Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Victoria and
Surroundings
Is
Victoria
really more English than
England? Immigrants loyal to the British
Crown who chose this city to start their
lives over brought with them some of their
customs and habits, giving Victoria its char-
acteristic British cachet. This is still a North
American city, however, and along with all
the English, it has welcomed large numbers
of Chinese, Japanese, Scots, Irish, Germans,
French Canadians and Americans.
Located at the southern tip of Vancouver
Island, Victoria is the capital of British Columbia
and has a population of nearly 350,000 scat-
tered across a large urban area. Its harbour
looks out onto the Strait of Juan de Fuca,
a natural border with Washington State.
Victoria is set against a series of small moun-
tains no higher than 300m in altitude, and its
waterfront stretches several kilometres.
The downtown area rises up behind the port,
whose waters are shared by ships, yachts and
ferries. Like a railway station surrounded by
yards, the port is the focal point; the squares,
hotels, museums and parliament buildings are
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