Port Angeles Ferry to Victoria; Walkable things to see and do? (Bellingham: co-op, hotel)

[landmissle]

Hi all,


We'll be doing a visit to Sequim next week and are considering a visit to Victoria British Columbia via the Port Angels ferry. If we do a walk-on on the ferry are there points of interest on the Victoria side reachable via foot? With only a day to visit, do you have any recommendations of places to see and places to eat?


If vehicle travel is a better option, same questions regarding places to see and places to eat at.

[Ruth4Truth]

It's not necessary to take a vehicle. The main attraction in Victoria is the shopping, most of which is located in a compact downtown area, and tea at the Empress, for those who are interested in that. There are also the Inner Harbor sights of the Parliament building and the Empress and its gardens. The Royal BC Museum (near the Parliament) currently has a show on the Mayan civilization, and has a hall of First Nations art. The Empress has a shop of imported Scottish woolens and tartans, and there are other shops for that, as well. Everything is very walkable. The town is flat.

https://www.tourismvictoria.com/see-...oyal-bc-museum
http://store.eaglefeathergallery.com

[Diana Holbrook]

You can definitely find enough to do nearby in Victoria. The only thing you might miss in a short day-trip without a vehicle is Butchart Gardens, which is quite a ways out of town. I might guess there might be tour vans out there from Victoria if you check around and maybe stay an extra day over. It's worth the trip at some point, if not this trip, then the next.

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by Diana Holbrook

You can definitely find enough to do nearby in Victoria. The only thing you might miss in a short day-trip without a vehicle is Butchart Gardens, which is quite a ways out of town. I might guess there might be tour vans out there from Victoria if you check around and maybe stay an extra day over. It's worth the trip at some point, if not this trip, then the next.

Yes, OP; it depends on what you want to see. If you just want a fun day trip, Victoria's a good one. If you want to see the Butchart Gardens, you should stay overnight, otherwise you won't have time, because the gardens are huge--enough for a full afternoon. But popping over for a day is fine, too.

And don't forget, half the charm of the trip is the beautiful ferry ride across the Strait, watching the dolphins gambol in the water nearby, and enjoying the views and marine environment. I would highly recommend it, even just for a day trip. You could save the Butchart Gardens for a later visit, if you plan to return to the Olympic Peninsula.

[landmissle]

Thank you Ruth and Diana for the replies and the great ideas.

I'm sure it's completely impossible to see all there is in a day and that's not our intention. We're only looking for a little sampling of what Victoria might to have to offer.

Actually we're just as interested in looking over the Sequim, Port Townsend, and Port Angeles areas too. So, we essentially have an impossible task with only two real fulls day of exploration time.

[Ruth4Truth]

Good grief! OP, if you only have 2 days, spend it locally. Exploring Pt Townsend's downtown in a leisurely fashion is nice. There's a first-rate food co-op near downtown that has really good soups; on the right day, you can get the best minestrone I've ever had! They have other prepared foods in their deli section, too: salads and other dishes.
From there, you can drive up the hill to the Uptown neighborhood, on a bluff overlooking downtown and the water, and stroll around taking in the Victorian architecture. Sometimes there's a herd of deer walking around the streets as if they own the place. It's a charming neighborhood.

Fort Worden park is another interesting attraction. There are walking trails and there's beach access, but there's also a restaurant and some items of historical interest, and a concert and lecture schedule. Be sure to check Pt Townsend's events calendar before planning your trip. It will be crowded, if you hit it on a festival weekend, there may be difficulty finding parking. (Always a bit of a challenge downtown, anyway.). Mid-week would be best, unless you down't mind crowds, and want to take in whatever the festival is about. (There's some kind of admission charge for most of them, I hear.)

Fort Worden | Home

[Ruth4Truth]

Maybe you could plan a return trip to the area another year, and give yourself enough time for an overnight in Victoria.

[bartonizer]

Ruth's ideas are spot on; I would add that if you have a few extra hours in Port Angeles, you might want to take the road directly from Port Angeles and go into Olympic NP, up to Hurricane Ridge for a hike, especially if you have a National Parks pass....

In terms of exploring, it depends on how in-depth you want to get. There are enough things to do that you could spend a whole vacation in the area, but we've gone on quite a few weekend trips where we've gone from Bellingham to Port Townsend for one night, then Victoria for one night, or even gotten up early and driven over to Port Angeles to take the ferry to Victoria for the night and returned home the next day- the drive

My suggestion would be to take an early afternoon ferry over to Victoria and stay the night (they always offer package ferry/room deals) and take the late morning ferry back. The transit time is about 1.5 hours, with the ride on the Black Ball ferry (more of a funky old ship than traditional WA or BC ferries) being a fun, scenic component of the whole adventure. Victoria and its harbor are well-suited to a quick overnight visit, with many hotel and dining options being walkable from the dock.

They're not bad places, but I don't feel like there's a whole lot to do and see in Port Angeles (though again, Hurricane Ridge is nearby) or Sequim (though Olympic Game Farm is a hoot, and nearby Dungeness Spit is worth checking out). Instead, I'd spend night #2 in Port Townsend, and spend some time wandering around.

[NW4me]

If you'll have a vehicle on the US side, take a little time to drive up to Hurricane Ridge
in Olympic Nat'l Park (you get there via Port Angeles)... it's magnificent!

Nourish Sequim Home - Nourish has some tasty food.