Practical Information
Greater Victoria, with a population of
about 350,000, is on the extreme southern end of Vancouver Island on
the west coast of Canada. As the raven flies, it's 113 km
(83 miles) north-west of Seattle, or 144 km (89 miles) south-west
Vancouver. The City of Victoria is the capital of the province of
British Columbia, and Greater Victoria is one of the most popular tourist destinations in
Canada, even in winter. For example, world-famous Butchart Gardens is open
year-round. For more information about Victoria, its history,
climate, etc., click here.
Transportation
By Air
Victoria International Airport will be the main entry point to Victoria
for the majority of conference attendees, with dozens of flights per
day from many points in Canada and the U.S., including direct flights
from Seattle and Vancouver. The airport is approximately 28 km
(17
miles) from downtown Victoria and the conference venue, and the
drive time to/from the airport is about 30 minutes. A taxi
costs
about
$65. Alternatively, Akal Airporter
operates a frequent shuttle service between downtown hotels and the
airport for approximately $19 per person (with discounts for groups of
3 or more).
Downtown Victoria on the inner harbour also hosts a small
air terminal for float plane service between Victoria and Seattle (Kenmore Airlines), and
between Victoria and Vancouver (Harbour
Air and WestCoast Air).
These only operate in daytime, with a reduced number of flights during
the winter, but provide downtown to downtown service.
By Car
Attendees driving to the conference have only two options for getting
to the island at this time of year. BC Ferries
operates a vehicle/passenger ferry from Tsawwassen (Vancouver) to
Schwartz Bay (about 32 km (20 miles) from downtown Victoria)
approximately every two hours from about 6am to 10pm.
Alternatively, Black Ball Ferries
has a vehicle/passenger ferry operating out of Port Angeles, WA (about
140km/85mi west of Seattle) directly to Victoria's inner harbour, once
or twice per day.
By Bus
In principle, one can take the Vancouver
city transit to the ferry terminal at Tsawwassen, then the Victoria transit to
downtown Victoria.
Pacific Coach Lines
run frequent trips between Vancouver and Victoria. The trip takes
about 4 hours including the ferry.
QuickShuttle and Greyhound both offer shuttle/bus
service between Seattle and Vancouver.
By Boat
There is no direct
passenger ferry service between Victoria and Seattle or Vancouver at
this time of year, other than the vehicle/passenger ferries operating
out of Port Angeles, WA and Tsawwassen, BC.
Victoria Weather in January
Victoria has
by far the
mildest
climate in Canada, and boasts the lowest rainfall in the Pacific
north-west and the most days of sunshine. Unfortunately, January
tends to be the dampest month of the year, with an average of 16 days
of rain, so an umbrella is definitely called for. Nevertheless,
the temperature is mild (averaging around 6° C (43° F),
and very rarely below freezing). Snow is rare in Victoria.
