Museums and galleries in Victoria

Museums and galleries in Victoria

1. See

   Art Gallery of Greater Victoria

   Art gallery with some notable works from BC artist, Emily Carr, and one of the largest collections of Asian art in Canada. There are also rotating exhibitions. The outside grounds include an Asian garden and the only authentic Japanese Shinto Shrine in North America.

   Mon-Wed Fri Sat 10AM-5PM, Thu 10AM-9PM, Sun noon-5PM (closed on Mondays mid-Sep to mid-May)·$13 (adult), $11 (senior, student), $2.50 (youth 6-17)

2. See

   Craigdarroch Castle Historical Museum

   This castle was built in 1890 by a wealthy and powerful Scottish family who at that time owned a quarter of Vancouver Island. Great architecture. Its 39 rooms are still furnished with Victorian-era furniture and the building is noted for its stain-glassed windows and intricate woodwork. The castle had five different occupants before it was repurposed as a museum in 1979. Its exhibits and educational panels cover a vast range of Canadian history linked to those occupants, including Canada's equivalent of the Gilded Age, Canada's involvement in World War I, the development of Victoria's early suburbs, and the evolution of the educational system on Vancouver Island.

   Mid-June to early September: 9AM-7PM; other times of the year: 10AM-4:30PM·$20.60 (adult), 19.60 (seniors) $14.80 (student), $10.00 (child 6-12)

3. See

   Emily Carr House

   Emily Carr is one of Canada's greatest and most loved artists. This is her childhood home, which has become a heritage site and museum on her art, writing and life.

   May - Sep: Tue-Sat·$6.75 (adult), $5.75 (student/senior), $4.50 (child 6-18), $17 (family)

4. See

   Maritime Museum of BC

   Small museum with exhibits relating to Canada's or British Columbia's maritime history. There's also a gift shop with model ships, books, caps, prints and all things related to boats.

   Late May-early Sept: daily 10AM-5PM; other times: Tue-Sat 10AM-4PM·$10 (adult), $8 (senior/student), $5 (youth 12-17)

5. See

   Royal British Columbia Museum

   This tells BC story, especially from 1850 to 1920. It has amazing exhibits, and is easily worth half a day. There are three permanent galleries: Modern History, story of the European settlement; First Peoples, pre-contact and post-contact; and Natural History, mainly oceans, large animals, and climate. All are explained with phenomenal immersive exhibits.

   Daily 9AM–5PM (10AM-5PM in winter)·$32 (adult), $22 (senior, youth 6-18), $19 (student 19+ with ID). Prices vary for special exhibitions

6. See Not mapped

   IMAX Theatre

   The largest IMAX screen in British Columbia with a mix of Hollywood feature films and traditional IMAX films.

   $9-12, Hollywood feature films are an extra $3.25. Tickets are not included with regular museum admission but discounted combo tickets are available

Listings from the Wikivoyage guide to Victoria (CC BY-SA 4.0).