48 Hours: Relax at the Fairmont Empress on a Weekend Trip to Victoria

B.C.’s capital is rich in history. Beyond exploring, Victoria offers so many ways to relax and has so many restaurants where you can simply enjoy some quality meals. A scenic two-hour ride from Tsawwassen Terminal, the journey to Victoria on BC Ferries is undoubtedly one of the most scenic and convenient ways to reach this harbour city. The route takes you through the picturesque Strait of Georgia, and as you sail across the water, you’ll be treated to magnificent views of coastal mountains and lush islands dotting the horizon.

Day One

Check Into the Fairmont Empress’s Gold Level

Designated as a National Historic Site of Canada, the Fairmont Empress is a timeless symbol of Victoria’s hospitality and rich heritage of welcoming royalty, celebrities and heads of state since 1908. Recently, this historic storied hotel won Best Canadian Hotel in Travel + Leisure’s 2025 World’s Best Awards. This honour reaffirms its legacy as the Grand Dame of Victoria, a title it’s upheld for decades.

As I checked in, I was pleasantly surprised to discover that the team bumped me up to the Fairmont Empress’s Gold Level. Nicknamed a “hotel with a hotel,” you’re treated like royalty on this “exclusive” floor, which just underwent a spectacular facelift.

The Gold Level rooms are spacious and luxurious. My queen-size bed was supremely comfortable, and the bathroom was stocked with the hotel’s signature Rose 31 toiletries. As a guest on the Gold Level, you have private Gold Lounge access (which has doubled in size since I was last here). There’s also a full honour bar, with delicious locally inspired evening canapés, and tea and coffee available all day.

Dinner at Q Restaurant

The multiple award-winning  Q Restaurant on the main level of the Fairmont Empress has been impressing guests with its elegant dining room and authentic Pacific Northwest, seasonally inspired carte du jour since 2017. The curated menu is small but innovative. Sous chef Sarah Maw suggested I try the tomato and watermelon salad to start. Vibrant and beautifully plated, this refreshing salad also featured sheep’s milk sorbet, pineapple mint and a drizzle of olive oil. For my main course, I went with the tender, flaky, earthy Pacific halibut. The Q is also known for its extensive global selection of top vintage wines with a focus on Okanagan wines as well. With over 450 global labels, Q’s wine program earned the 2024 Wine Spectator Award of Excellence.

Day Two

Take a Stroll to Fisherman’s Wharf

Fisherman’s Wharf is always worthy of a visit. The floating boardwalk takes you along a neighbourhood of houseboats in an array of brilliant yellow, blue, lime green and barn door red. It’s also a hub for kayaking, whale watching tours and several seafood restaurants. The bright colours, the smell of food at the kiosks and the fresh salty air are the perfect antidotes for a fun connection to this coastal lifestyle. You might even catch playful sea lions as they frolic along the shoreline.

High Tea at the Empress

If you’ve never experienced high tea at the Empress, you’re in for a treat. Various traditions of afternoon tea date back millennia around the world, and the Empress’s High Tea has been a tradition for over a century.  It’s hard to beat the elegance, history and careful attention of tea service at the Fairmont Empress. The experience begins with your first cup of brewed tea. Tiered trays showcase finger-sized sandwiches featuring local ingredients, like smoked salmon mousse, truffled egg eclairs, Coronation chicken and the classic cucumber and dill whipped cream cheese. For a treat, you can enjoy honey and dulce de leche tarts, raspberry cremeux and cherry hibiscus macarons. Fan favourites are the freshly baked raisin scones, served with house-made clotted cream and strawberry vanilla preserves.

Get a Glow Facial

A short promenade from the Fairmont Empress led me to Sapphire Day Spa and Wellness Centre. I slipped onto the warm, cozy bed for a Summer Glow Facial, a 60-minute facial that left my skin hydrated, toned and balanced. As I cocooned under a light sheet, I could feel my skin transform with each Eminence Organic Skin Care product. As the mask sat on my skin for a while, my esthetician soothed my tired muscles with a head, neck and shoulder massage. I left feeling 10 years younger (ok, maybe a couple at least).

Dine by the Waterfront

As another multiple award-winning eatery, the Boom + Batten gives you a bird’s eye view of harbour traffic, out among float planes and harbour ferries. Floor-to-ceiling windows offer 180-degree views of the outer harbour, including Shoal Point and Washington State’s Olympic Mountains. This industrial-chic, coastal-inspired restaurant tantalizes all the senses. When I saw the pan-roasted halibut on the carte du jour, I had to have it. The menu is a contemporary twist on local, regional and international favourite dishes that celebrate B.C.’s bounty.

Day Three

Breakfast at The Courtney Room

Located inside the Magnolia Hotel & Spa, The Courtney Room is among the top 50 hotel restaurants in Canada according to OpenTable and KAYAK. I highly recommend the Shakshuka. This divine North African and Middle Eastern dish includes poached eggs simmered in a spicy, fragrant tomato sauce, with chickpeas, avocado and kale on freshly baked sourdough toast. It was possibly the best breakfast I’ve ever had. It’s like a hug from the inside.

Head to the Malahat SkyWalk

Take a few hours to really experience one of Victoria’s top attractions, the Malahat SkyWalk. As soon as you arrive at the gate, you can’t help but notice the life-sized Sasquatch sculpture. Sprinkled throughout the trails are captivating and enthralling wooden animal sculptures that Victoria artist Tanya Bub creates from driftwood she collects on Vancouver Island. As I walked along the trails, I was riveted by the likeness of her cougar, bear, owl and bald eagle.

The views from the Malahat SkyWalk lookout, a towering wood and steel structure 250 metres above sea level, are breathtaking. First, I climbed the 1,968-foot-long TreeWalk, which takes you 105 feet above ground level. Before zipping down the 20-metre enclosed spiral slide, you’re rewarded with a panorama of the Saanich Peninsula, Mount Baker, the distant Coast Mountains and the Salish Sea.

Fuel Up Before Heading Home

All that walking makes you hungry. Not to worry, there’s the Canteen at the base of the spiral tower. I sat by the fire pit and bit into a sloppy but delicious smash burger with homemade coleslaw. If you hanker for dairy-free, all-natural ice cream to end the trip, head over to Softys.