Date: Friday, May 16th
Itinerary: Victoria, BC at night
Highlight: Visiting the Craigdarroch Castle
Favorite eats: Watermelon and steak
Drink of the day: Rose of Syrah
Weather: Overcast
Friday was our final day. We had one last day and one last night to live it up on our cruise. Or relax on our cruise, in our case:)
This was the one morning we didn’t get up suuuuper early. Since we wouldn’t arrive in Victoria until the evening- we couldn’t resist a little extra sleep in the morning. We had breakfast in the buffet, and relaxed for most of the morning. Look what was playing on the “movie under the stars” screen!
It’s Dirty Dancing! I know I’ve seen it a million times, but if it wasn’t raining I would’ve totally sat out and watched it! For lunch we had pizza again, because I really enjoyed it the first time we tried it. In the afternoon we relaxed in our room and finished our Rose. We also did most of our packing, since I knew we wouldn’t want to do it after Victoria that night, and there wouldn’t be much time to do it in the morning.
The dining hall was open a little bit earlier to allow everyone to eat before the ship docked in Victoria at 7. We were worried there would be a wait, so we went a good fifteen minutes before it opened and there was already a line formed. Thankfully it wasn’t a big line yet, so we were seated quickly when they let us in. We were seated with some older couples, one of whom were from the TINY town my hubby and I are from! Really? What are the odds!
For an appetizer I tried the shrimp cocktail which was soooo good, and I also tried a cold apple soup. It was different than anything I’ve ever tried, but really good and refreshing. For dinner, I ordered the steak which was delicious. For dessert I sampled some of their mini pastries.
Our ship was a little behind schedule, so we didn’t get to Victoria until after 7. We had booked a bus tour of Victoria because it was the only tour we could find that took you to the Craigdarroch Castle- which was the one thing we wanted to see. Our tour group met in the theater, and we were informed of how to go about getting off the ship and going through Canadian customs. It sounded like it was going to be a pain, but it really wasn’t. Our bus was waiting for us right outside. Hello, Canada!
We were all giggles and smiles on the bus:) Our bus driver was really friendly and knowledgeable, and told us all about the areas of Victoria as we drove through them.
Our first stop was the castle, which was actually closed- but they left it open for our tour. It was SO cool! It was dark though, so sorry about the poor photo quality…
“Welcome ever smiles and farewell goes out sighing”
The staircase, looking up!! So crazy!
Great view of Victoria from one of the upper levels… My hubby was ready to move in! He would LOVE to live in a castle!
After an hour at the castle, we headed back to the bus and continued on our tour. We drove up to Mt. Tolmie, where we got out to see a great view of Victoria all lit up.
After Mt. Tolmie, we drove through downtown Victoria, and I fell in love with the city. There were so many cute shops, cafes, restaurants, and hotels- I definitely want to come back for a visit. I’m actually trying to plan a trip back for the near future…
We stopped at another spot to get out for a bit and take in the city views. Since our ship got in late, our bus tour turned into a night tour, but it totally worked. We enjoyed it a lot.
We got back on the ship around 11, I wanna say. While bed was totally calling our names, we decided to head up to the Skywalker Nightclub and check it out. The decor was a tad outdated, but it was quite large with lots of sunken booth seating and a dance floor in the middle. Plus, it had great views as it was really high up. We stayed for a drink, walked around, checked out the views of Victoria, and then headed back to our room to call it a night.
And, that was the end of our last night on the cruise! The following morning we were all packed and ready to depart the ship bright and early in Seattle. Our trip was truly memorable- I wouldn’t have changed a thing.
Stay tuned for a recap post with links to each day of our trip!
That castle is incredible! And the shot of the rose on the ship… Wow. I have honestly never considered taking a cruise before but I can only imagine that is a breathtaking way to see Alaska! (And what a view for some wine drinking, oh my!)
Oh, absolutely! I didn’t really consider taking a cruise either, but for visiting Alaska it was perfect!