Fun Facts:
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With a perfect growing climate, Victoria is known internationally as the City of Gardens.
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The city has an annual flower count dating back to the 1970s. The total blooms counted in 2018 was over 3.4 billion.
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Victoria’s Chinatown is the oldest in Canada and Fan Tan Alley is the narrowest street in Canada.
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Friendly is an understatement: Victoria has been named both the Most Romantic City in Canada and one of the top 15 Friendliest Cities in the World.
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Victoria is one of the most bike-friendly cities in the country, with hundreds of kilometres of cycle paths, bike lanes and routes in the city, including the incomparable Galloping Goose Regional Trail.
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Strong support for all things local: Vancouver Island has over 2,800 farms, with nearly 1,000 in the Greater Victoria Region and 700 in the Cowichan Valley.
DOWNTOWN
exceptional cuisine, a wide variety of shopping, tourism, sight seeing, business, nightlife and more
Downtown Victoria is nothing short of diverse. whether you're living in a high rise or just touring the streets , theres something for everyone. The streets branching off from the inner harbour can be compared to the dreamy cobblestone streets of London and Europe, and are an excellent spot for walking, dining and sightseeing.
Food: notable locations are Pegliaccis, El Tarazo, The Keg, Cactus Club, Nubo, The Local and so, so many more.
Shopping: Market square offers many local options as well as it's side street Johnson. On the other side is the famous china town. The Bay centre is a short 5 minute walk from Market Square with some more mall style shopping options.
Tourism/ Adventure: Escape rooms, Arcades, Whale watching, miniature world and many art galleries are just a few of the fun attractions, all within a few kilometers radius.
Sightseeing: The Empress hotel, Parlament, Bastion Square, Market Square, Johnson st bridge, historic China town and more.
OAK BAY, FERNWOOD, COOK ST. VILLAGE
surrounding areas with ample personality
outside if the downtown core there are a number of surrounding districts, each with their own unique characteristics and lifestyles.
Cook st. village is the closest in proximity of downtown, and has a number of schools, shops and job oppertunities. There housing is more town home styled, featuring a few historic and heritage sights. Cook st village is a notable location for boutique shops and small, locally run restaurants. it is a short drive or pleasant walk to beacon hill park and dallas road, which then transitions into an area called James Bay
James Bay fills up the bottom (south west) area below downtown. Most of James Bay is on the coast line making it a wonderful place for relaxing walks, and beach days. Housing here is a mix of victorian and modern with a few high apartment buildings. The location is mostly residential. Despite being so close to downtown, it is usually a very quiet neighbourhood, with a few schools, shops and parks.
up the coast line in the opposite direction, along the beautiful and scenic Dallas road is Oak bay. This is a large area and includes many schools, grocery stores, parks, beaches and shopping centres. There are many job oppertunites as well as activities and restaurants. Oak bay also has a notable collection of vintage and antique shops. the top side of oak bay includes Camosun college (landsdown campus).
SAANICH
the largest municipality in Victoria
Saanich spans around 104 square kilometeres and has a population of about 120,000 people. For young, growing families and students, this is the place to live.
Gordon head is another seaside neighbourhood in the Saanich area. it is dominated my Mount Douglas in it's north and the university of Victoria in its south. Notable locations also include Lambrick park, which hosts many sporting events and has public access baseball diamonds and tennis courts, plus a few elementary, middle and high-schools'. there are also plenty of grocery, convenience and specialty stores in the area.
Cadboro Bay: site of Sungayka, a village of the Songhees Nation around the 1800's has evolved into a small community featuring elementary, middle schools and high-schools as well as some small shops and grocery stores. The crown jewel of this area is Cadboro beach, arguably one of the nicest beaches in greater Victoria with a large playground, dog area, field space, facilities and is home to the sailing club.
Royal oak is on the north side of Saanich, almost dead centre between downtown, Esquimalt and the eastern coastline. This area includes an outdoor shopping area, parks, schools, Camosun College inter-urban campus and easy access to Victoria General Hospital. The housing here is mostly single and multi-family, and generally houses many students renting. The biggest perk of this location is the proximity to all main highways and transportation. For commuters up to Sydney, Langford and so on, that still wish to live close to the city, this is an ideal location.
