Things to do around Victoria
 

I will be travelling to Victoria at the end of June, staying for 5 nights. I will be with my parents, one who is confined to a wheelchair, but willing to go where ever a wheelchair is capable of going. I am looking for things to do that are not in travel books or websites. Ideas that maybe locals or other people with kwowledge of the area have. We will be taking road trips to Nanaimo, Sooke, Port Renfrew and Salt Spring Island. We like different or unusual types of things that a "normal" tourist might not see. All ideas and input are very much appreciated.

I suggest you check out how much of Butchart Gardens can be seen from a wheelchair. I hope it is a lot because the gardens are special.

The Royal BC Provincial Museum near the harbor is special, too. As museums go it is fairly small, but well done.

The last time we were there we walked in on an Egyptian exhibit purely by luck. That was as far as we got that day! We stayed there watching a demonstration of how mummies were made until the security guard kicked us all out well after the posted closing time.

You may not find anything quite that fascinating, but I think you will find a lot to see there.

Those are my two highlights of Victoria. I just hope Butchart has some provisions for wheelchair folks. I am not a garden person, but Butchart is special.

This years special exhibit at the museum is the Titanic.
Butcharts I would definately inquire about before going. I remember news coverage a few years ago about a woman who sued over breaking a spiked heel.
Most of our buses are the new low floor with ramp type.
Oak bay Marina for the seals and Willows Beach are two of my regular stops after work.

Butchart Gardens is very wheelchair friendly. Where there are stairs to climb, there is always a different way around for those in chairs. When you go through the entrance, let them know that you have a person in a wheelchair and you will get preferential parking. They also used to supply chairs free of charge to those who might require them but not have their own.

I thought immediately of Butchart Gardens too - and yes, it is completely wheelchair-friendly and accessible. We were just there on Sunday last week.

I notice, though, that you're asking about "things to do that are not in travel books or websites." That's a tall order in this part of the world because the "touristy" things are very appealing even to locals. We live here, for example, and have an annual pass to Butchart Gardens. Locals enjoy a lot of the attractions here that tourists would enjoy too.

I don't think you'll find very many tourists (other than whale-watchers or fishers) in Port Renfrew. What were you planning on doing there? There are some wonderful beaches but they all require a bit of a walk to get there.

We live in Sooke, so we know the area fairly well. You might want to get into East Sooke - very beautiful, and there is a little waterfront restaurant there called the Smoking Tuna that's open for lunch most days. It's hard to find - it's in a trailer park, actually - but the food is incredibly good and it's lovely to sit on their back deck and watch the seals cavorting in the water. It's built beside a boat ramp, so you'd have to be careful with the wheelchair but I think you could get it in there. Perhaps you might want to phone them to make sure; I don't know the phone number, but it's the Smoking Tuna Cafe on Beecher Bay Road in East Sooke.

I want to thank everyone for their replies. The reason I would head to Port Renfrew is that it looks like a good turn around point for a days drive along the west side of the island. More replies would be aprreciated.

It might be helpful for you to know that while the drive between Sooke and Jordan River is very pleasant, the rest of that stretch, from Jordan River to Port Renfrew, is very rough. The road is one lane each way, lots of curves and hills, and not in fantastically good repair. It's certainly paved and not what I would call a dangerous road, but it's not very scenic either. You can't see the water for most of that trip and it seems to be one bend in the road after another. You're driving through forest, so there are lots of trees that block any water views.

Some of the sights along the way make the trip definitely worthwhile - I'm referring to places like French Beach and Botanical Beach. But the road itself isn't all that great.

I agree. The road along the west side of the island is narrow, hilly, and winding. I also doubt if you will go swimming at the beaches!

Butchart Gardens is worth more than that particular drive.

Port Renfrew's attractions are not wheel chair friendly and require walks but we saw 2 brown bears on the road near there - its not as populated as Sooke.

Butchart Gardens is over-rated and expensive compared to English estate gardens - the Italian Garden was actually Spanish! If your close by its pleasant but don't make a long specific trip - it is very wheelchair friendly but also very busy.

Whiffin Spit in Sooke has perfect wheelchair access is flat and full of wildlife. (as long as the local's dogs do not attack everything in sight as we witnessed too many times)