Places to Stay

You're pretty spoiled for choice in terms of places to stay nearby. We recommend that, unless you actually live in Victoria itself, you stay in Sidney instead. It's much closer to our venue and will involve far less traffic. However, if you'd really rather stay in the city, there are plenty of options for there as well.

Here are some suggestions if you do plan to stay in Sidney and around.

Hotels and Inns

The Sidney Waterfront Inn and Spa
A lovely spot right on the waterfront.

Best Western "Emerald Isle"
Closer to the highway, but still within walking distance of everything in town.

The Beacon Inn
A small, very nice B&B-style inn.

The Cedarwood Inn and Suites
A little further outside of 'town' proper, so not ideal if you don't have your own transportation, but it's quiet and on the water.

Quality Inn Waddling Dog
If you want to stay really, really close by the venue, you can check in to the Waddling Dog, which is literally across the highway and five minutes up the road. There's not much nearby, but if you have a car, this could be a good option.


Bed and Breakfasts

Corbett House
Right in the heart of downtown Sidney.

Alder Road Retreat B&B
A little further out, closer to the ferry terminal.


Really Roughing It

McDonald Park Campground
Part of the Gulf Islands National Park Reserve, with a very nice little campground not far from the ferry terminal.

Getting There

As our guests, you'll be arriving from many far-flung places; but most of you will probably be routing through Vancouver at some stage on your journey. From there, you will either have to make a connecting flight to Victoria, or catch the ferry to cross the beautiful Strait of Georgia (seen here from Mayne Island) and reach Vancouver Island. (I know, it's sort of confusing that Vancouver is not located on Vancouver Island, but just go with it.)

To get to Vancouver Island by ferry, you can either bring a vehicle or go as a walk-on passenger. If you're lucky, a talented Coast Naturalist will be working on board and can tell you all sorts of awesome facts about orcas. But even without the interpretive talk, the scenery is stunning.

www.bcferries.com

The ferry will dock at Swartz Bay, which is a convenient 10-minute drive (20 minutes by bus) from the nearest town, Sidney, and an almost-as-convenient 15-minute drive from our wedding venue. If you're bringing a vehicle, we recommend that you make a reservation - you can do this from their website or via their toll-free number. In general, the ferry sails every two hours, at 9 am, 11 am, 1 pm, and so on. Since our ceremony starts at 5.30, we recommend that you catch the 1 pm ferry at the latest. This will give you time to check into your hotel and get your bearings before heading up to Sea Cider.

If you're feeling particularly flush, you can always take the Helijet.

http://www.helijet.com/n/