Ocean Island Victoria Guide

Phillips Brewery

oceanisland — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 20:23:36 +0000

A local success story in the heart of downtown Victoria, Phillips has been brewing quality beers in Victoria for the past 11 years. They’re huge supporters of the local community, including the Rifflandia music festival and the Land Conservancy of BC.

If you like light beers, try the Phoenix or the Hop Circle IPA; if you want something a bit darker, go for a Blue Buck or Slipstream… and if you want something totally different, try a Longboat Chocolate Porter, a Ginger Beer or one of their seasonal brews.

Budget Car and Truck Rental

oceanisland — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 20:17:12 +0000

Victoria’s largest and most diverse rental fleet, with 5 convenient Victoria locations including right downtown at 757 Douglas Street and the Victoria International Airport.

All customers receive a map book and coupons with every rental, and there’s no drop fee for returning to a different Victoria location… so you can rent a car downtown and drive yourself to the airport! Beats waiting for a bus, hey?

How to Get from Victoria to Vancouver

oceanisland — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 15:49:00 +0000

Consistently ranked one of the best cities in the world, Vancouver (our neighbour to the East) is a great place to spend a weekend or a lifetime. Okay, that was a bit cheesy, but you know what we’re trying to say. And we can’t write a guide to Victoria and Vancouver Island without mentioning the giant, wonderfully international city just a boat ride away. So for the next few posts, we’re going to give you our recommendations on the best places in Vancouver. First up:

How to Get to Vancouver from Victoria

There are a few ways. If you want to take a bus, you can take the Pacific Coach Lines from downtown Victoria to downtown Vancouver. The bus runs 6 or 7 times a day, 365 days a year. It’s more expensive than taking public transit, but it’s also faster and more comfortable.

If you’re short on money but long on time, you can do the city bus / ferry / city bus route. Buses from downtown Victoria to the ferry:

The ferry to Vancouver runs 6 or 7 times a day (more in the summer). The first sailing is usually 7:00am, and the last is usually 10:00pm. Click here for the full schedule.

Once on the mainland, take the #620 Tsawassen bus from the ferry to the bus station. From there you can transfer to a bunch of different places: downtown, Vancouver airport, Richmond… anywhere you want to go. For complete Vancouver bus information, please visit the Translink website.

Next post: the best hostels in Vancouver. Have a favourite? Let us know in the comments.

WildPlay Element Parks

oceanisland — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 20:16:37 +0000

Nestled in spectacular natural settings, WildPlay Element Parks outdoor activities entertain and challenge guests both young and old. Climbing from tree-to-tree brings out the monkey at heart – while leaping off a 150’ foot bungy bridge and zipping through the sky at up to 100km/hour thrills even the bravest adventure-seekers.

The West Shore location features an exhilarating Monkido adventure for every skill level, from couch potatoes to super athletes! It’s like being the hero of your own, real-life video game!

Lavish Salon

oceanisland — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 17:45:15 +0000

Lavish is a Boutique Style Salon with modern decor infused with old world charm whose menu consists of hairstyling, cut, color, highlighting, bridal, prom and a full range of esthetics. They use John Masters Organics and Kevin Murphy Hair Care products.

Wolf/Sheep Arthouse

oceanisland — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 20:51:12 +0000

Originally a street art inspired arthouse but recently expanded into a tattoo studio. Wolf/Sheep is a collective of about 20 artists, designers, writers, multimedia producers and coordinators who’s goal is to bring a unique art experience to the people of Victoria. For this reason the collective has merged art production and gallery space into one storefront – Wolf/Sheep Arthouse.

Higher Ground Clothing

oceanisland — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 20:34:13 +0000

A hip downtown store that sells clothing, skateboards and gear, spray paint and more. The companies that fall under our Higher Ground family umbrella are Concyse Clothing, Instrumental Skateboards, Incite Screenprinting & Promotion, Dobell Sign & Design, Art4Life Tattoos and Confusion Media. Higher Ground Clothing is located in Odeon Alley, just off Yates St.