Victoria Shopping and Districts

(Victoria, British Columbia - BC, Canada)



Central street viewThe city of Victoria is teeming with local speciality stores and gift shops, appealing to a variety of different tastes. Tourists in Victoria can easily spend their days doing nothing other than shopping, and since the city is so well pedestrianised, you will be able to walk between shops with ease, usually finding whatever you are looking for without difficulty.

Victoria has become well known for its antiques shopping, with many popular antiques stores being located along the aptly names Antique Row, which is to be found along Fort Street, close to both Cook Street and also Blanshard Street.


Picture of the local Canadian stores around Bastion Square

Where to Shop

The Inner Harbour area of Victoria is overflowing with small and interesting shops, which appear to be tucked away around almost every corner. Those shopping for souvenirs will find the Inner Harbour and is large selection of gift shops a particularly good place to start.

For some serious shopping, pay a visit to Victoria's excellent Bay Centre, a large indoor mall with around 100 different outlets, open seven days a week.

Photograph of the entrance to Bastion SquareStores within the Bay Centre are designed to look rather like heritage buildings, and specialise in fashion, shoes, jewellery, beauty, books, homewares, electronic and music, with plenty of coffee shops and eateries on hand, should you need to recharge your shopping batteries.

The Bay is the anchor store of the centre and is especially large, being spread over five floors.


Photo of cafe and shoppers in the city centreA further concentration of shops in Victoria is available along Government Street, close to Fisgard Street and Pandora, which leads towards Chinatown and is one of the main shopping drags, very much targeting the lucrative tourist market.

Victoria's bustling Market Square lies off Government Street and is worth a look, particularly in the summer, when live music is often performed here. Alternatively, check out the Sunday market on Bastion Square, the crafts shops on Douglas Street, and the fashion shopping on Lower Johnson Street.