Day 2 of Victoria Trip | 3 Days 2 Nights Long Weekend Trip to Victoria, BC

By Celine -
I have been eager to travel since the pandemic began. My mom is celebrating her 60th birthday this year and on the same weekend as Father's day which means my siblings and I can plan a trip and won't feel guilty splurging them a little bit.

Day 1 (June 18, 2021)

Day 2 (June 19, 2021)

We started today with breakfast at Q At The Empress. Then, we took a bus to The Butchart Gardens.

The Butchart Gardens

It's a beautiful 55 acres of gardens envisioned by Jennie Butchart. She transformed a former quarry into a lush garden haven that has become a National Historic Site of Canada.

I don't think sharing pictures would give justice to the different gardens inside. My personal favourite is the Sunken Garden and Japanese Garden. I have a bias for gardens which is why VanDusen Botanical Garden in Vancouver is my number one favourite spot in the city. You can just sit in one of the benches and feel all your worries melt away. I didn't get that same peace at The Butchart Gardens because there are more tourists here than VanDusen.

The Butchart Gardens with Jomar

The Sunken Garden

Ross Fountain Lookout

Mama in the Rose Garden

Mama and Papa in the Japanese Garden

Hatley Castle

After a couple hours at The Butchart Gardens, we took a drive to Hatley Castle. This wasn't part of our original itinerary, but the BC Royal Museum is sold out for the day, and our only brother wants to go to the Hatley Castle because it's a famous filming location. Most recently, it's the Xavier's School in Deadpool, Deadpool 2, X2, X-Men: The Last Stand, among others.

In front of the Hatley Castle

At the back of the Hatley Castle

Water View from the Hatley Castle

It's an interesting place to visit and we even saw a peacock, yes, the actual bird. We only spent at most 30 minutes here and we drove back to Downtown Victoria.

Lunch at Pagliacci's

My favourite meal of this trip is from Pagliacci's. I can't wait to come back!

Beacon Hill Park

We actually didn't go to Beacon Hill Park, but we walked along Waterfront Trail. We started at Spiral Beach, Finlayson Point, and we ended at Mile Zero Monument.

View from Spiral Beach near Cook Rd

Finlayson Point

Finlayson Point is my favourite spot in Victoria, BC. Sitting at the "edge" of Vancouver Island facing Salish Sea (in Canada) and Strait of Juan de Fuca (in the US) is just overwhelming. It's so relaxing to just sit in the bench and breathe. I can't believe that the land in the horizon is another country already (USA).

We sat on this bench for 10 minutes, before more tourists arrived.

Mile 0 Monument

I need to stand and be at Mile Zero Monument because it is the start of the over 8,000 km Trans-Canada Highway that spans the entire length of Canada. I can't wait to see more of Canada!

After sightseeing, we walked back to Downtown Victoria and had dinner at Acres 10 Common Restaurants.

To end the evening, we had a video call with Happy Friends back in the Philippines! I can't wait to see and travel with them again.
Location: The Butchart Gardens, 800 Benvenuto Ave, Brentwood Bay, BC V8M 1J8, Canada

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