Victoria Harbour Green

Victoria Harbour Green Space is in the seaside City of Victoria, one of thirteen communities that form the Capital Regional District of British Columbia. The causeway that forms the Victoria Harbour Green along the James Bay shore of the Inner Harbour of Victoria, B.C. is a twinned pathway. It passes around the Tourist Information Building, in front of the Empress Hotel, and the Parliament Buildings. Bordered by Wharf, Government and Belleville streets in downtown Victoria, this green space contains some beautiful landscaped flower gardens, hanging flower baskets and trees. The upper causeway is the wide concrete sidewalk that provides excellent views of the shoreline and waterways of the harbour while the lower causeway is, well, a walkway that is closer to the water and marina. The lower causeway can be accessed using several different sets of granite staircases. The main pair of staircases is across from the Empress Hotel, past the James Cook statue; these lead to the central area of the lower causeway. The lower causeway is also accessed from both the north and south ends. On the north side of the lower cause is the Victoria Tourist Information building at the corner of Wharf and Government streets. The granite staircase on the south side of the Tourism Building is four sets of seven stairs that lead down to the shops and washrooms.   Alternatively, the pathway on the north side of the Tourist Information building, which doubles as a road, leads into the parking area for the seaplanes and whale watching boats. The granite staircase on the south side of the Tourism Building is four sets of seven stairs that lead to several shops and washrooms. Outdoor art such as the mosiac orca whale and the Homecoming statues can be seen near here. Along the lower causeway enjoy the roses, boxwood hedges and trees that are planted along the granite and concrete barrier wall that borders the lower causeway. This retaining wall was constructed in nineteen o-three so that the mudflats of James Bay could be filled in. The Empress Hotel and Victoria Conference Center are built on the mud flats which extended to Cridge Park. A creek, diverted to a underground culvert, flowed from an area near Beacon Hill Park into James Bay. The staircase on the south end of the upper causeway leads down to a small grass covered area with the flower garden designed into the words “Welcome to Victoria.” The causeways are part of the David Foster Way, a five kilometer shoreline walk from Barclay Point to Ogden Point. The Empress Hotel and Victoria Conference Center gardens, Parliament Building Gardens, Thunderbird Park, Cridge Park, Elloit Square, Customs House Green Space are nearby.

Geographic coordinates N48° 25′ 20” W123° 22′ 6″

Victoria Harbour Green can be reached from the Trans Canada Highway. Continue along the highway as it becomes Douglas Street. Stay on to reach Belleville Street. Follow Belleville Street to Government Street to see the waters of James Bay and the causeway. There is limited roadside parking in downtown Victoria and several parking areas such as a waterfront site accessible from Wharf Street. City buses travel along Douglas Street about one block inland from Government Street.