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We've compiled the best of the best in British Columbia - browse our top choices for the top things to see or do during your stay.
Local kids clamor to visit this offbeat minizoo, home to the largest collection in North America of live tropical insects. You can even hold many of the 60 or so varieties, which include walking sticks, scorpions, millipedes, and a pharnacia—at 22 inches, the world's longest insect. The staff members know their bug lore and are happy to dispense scientific information and fun entomological anecdotes.
This 4.6-km (3-mile) out-and-back trail has minimal elevation, making it a fun one for the whole family. The trail is a wide, heavily trafficked path through the forest, until you eventually reach the Wapta Falls ("wapta" means "river" in the Sioux language of the Stoney people). The falls are especially forceful and impressive in June and early July, when the runoff is still high. Easy.
This sandy beach, with its calm waters, playground, and shady picnic spots, is a summertime favorite among Victorian families. It’s just a few miles from Downtown in the very British Oak Bay neighborhood. Amenities: food and drink (summer kiosk); parking; toilets. Best for: swimming.
About 30 minutes west of Downtown Victoria, this park has a sandy beach, forest trails, marshlands, and a large lagoon—and it's home to 160 species of birds. There's also a nature house that presents interpretive programs. Amenities: parking; toilets. Best for: solitude; walking.
