Victoria Express

Summer is the perfect time to hop on a ferry and cross the Strait of Juan de Fuca to Victoria with the whole family. You can even take advantage of our 20th Anniversary $20 Round Trip Special for travel between Port Angeles and Victoria (children under 5 years of age ride for free). 

Experience a wide variety of educational and fun activities in Victoria designed specifically for families. The Royal BC Museum invites families to see what goes on Behind the Scenes in this magnificent museum. Learn about the curators and what they do. See collections that have never before been on display, and find out how exhibitions are selected and arranged. This is a unique opportunity for children and parents to step into the shoes of a curator for the day.

You an also discover the Aliens Among Us. No, not aliens from outer space, but non-indigenous plants and animals that now make British Columbia their home. Young visitors will meet Piper the Pika, the exhibition mascot. Piper will direct children to the AmusEum, a space specifically designed for children. Parents will be thrilled by a peak into the collections area (Backstage Pass is required).

Victoria Express can make all travel arrangements for a Victoria vacation, including lodging and activities. Enjoy an overnight visit or an extended weekend at one of downtown Victoria hotels, where the children will love playing in the pool.

The fast ferry to Victoria from Port Angeles takes less than an hour and includes magnificent views of the Olympic Mountains and Vancouver Island. Your vacation begins as soon as you step on board.

Be sure to bring proper identification when traveling to Canada from the United States.

Victoria is a great place to travel with the entire family. Children as well as adults will enjoy a romp in Beacon Hill Park, a day at Butchart Gardens, and hours at the Royal BC Museum. Succumb to amazement at the Bug Zoo, and take in a movie at the Imax Theatre. The list goes on and on.

Perhaps the best part of travel to Victoria with children is that it doesn't need to be expensive. Let's face it - these days, most everyone has to consider the cost/benefit ratio of everything.

Days Inn Victoria on the Harbour has comfortable, affordable lodging for the whole family. Between April 1 and June 31, rooms start at $98, and children under 12 are free. Save money by booking a room with a kitchenette,  where food may be prepared to feed ever-hungry growing children.

At Days Inn Victoria on the Harbour, you may spend hours in the protected heated pool any time of year. During the summer months, enjoy the outdoor heated pool. Swimming is perhaps the best and most affordable entertainment there is.

$20 Round Trip To Victoria - Special Anniversary Pricing

This season, take advantage of the 20th Anniversary Special at the Victoria Express Ferry to Victoria. Round trip travel between Port Angeles, WA and Victoria BC is just $20. Children under 5 travel for free. Make memories your children will cherish forever.

For more information, please call 360-452-8088 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Travel between the United States and Canada requires a passport or enhanced driver's license. Visit our ID Requirements for more details.

The Natural History Gallery at the Royal BC Museum in Victoria brings visitors back in time to experience dramatically different environments. Lush tropical forests and ice-bound tundras were both part of the landscape of British Columbia at one time. Mammoths, giant bison, and mastodons walked where we now dwell. The next time you visit Victoria, why not explore the ancient history of this ever-changing planet and learn about its present and future.

Your chance to see what goes on behind the curtain at the Royal BC Museum begins on June 25, 2010, when Royal BC Museum: Behind the Scenes opens. This is an ideal activity for families visiting Victoria. Meet the researchers who dive, dig and dredge during their search for scientific discoveries, and learn about what they do. New and ancient specimens will be on public display for the first time. And be sure to take your children to the new Amuseum - specifically designed for them - where the theme is sustainability. Children and parents alike will find this a fascinating exhibit.

Be among the first to experience this new exhibit, which runs through Monday, October 10, 2011.

Travel to Victoria from the Olympic Peninsula via Victoria Express. Victoria is easily accessible without a car, so don't bother bringing your automobile. You can spend a day or a week exploring the attractions in and around the Inner Harbour of Victoria.

$20 Round Trip Port Angeles / Victoria Special

Our 2010 sailing season between Port Angeles and Victoria starts May 28; call 360-452-8088 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it for details about travel to Victoria, BC. Be sure to ask about our 20th anniversary $20 round trip special!

There is no better way to travel than to hop on a boat in one city and disembark at your destination, refreshed and ready to explore. This is exactly what we are offering through April 1, 2010. You'll travel across the Salish Sea and arrive in the historic setting of Victoria's beautiful inner harbor. No long drive and no traffic lines. Just sit back and enjoy the magnificent views of the Pacific Northwest, one of the most scenic parts of the country.

The Seattle - Victoria travel packages include one or two night's accommodations at your choice of one of the finest hotels in Victoria: the Hotel Grand Pacific or the Hotel Chateau Victoria. Located right in the heart of the city, you will find it easy to explore on foot from either hotel.

In addition, our travel packages include tours of some of the finest sites of Victoria. Sit back in a luxurious coach and enjoy the Grand City Tour. Visit Craigdarroch Castle, considered "a key piece of British Columbia's history". Spend a few hours at the Royal BC Museum, and watch a film there at the IMAX Theatre.

The IMAX is currently showing four films. Ocean Men: Extreme Dive follows two men as they dive more than 91 meters under the sea on one breath of air. Under the Sea offers a glimpse of some of the most spectacular and unusual ocean creatures in the Indo-Pacific waters. Ride Around the World explores the 1,200-year history of the cowboy and horse from Argentina to Morocco. Africa: The Serengeti, is a fascinating tribute to the wildebeest and the Great Migration; it ends February 18, 2010.

The Royal BC Museum has a fascinating exhibit on the First Peoples of this region. Now through Saturday, February 27, the museum is offering interesting First Peoples Gallery Tours. Enhance this experience with the feature exhibit of today's Coast Salish First Nations: S'abadeb: The Gifts.

Victoria is so close to Seattle, it should be visited as often as possible. Our Seattle Victoria travel packages make this too easy to resist. Call or email for details: 360-452-8088, or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Travel between the United States and Canada requires a passport or enhanced driver's license. Please see our ID Requirements page for more details.

Have you ever wanted to run away to Victoria? If you live in the Puget Sound area, my bet is that you have had that dream every now and then. Victoria is such an accessible place, and at the same time it is a cultivated, international city. It has world class hotels, elegant restaurants, and fabulous art. It also has British flare, and authentic pubs to prove the point. In short, it is irresistible.

Now it is easier than ever to travel between Seattle and Victoria.

Victoria Express offers a number of enticing travel packages throughout the year. Board a ferry and enjoy the most relaxing kind of travel you can find, and the next thing you know, you'll be in Victoria......You made it!

Stay in the Hotel Grand Pacific, in the Inner Harbour. Indulge in their spa, romp in the pool, or simply enjoy a drink in the elegant Pacific Lounge. Or perhaps you prefer the Hotel Chateau Victoria, in the heart of downtown Victoria. Take in the views. Sleep in and enjoy breakfast in your room.

Victoria Express travel packages may include a trip to the Royal BC Museum, a tour of Craigdarroch Castle, or a Grand City Tour. If there is something in particular you would like to do or see, be sure to ask our staff. Call 360-452-8088 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Please see our ID Requirements to learn what is necessary for travel between the United States and Canada.

Take a break this winter with a weekend in Victoria BC. We will take care of all of the travel arrangements, from getting you across the Salish Sea to your accommodations in Victoria.

Pacific Coast Salish Art and Artists at the Royal BC Museum

Several of our Victoria travel packages include admission into the Royal British Museum, one of the best museums in the Pacific Northwest. Located on the Inner Harbour, in the heart of downtown Victoria, the Royal BC Museum is the perfect place to be during a northwest fall or winter day. Open every day, with the exception of Christmas and New Year’s Day, it is a great addition to a holiday trip.

Currently at the RBCM is an exhibit on the Coast Salish First Nations. Making its Canadian debut, this exhibit features historic sculpture, weavings, basketry and contemporary art from British Columbia and Washington State Salish First Nations. The Seattle Art Museum assembled this collection – the first of its kind – with pieces from almost twenty institutions around the world. It will be at the RBCM through March 8, 2010.

Take advantage of our Fall Special that includes museum passes and great overnight lodging at the Harbour Towers Hotel. Each of our special package pricing includes ferry travel from Seattle or Port Angeles, hotel accommodations and applicable tours & taxes. All you need do is arrive at the dock with your suitcase in hand and prepare for a fabulous weekend in Victoria with friends or family.

Call 360-452-8088 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and start planning your next great adventure.

Who says summer in the Northwest doesn’t start until after the Fourth of July? It is simply not too early to start planning your first summer getaway. The Victoria Express lets down her ramp on Friday, May 22nd, ready to whisk you away to a foreign country. There is so much to see and do in the greater Victoria area: stroll the quaint, bustling downtown, stretch your legs on the walking trails of the 200-acre Beacon Hill Park, and stimulate your brain at the Royal BC Museum.

The Victoria Express is running a lodging special between May 22 and June 15th. For $278, a family of three will travel to Victoria aboard the Victoria Express, stay at the Queen Victoria Hotel and Suites for one night, and receive Royal BC Museum passes. The hotel is within easy walking distance to the Victoria Express terminal at the Inner Harbor, and less than a block from the expansive Beacon Hill Park. It has a Mediterranean-inspired pool and fitness center, so your stay is guaranteed to be relaxing for you and fun for the kids. The world-class Samuel’s Restaurant overlooks Thunderbird Park – a fabulous place to linger Sunday morning while enjoying the newspaper and the delicious brunch. The Royal BC Museum is just steps away from the hotel.

Inlaid Bowl, Solomon Islands, Early 20th Century

“This exhibition explores nations and civilizations that have shaped our world for almost 1.5 million years,” says Royal BC Museum CEO Pauline Rafferty. From million-year-old handaxes found in Africa’s Olduvai Gorge, to a 3,000-year-old mummy, to a throne built of decommissioned weapons from Mozambique’s late-20th century civil war, the British Museum has brought together in Treasures some of the most poignant artifacts of material culture to share with visitors to the Royal BC Museum.”

Don’t miss the opportunity to take your children to this exhibit, and to see it yourself. Victoria Express will help you get there – leave the planning to us. If you travel before the first of June you may still cross the border without a passport, but after June 1, 2009, you will need either a passport or an enhanced driver’s license.