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Butchart Gardens Holiday Lights Tour
Ride in a motorcoach to Victoria's Butchart Gardens to experience one of the most magical displays of the holiday season. From December to early January, a festive array of tens of thousands of colored lights, evergreen swags and wreaths of holly and winterberries line Butchart Gardens' walkways and lampposts. Get in the holiday spirit with the Twelve Days of Christmas displays, enjoy live performances featuring traditional caroling and music in the Piazza or ice-skate around an outdoor rink. With three different departure times and return trips, including one with ample time to also dine at The Gardens, you can appreciate the glory of the twinkling lights at your leisure.
From downtown Victoria, depart in your motorcoach to Butchart Gardens, 14 miles (23 kilometers) away. Choose from a 2pm, 4:30pm or 6:30pm departure to view the former quarry right as the sun begins to set or deep into the evening. In the winter, the quarry's 55-acres of lush vegetation transform into a twinkling wonderland of tens of thousands of lights, strung up into festive illuminations only viewable after the sun dips.
Wind your way through the winterberries, wreaths of holly and evergreen swags lit up in the holiday display. The illuminated walkways will also take you past the popular 12 Days of Christmas vignettes, which include colorful lights and charming figurines. To continue the feeling of holiday cheer, wander to the Piazza for rousing carols and traditional music performances. You can even don a pair of skates and glide around the 3,300-square foot (307-square meter) outdoor rink.
Choose from three return times—5:15pm, 7:30pm, and 9:15pm—to end your visit to this once-a-year attraction on your own time, with plenty of opportunity to soak up the holiday spirit before returning home.
If you'd like to maximize your time exploring the grounds of Butchart Gardens, choose the 4:30pm departure from Victoria and dine at the on-premise restaurant, The Gardens. For an additional cost, you can sample seasonal dishes and gaze out the floor to ceiling windows at the holiday display outside. Utilizing ingredients from local farms and purveyors, past dishes have included oven-roasted turkey served with seasonal root vegetables, organic squash bisque and a composed salad of winter greens.
Wheelchair Access:
Butchart Gardens offers wheelchair hire for a fully refundable $10 deposit. If a passenger is in their own collapsible wheelchair, but not completely confined to it and are able to board the bus unassisted, the chair can be stored as luggage. If a passenger is confined to a wheelchair, please advise at time of booking and wheelchair access will be requested.
