Esquimalt
The Township of Esquimalt is a municipality at the southern tip of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada.
The Township of Esquimalt is a municipality at the southern tip of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. It is bordered to the east by the provincial capital, Victoria, to the south by the Strait of Juan de Fuca, to the west by Esquimalt Harbour and Royal Roads, to the northwest by the New Songhees 1A Indian reserve and the town of View Royal, and to the north by a narrow inlet of water called the Gorge, across which is the district municipality of Saanich. It is almost tangential to Esquimalt 1 Indian Reserve near Admirals Road. It is one of the 13 municipalities of Greater Victoria and part of the Capital Regional District.
Adapted from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Worth seeing in and around Esquimalt
10 places within 25 km that the world writes about, in the order of how widely: the ones a visitor has heard of first, then the ones only a local would name.
- 01British Columbia Parliament Buildings
The British Columbia Parliament Buildings are in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, and are home to the lieutenant governor and the Legislative Assembly. The speaker and the sergeant-at-arms are amongst those responsible for the legislative precinct, which by statute include the Parliament Buildings and grounds.
3 km · Parliament building complex in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada · Wikipedia - 02Legislative Assembly of British Columbia
The Legislative Assembly of British Columbia is the deliberative assembly of the Legislature of British Columbia, in the province of British Columbia, Canada. The legislature also includes the lieutenant governor of British Columbia.
3 km · single house of the Parliament of British Columbia · Wikipedia - 03St. Andrew's Cathedral
St. Andrew's Cathedral is the Roman Catholic cathedral for the Diocese of Victoria in British Columbia, Canada.
3.3 km · church building in British Columbia, Canada · Wikipedia - 04Royal British Columbia Museum
The Royal British Columbia Museum, founded in 1886, is a history museum in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. The "Royal" title was approved by Queen Elizabeth II and bestowed by Prince Philip in 1987, to coincide with a royal tour of that year.
3.2 km · museum in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada · Wikipedia - 05Beacon Hill Park
Beacon Hill Park is a 75 ha park located along the shore of Juan de Fuca Strait in Victoria, British Columbia that is popular both with tourists and locals. The park contains a number of amenities including woodland and shoreline trails, two playgrounds, a waterpark, playing fields, a children's farm, tennis and pickleball courts, many ponds, and landscaped gardens.
3.8 km · park in British Columbia, Canada · Wikipedia - 06Fisgard Lighthouse
Fisgard Lighthouse National Historic Site, on Fisgard Island at the mouth of Esquimalt Harbour in Colwood, British Columbia, is the site of Fisgard Lighthouse, the first lighthouse on the west coast of Canada. The lighthouse was constructed in 1859–60 by the British colonial government of the Colony of Vancouver Island, and it shone its first light on 16 November 1860.
3.1 km · 19th century lighthouse in British Columbia, Canada · Wikipedia - 07Fort Rodd Hill National Historic Site
Fort Rodd Hill National Historic Site is a 19th-century coastal artillery fort located on Esquimalt Harbour in Colwood, British Columbia, Canada. It was constructed in the 1890s by the Royal Marine Artillery to defend the Esquimalt Naval Base.
3.3 km · National historic Site of Canada located in British Columbia · Wikipedia - 08Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre
Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre is an indoor arena located in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, and is the largest arena in British Columbia outside of Vancouver. It is primarily used for ice hockey, previously the home arena of the Victoria Salmon Kings of the ECHL, and currently the home of the Victoria Royals of the Western Hockey League.
3.3 km · Multi-use indoor arena in Victoria, British Columbia · Wikipedia - 09Thunderbird Park
Thunderbird Park in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, is next to the Royal British Columbia Museum and home to many totem poles and other First Nation monuments. The park takes its name from the mythological Thunderbird of Indigenous North American cultures, which is depicted on many totem poles.
3.2 km · park in British Columbia, Canada · Wikipedia - 10Point Ellice Bridge Disaster
The Point Ellice Bridge disaster occurred on May 26, 1896, in Victoria, British Columbia, when a streetcar crowded with 143 passengers on their way to attend celebrations of Queen Victoria's birthday crashed through Point Ellice Bridge into the Upper Harbour. 55 people were killed in the accident, making it one of the worst transit disasters in British Columbia.
2.1 km · bridge in Canada · Wikipedia
Ranked by the number of language editions of Wikipedia with an article on each, from Wikidata; the sentences are the openings of those articles, CC BY-SA 4.0.
What Wikivoyage says to see
Many of Victoria's attractions (and tourist activity) are in or around the Inner Harbour and downtown, including the Parliament Buildings, the Empress Hotel, the Royal BC Museum and Beacon Hill Park. If you're pressed for time, it would be hard to go wrong spending your time there.
- 01Beacon Hill Park
Douglas St & Dallas Rd (head south on Douglas St from downtown; or take Bus #3).
- 02British Columbia Parliament Buildings
501 Belleville St (at the Inner Harbour),.
- 03Chinatown
500-600 block of Fisgard St (Fisgard St, between Store & Government).
- 04Emily Carr House
207 Government St (a 5-10 minute walk south of the Inner Harbour on Government St),.
- 05Maritime Museum of BC
634 Humboldt St (inside the Nootka Court building at the corner of Humboldt & Douglas),.
- 06Miniature World
649 Humboldt St (at the back of the Empress Hotel),.
From Wikivoyage: Esquimalt, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.
Things to do
Whale watching is a popular activity in Victoria. Three pods of orcas (killer whales) have feeding grounds between Victoria and the mainland, plus grey whales, humpback whales and minke whales migrate through the Georgia Strait at different times of the year. Some companies offer whale watching tours year-round, but the best time to see whales is considered April to October.
- 01BC Whale Tours
Winter tours (Nov-Feb) are run on demand.
- 02Eagle Wing Tours Whale Watching
12 Erie St (at Fisherman's Wharf), toll-free: +1-800-708-9488.
- 03Five Star Whale Watching
645 Humboldt St, toll-free: +1-800-634-9617.
- 04Orca Spirit Adventures
Offers covered vessels with indoor seating, liquor license, and onboard washrooms, as well as open Zodiac tours.
- 05Prince of Whales
Three sailings daily in Jul & Aug, one sailing daily at other times.
- 06SpringTide Whale Watching and Eco Tours
Multiple daily departures Apr-Oct, winter tours are offered once daily weather and demand permitting.
From Wikivoyage: Esquimalt, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.
Where to eat
Victoria has the second-highest number of restaurants per capita of all North American cities! The waterfront tourist area is home to a wide variety of restaurants and eateries, including several English-style pubs. Try the fish and chips or shepherds pie for a taste of England in Canada.
- 01Bent Mast Pub and Restaurant
512 Simcoe St (at Five Corners, in James Bay),.
- 02Garrick’s Head Pub
A simple pub — and “One of the oldest English pubs in Canada” according to their website (est.
- 03Irish Times
Wonderful pub meals, good beer and lots of seating.
- 04Maude Hunter's Pub
3810 Shelbourne St,.
- 05Spinnakers Brewpub
Restaurant open 8AM-11PM, taproom open 11AM-11PM.
From Wikivoyage: Esquimalt, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.
Getting to Esquimalt
- Airports
- Victoria (YYJ), 24 km · Vancouver (YVR), 86 km · Seattle–Tacoma (SEA), 137 km
- Stations
- Victoria Inner Harbour Airport, 2.7 km · Esquimalt Harbour, 2 km · Victoria station, 2.6 km · Esquimalt Airport, 400 m
- Vancouver → Esquimalt93 km · quickest by road, 5h · C$19–25
- Kelowna → Esquimalt328 km · quickest by air, 5h 2m · C$150–240
- Seattle → Esquimalt122 km · quickest by ferry, 4h 15m · $45–132
- Plan a tripFrom anywhereThe planner compares every way there from wherever you are.
Road and air are today’s quick answer; timetabled trains, buses and ferries load on the results page from the operators’ feeds.
No local-transport research exists yet for Esquimalt
Our researched notes are written from a sourced entry: every shared taxi, boat and village bus with its operator, its rule, its fare and the year we saw it, and what could not be confirmed. Nobody has done that work for Esquimalt. What is above is what we hold from open sources; nothing here pretends to be more.
- Get in}} Victoria (Swartz Bay) ferry terminal is served by BC Transit.
- Get inRoute 70 operates between Victoria (Swartz Bay) ferry terminal and downtown Victoria via downtown Sidney and McTavish Exchange.
- Get inRoute 72 operates between Victoria (Swartz Bay) ferry terminal and downtown Victoria via downtown Sidney and McTavish Exchange.
- Get inAbout half an hour drive north of Victoria, there are ferry services in Sidney.
- Get inOperates routes from: Vancouver (Tsawwassen) ferry terminal (1 hour 35 minutes crossing.
From Wikivoyage: Victoria (British Columbia), CC BY-SA. Not yet checked by us; that article was last edited 2026-09.
- 0143 km
- 0259 km
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- 04108 km
- 05176 km
If you know how people move in Esquimalt – the stand, the rule, the fare – tell us, and the note gets an entry.
Next door to Esquimalt
- Victoriacapital city of the province of British Columbia, Canada3.2 km
- Capital Regional Districtadministrative district in British Columbia, Canada3 km
- View Royaltown in British Columbia, Canada3 km
- Greater Victoriahuman settlement in Canada3.8 km
- Fort Victoriahuman settlement in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada2.8 km
- Fleming Baybay in Capital Regional District, British Columbia, Canada1.5 km