Victoria & Butchart Gardens Tour with Gulf Islands Cruise Ferry
Recommended by 91% of travelers
Badge of Excellence
Vancouver, Canada
- 13 hours (approx.)
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
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Overview
Enjoy round-trip travel from Vancouver to Victoria, and discover top attractions in British Columbia on this Victoria and Butchart Gardens day trip from Victoria. Take the ferry to Vancouver Island, and enjoy fine views over the beautiful Gulf Islands. Dock in Swartz Bay, and visit the famous Butchart Gardens, exploring the grounds at your leisure. Then, enjoy free time to explore the city, perhaps walking through Chinatown and the Inner Harbour, before returning to Vancouver by ferry.
- Take a day from Vancouver to Victoria by ferry
- Explore Butchart Gardens, with included entrance ticket
- Enjoy free time to explore downtown Victoria
- Transportation between sites is included
What's Included
- Hotel pickup and drop-off (selected hotels only)
- Air-conditioned vehicle
- Driver/guide
- All taxes, fees and handling charges
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting points
Select a meeting point
End point
This activity ends back at the meeting point.Operating hours.9:15 am
Itinerary
Your two-in-one, full-day excursion from Vancouver begins early in the morning. Meet your vehicle from one of several central departure points, hop aboard, and head beyond city limits. With all transit, including round-trip ferries, included, this experience makes getting to Vancouver Island a breeze.
After admiring views of the Gulf Islands aboard the ferry, you’ll arrive at your first stop on the island: the always-popular Butchart Gardens. Thanks to the included tickets, you’ll head right in. Over the course of two hours, explore at your own pace, enjoying the tranquility of the landmark without the crowds.
Next, return to your vehicle and head to the charming city of Victoria. With more than one hour of additional independent sightseeing time, you have the freedom to visit the neighborhoods and landmarks that interest you most.
Finally, return to your original departure point in the evening, where this experience ends.
After admiring views of the Gulf Islands aboard the ferry, you’ll arrive at your first stop on the island: the always-popular Butchart Gardens. Thanks to the included tickets, you’ll head right in. Over the course of two hours, explore at your own pace, enjoying the tranquility of the landmark without the crowds.
Next, return to your vehicle and head to the charming city of Victoria. With more than one hour of additional independent sightseeing time, you have the freedom to visit the neighborhoods and landmarks that interest you most.
Finally, return to your original departure point in the evening, where this experience ends.
1
Vancouver Downtown
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
2
BC Ferries
1 hour 35 minutes • Admission Ticket Included
3
The Butchart Gardens
2 hours • Admission Ticket Included
4
Empress Hotel National Historic Site of Canada
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Stroller accessible
- Near public transportation
- Infants must sit on laps
- Most travelers can participate
- English only
- Washroom onboard
- Luggage storage on board
- Pets are not permitted on our tour buses
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 50 travelers
Supplied by
Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Featured review
Gail_C
Our trip with driver & guide Dan was great! He was informative and entertaining. We viewed parts of Vancouver following our hotel pickup on our way to the ferry. Ferry crossing was easy. But chart Gardens were so beautiful. Also had tine in Victoria to see a few things and dine along the water front.
I was a bit confused by the pickup time at the arranged hotel. (I think just my problem as everyone else in that group was on time). I thought the pickup time was 9:00 am as stated when I made the booking. But Viatour updates I was getting that morning said 9:15. That is the time the tour starts at the final pickup location. My mistake, but it was confusing. So…be alert.
Highly recommend this tour. It’s a long day, but well worth it!!
Reviews
4.6
based on 565 reviews
Thea_S, Jan 2026
The most beautiful gardens I have seen in a while. The great thing is that they have a route very accessible to wheelchair and older people or individuals that use devices to walk.
Michael_S, Oct 2025
The only reason this wasn't five stars is because I wish we spent more time in Victoria. But honestly it was a great experience
David_H, Oct 2025
Justin did a great job. He didn’t just tell us about the sights, he educated us on the history and current state of life in Vancouver and Victoria. It was a long day but he kept our interest and kept things fresh throughout.
Rebeca_N, Oct 2025
It was a long day, but it was incredibly enjoyable. The gardens were beautiful, and we had a great time at the waterfront. Our driver/guide was excellent; they were very knowledgeable and made the trip even more enjoyable.
Response from Host, Oct 2025
Thank you for your fantastic review! We’re delighted to hear that you had an enjoyable day exploring the gardens and the waterfront. It’s wonderful that your driver/guide enhanced the experience with their knowledge and made the trip even more memorable. We appreciate your kind words and look forward to welcoming you on another tour in the future!
Lynn_P, Oct 2025
Long way to the gardens, but an adventure, nonetheless. I didn’t read carefully enough about the duration of the trip. It was a pleasant bus ride to the ferry, back on the bus to the gardens. Pick up was 8:50am, made it to the gardens at 1:05 for 2 hours, then back on the bus to the ferry to town arrival at 9pm. Very nice day, and our driver was excellent!
Response from Host, Oct 2025
Thank you for your detailed review! We’re glad to hear you enjoyed the adventure, despite the long day. It’s wonderful that the bus ride, gardens visit, and overall experience were pleasant, and that your driver made the day even more enjoyable. We hope to welcome you on another tour in the future!
tnappo, Sep 2025
Exceptional trip, especially thanks to our guide/bus driver Justin! One of the absolute best guides we’ve ever had in our travels…
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Thank you for your wonderful review! We’re thrilled to hear that Justin made such a positive impression — it’s fantastic to know he’s one of the best guides you’ve had in your travels. We’ll be sure to share your kind words with him!
KR_C, Sep 2025
We had a wonderful day. Mark is a great guide. Learned and saw so much about the area and it's history.
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Thank you for your kind words! We’re delighted to hear you had a wonderful day and enjoyed learning about the area’s history with Mark. We’ll be sure to share your feedback with him.
HaroldHP_S, Sep 2025
From start to finish, just one awe after another until the next awe inspiring moment. All the employees were kind and respectful. Very enjoyable time.
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Thank you for your wonderful review! We’re thrilled to hear that every moment of your tour was awe-inspiring and that our team made your experience so enjoyable
Chris_J, Sep 2025
Mark was a wonderful tour guide!! It was a long day, but he made it fun. The Buchard Gardens are beautiful. I liked Downtown Victoria best!!!
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Thank you for sharing your experience! We’re so glad to hear that Mark made your long day enjoyable and fun. The Butchart Gardens are truly beautiful, and it’s great that you loved exploring Downtown Victoria. We hope to see you on another tour soon!
jane_E, Sep 2025
Nice trip driver mark was lovely and gave us alot of information on bus
Early starts and alot of travelling on bus and ferry .We then only got 2 hours gardens and 1.5 hours in Victoria which definitely was not enough time
I do think travelling times and how long in each place should be on website
Did not think trip was worth the money for what we got out of it
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Thank you for sharing your feedback. We’re glad to hear you enjoyed your driver, Mark, and found his commentary informative. We understand that the travel time on the bus and ferry can feel long, and that some guests would like more time at Butchart Gardens and in Victoria. Please note that the itinerary is posted in the information guide prior to booking. Victoria is on an island, so travel there requires a combination of driving and ferry time.
We do our best to balance travel and sightseeing time, but your comments are appreciated and will be considered as we review our itineraries. Thank you again for your feedback.
Jane_A, Sep 2025
We absolutely enjoyed the excursion!Our guide,Dan, was very engaging and gave great commentary -a wealth of insight! Be aware that it was a very long day!
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Thank you for your wonderful feedback! We’re thrilled to hear you enjoyed the excursion and that Dan made the day engaging and informative. We appreciate your note about the length of the day—it’s helpful for future guests to know.
Rima_T, Sep 2025
First of all I want to compliment our driver Dan he was so knowledgeable and very detail oriented. We feel like we knew so much about Vancouver by end of trip. For the trip itself be prepared for a long day much of it on the bus or ferry. Although the ferry ride is part of the scenic trip. The one opportunity for improvement on the trip would be to have more time at the gardens which could have been taken out of the time at Victoria downtown. We felt we did not have enough time at the gardens. We wanted to have the famous tea at the restaurant which when we checked its a 45 min wait to get a table which was not enough time to see the garden and have tea in our allotted 2 hour stop at the gardens. You really need a good 3 hours to enjoy the gardens so you are not rushing through it.
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Thank you for sharing such detailed feedback! We’re delighted to hear that Dan made your tour so informative and enjoyable. We appreciate your comments regarding the timing at Butchart Gardens and Victoria downtown—your suggestions about allowing more time at the gardens are very helpful, and we’ll certainly take them into consideration. We’re glad you enjoyed the scenic ferry ride and hope to welcome you on another tour in the future!
Pawel_A, Sep 2025
12-13hrs trip just to see two places. Gardens were worth the visit, but i'd trade 30m there for more time in Victoria - 1h15m is hardly enough for a few photos and a quick bite. 5min walking distance at most.
The whole trip was conducted very well though.
The real highlight was the history, background and other commentary by our guide/driver Justin: on-spot, informative and funny!
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Thank you for sharing your feedback! We’re glad you enjoyed the trip overall and that Justin made the day memorable with his knowledge, humor, and informative commentary. We appreciate your thoughts on the timing in Victoria versus the Gardens—while the itinerary is designed to balance travel time and sightseeing, your input is very helpful. We hope to welcome you on another adventure soon!
Suzanne_B, Sep 2025
Well worth the trip to see Butchart gardens and Victoria. Best to do a tour and not try this on your own. Mark, our tour guide, was awesome.
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Thank you for your review! We’re thrilled to hear you enjoyed Butchart Gardens and Victoria, and that Mark made the tour such a great experience. We completely agree—having a guide really makes the day smoother and more enjoyable!
Melinda_C, Sep 2025
This was a great trip. Mark, our driver and guide was on time and took care of everything. We enjoyed his commentary and in all, it was just a great day. Well worth the money
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Thank you for your kind words! We’re so glad you had a great day with Mark—he’ll be happy to know his commentary and care made the trip even more enjoyable. Wonderful to hear you found it well worth it, and we’d love to welcome you again on another adventure!
David_R, Sep 2025
Our driver, Mark, was a Vancouver native and provided a lot of information on Vancouver, Butchart Gardens and Victoria along the drive. He was very personable and made the trip a pleasure.
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Thank you so much for your wonderful review! We’re delighted to hear that Mark made your trip such a pleasure with his knowledge and personable approach. As a Vancouver native, he truly enjoys sharing insights about the city, Victoria, and The Butchart Gardens. We’ll be sure to share your kind words with him, and we hope to welcome you on another adventure soon!
Priyanka_N, Sep 2025
Most of the day is spent on the bus and ferry. Total of 3 hours in garden and Victoria. The garden was beautiful but the overall trip was not the best use of time.
Response from Host, Sep 2025
We’re glad you found the gardens beautiful, though we’re sorry the balance of travel time to sightseeing didn’t feel ideal. We know it’s a long day with the bus and ferry, but we hope the views and experiences along the way added to your journey. Since Victoria is on the island, travel time is necessary, and we aim to make the most of the itinerary while staying within our driver’s legal driving limits. Thank you for sharing your experience, and we hope to welcome you again on another adventure!
mariaso, Sep 2025
It’s a long day, but well worth it! Deonne (Dion?) our driver was professional, efficient and knowledgeable. Kept us entertained and on track for the whole trip.
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Thank you for your wonderful review! We’re glad to hear that Dion made your long day enjoyable with professionalism, knowledge, and great entertainment along the way. It’s fantastic to know the trip was worth it, and we hope to welcome you on another adventure soon!
Gretchen_L, Aug 2025
Why?? You know that I ended up not going; my flight got in so late that I was too exhausted to take a 13 hour tour, yet you are still nagging me to do a review of my experience. So here it is: I paid for an expensive tour, due to factors beyond my control I was too exhausted to take it, and now I am nagged to review it. If you wanted a *good* review of my experience you coulld give me even a partial credit on a future tour.
Response from Host, Aug 2025
Thank you for your feedback. Please note that review requests are automatically sent to all customers in our system. We understand that flight delays are unavoidable. However, we did not receive any communication from you—no email, phone call, or voicemail—so we were unaware that you would not be attending the tour. The driver reported you as a no-show, and it was only then that we learned you were too tired due to your flight delay.
We completely understand that circumstances can be beyond your control, but we hope you also understand that we could have offered that seat to another guest or arranged for you to join the tour on another day. After our brief phone conversation, we did not receive any further communication from you until this review.
Steve_S, Aug 2025
Incredible garden, great visit to Victoria. Maybe a better system when passengers are late for pickup, so as to not penalize all other travelers. Dan was great host and guide.
Response from Host, Aug 2025
Thank you for your feedback! We’re glad you enjoyed the Gardens and your visit to Victoria, and that Dan made the experience memorable. We appreciate your suggestion regarding late pickups and will take it into consideration as we continue to improve our tours.
Patrick_A, Aug 2025
Beautiful. VIATOR made the trip details, connections , trip guide Dion to be the best experience we could have. Long day so be aware of that. The garden site has restrooms, gift shop and lunch area Property is supremely clean and maintained.
Response from Host, Aug 2025
Thank you for your wonderful review! We’re thrilled to hear you had such a positive experience with Dion and that everything—from the Gardens to the trip details—met your expectations. We appreciate your note about the long day and are glad you found the Gardens well-maintained and enjoyable.
Teresa_R, Aug 2025
This is a long day, but it's worth every minute. The bus is comfortable, the ferry ride was really pleasant, the Butchart Gardens were fabulous, and the stop in Victoria was fun. Don't miss it. Our driver, Dion, was excellent, narrating most of the way.
Response from Host, Aug 2025
Thank you for your fantastic review! We’re so glad you enjoyed the full-day experience—from the bus and ferry ride to the Butchart Gardens and Victoria. Dion will be thrilled to hear your kind words. We truly appreciate your recommendation!
Virginia_C, Aug 2025
Mark was a very fun tour guide. He gave many recommendations, lots of historical data on Vancouver, and funny (mostly) jokes. He's a keeper.
Response from Host, Aug 2025
Thank you for your kind review! We’re delighted to hear you enjoyed Mark’s guidance, his recommendations, and sense of humor. We’ll be sure to pass along your compliments—he’s thrilled to hear he made such a positive impression!
Kathy_R, Aug 2025
Very clean, comfortable travel. A lot of travel time but the ferry was very excellent. Accommodations were very clean.
Response from Host, Aug 2025
Thank you for your review! We’re glad to hear you enjoyed the ferry, and that both the travel and accommodations were comfortable and clean. We appreciate your feedback and hope to welcome you on another tour soon!
Adelaide_M, Aug 2025
This tour is perfect! We had Dan as our tour guide and he was incredible. He has so much knowledge of the area, kept us up to date with the times and activities throughout the day and was very considerate of all guests on board. He told us where each washroom was, where the best place to grab a bite was and other tips about each place. We had 2 hours at the gardens and 1.5hrs in downtown Victoria which was ample amount of time for both. We chose to eat lunch and dinner on the ferry over to maximise our time and that worked really well. We had a fantastic day and we would love to commend Dan for his service and knowledge 😊 thank you so much!!
Response from Host, Aug 2025
Thank you so much for your wonderful review! We’re delighted to hear you had such a fantastic day exploring Victoria and the gardens. We’ll be sure to pass along your kind words to Dan—he’ll be thrilled to know his knowledge, organization, and care made your experience even more enjoyable.
We’re glad the timing worked out well for you and that you made the most of your visit. We truly appreciate you taking the time to share your experience, and we hope to welcome you back on another tour in the future!
Jane_F, Aug 2025
Great day! The gardens were beautiful. Even though it was rainy, the flowers were amazing. Victoria is such a delightful city. Mark was delightful!
Response from Host, Aug 2025
Thank you for your kind review! We’re delighted to hear you enjoyed the gardens and the city of Victoria, even in the rain. It’s wonderful that Mark made your tour even more enjoyable. We hope to welcome you on another tour soon!
Sandra_C, Aug 2025
Viator was easy for booking this tour. Plenty of information was sent prior to our tour. Our driver, Justin, was very personable and was a great guide and story teller. He was very courteous and drove the bus with ease and confidence.
The Butchart Gardens were amazing. I wished we had more time to explore. Justin got us back to Vancouver and our drop off place safe and sound. Thanks.
Response from Host, Aug 2025
Thank you so much for your kind words! We're delighted to hear that booking the tour through Viator was easy and that you received all the information you needed beforehand. It’s great to know that Justin provided a fantastic experience with his storytelling and professionalism. We’re glad you enjoyed the beautiful Butchart Gardens, and we agree—it’s a place that deserves more time to explore! We’ll be sure to pass along your compliments to Justin. Thanks again for choosing us, and we hope to welcome you on another adventure soon!
Ilene_R, Aug 2025
Victoria ferry is 1.5 hours each way.and it takes about an hour to get to ferry from downtown Vancouver.
Response from Host, Aug 2025
Thank you for your feedback!
You're absolutely right — the ferry ride between Tsawwassen (Vancouver) and Swartz Bay (Victoria) takes approximately 1.5 hours each way. Additionally, the drive from downtown Vancouver to the ferry terminal is about an hour, depending on traffic.
While it does make for a long day, we do our best to make the journey as smooth and comfortable as possible, and we're glad you chose to experience Victoria with us!
Melanie_R, Aug 2025
Nice tour, but a bit rushed. Justin was however a great guide! We understand Victoria Island is far from Vancouver and leaves no choice but to be a bit rushed. We would have appreciated a bit more time in Victoria, we only had 1 hour and a half. Maybe it could be possible to depart a bit earlier or come back a bit later. Despite this the tour was great, everything went smoothly in terms of pick up, tickets, admission and bus driving.
Response from Host, Aug 2025
Thank you so much for your thoughtful feedback! We’re delighted to hear that you enjoyed the tour and that Justin made your experience memorable with his excellent guiding.
We completely understand your wish for more time in Victoria—it’s such a beautiful city with so much to see! Unfortunately, due to ferry schedules and driver hour regulations, we are limited in how much time we can allocate there. However, your suggestion of adjusting departure or return times is very valuable, and we’ll certainly keep it in mind as we continually review our itineraries.
We’re glad to hear that everything went smoothly with the logistics, and we hope to welcome you on another adventure in the future—perhaps with a bit more time to explore!
Wendy_F, Aug 2025
Senan, our Irish driver/knowledgeable guide, was a delight. We learned about the history and highlights of Vancouver & surrounding area, Vancouver Island, Butchart Gardens and Victoria. Senan also provided clear coach etiquette/rules and clear "be back to the coach by" times which I greatly appreciated. His information was interspersed with quick-witted humor.
The coach seats were comfortable and had a much-appreciated drink holder and back of seat webbed storage area. We were able to keep items on the coach as we enjoyed the ferry rides, Butchart Gardens and our time in Victoria.
Overall, an excellent choice for experiencing Vancouver Island.
Response from Host, Aug 2025
Thank you so much for your thoughtful and detailed review! We’re thrilled to hear that Senan made your day with his knowledge, humor, and clear communication—it’s wonderful when a guide makes the entire experience seamless and enjoyable. We’re also glad you found the coach comfortable and appreciated the little touches that made your journey more relaxing. Thank you for choosing us to explore Vancouver Island. We hope to welcome you back on another adventure soon!
From $210.17
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Victoria & Butchart Gardens Tour with Gulf Islands Cruise Ferry
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