Frequently Asked Questions

If you’re here, you’re seriously considering moving to Victoria, BC 🇨🇦. We’re so happy that you are. We think Victoria’s pretty neat too.

💰 Cost of living in Victoria

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What’s the cost of living in Victoria?

It really varies, but here’s a general breakdown of costs in Victoria, BC:

  • Rent: $1,763/month for 1 bedroom (average), $2,541/month for 2 bedroom (average)

  • Childcare: $1,337/month (average) according to Numbeo.com

  • Gas: $2.21/litre

  • Monthly bus pass: $85/month

  • Car insurance: $158/month (average)

  • Internet: $80 - $100/month, unlimited data

  1. Source (Rent): rentals.ca rent report, April 2022, rentals.ca/national-rent-report

  2. Source (Childcare): Numbeo, May 2022, numbeo.com/cost-of-living/in/Victoria

  3. Source (Gas): GasBuddy.com, May 2022, gasbuddy.com/gasprices/british-columbia/victoria

  4. Source (Bus): BC Transit, May 2022, bctransit.com/victoria/fares

  5. Source (Car insurance): 604now.com, January 2022, 604now.com/icbc-auto-car-insurance-rates-dropping-2022

  6. Source (Internet): Numbeo, May 2022, numbeo.com/cost-of-living/in/Victoria

 

How much will I make after taxes in Victoria?

Use these websites to find how much your take home pay will be after taxes:

 
 

How do most people in Victoria afford an apartment?

We live with roommates. Most often a 2 bedroom apartment or rental house split between 2 people is cheaper than renting a 1 bedroom apartment alone.

 

Is Victoria cheaper than Vancouver?

Yes. Our cost of housing, living, transit and car insurance is cheaper in Victoria. This is why many of us move here.

 

How much does childcare cost in Victoria?

That varies, a lot. If you enroll your child in a daycare centre that can be anywhere between $200 - $1,870/month, per child. That’s for 5 days a week, 8am - 5pm kind of care.

A lot of parents choose to do a “nanny share”, where they and 1 to 3 other families hire a nanny to care for their children in their home, which can be cheaper. This is often called a “LNR” (Licence Not Required) if you’re looking on Facebook or other childcare listing sites.

We’ve listed the prices & details for childcare centres in our List & prices: childcare centres in Victoria section, including the cost for 1-5 days per week, their opening hours & the ages of children they accept.

 

How much does the ferry cost?

The ferry from Vancouver to Victoria costs $17.60 CAD as a walk-on passenger one way, and a car with a passenger is $77.10 CAD one way ($154.20 CAD round trip)
Source: BC Ferries, February 2022

The ferry from Port Angeles, WA to Victoria costs $26.75 CAD as a walk-on passenger one way, and a car with a passenger is $89.15 CAD one way ($178.30 CAD round trip).
Source: Coho Ferry (Blackball Ferries), February 2022

The ferry from Anacortes, WA to Sidney, BC (26km north of Victoria) costs $21.77 CAD as a walk-on passenger one way, and a car with a passenger is $73 CAD ($146 CAD round trip).
Source: Washington State Ferries

 

Can I commute to Vancouver from Victoria for work?

Maybe. That’s a heck of a trip to make each day.

  1. ⛴ By ferry: Total time: 6.5 hours round trip (from Victoria to Vancouver, and then back to Victoria). It’s a 45 minute drive to the ferry from downtown Victoria, and then the ferry ride over is 1.5 hours, then, it’s another 1 hour to drive or bus to downtown Vancouver from the ferry dock at Tsawwassen. Cost: $154.20 round trip.

  2. 🚁 By Helijet (helicopter) or 🛩 Harbour Air (floatplane): Total time: 1.25 hours round trip, plus waiting/boarding time. It takes 35 minutes to fly from the downtown Victoria harbour to the downtown Vancouver harbour. Cost: minimum $300 round trip, usually.

 🚴 Culture in Victoria

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How do I meet people in Victoria?

Here’s a list of groups by interest, on our page How do I meet people in Victoria.

 

Is Victoria safe at night?

Yes. We have a lot of young people who are safe out at night at bars, clubs and concerts. We’re a smaller city, with a lot of transportation options, and most of us choose to walk home at night.

We do have a large homeless population because it’s warm enough here to sleep outside year-round. Most of us don’t hassle homeless residents and leave each other alone. Some people can be scared at first seeing homeless people, but get used to going about their day like normal.

 

What should I wear in Victoria?

Many people think we dress like an advertisement for MEC or Patagonia. Kind of! If it looks like a hiking outfit, that’s the kind of clothing we wear.

We wear rain jackets, jeans or casual pants, casual shirts, and outdoor-looking shoes like Blundstone boots, nicer leather boots or Birkenstock sandals.

 

What language do you speak in Victoria?

English. We have a few French immersion elementary schools, but we speak English as our primary language.

 

What is the “unceded territory” I hear about?

The City of Victoria is located on the unceded Coast Salish Territory of the Lekwungen and W̱SÁNEĆ nations. Learn more about this through the Indigenous Perspectives Society

 

Is it hard to make friends in Victoria?

Yes, harder than in other cities like Toronto or New York. Like Seattle and Vancouver, we tend to be more insular. Most people have a smaller but very tight-knit group of friends.

But, once you make one friend here, it’s often the way into the friend group. Here’s a mega list of groups, clubs and more for How to meet people in Victoria.

 

Is Victoria a dog-friendly city?

Yes. Many stores will let you bring your dog in, your dog can sit with you outside of coffee shops, and most of your neighbours will have dogs. We even have special parks for dogs. However, apartments still are not legally required to accept dogs or cats, so finding an apartment that allows a dog is still hard. Here are the apartments in Victoria that specifically accept dogs.

 

Is Victoria part of England?

No, we are part of Canada. A lot of people come here and see British flags flying outside of businesses. Way back in the 1800s we were part of the UK (England, Britain, the United Kingdom), but we officially became “Canada” in 1867. We still hang British flags as part of a tourism effort, since we are one of the oldest cities in Canada.

 

What side of the road do you drive on in Victoria?

The right side of the road. Same as the US.

 

What does life look like in Victoria?

Photos are better than words sometimes. We’ve collected over 33 of the best Instagram accounts in Victoria in this guide, so you can see what life is like for adventure, hiking, food, dogs, kids and more here.

 🌲 Environment in Victoria

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Are there bears in Victoria?

Nope. We have bears in our forests, but not in the city. We do have a lot of deer.

 

Does Victoria get snow?

No. We might get 5 cm of snow every few years, but most winters we do not get snow.

It’s an Island joke that many new residents who move here from Ontario or Alberta throw their snow shovels away when they arrive.

 

How big is Vancouver Island?

Vancouver Island is larger than Belgium, larger than Israel and larger than the state of New Hampshire.

Vancouver Island is 31,285 km² big, and the tallest mountain on the Island reaches 2,195 metres.

 

Does it rain a lot in Victoria?

Not as much as Vancouver. Victoria is on the southern tip of Vancouver Island, protected by the Olympic Mountains to the south and the Cascade Mountains to the east from storms.

We have more sun due to this “rainshadow effect”. On average, we get 58.3cm of rain per year (New York City gets 127cm / year). We have more overcast / cloudy days without rain.

Source for statistics: City of Victoria: Climate

 

Is there a bridge to Victoria?

No, there isn’t a bridge. We’re on Vancouver Island, and the only way to get here is by ferry (boat) or by airplane.

 

What about earthquakes?

We do live on the West Coast, so an earthquake could happen. All you need is to prep an emergency kit and you’ll be fine. Here’s an emergency kit checklist we’ve built (with photos!) - make it as cheaply as possible.

 

Do you have mountains on Vancouver Island? I want to ski or snowboard.

Yes, in fact, we do. Mount Washington is about a six hour drive up the island from Victoria. It does have a ski resort. The mountain is 1,588 metres high.

 

Can I surf near Victoria?

Yes, you can. A lot of us surf all year round, including in the winter, wearing wet suits or dry suits. You can surf at beaches that are about a 45-minute drive west of Victoria, all along the southern coast and west coast of the Island.

One of the best places to surf is Tofino - about a four-hour drive west of Victoria. It often has bigger, better waves than most Hawaiian beaches.

 🇺🇲 Americans in Victoria

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I’m American. Do I need a visa to work in Victoria?

Yes, you need a visa to work here. We’ve written a guide to help you quickly find a visa to apply for.

 

I only have a high school diploma. Can I still get a visa to work in Canada?

Yes! We need a lot of people for many different jobs, including as cooks, bakers, for retail stores, in tourism, the trades, fishing and logging. We’ve written a guide to help you quickly find a visa to apply for.

 

Do you use American money?

No. We use our currency, the Canadian Dollar (which is referred to as CAD), which is entirely separate from the American dollar (USD).

 

One of my parents was born in Canada

You may already be a Canadian citizen. If that’s the case, you can move here without needing a visa. Check the Canadian Government’s page on “See if you may be a citizen”: canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/canadian-citizenship/become-canadian-citizen/eligibility/already-citizen.html

 🚚 Do other Canadian cities have moving guides?

Yes! We have an entire section with moving guides to the biggest Canadian cities. This is a list of moving guides to more than 65 other major Canadian cities.

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Just give me a checklist

We wrote a list to make this super easy for you. We walk you through all the steps, from before you move, to what to do online, to what to do your first week here in Victoria.