Butchart Gardens, Victoria BC...

[deep1]

Most anybody  who has met me or followed my writings can tell I really am not a flower kind of guy. More like the type who's rough and tough and eats crabs while still in the shell! I am however not so selfish as to forget my loved ones needs. Its her cruise as much as mine. We have an odd timed stop at Victoria, British Columbia on an upcoming Alaska cruise. We are there 5-10 pm???  There is big fancy botanical gardens there she wants to see badly as something for her and to fil a promise to her mom who just passed away earlier this week. 

There are options on the cruise planner that are both lengthy and expensive. They leave at 5:30 and get back painfully close to departure time. They run about $100 PP ($200 pp if you want to have tea there.....). Admission to the place at peak season is $39 a person. Kinda big mark up? I know includes bus but bit steep.  Don't need many (4)hours... could get our fill in an hour or less.  That would also let us grab a bite to eat someplace or even back on ship. Has anybody taxied there from ship?  

Another issue creeps in regarding their site and posted hours. We arrive on a Sunday. Hours show til 5:PM. We wouldn't even get there I'm thinking til about 6??? Do they just open for the bus tours? I could use all the info I can get. Lost entirely around flowers. Couldn't tell the difference between a cactus and tulip....

[Ryan79]

If you aren’t part of the excursion, you won’t be allowed to enter after hours. That will take the taxi out of your equation completely. No, they won’t let you get a bite to eat “someplace”. You will be on a full bus of people, how would that work? There is nothing to eat for miles from the gardens. Just because an hour is good for you, doesn’t mean they are going to cut everyone else’s trip there short. 

[deep1]

Not suggesting cutting anyone's time short or altering excursion. Wondering if there is an option to taking the excursion that we could still see the park. 

 

[RoseofTX]

We did our own thing years ago, but through a private company.  It is quite a ways out so you would probably need to arrange a taxi that would wait.  But as you note, the official closing time on Sunday is 5pm so it is closed even before the tour leaves. The park officially closes 1 hours after that, so whatever they have arranged is a special arrangement.  The place has a lot to offer besides flowers as it is a quite a marvel how they transformed this area.  It is kind of a shame that they have scheduled this mandatory stop with such short hours (a friend of ours on a Carnival ship gets into port even later than yours), and you don't get the opportunity to actually visit Victoria.  

[Surrounded by water.]

It's about 45 minutes from the cruise terminal to the gardens. I know what you mean about getting dragged around to gardens. Not exactly top 10 things to do in my life but as my wife is an avid gardener I've seen a few in our travels. Butchart Gardens is probably one of the better ones. I think you can burn up a couple hours there fairly easily. Not sure if you're heading there soon but it's fairly early in the season for that garden. 

[Cactus527]

On 3/26/2023 at 5:52 PM, deep1 said:

Lost entirely around flowers. Couldn't tell the difference between a cactus and tulip....

Did you know that prickly pear cactus have "tulips?" These are around my neighborhood (not my photo).  #confusionabounds

[deep1]

8 hours ago, Cactus527 said:

Did you know that prickly pear cactus have "tulips?" These are around my neighborhood (not my photo).  #confusionabounds

I actually had prickly pear growing at my houses in New Jersey and in Islamorada in the Florida Keys. We had transplanted some in Jersey that came from dunes near a beach. They thrived I guess 40 years until Hurricane Sandy flooded the area with salty, silty, tainted, river water. 

[deep1]

On 4/6/2023 at 6:06 PM, Surrounded by water. said:

It's about 45 minutes from the cruise terminal to the gardens. I know what you mean about getting dragged around to gardens. Not exactly top 10 things to do in my life but as my wife is an avid gardener I've seen a few in our travels. Butchart Gardens is probably one of the better ones. I think you can burn up a couple hours there fairly easily. Not sure if you're heading there soon but it's fairly early in the season for that garden. 

Late August and in the evening... 

 

[foxrunner]

I'm a nonflower dude, and I was impressed. The bus driver told this story " A 20 something year old storms on to the bus with a complete attitude, yells at me they better serve beer in that stupid garden.  The bus driver replied , yes they do as well as a full wine and liquor licenses. On the bus ride back to the ship the driver asked how many beers did you have to the rude fellow. He reply none that place was cool."

@deep1 no fishing in the koi ponds though!