CFW

We're planning a Pacific Northwest trip for July and thought we would take the Victoria Clipper from Seattle to Victoria. We plan to stay 2 nights at a B&B in Victoria, then go to Vancouver for four days & back to Seattle. Having trouble with logistics. There are four of us. I think we may want to rent a car in Victoria to get to Burchart gardens & other areas, and also to get to the ferry to Vancouver, and from the ferry in Vancouver to our hotel in downtown Vancouver, but we will not want the hassle of a car in Vancouver. Is it worthwhile to rent a car in Victoria to do this? If we don't how else can we get to downtown Vancouver? Are there taxis to & from the ferry landings in Victoria & Vancouver? Also, we'll need to rent a car on our last day in Vancouver to get back to Seattle. Will there be problems for U.S. citizens crosing into Washington from Canada in a Canadian rental car? Thanks for any recommendations & suggestions! We love fodor's -- got the best advice on this site for our recent trip to Thailand!

April

I would rent the car in Victoria, then drop it off and take the bus over on the ferry to Vancouver. It's easy. The bus depot is next to the Empress Hotel in Victoria. Unless things have changed (check to be sure!), you would show up just 15-20 minutes or so before the bus leaves, hop on and do nothing until you reach Vancouver. For example, if you wanted the 11:00 am ferry, you would arrive at the bus depot at 9:40 am.

CFW

April, Thanks! Where can I find out info about the bus on line?

Meesthare

Google "Pacific Coach Lines" and it should have all the information you need.

April

http://www.pacificcoach.com/index.cf...edule.Victoria

Or just wander into the bus depot when you're in Victoria. You'll probably be in the area anyway. Sorry, I don't know about taking a rental car across the border.

traveller69

You should check out a couple of options first. You definitely do not need a car in Victoria. There is a bus that leaves from the terminal that goes to Butchart Gardens. It is not a city bus and it doesn't do a tour it is very reasonable. All that being said - you said there are four of you so I would check the price of rental cars and compare it with the bus prices going to Vancouver. Sometimes it is cheaper to go in a vehicle than the bus if there are enough of you. The bus website is pacificcoach.com. You can check schedule and fares there as well. They do have wonderful service so if the price is close I would opt for the bus. They won't have the Butchart Garden shuttle fare on their website because they try to push the tours but I think it is around $5.00.

April

If my calculations are right, the bus for 4 people would be $128. The ferry by car (for 4 people) would be approx $77 plus you'd probably want to get a reservation so add another $15 if made a week in advance - otherwise $17.50, so we could say $92-95, plus the cost of the car rental.

Sam_Salmon

Note that the Bus is 'first on/first off'-no need for Ferry reservations or dealing with the logistics of Ferry lineups.
I vote for the Bus from Victoria to Vancouver option.
Once you see how compact both Victoria and Vancouver are you'll be glad you skipped the car rental.

Sam_Salmon

Oops!
I forgot-have you investigated using Amtrak to return to the USA?
One way rentals to the USA could be expensive.

CFW

Thanks for all the info. The reason we thought we would need a car in Victoria is that we are staying at Fairholme Manor, which is not centrally located. Any opinons on Fairholme Manor? It looks lovely on the web & was highly recommended in the Karen Brown books. Also, any recommendations for good seafood/Pacific Northwest style restaurants in Victoria & Vancouver. Also Asian.

April

I don't know Fairholme Manor itself, but it is in a beautiful area, nice to walk in and away from the tourist mayhem. It's not that far from town but far enough that I would want a car if I were staying there. Head out to the waterfront and turn left for a scenic drive. You're also close to Oak Bay so you could zip over to the White Heather tea room (reservations recommended) on Oak Bay Avenue.

There was a good thread on here recently about places to eat in Victoria.

mscarls

When we did the Pacific Northwest, we flew into Seattle and rented a car. We drove to Vancouver, took the ferry to Victoria, and then took a different ferry to Seattle (well, not too far from Seattle). With the waiting and loading and unloading, the ferry rides are time consuming, but there are some spectacular views.
We found the car very useful in seeing the sights around Vancouver and enabling us to go to restaurants outside of the city center. We had excellent seafood at the Cannery (near downtown and great views)and the Beach House at Dundarave (pretty far out but even better setting).
During our stay in Vancouver, we used the car when we went to Buchart Gardens. We had very good seafood at the Blue Crab Bar and Grill in the Coast Harborside Hotel.
In Seattle we also went to two very good restaurants outside of downtown, so again the car was very handy.