September 13, 2005 | Tips from Us >
Victoria, Sightseeing Tours
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I’m getting the hang of this family vacation stuff. Here’s how I figure it: find a real gem of a place and stay there all day; it’s appeases the kids and it is way easier.
All Fun Recreation Park is about 20 minutes from downtown Victoria and it is definitely a place where you can hang with the family all day. It is in the most unsuspecting place, amidst construction and what looks to be a gravel pit so if you are driving there and are thinking you must have made a wrong turn, keep going, you really are headed for a day of fun.
Tip: Get to the park when they first open. You will have a shot at the slides before a majority of the people arrives and the lineups start plus you can claim some prime real estate with your blanket on the picnic grounds. We planted ourselves right in front of the main pool, watching everyone plop off their slides into the water. I found it odd that spectators still have to pay an admittance fee, albeit considerably reduced. I guess when you get to sit and make fun of all the bad landings (especially the adults) you get your $6.00 worth.
I’ve discovered that kids love to teach adults the ropes. I was given a crash course in sliding which, by the way, just happened to be the exact opposite of the posted “sliding rules” put out by management. When I became airborne only to swallow a few gallons of chlorinated water after kerplunking into the landing pool, I thought it was time to worry less about being cool and more about leaving the place in one piece. Luckily, the staff seemed quite competent and after watching how the whole thing works, I felt pretty comfortable letting even the 6 year-old hike off to the slides on his own while I sat back and chilled.
Between the River Run (floating on inner tubes and dropping off a series of “waterfalls”), the drop-off slides and several of your basic, loop-de-loop ones, I barely saw any of them for the remainder of the day. I did notice the 16
September 07, 2005 | Tips from Us >
Victoria, Beaches & Swimming
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Sometimes I can be a really lazy tourist. I get up and just want everything to be easy: no planning a detailed itinerary, no making sure I’m at the right place at the right time; just let the day happen.
Well, today was that lazy day that just fell into place. With the Minivan bursting with aquatic toys and food, kids, dogs etc…we set out for the Beaver Lake end of
Beaver and Elk Lake Regional Park. This is only minutes from downtown Victoria and a real haven for families. One can easily spend hour after hour here, enjoying the warm water, sandy beach, picnic area, playground, walking trails and playing fields. We arrived mid-day and didn’t leave until after 6 o’clock. I guess we tried to leave but the kids wouldn’t let us. Wow, just when you think nothing matters to kids other than a PS2 or X Box, along comes an inflatable raft that provides hours of joyful bliss. Who’d a thunk? Again, I am the coolest uncle in town.
Tip: many stores in Victoria reduce their summer beach stuff up to 50% off part way through the summer so it is quite affordable to pick up some toys, coolers, etc... when you are here. (I’m having a flashback of a disastrous attempt to carry a beach umbrella onboard a flight once).
You know kids. We packed a refrigerator-sized cooler of food for the day but one of the wee folk spotted the concession stand and it was all over. I can’t compete with French fires and ice cream. In any case, you won’t go hungry at this park.
This is another example of a park for all ages. While the kids played, the dogs and my sister and I did the 10 km (6 mile) loop around the lakes. I don't think she heard me but I was kind of whimpering at the end: this is a long haul so I’d recommend decent walking shoes.
Tip: do not set out on the 10 km walk with a pair of flip-flops. That space between my big toe and the other guys felt like a watermelon by the end.
Evenings are s
September 04, 2005 | Tips from Us >
Victoria, Beaches & Swimming
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Good news! I ended up getting a Minivan after all! I waited at the rental agency for an hour and a half and just as I was leaving the lot (literally), in pulls the blue 7-passenger hotrod of my dreams! sometimes you just get lucky I guess! Remember: book it in advance! Today was an easy day because everyone is tired after last night's late arrival. We headed to Thetis Lake which just happens to be a five-minute drive from our house although we took the long route because I was still so ecstatic about procuring the Minivan that I had to show it off. Luckily, just about every route you take in this city has something beautiful or of interest to see. Thetis Lake's Main Beach is by far the most popular local hangout for Victoria's young crowd so I thought taking the kids there first would show that their uncle is somewhat in the know with the youth of today. Warm, clear water, surrounded by a towering Douglas Fir forest and a network of trails made if a bonus choice. While dogs aren't allowed to stay on the beach and picnic area during this time of year, they can be off-leash along the trails and the rest of the park. So while some kids (namely the 16 year old) opted to hang at the beach with the locals (I think her name was Melanie) the rest of us hiked around the lake, dogs at our heels and worked up an appetite for the perfect picnic. Not a bad way to sleep off an afternoon of jet-lag and for me to recover from the near Minivan fiasco.
Travel tip: Air Canada offers a non-stop from Toronto to Victoria daily, arriving at 10pm. Everything else seems to connect either via Vancouver or Calgary. Sure makes the trip shorter if you can get this one.
September 02, 2005 | Tips from Us >
Victoria, Sightseeing Tours
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Well, I've been planning this family vacation in Victoria for over four months and today it happens. Five nieces & nephews ranging from ages 6 - 16 are flying in from Nova Scotia with my sister for a two-week holiday; me playing the official tour guide of Southern Vancouver Island. The pressure is on to be the local expert and to produce a fun-filled, highly entertaining 14 days that will not only appeal to this age range but that will somehow enable our two 10-month old Jack Russell Terrier puppies to be included.
Step 1: secure ground transporation (i.e. Minivan that holds 7 people, 2 dogs and a blow-up raft)
Lesson 1: book a Minivan early! The entire city gets sold out well in advance because these are hot items on the vacation car rental market. I have been trying to find one for over a week and am still on a waitlist just hours before the flight arrives. The alternative? Perhaps they can tie two compacts together?? U-Haul? Oh boy, I think I have failed my first task.