I have spent the last 8 years accidentally finding the cheapest and most beautiful indoor and outdoor (mostly outdoor) places in south Vancouver Island. I want to share them with you! It can be difficult when you are new in town to decide where to go and what to do, especially when every google search yields results like "Whale Watching" (can be damaging to wildlife) and "Tea at the Empress" (nobody can afford this). To combat this pattern, I have included a variety of hikes, walks, gardens, markets, museums, art galleries and installations, and historic locations that can be accessed for free, by donation, or by cheap admission. See the full spreadsheet of nearly 100 locations here.

I have also included places where you can learn about the local indigenous peoples, who include the lək̓ʷəŋən peoples: Esquimalt and Songhees; the W̱SÁNEĆ peoples: Tsawout, Tsartlip, Pauquachin and Tseycum, and other coast salish nations such as Beecher Bay (SC'IA/NEW), Malahat, and T'Sou-ke. The prodigious herring runs in the gorge waterway inspired the name lək̓ʷəŋən, which means "place to smoke herring". It is important to recognize that Victoria and the Capital Region District is built on unceded traditional lands of the people who were here before. We as settlers must recognize and respect the right to territorial claim that the indigenous peoples have over the places we live, work and play, and learning about these places is the very first step. Find some resources.

Randomly generate a BINGO card!