A Guide to Creating Your Perfect Fall Bucket List
Explore fall like never before in Victoria, BC.
Mark your calendars, because October 12th from 10AM-2PM the annual Apple Harvest Fest & Vintage Emporium returns to Ross Bay Villa Historic House Museum and it’s a harvest event that can’t be missed. Sip tea, tuck into home-baked apple pies and browse the emporium for vintage, antique, and retro goods. With Victoria as Canada’s resale capital, you’re bound to find a few treasures to add to your collection. Located across the street from the historic Ross Bay Cemetery, the final resting place of such esteemed Canadians as Emily Carr, this volunteer-run historic site dates back over 150 years and your donations during this free event help fund preservation efforts for the property.
Visit a pumpkin patch
Get into the swing of fall festivities with a visit to Ocean View Estates or Merridale Cidery & Distillery. From October 1st to November 1st, be sure to check out the Instagram-worthy pumpkin patch at Ocean View Estates to snap up your fall family photos and pick out those perfect pumpkins for Halloween. Or for those looking to get a little further out, fill out your fall photo album while pumpkin picking at Merridale Farm. Whether you’re decorating the porch or making a pumpkin soup, pick out your favourite pumpkin from their display at their famous hay-filled farm truck, which doubles as the perfect autumn backdrop for your family photobook. Don’t miss this great event, it only lasts until the pumpkins are gone!
Find a Thanksgiving feast
Monday, October 14th is Thanksgiving and there’s always an extra seat at the table in Greater Victoria. Dig into a heaping plateful of local flavour, with an extra dollop of culinary flare, as Victoria’s top chefs tackle the family feast for you. Find thanksgiving dinner at the Arbutus Room, 10 Acres (bistro, commons, and pier), or Q at The Empress, just to name a few.
Local Tip: That’s not a typo, American friends. Thanksgiving comes a little early to Canada, but who can say no to an extra turkey dinner? Come celebrate the harvest season and all things to be thankful for, the Canadian way, eh.
Explore the Flavour Trails
Get off the beaten path and savour the flavours of fall along the Greater Victoria Flavour Trails. Follow your tastebuds through the Saanich Peninsula, Westshore communities, or Southern Gulf Islands and meet the chefs, makers, and producers who are putting our stamp on the culinary map. There’s no better way to soak in autumn’s golden hues amidst the crisp fall air than along these self-guided tours of our region’s agricultural heartlands. Dig into the essence of Greater Victoria one stop and bite at a time while you explore the road less travelled.
Flavour Trails
Stop for afternoon tea
Fall is more than a look, it’s a feeling. It’s your hands wrapped around warm ceramic, the spreading of clotted cream across flaky-freshly baked scones, and the sensation of steeped tea against your lips. This fall, throw your pinkies up and tuck into afternoon tea at one of Victoria’s many esteemed tea rooms. From stately and seaside to grandeur in gardens, there’s a tea experience fit for the queen (or king) that you deserve to be.
Afternoon tea
Enter if you dare
Spooky season is in full swing this October in Victoria and the city is a witch’s brew of eerie-sistable Halloween activities. Uncover the city’s harrowing past with a Haunted Halloween Tour or a Ghostly Walk. Challenge the Pumpkin King to a round of immersive mini-golf in a haunted manor, just don’t lose your head! Clear the werewolves out of your wardrobe at the Halloween Vintage Fair and Makers Market. Or, take a self-guided tour of some of our cities most spook-tacular landmarks such as Bastion Square, Garrick’s Head Pub, Murchie’s Tea & Coffee, Roger’s Chocolates, and St. Ann’s Academy, to name a few. You don’t want to miss Halloween in Victoria; it might come back to haunt you!
Savour the harvest season
Greater Victoria measures local differently; these aren’t far flung farms hours from the edge of the city, rather they’re our neighbours, the folks whose farmlands stitch our network of communities together. The arrival of autumn brings with it the harvest season, and our city’s best farm-to-table restaurants become a canvas for creative expression with the bounty of our region. Nestled beneath our big blue hole on Canada’s west coast, it’s a bounty unlike anywhere else. From fresh seafood straight from the boat, to fruits and vegetables that can’t be grown anywhere else in the country, Victoria’s palate is one of flavours that are distinctly our own.
See the fall colours
Fall is in the air, and with the crisp autumn breeze comes a cacophony of colour as the leaves begin to turn. This vibrant display fills every nook and cranny of the city as our gardens and parks burst into the million hues of the fall palette. Explore on your own in our easily walkable and bikeable city, or join a guided tour and enjoy the colours as a golden backdrop on your curated adventure.
Turn a new page inside cozy bookstores
Fall is the perfect time to curl up with a good book, and Victoria’s best bookstores pack more character than the pages that fill them. Step into a storybook at Munro’s Books; described as “the most magnificent bookstore in Canada” by Allan Fotheringham, Munro’s is located within a heritage building and adorned with tapestries along its walls. Explore endless allegories at one of Canada’s largest independent bookstores, Russell Books – who even own a Guiness World Record. With two sprawling floors of new, used, and antiquarian books, you’re certain to find your next read, and the one after that, and the one after that… Or, Browse the stacks at Bastion Books, tucked away just off historic Bastion Square, whose impressive selection of used books provide bookworms with a never ending supply of stories. We all know you should never judge a book by its cover, and Victoria’s bookstores offer up an experience that goes well beyond.
Gather 'round the fireplace
Sometimes it’s the colours, sometimes it’s the flavours, but it’s always the company we keep that makes fall so special. There’s nothing that truly brings people together like the warming glow of a fireplace. If you’re looking to add a dash of cozy to your fall vacation plans, then dig out those wool socks, grab that book you just found, and cuddle up by the fire at The Parkside Hotel & Spa, Magnolia Hotel & Spa, Bedford Regency Hotel, or Best Western Plus Inner Harbour.
Enjoy an autumn apple festival
Mark your calendars, because October 12th from 10AM-2PM the annual Apple Harvest Fest & Vintage Emporium returns to Ross Bay Villa Historic House Museum and it’s a harvest event that can’t be missed. Sip tea, tuck into home-baked apple pies and browse the emporium for vintage, antique, and retro goods. With Victoria as Canada’s resale capital, you’re bound to find afew treasures to add to your collection. Located across the street from the historic Ross Bay Cemetery, the final resting place of such esteemed Canadians as Emily Carr, this volunteer-run historic site dates back over 150 years and your donations during this free event help fund preservation efforts for the property.
If you're in need of some inspiration for a weekend getaway, check out these unique date ideas in Victoria. Whether you're into a low-key, outdoorsy adventure or prefer a luxurious, romantic night out, you'll have no trouble finding something fun to do with your partner, any time of year.
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