The book selection is amazing. I was awestruck by the vast collection of alternate editions/covers…read morethat I hadn't seen anywhere else in my bookstore travels. Allow yourself at least a couple of hours to browse the stacks (and even then you'll be remiss at all the ones you had to leave behind...) Staff was very courteous and helpful in guiding you amongst the labyrinth of titles. It was nice having used copies on the same shelves as the new versions, for the readers on a budget. Thank you for keeping the first editions behind locked glass. I fear that temptation would have been my financial undoing otherwise...

Best for: discounts on new cookbooks…read more Huge space, lots of books and yet... their selection seems small. I can't usually find what I'm looking for, new or used. Shelves are a bit too close together for browsing. More signs indicating genre and letter of alphabet would be nice. As for browsing.. I wish they had displays and handwritten reviews, tables highlighting new releases by genres, etc. Their new releases shelves are shockingly small and oddly placed upstairs. What a great space! It just needs help with the browsing experience.

Quazars gets 10 stars in my book. The staff, atmosphere(the kids loved it ), and the high quality…read moreof the cabinets makes it a must for anyone visiting victoria. Stop on by Grab a coffee, and drop some tokens! Keep on Arcading Quazar's!!!

80s themed arcade. Many classic games and pinball machines. Few newer dancing games at the back. 2…read moreMario Kart cabinets at the front. I played fix-it Felix for the first time! I strongly recommend crazy taxi and road blasters.

A wall of rubber ducks!!! [double take]. Nope, I'm right, that's right a wall of ducks! Rubber…read moreducks of all shapes and sizes - from Obama, Jesus and Elvis to pirates, fairies and superheros. Not only are there rubber ducks galore, there's every other bit of nostalgia-gag-gift-goodness you wish you could find elsewhere: "Cat Butt" Gum,"Everytime you masturbate, God kills a kitten" Gum, Gumby, magnets, funny baby onesies and "grow your own unicorns" The list just goes on and on! Friendly staff who are obviously enjoying work and groups of people getting giggley over silly toys. Ah, now that's my idea of fun! Oh... Rubber ducky, you're the one You make bath time lots of fun...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gTOLfG49XRg&feature=related

Such a cool store! From inflatable Van Gogh picture to bacon jelly beans and devil rubber ducks…read more You definitely need to spend some time browsing through the store, its full of interesting stuff! Staff is so nice and friendly!

I first met Raimie when he changed my life as a potter during a 1 on 1 coaching session at his…read morestudio in Quadra Villiage in Victoria. I was really frustrated learning how to centre but after a few hours under Raimie's instruction and coaching everything started to make sense. I spend 6 months of the year in Victoria and immediately signed up for their beginner program for the potter's wheel which I am thoroughly enjoying. I recently attended the "Make a Mug Night" where we learned hand building skills to create a mug. It was amazing to see that after 2 hours everyone created something to be proud of. I've been so impressed at how organized and friendly the studio is with instructors and members keen on sharing their skills. I have learned more than expected in the short time and look forward to signing up for more programs during my time in Victoria. Thank you to Raimie and his team at Hands on Pottery for great instruction a fun place to hang out and keeping a new potter's dream alive.

From the owner: Pottery classes & workshops for adults of all skill levels…read more Learn how to use the potter's wheel or hand-build a variety of functional pieces you can be proud of! We offer a variety of programs including single session workshops and weekly classes of four, six and eight or eight sessions. Our studio is also where the Hands On Clay Collective creates their line of amazing mugs, tumblers and other ceramics for your home. Check out their retail gallery next to the inner harbour – 1208 Wharf St.

This is a wonderful store with great selection, friendly staff, and a great layout in a historic…read moreformer bank building.

Big fan of bookstores and architecture so this was such a treat! Didn't spend a lot of time in it…read morebut from what I can tell, it's a huge bookstore with a huge selection of books. At the least, it has all of the most popular books right now. It has quite a bit of bookish items like stickers, postcards, and bags, and I always find those items to be fun to browse. I love the history behind the place that it was designed for the Royal Bank of Canada. The stained glass and brightness of the place made it look so beautiful. I didn't end up getting anything so I can't comment on the service but the books were averagely priced. Really cool for a pop in and out!

Miniature World...the most underrated attraction in Victoria!…read moreAs a wee lad of 11 years, I absolutely loved it! As an old halfway dead mid-40s old fellow, I absolutely loved it! Miniature World is a big showcase of over 85 dioramas and displays of so many things miniature: railroads, old Americana, World War 2, Fantasy, Folklore, fairytales, knights, Victorian era, American Revolution, French Revolution, Age of Enlightenment, the Wild West, and so much more. The level and detail are extraordinary...pictures can only capture maybe 10% of the excellence, words only 1%. $19CAD/$15USD Adult and $11CAD/$8USD Child, worth it! Expect to spend an hour, or longer if you have children or are a nerd like myself.

Miniature world was one of my favorite things I did in Victoria BC. I loved looking at all the mini…read morefigurines and the detail and craftsmanship that went into creating these miniature dioramas. I spent about an hour here and it was really cool that they had themed areas. I will say that a lot of families come here with children, so that felt a little bit overstimulating at times. If you come here, try to come during off hours maybe to try and get a more quiet experience.

This has been my husband and I's spot for New Year's Eve for the past two years and it never…read moredisappoints. For lack of a better word, the food here is made with love and you can taste it. We shared the bbq brisket tonight which was heavenly, along with the baked beans and potato salad. And for dessert? Their Sans Rival cake which was like having a swingers party in my mouth and I ended up with the hot chick. An absolute dream of butter cream confectionary perfection. I could not have asked for a better dinner or better staff or a better drag performance to ring in the New Year.

TL;DR: Chaotic, fun, and not for everyone. Go for a show,…read morestay longer than planned. If you're nearby and there's a drag show, it's worth going. It's fun, different, and a welcome disruption to the usual Victoria vibe. Vibe: Wizard of Oz-themed gay bar with zero subtlety. Loud, campy, and a sharp contrast to the rest of Victoria's generally polite energy. Not really a place straight couples need to linger unless there's a show. Drinks: Strong and fast. These are drinks, not cocktails, and that's exactly right for the room. Entertainment: We caught a Taylor Swift-themed drag show. I'm very much not a Swift fan, my girlfriend is, and we both had a good time. The performers carried the night. What could be better: If there's no show, the appeal drops fast unless this is already your scene.

Luminara is a wonderful free annual festival that occurs on a Saturday in July at St. Ann's…read moreAcademy. This lantern festival attracts between 15,000-20,000 people. The festival features installation art, costumed performers, and lots of lanterns. Kids will love Luminara and so will adults.

How could they close such a center... There are plenty of…read moregyms all over downtown--you can just walk into any hotel and work out. But there was only one place where kids could come play basketball every day. There's not a single decent gym in the entire area where you can work out year-round, in any weather, for $30 a month. So what now?.. Long live the home and the computer

I recently visited Victoria on vacation and it turned out the YMCA/YWCA two blocks from my hotel…read moreoffers day passes to its gym. This facility is a great option for anyone visiting Victoria who needs to work on their strength training while on vacation. They have several Life Fitness machines, including pectoral fly/rear deltoid. They also have some older machines from a brand I have never heard of before called Keiser, which turned out to be an American brand based in Fresno, California. The Keiser machines are strange because they have thumb controls to manipulate a pneumatic system which controls resistance, rather than the traditional system of sticking a pin into a weight stack. But once you figure out how to use them, they're okay.

I approached Tapestry Music in Victoria with a special request, a Baritone Ukulele with Tenor…read moretuning. Cam responded very promptly with exactly what I had in mind. We then texted and phoned about several additional items and today the courier delivered the package. Everything is absolutely perfect, world-class! It just does not get any better than this. Thank you Tapestry Team, you're totally amazing!

All I can tell you is the experience I had taking group fiddle lessons at Tapestry just before they…read moremoved to Bay St. I paid $80 and what a waste of money that was! So very little time was actually spent teaching us fiddle! The young lady spent most of the 1 hour lessons tuning our fiddles and then there was maybe 15 minutes left actually teaching us something. It obviously would have been far more productive if the lessons had been at least 90 minutes, then we would have had time to actually learn something. I wonder if it's too late to get my money back⁉