Victoria is Western Canada's oldest city. The City began in 1843, when James Douglas chose Victoria (then known as Camosack), as a Hudson Bay Company trading post. The post was eventually renamed Fort Victoria, in honour of Queen Victoria.

You can feel the pulse of a city through its arts and entertainment, and Victoria is alive with culture. Victoria and Vancouver Island boast a year-round schedule of cultural entertainment bursting with talent; experience live theatre, art exhibits, music concerts, festivals and films. Be moved. Be inspired. Be entertained. 

The performing arts are well represented in Victoria and on Vancouver Island. Professional and amateur theatre and dance companies perform in historical playhouses, modern arts centres and small, picturesque community theatres. Victoria is proud to be the home of the acclaimed Pacific Opera Victoria. 

Victoria and Vancouver Island are home to numerous art galleries, exhibits and studios. You can walk from gallery to gallery in Victoria's downtown core or drive the country roads to visit artisans' studios. Paintings, prints, sculpture, glass, wood and pottery can all be found and the traditional art of the First Nations peoples is widespread throughout the Island. Salt Spring Island and the Gulf Islands are also world-renowned as creative centres. 

Music for all tastes fills local concert halls, cathedrals, nightclubs and pubs. The Victoria Symphony entertains audiences all year long, the highlight of its season, and a Victoria tradition, is the Bayview Residences Victoria Symphony Splash: a by-donation concert performed from a barge in the Inner Harbour to over 40,000 people. Music for all tastes fills local concert halls, cathedrals, nightclubs and pubs. Music and arts festivals throughout the summer and across the Island celebrate jazz, blues, R&B, folk, independent film, Shakespeare, fringe theatre, comedy and Victoria's cultural diversity. Buskers and street performers add colour to Victoria's streets and Inner Harbour. During the summer, bring a lawn chair and a blanket and enjoy classic movies at the harbour boardwalk. A number of movie theatres deliver Hollywood blockbusters and Independent films to residents and visitors, and the National Geographic IMAX Theatre brings images to life on a screen over six stories tall.

Victoria's attractions are so many, that when visiting Victoria attractions and Vancouver Island attractions, you are more likely to run out of time than run out of things to do. Your ideal holiday may call for doing a lot in a short time or, on the contrary, little of anything during a lengthy stay. Either way, the Island is bursting with attractions and things to do that provide the perfect mix of excitement and relaxation. 

From museums and art galleries to castles, landmarks, gardens and zoos, Victoria's attractions invite visitors into a world of history, entertainment and colour. Take a guided tour or stroll at your own pace. The only catch to visiting Victoria's attractions is that you will want to come back again and again. 

Victoria Attractions are also popular with families and are often the ideal place to let kids run wild. Young visitors will delight in discovering local marine life, bugs, butterflies and farm animals. They can assist in carving a native totem pole or dig for minerals in a scratch patch. Recreation centres, swimming pools, waterslides and mini-golf are always favourite attractions in any city.