Victoria in April -- hotel help!
 

Hi, planning a weekend in Victoria with my father, husband and 1 year old. We're taking the ferry over and ideally would like to leave the car behind. Can you recommend a fantastic hotel walking distance to the ferry and downtown? We like a great atmosphere, we're pretty low key -- looking forward to wandering around town, having a fun meal out, shopping a bit. If there are any nearby hikes, we'd love that too.

Thanks!

Well if you're taking the ferry from Vancouver you will end up no near "walking distance" to downtown. The Vancouver ferry docks at Sydney which is a 30 minute drive from downtown Victoria. You can get a bus from downtown Vancouver to downtown Victoria and once in Victoria, there are lots of hotels in walking distance. If you're coming over on the Seattle ferry, then yes it is within walking distance of many hotels/motels. The Best Western Inner Harbour is a good one.

Where are you taking the ferry over from? If from Seattle, then the ferry (the Clipper) arrives in downtown Victoria, where there are a few hotels within walking distance.

However, as previously explained, if you're taking a ferry over from either Anacortes or Vancouver, then the ferry terminal is a 30 minute drive down the highway from Victoria, so you'd have to take a taxi or a bus into Victoria.

You don't state a price range, but we stayed at the Hotel Magnolia and liked it very much. It's within about a five-minute walk from everything at the harbour. Of course, there's always the Empress Hotel (which I think might be a Fairmont but I'm not sure). Very posh and British -- afternoon tea and all that. We loved the Indian Buffet in the Bengal Lounge. Others speak highly of tea at the Empress. We also enjoyed the music and the food at the Irish Times, and the harbour tour which took us to see the floating houses.

we love the executive house, right down town, walk to everyplace.great views and friendly staff.

Thank you! I should have mentioned we're coming in from Seattle! Looking for a moderately priced hotel...

Last June we stayed at the Days Inn on the Harbour and found it an ideal location.We could walk to the Seattle Ferry and everywhere else.

I think the Magnolia would be considered moderately priced. If you're coming from Seattle, the Victoria Clipper will take you from downtown to downtown in both harbours and it's a fun ride. You can probably just wheel your suitcase to whichever hotel you choose.

There are quite a few hotels all within walking distance from where the clipper docks. I am going again shortly (was there a month ago) and have booked a room at the Laurel Point Inn where all the rooms have harbour views. Also to consider is the Royal Scot all suite hotel in the same inner harbour area - it gets decent reviews on trip advisor. Just from the outside appearance I would choose the Best Western on the inner harbour over the Days Inn. The Coast Harbourside also looks very nice but is a little further to walk. The Magnolia and the Marriot are also a bit more of a walk from the clipper ship but certainly doable and both seem like very nice hotels. As for hiking, any real hikes would probably require a car to get to but there are lots of interesting walks - Beacon Hill Park, of course with its playground, duck ponds and petting zoo might appeal to your one year old. There is a walk that follows the sea wall. We hope to take one of the small harbour ferries (I think they will be running) to West Bay Marina and walk back into Victoria.
(Spinakers Pub is a good place to stop for lunch on the way back). There is also a walking trail all along the Dallas Rd waterfront but that might be a bit far to walk to in order to start your walk! Anyway, have fun. I love Victoria!

For a hotel try Abigail's. We love it and have stayed numerous times (even tho we still live here!) it's pretty affordable with US dollars. The Magnolia is okay but you hear the street cleaners and/or the dumpster dumpers around 5:30 6:00 every morning.
For a memorable meal try Il Terrazzo on Johnson. Wonderful premises and special for all ages. The terrace is fantastic and protected from weather. Or try a Med Grill on Fort. Most restaurants are good but run them past us first! The Empress is okay but really overrated. And overpriced. The lunch buffet in the Bengal Lounge is good but outrageously priced.

<<The Magnolia is okay but you hear the street cleaners and/or the dumpster dumpers around 5:30 6:00 every morning.>>

I don't know how you can make a silly statement like this about a whole building. Did you sleep in every single room? We stayed there for a week and heard no such thing.