Customer Reviews

Victoria and Vancouver Island

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This guide is fairly hard to use. The authors take a street-by-street approach, but there are no maps to help one follow the descriptions. In addition, the majority of the neighborhood descriptions are lumped together in a single chapter without any sub-sections or sub-headers. This means that there is no easy way to locate a particular neighborhood such as Downtown or Chinatown. More maps interspersed in the descriptions and clearer headings would make this book easier to use.

This book's tone can be annoying as well. The authors are justifiably proud of Victoria, but to the point that they unnecessarily take stabs at other cities ("Enjoy a stroll ... and bask in this rarefied atmosphere reminiscent of the banks of Paris' Seine, but with clean air" [p. 25]) and criticize out-of-town visitors. For example, there are a number of admonishments to tourists to behave properly: "Each offering is served to be tasted and digested, not to be chowed down" [p. 30]; "Modulate your voices, wait your turn, and tone down the clothes" [p. 6].

We spent two weeks in a condo in Victoria in May, and having read the Hill's Guide before we got there we felt right at home. We loved the way it was laid out by neighborhood, and were able tofind many of the shops and restaurants withoutany trouble.We also made use of the suggestions for travel out of the city. Thank you for making our visit so memorable!

As a Victoria transplant now living in the Silicon Valley, it was so refreshing to find this book. It is so accurate, even I learned things I didn't know before. I hadn't been home in about six years until last August when I had to attend my brother's wedding. I used the Hills guide to plan my week stay on the Island. Not only was I able to get some great tips regarding local restaurants which had popped up since I had moved, but I also found a number of interesting new points of interest. Maybe I had known of some of the neat things to do in Victoria, but I had totally forgotten until the Hills reminded me. My partner and I spent a few days driving and exploring the island. As the Hills recommended, we stopped by the Sook Harbour House for a delicious meal. What a treat. Regardless of what sparks your interest as you travel, the Hills' guide of Victoria and Vancouver Island truly reaches all ends of the most beautiful place on earth.