It boasts a dizzying array of attractions that can keep you hopping, but can also be a great spot to mellow out.
It's Vancouver Island, and just thinking about it seems to lower my blood pressure several points.
For the next six weeks, it's more affordable, too.
Tourism Victoria is offering to pick up the cost of return travel between the island and the mainland via BC Ferries. The only condition is that you must book a two-night package in the Greater Victoria area through Tourism Victoria's promotional website, www.itsvictoria.com.
The offer is valid for travel until Oct. 31 on the Departure Bay-Horseshoe Bay, Duke Point-Tsawwassen and Swartz Bay-Tsawwassen ferry routes. Packages apply to new bookings only.
Ferry reservations are not included, but can be made directly through www.bcferries.com.
There's lots going on in Victoria, of course, but the newest big attraction is in nearby Sydney -- the Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre.
Invertebrates and marine plant life numbering in the thousands inhabit 17 aquarium habitats. Features include the Gallery of the Drifters, where algae, delicate jellies, and other plankton appear to be suspended in backlit aquariums. Visit www.oceandiscovery.ca.
The aquarium is a 10-minute drive from the Victoria Airport and Swartz Bay ferry terminal.
More leisure travel news:
- Wells Gray Adventures operates guided hut to hut outings in Wells Gray Provincial Park, nestled in British Columbia's Cariboo Mountains. Participants travel on skis in winter and hike in summer. They carry a small pack and stay overnight in three cabins, linked by a trail. Visit www.skihike.com.
- There's a free shuttle service from downtown Vancouver to the Capilano Suspension Bridge. The 70-metre-high swaying footbridge is just over the Burrard Inlet on the North Shore. Shuttles leave daily from three locations, Canada Place, the Hyatt Regency, and the Blue Horizon Hotel. Visit www.capbridge.com.
- Visitors to Quebec City can download three new podcast routes free of charge on www.quebecregion.com. The routes, accessible by bicycle, car or bus, are another way to discover the historic boroughs of Beauport, Charlesbourg and Sainte-Foy-Sillery.
- Vacation Rental Managers Association (VRMA) has launched a Discover Vacation Homes awareness program for travellers across North America. VRMA represents more than 500 vacation rental companies who manage some 150,000 rentals in the United States, Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean. Visit www.DiscoverVacationHomes.com.
- Policies on checked and carry-on luggage vary from airline to airline. A new website, www.luggagelimits.com, promises to make it easier for travellers to look before they book. The site lists more than 60 air carriers and promises to add more.
- VisitBritain has passed along the winners in the accommodation categories of the Enjoy England Awards for Excellence 2009.
Hotel of the Year: Gidleigh Park, in Chagford, Devon, (www.gidleigh.com). A Tudor-style house built in 1928 as a grand private residence for an Australian shipping magnate. The restaurant has earned two Michelin stars for 10 consecutive years. Room rates start at about $560 Cdn.
Self Catering Holiday of the Year: Joint gold winners were Noelle's Cottages, Middleton Hall, Pickering, North Yorkshire (noellescottages.co.uk) and Woodhouse Farm Cottages, Staplow, Herefordshire (thewoodhousefarm.co.uk).
Rents for Noelle's smallest cottage, which sleeps four, start at $760 Cdn a week in winter. The smallest at Woodhouse, which sleeps two, starts at $540 Cdn.
High season prices are about 50% more at Noelle's, nearly double at Woodhouse. Both also offer what they call short breaks, three- or four-day stays.
Best Bed & Breakfast: Augill Castle, Cumbria (www.augillcastle.co.uk). This is described as a five-star castle with 11 bedrooms, five grand reception rooms and six hectares of gardens and grounds. Doubles with breakfast are $145 per person.
Awards are also made in other categories. Visit www.enjoyengland.com.
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