British Columbia Family Vacation Day No. 4: Hippo Tours and Ghostly Walks in Victoria
Here are highlights from our fourth day in British Columbia. We spent the afternoon touring Victoria.
Hippo Tours are the most entertaining way to bone up on Victoria history
The best — and most hysterical — way to see Victoria is on a Hippo Tour, which you can pick up on Belleville Street outside the Black Ball Ferry Line, only a couple blocks from the Best Western Plus Inner Harbour.
On these wild and raucous tours, a group of some 40 tourists load into a 40-foot yellow amphibious bus that whirls around the city past the top sights—from Parliament to Chinatown—before plunging into the Pacific Ocean, offering breathtaking views of the harbor and snowy Olympic Mountains looming in the distance.
Along the way, a high-energy tour guide—who seems to have consumed at least eight cups of espresso—shares facts about the city and tells jokes that are laugh-out-loud-funny.
Our guide Karlee was darling, smiley and full of puns. When we rolled past Clover Point (pictured below), she mentioned that this was the spot where Victoria's Synchronized Kite Team practices. "I could pull some strings if you want to get on the team," she joked. My 9-year-old son was hysterical.
Karlee was also an endless stream of random, quirky facts. When we passed the IMAX theater at the BC Royal Museum, she told us that IMAX was a Canadian invention and then rattled off a few other Canadian inventions such as medical insulin and the push-up bra.
On the tour we caught a glimpse of China Town. Karlee pointed out Fan Tan Alley, a skinny walkway that's only five-feet wide and touted as Canada's narrowest alley. In the 1920s, Fan Tan was home to one of the best known gambling dens.
Our hippo rolled through Beacon Hill Park, a 200 acre swatch of gardens and grassy meadows that overlooks a picturesque stretch of the Juan de Fuca Strait. The park is a family playground with hiking trails, a petting zoo and a giant watering can spewing out water that kids can play under.
Fisherman's wharf offers a festive atmosphere and tasty fish 'n' chips
Scooting around town in a Hippo made us hungry. Our tour guide directed us to Fisherman's Wharf, a bustling dock where kayakers, boat taxis and people like us on foot stop for lunch. A couple restaurants dish up food that can be enjoyed on picnic tables but Barb's Fish & Chips is the best known.
We ordered steamed clams, fish and chips and some chicken strips for the kids.
Across from Barb's, you'll find some of the best ice cream in all of Victoria at Jackson's.
Moose Tracks with chocolate peanut butter cups and fudge swirl is the most popular flavor.
My kids can't get enough of the Best Western Inner Harbour swimming pool
Do you want to go to Craigdarrough Castle? Emily Carr's House? Miniature World? Victoria is filled with fun sites for families but after lunch my kids only wanted to go back to the hotel pool.
Family travel tip: Occasionally break off into groups to give kids special one-on-one time
Baby Julia was tired and fussy and my son was cranky and worn out. My husband decided to stay back at the hotel and eat dinner in with the two younger kids, while my daughter and I planned a special date for just the two of us.
On family trips, we often feel as if we have to do everything together but all of the togetherness can be exhausting, especially for competitive siblings. Breaking into groups can give everyone a break.
Everyone from Allen Ginsberg to Bob Dylan has eaten at Pagliacci's
My daughter and I asked the staff at the hotel front desk for a dinner recommendation.
"What do you want? Sushi, seafood, pasta?" he asked.
My daughter's lit up with the mention of pasta, and he recommended a beloved Victoria restaurant Paggliacci's.
As soon as we stepped outside the hotel and walked to the Inner Harbor, I was happy we decided to go out. The night was glorious and the setting sun had cast a golden light over this dreamy Disneyland-like city.
We were lucky to get the last table at Pagliacci's and it happened to be front and center in the window. The menu is filled with homemade pasta dishes, but my daughter and I opted for salads: Caesar topped with grilled chicken and a green salad served with salmon. Both were fresh and delicious.
Pagliacci's is one of those neighborhoody feeling restaurants where the staff is warm and welcoming and the environment is cozy. The tables are close together and the walls are filled with murals, paintings and memorabilia. Photographs of famous people who've eaten at the restaurant hang on the walls: Saul Bellow, Bob Dylan, Susan Sarandon.
After dinner, we stepped inside Roger's Chocolates that dates back to 1885. These famous chocolates have been mailed to the White House and Buckingham Palace. We tried the pecan chews.
Ghostly Walks are spooky and offer up a lot of fascinating Victoria history
My daughter and I finished up our date night with a Ghostly Walk, a nighttime tour of Victoria that offers a look at the city's darker past.
Here, my daughter stands with John Adams, a Victoria historian who first started leading Ghostly Walks 15 years ago. His company Discover the Past leads a variety of historical tours but he says that for every straightforward history tour he leads, he gives five Ghostly Walks.
John passed our group of about 20 off to our guide Kate, an educated historian herself who played up her part as "ghost story teller" by dressing in all black and letting her spiral curls hang wildly. As we walked around town, she told stories of murders and deaths in detail and many of the tales were horribly gruesome. I worried that the tour was overly graphic for my 11-year-old but she insisted that she wasn't scared and found the history fascinating.
On our walk back to the hotel, we quickly forgot about the tales of horror as we walked past the Parliament building, strung with tiny white lights like a fairy tale castle.
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Hippo Tours are the most entertaining way to bone up on Victoria history
On these wild and raucous tours, a group of some 40 tourists load into a 40-foot yellow amphibious bus that whirls around the city past the top sights—from Parliament to Chinatown—before plunging into the Pacific Ocean, offering breathtaking views of the harbor and snowy Olympic Mountains looming in the distance.
Along the way, a high-energy tour guide—who seems to have consumed at least eight cups of espresso—shares facts about the city and tells jokes that are laugh-out-loud-funny.
Our guide Karlee was darling, smiley and full of puns. When we rolled past Clover Point (pictured below), she mentioned that this was the spot where Victoria's Synchronized Kite Team practices. "I could pull some strings if you want to get on the team," she joked. My 9-year-old son was hysterical.
On the tour we caught a glimpse of China Town. Karlee pointed out Fan Tan Alley, a skinny walkway that's only five-feet wide and touted as Canada's narrowest alley. In the 1920s, Fan Tan was home to one of the best known gambling dens.
Fisherman's wharf offers a festive atmosphere and tasty fish 'n' chips
My kids can't get enough of the Best Western Inner Harbour swimming pool
Do you want to go to Craigdarrough Castle? Emily Carr's House? Miniature World? Victoria is filled with fun sites for families but after lunch my kids only wanted to go back to the hotel pool.
Family travel tip: Occasionally break off into groups to give kids special one-on-one time
Baby Julia was tired and fussy and my son was cranky and worn out. My husband decided to stay back at the hotel and eat dinner in with the two younger kids, while my daughter and I planned a special date for just the two of us.
On family trips, we often feel as if we have to do everything together but all of the togetherness can be exhausting, especially for competitive siblings. Breaking into groups can give everyone a break.
Everyone from Allen Ginsberg to Bob Dylan has eaten at Pagliacci's
My daughter and I asked the staff at the hotel front desk for a dinner recommendation.
"What do you want? Sushi, seafood, pasta?" he asked.
My daughter's lit up with the mention of pasta, and he recommended a beloved Victoria restaurant Paggliacci's.
As soon as we stepped outside the hotel and walked to the Inner Harbor, I was happy we decided to go out. The night was glorious and the setting sun had cast a golden light over this dreamy Disneyland-like city.
Pagliacci's is one of those neighborhoody feeling restaurants where the staff is warm and welcoming and the environment is cozy. The tables are close together and the walls are filled with murals, paintings and memorabilia. Photographs of famous people who've eaten at the restaurant hang on the walls: Saul Bellow, Bob Dylan, Susan Sarandon.
Ghostly Walks are spooky and offer up a lot of fascinating Victoria history
My daughter and I finished up our date night with a Ghostly Walk, a nighttime tour of Victoria that offers a look at the city's darker past.
On our walk back to the hotel, we quickly forgot about the tales of horror as we walked past the Parliament building, strung with tiny white lights like a fairy tale castle.
