will now contact my travel agent with the recommendations! She is away for 2 weeks so if there are any more suggestions out there would be happy to read about them.

Thanks again,
Dot

Chateau Victoria or the Marriott are both lovely. great views from high floors

cheers
AndrewDavid

I'm just adding to say that we stayed at the Magnolia and liked it very much. It's very central -- practically next door to the Empress.

And as an aside, everyone says you must have tea at the Empress but we didn't do that. Instead, we had dinner at the tiny but delicious Indian buffet in the Bengal Lounge. It was the best Indian food I've ever had. We went on a Friday evening and there was a nice jazz combo playing too.

There are many fab hotels including Royal Scot, Grand Hotel Pacific, and Magnolia. Marriott is another good one. You will have a nice stay at any of these.

Consider bidding for a 4-star hotel on Priceline. We got the Marriott Inner Harbour, and it was beautiful (right . Of course, that might be a win in the last few days before check in, so have a cancellable reservation already booked elsewhere.

Looking for a place for a night or two in Victoria August 10th.

Sludick, would you share with us how much did you paid total from bidding on priceline for the Marriott Inner Harbour? and in what month? thank you.

I wish I could recall exactly. It was in September, and so not as high season as August 10th would be. I would guess around $100-130 tops. Looking at biddingfortravel, I do see a win at the Victoria Marriott last August for $100. Winning bids of course are driven by availability, so you could go higher or lower than me.

Here is the link to that: http://biddingfortravel.yuku.com/top...rbour-100-8112

Sludick-Thank you for your reply. I will start bidding on PL.

First week of August, four of us are going on the 7-days roundtrip Vancouver, inside passage Alaska cruise. Immediately after the cruise on Sunday we'd like to visit Victoria Island's Butchart Gardens for an overnight stay.

Question: Should we rent a car from Vancouver or Victoria? What are other options? We are four adults in the 60s with good health.

Monday, after sightseeing Victoria Island, we'd like to head out to the Canadian Rockies. Lake Louise, Banff, Columbia Icefield etc.

Question: Not sure if we should rent a car, drive ourselves or take a guided tour from Vancouver.

We only have 4 nights(Mon, Tue, Wed, Thur)for the Rockies, since we must be back to Vancouver by Friday 6PM.

Question: How much sightseeing of the Rockies can we put in for these four-five days? It's probably a lot of driving!

Thank you all again.

If you rent a car in Vancouver, you'll need to pay for it to board the ferry. There are tour and bus options, but I haven't done them and will have to defer to others. The ferry comes in about 30 minutes drive north of Victoria. For costs, here is the link to BC Ferries: http://www.bcferries.com/

You'll need to factor in time for the ferry ride across and back. It's 90 minutes each way, plus wait time in line (allow at least 60 minutes).

I assume you will be flying to the Rockies? If you are driving, you only have enough time to drive there and back. Given that it is still summer season, there will likely be a lot of traffic on the roads, and the route is not like a U.S. freeway. We usually allow 2 days each way, although it is doable in one very long day marathon drive.

P.S. Victoria is a city on Vancouver Island.

Thanks again, everyone, for your help with an alternative hotel. We have been booked into the Inn at Laurel Point, all happening while my travel agent was away. Now we shall continue with planning our activities for the day and a half we are there.

Dot

I think you will like the Laurel point Inn. Can walk east or west.