The most underrated city in Canada?

When you plan a trip to Canada, the first few destinations that would likely come to your mind are Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Niagara Falls, and Banff National Park… but have you considered Victoria, BC?

Victoria is the capital city of British Columbia, located on the Vancouver Island—the largest island on the West Coast of North America. Even though the Pacific Northwest is known for its drizzle, due to the rain shadow effect, Victoria is usually sunnier than Vancouver, BC or Seattle. We visited the city during the American Thanksgiving in late November 2023, and it was sunny and relatively warm the whole time we were there.

Victoria is between a town and a city—it’s cosmopolitan enough to be a city while extremely walkable filled with friendly pedestrians and reminds you of a quaint little town. It’s also known for being the most English city in North America with its high emphasis on the tea culture and so many Victorian style buildings.

When we travel, we like to walk around the city and try to feel like locals—we must say that Victoria locals have it good—the city is so pedestrian-friendly and well-designed—the concept of urban living thrives there. You have the majestic parliament building that lights up at night, the inner harbor that cuts through downtown where there are ferries and seaplanes that can take you to the city of Vancouver on mainland Canada, as well as ferries that can take you directly to downtown Seattle or the Olympic Peninsula of Washington State. Everywhere you turn, you can see historical buildings, cute local shops, great restaurants and tea houses, beautiful condos, and most impressively, the Salish Sea.

We lived in Toronto for a while during college, and had frequently visited Montreal. Toronto is always seen as the New York of Canada and Montreal is treated as the Paris of North America… But Victoria is its own thing—there is no comparison or substitute, it’s just Victoria, BC. It’s so unique and I wish more people would visit it and get to experience the magic themselves.

When I was doing research on Victoria, I learnt that when the US and Canada were negotiating the border, Americans really wanted the city—I’m not surprised at all—who wouldn’t—it’s really one of the most gorgeous places I have ever visited, and I feel so lucky to live so close to it even though I have to cross an international border to get there.

Parliament at night

The famous Fairmont hotel at sunset

Streets of Victoria